Alençon lace is
It was developed based on Italian lace techniques during the reign of King Louis XIV of France. In 1665, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Louis XIV's Minister of Finance, encouraged lace manufacturing in France and developed the lace industry by adopting Italian techniques.
Alençon lace is a type of needle lace (lace made like embroidery with a needle) made using very fine linen or silk threads.
One of the important features is the thick outline called "cordonnet". Thick thread is used to edge the lace pattern, making the motif stand out. To make the outline of this part stand out, horse hair was often inserted. Many of the cordonnets found today have fallen out, but there are some that still remain.
The background features a fine mesh pattern of hexagons that is woven to fill in the spaces between the motifs.
The steps below will be the same for other races, taking into account the historical background.
18th century lace was highly technical, elaborately handcrafted, and carried strong symbolic meaning within aristocratic society.
In the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution led to the appearance of machine-made lace, and simpler, mass-produced designs became available. Floral and leafy patterns remained popular, but the decoration became more luxurious, and the variety of types and styles of lace expanded, becoming more popular among the general public and its uses became more widespread.
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Cordon neck zoom |
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Further zoom |
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There are various differences in motifs |
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A motif with scattered small flowers |
Alençon lace currently available in the shop↓