To get back to point ground: When was point ground c-t-t-t or t-t-t-c first used in England, France, or other places? There seems to be mention of it in the last quarter of the 18th century, but so far I have not been able to pinpoint an even approximate date from a reliable source. (I am not where my books are at the moment, so cannot cite exact sources, but know I tried in Santina Levey's Lace - A History as well as other reference books).
There has been some confusion about point ground and Ipswich. They are really two separate issues, as Ipswich (MA) lace from the late 1700s in not a point ground lace. The confusion has arisen from the fact that a lacemaker (Mrs. Lakeman) made point ground lace on an old Ipswich pillow. She might not have had the luxury of owning two pillows, and there is no reason why a bolster pillow cannot be used for point ground. She might still have been making lace to sell after she was married, so she would have changed to a pattern that would be in demand at that time, such as point ground lace. Moreover at the age of 90, her eyesight might not have been good enough to work the more complicated patterns she had worked earlier in her life. Karen - in snowy Delaware this weekend - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]. Photo site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
