Bev Walker wrote: >What makes a hankie a fertility hankie, is it the design on the lace?
I'm not an authority here, but I think the answer to the question is YES. I bet it's the same as for Pysanky Easter eggs, which I'm working on now, as it's the season. They, like many Christmas decorations, use fertility symbols. Christine Springett's fertility hankie in Lace for Special Occasions has what look like wheat sheaves on it. I can only assume it's a tradigional pattern for that, as her other Beds lace wedding hankie has hearts with sheaves of wheat in the heart, and I can only assume it also has fertility symbolism. If you make Pysanky eggs, the books tell you what the symbols mean, and you can thus 'personalize' the egg if you're making a gift. I don't think there's anything similar for lace. On the other hand church lace tends to have a lot of crosses and trefoils. lrb - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003
