Glossary
Lace Glossary
| Antique Vintage | The common definition holds that items 100 years old or more are called "antique," but in our personal view, since the flow of styles changed drastically before and after the World Wars, that is where we draw the line between antique and vintage. |
| Needle lace | Lace made with a single needle and thread. In earlier times, a design was drawn on parchment, then a needle was inserted and the lace built up stitch by stitch. |
| Bobbin lace | As the name suggests, lace made by twisting threads while moving many small bobbins between pins fixed according to the design. |
| Malines (Mechlin) | A bobbin lace born in the early 18th century in Mechelen, Belgium. With its light and almost transparent look, it was also popular at the time as a summer lace. Lille lace is a similar type. |
| A bobbin lace born in Valenciennes, France, in the late 17th century. | |
| A bobbin lace born in Binche, Belgium, in the late 17th century, featuring a hexagonal mesh. | |
| A needle lace originating in Northern Italy, born in the early 16th century. In the 17th century, Baroque-era pieces saw further design development and were popular among the nobility. | |
| A bobbin lace from Milan, Italy, that began in the 16th century. | |
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Flemish |
A bobbin lace originating in the early 16th century in what is now Belgium, France, and part of the Netherlands (Malines, Bruges, and Binche all belong to this category). It spread widely in the 17th century, when women supported their households by making lace at home. |
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Irish Crochet |
A crochet lace originating in Ireland in the mid-19th century, modeled after Venetian lace. It, too, was made at home to help support the household. |
| A bobbin lace from the East Devon region of England, from the early 17th century. Originally the motifs were made individually and then fitted onto the mesh, but later it became possible to embed them directly into the mesh. | |
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Carrickmacross |
Originating in Ireland around 1820, a distinctive technique combining appliqué and embroidery. |
| Originating in the early 17th century, made using bobbin, needle, or a mix of both. It was popular among nobility and royalty in the 18th–19th centuries. (Point de Gaze and Brussels Duchesse also belong to this category.) | |
| Often called "the Queen of Lace," this needle lace originated in Alençon, France, in the 17th century. It became popular at the royal court in the era of Louis XIV and spread further. Horsehair was worked in to make the picots stand up. | |
| A needle lace born in Argentan, Normandy, at almost the same time as Alençon. Compared to Alençon, its motifs are flatter. | |
| Appliqué Point d'Angleterre | A lace originating in England that grew in popularity in the 18th and 19th centuries. Delicate motifs such as floral patterns (made in needle or bobbin lace) are finely arranged and appliquéd onto a fine net. |
| Maltese lace | A traditional handcraft, influenced by neighboring Italy, this bobbin lace features Maltese cross and floral motifs. It developed in the 17th–18th centuries, declined for a time, and then regained popularity in the 19th century. |
| Reticella lace | One of the oldest antique laces, born in the 16th century in Italy, the birthplace of lace itself. |
| Cornely | Large curtains from the mid-19th century onward, mainly featuring plant motifs and flowing curved designs embroidered in buttonhole stitch on fine combed-cotton fabric. Characteristically French, often made for large windows. |
Clothing Glossary
| Pintuck | Very fine, narrow pleats |
| Raglan | A sleeve design pattern with no shoulder seam |
| Dolman | A sleeve with generous width that narrows toward the wrist |
| Mantengal | A partial belt sewn directly to the back lining at the waist |
| Stand collar | A collar that literally stands upright. Often seen on antique blouses featuring lace. |
| Bonnet | Typically worn from behind with ribbons tied under the chin. (This is said to be the origin of the word for a car "bonnet," though which came first is unclear.) |
| Plastron | A chest piece (also used in armor and fencing), an accessory worn to decorate the neck and chest area. |
| Fichu | A triangular-folded fashion item popular in the 18th–19th centuries, worn to cover the neck and shoulders. There were everyday daytime versions and more elegant evening versions. The bandana-like item worn by "monsieur" figures also shared this name. |
| Lappet |
Already existing since medieval times, sometimes used decoratively to indicate rank; later, in the 18th and 19th centuries, it became a fashion item worn over the head and hanging down the sides. One of the traditional, folkloric ornamental items. |
| Aube, rochet, surplis | The aube is worn by a priest during church ceremonies. Over it, an even more elaborately embroidered chasuble is layered along with other ornaments. As ceremonies are attended by many people, versions of differing length exist for those standing further back, as well as for children. Lace on these garments often features religious motifs. |
| Jabot | A gathered, flared lace decoration worn at the chest. It was also widely used for men's wear in the 19th century. |
Textile Glossary
| Muslin | The name derives from a fine, plain-woven fabric made with extremely thin threads, originally woven in the Mesopotamian city of Mosul. It spread across Europe in the 18th century, and finely embroidered versions became as popular as lace. |
| Combed cotton |
As opposed to carded yarn, this is cotton thread from which short fibers have been removed to create a smooth finish. |
| Chiffon | A thin, sheer, plain-woven fabric made with fine, delicate threads |
| Drape / draping | A technique used in three-dimensional pattern cutting, where the fabric is directly arranged on the form and the design is finished while observing how the fabric falls and gathers. |
| Damassé / damask | A type of jacquard weave that produces a patterned surface, originally depicting Oriental motifs such as flowers, butterflies, and grapes. It developed in Damascus as a luxurious fabric woven with gold and silver threads, and later spread to Europe—hence the name. |
Accessories Glossary
| Enamel (émail) | Enamel work |
| Cut steel | Originating in England, this technique later spread across Europe. Small pieces of steel were cut like diamonds and widely used in accessories. |