Hello lovelies, 

and welcome back to another lace exhibition blog post. After diving into that exhibition topic head first last year, I finally get all the good information where all of the exhibitions and lace are held. And I am loving it. 

The MAK (Museum für Angewandte Kunst) allegedly also has a huge lace collection so I will check it out soon. I have only been to MAK once at a lolita event and that was ages ago (while going through all of my posts I realized I never made a posting about it. I think it was back in 2009/2010 maybe?).

The small exhibition was held at Tostmann Trachten, a shop specialized on Dirndl and other traditional Austrian garment. I like Dirndl in its modern form but also have to strongly disagree with people who seem to think that all Austrians wore this before the world wars. A dirndl like dress was only worn by peasants in the countryside and servants and looked very different to what we have today. Yes, it did also consist of skirt, apron and bodice but most clothing did in the 18th and 19th century. But I digress.

Here is a screenshot from their website, accessed 13th of January 2025 introducing the exhibition "The world of lace".

 

The exhibition is open Fridays from 2pm to 5pm and Saturday from 11am to 3pm. As I worked near the shop, it was a no-brainer to just go Friday after my work. We arrived around 3pm at the shop and were lead up a narrow staircase at the back of the shop. The stairs were well-trodden by many people who had passed through before.

The room we were in had dark fabric plates on the wall where the lace was pinned onto it. Next to it were the information table which explained the lace. And there was so much to see. I will only upload the collected versions and not the individual images because it would be too much. If you want any close-ups of the lace, don't hesitate to contact me on my email

Occhi Spitzen (Tatting Lace)

Orientalische Nadelspitze (Oriental Needle lace)

Hedebo Baldyring Durchbruchstickerei (Breakthrough Embroidery)

All examples were made in the later half of the 19th century.

Durchbruchstickerei

All were made in the 20th century.

Renaissance embroidery

The right piece is made from Linen and was probably part of an altar cloth.

The brown piece on the left is the oldest piece, it's from the late 15th century, while the other two are from the 16th century.

Reticella collars and gros point de venise.

These are all lace collars, mostly from the 16th century.

Point de France and Alençon

This long hood band was made in the 19th century.

The top lace collar is a point de France from the second half of the 17th century, the other two below are Venetian collars made in the 16th century. Only the bottom one with the floral motif is relatively new from the 19th century. The ground is machine made and was then filled in.

Alençon, Agentan and Brussel Needlelace in tull ground

The rectangle and the one on the bottom are the only two without a date, the rest is from the 18th century.

Frühe Italienische und Niederländische Klöppelspitzen/Early Italian and Netherland bobbin lace

The red one was from a stole of a liturgical vestment but all were made in the 17th century.

Brüsseler Rokoko Klöppelspitze/Brussel rococo bobbin lace

The top two were made in the 1740s, the decorative cloth and the lace last lace were made in the 19th century whereas the middle lace was made in the 18th century. Both lace at the bottom are examples of Valenciennes lace.

There were also two bobbin lace bolster pillow with lace patterns attached to them. I am pretty sure that there were people demonstrating bobbin lace on the opening day.

A wonderful little cap but without any information. 

Kombinationsspitzen/Combination lace

All crafted in the 19th century in Point de gaze or duchesse.

Chantilly

Chantilly lace from the 19th century made in Silk.

Flandrische Rokoko Klöppelspitzen/Flandern rococo bobbin lace

Sonnenspitze

I had never hear of "Sonnenspitze"/"Sun lace (??)" before but you always learn something new.

Lochstickerei/Broderie Anglais

Bändchenspitze

I don't think English speaking people make a difference but in the Germanic Bobbin lace group, there is a difference between Bänder Spitze and Bändchenspitze. Just, don't ask me what the difference is because my teacher told me but I forgot.

The books that can be seen at the bottom of the pictures are available for sale on the homepage of the publisher Leykam.

It's a 350 page monster of a book (very heavy) with around 600 pictures of lace. It's pricy with 55€ but worth the money. Coincidentally, a friend of mine gifted me this for Christmas, before we went to the exhibition and I only made the connection between book and exhibition a few days before we went.

All the best,

Auris Lothol