On An Average Day

Heartmade and Handmade: The Laces of Britain by Old Fashioned Mama

The delicate, ancient work of old hands and young lie peacefully in this hallowed room within the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Behind the cool glass in their cherry stands, the intricate weavings and knotting of silk and linen threads form the echoes of more flowers than Eden could have dreamed of; sprigs of tiny orange blossoms and English roses upon grounds of ribbons, hyacinths among trefoils, and even the shadows of children’s paper doll garlands stretched across lengths of insertion. Gazing at these cream flounces and gossamer veils that have seen history transpire, I imagine them between my appreciative fingers. There is no modern lace made by machine which can match the feel of these masterpieces on my skin; each the result of hours and hours of tedious work per square inch, and lives sacrificed to the completion of this quixotic art.