Antique lace and embroideries are my favorite things in the whole world, after grandchildren and chocolate. I love the fine workmanship, the intricacy of patterns, the elegant combinations of laces and embroidery.
This is part of a 90" petticoat hemline. Surely it must have been allowed to peek out from under a skirt. This is an exquisite trim, further embellished with 6 tiny tucks above the edge.
Actually, I love everything about them.   So this lacy sort of crazy patch quilting is a natural outlet for my appreciation and use of the materials.
An earlier post addressed the quilt shown at the left,  In the Pink, so I won’t go into details about it. But since one of the classes I will be teaching at Sewing at the Beach, in Myrtle Beach, SC, is titled Lace Crazy Patch, I wanted to share with you photos of some of the lovely textiles that will be included in the student kits.
Today’s laces are beautiful, no doubt. But I think back to comments made some time ago by Joyce Oakley, who at that time had been vice president of Capitol Imports for several years. She explained that the number of background patterns in a lace contribute mightily to the cost. In today’s market, the lace becomes so expensive that it is almost impossible to generate enough sales to offset the cost of making the elaborate laces of yesteryear. Continue reading
