On the Eighteenth Day of December: Pink Saturday Lacemaking

On the eighteenth day of December I learned about the history of lace at the

 Bard Graduate Center and it was fabulous, as is this gown

I had plans to do a post about the extraordinary lights and decorations at Hudson Yards, but I'm going off the holiday theme for tonight and sharing a great museum exhibition I saw today at a study center for decorative arts. The exhibit was from the Textilmuseum St. Gallen in Switzerland. I knew very little about lace before seeing this exhibit. If you'd asked me about lace before this I would have said, handkerchief trim, wedding gowns and my grandmother's doilies, but I learned there's so much more. 

When I think of lace I think of clothing, but there's a lot more, both decorative pieces and church articles. I'm still in awe of thinking about how these beautiful pieces were hand made and kept clean and white, in ages without indoor running water.  

 

These are examples of clerical pieces and at top, a vestment for clergy

This summer dress was made in the Nineteenth century, at which time machines had, for the most part, replaced lacemakers.  

Love this 1920's high fashion look. The lace inset detail is at the top of the picture. 

Though I have no craft skill -- and I know lace making is beyond a craft -- I took a turn at trying my hand at it. I had no confidence in my ability, but by the end of the session my fabulous instructor Cynthia got me to believe that I, too, could be a lacemaker when I grow up.

Tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the year, Monkey Monday: The Holiday Edition 2022. There will be appearances by Pep, Baby Yo, the Snow People and Friends Orchestra and Chorus and our new friends from France, the Little Gnomes. It's fun, friends and monkeys and you  don't want to miss it. 

Thanks for joining me for one of our last Pink Saturdays  of the year. There are only two more for 2022, amazingly enough. And amazingly enough, one week to Christmas. Enjoy and savor all the sweet moments that this week will hold. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and love and blessings across the blogging miles.