Youghal lace

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Wedding handkerchief of linen trimmed with Youghal lace

Youghal lace (or Point d'Irlande) is a needle lace inspired by Italian needle lace and developed in Youghal, County Cork, Ireland.

Origins[]

Youghal lace was a top quality commercial product that ended with the First World War. Lace making was taught in Youghal from 1845 by the Presentation Sisters. Mother Mary Ann Smith (d.1872) reverse-engineered some to understand how it was made. She then taught the technique to local women and thus the school of lace began.[1] In 1852, the Convent Lace School was opened in Youghal.[2]

Characteristics[]

Youghal Lace is considered a true lace as it is created with a sewing needle and thread only. It was created in Youghal and Kenmare.[3] It was mostly used for fans, collars, cuffs and ecclesiastical trimmings. It is a flat needlepoint lace with no cordon nets. It uses a ladder like buttonhole stitches around each motif and edges decorated with a 'Venetian Stitch' or knotted border. The designs are primarily of flowers such as roses, anemones and fuschia, with spiky shaped leaves. The shading of the petals are a result of the closeness of the buttonhole stitches.[4] There were at least fifty distinct stitches associated with Youghal Lace.[5]

Legacy[]

Among the finest pieces of lace made in Youghal was a train for Queen Mary worn on her visit to India in 1911. The skill of lace making is still retained in Youghal to this day. There is no written record of either the stitches or the general technique at the Convents themselves. In 1863, a shawl of Youghal Lace was given to Alexandra of Denmark on her wedding. In 1888, a Rocket and Altar trimming created in Youghal for the Bishops of Ireland as a gift to Pope Leo XIII was awarded a gold medal at the Vatican Exhibition.[6]

The following are known work relating to Youghal Lace in collections:

  • Two books of designs drawn in Chinese white on paper tinted beige, pink, azure, crimson or midnight blue.
  • The Needlecraft Practical Journal no.106, published by William Briggs under the Penelope trademark, c. 1909.
  • Two books of designs for needlepoint lace, hand-painted by the nuns of St Clares Convent in the late 19th century, on display at the Kenmare Lace and Design Centre, Kenmare.

Pat Earnshaw has written two books, Youghal and other Irish Lace[8] and Youghal Lace, the craft and the cream.[5]

Notes[]

  1. ^ The designs in Kenmare are examples of lace designs. None of them were drawn in youghal by the Presentation sisters there.

References[]

  1. ^ The Art of Lacemaking - Ann Collier, 1986 - ISBN 0-7153-8846-0
  2. ^ "Youghal Lace | Guild of Irish Lacemakers". Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  3. ^ Ryan, Vera. "Made in Cork" (PDF). Crawford Art Gallery.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ "YOUGHAL NEEDLELACE". Embroiderers' Guild of Western Australia. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  5. ^ a b Earnshaw, Pat (1990). Youghal lace : the craft and the cream. Guildford: Gorse. ISBN 0-9513891-2-2. OCLC 21082109.
  6. ^ Coleman, James (1896). "Youghal Convent and Youghal Lace". The Irish Monthly. 24 (281): 587–593. ISSN 2009-2113.
  7. ^ "Youghal Lace Collar". 100 Objects. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  8. ^ Earnshaw, Pat (1988). Youghal and other Irish laces. Guildford, Surrey, England: Gorse Publications. ISBN 0-9513891-0-6. OCLC 24626790.

External links[]

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