Monday, November 28, 2011

Estonian Lace Intermission

The Lacis Museum of Lace and Textiles in Berkeley, CA is featuring an exhibit of 'Knitted Lace of Estonia' (slideshow).  Haapsalu, Estonia (a tiny Baltic nation) became a popular health resort in the mid 1820's drawing wealthy vacationers who recognized the value of local needleworkers.  By mid century the shawls were available in major European and Russian cities.  Shawl knitting became a major source of additional income for many families.   The nupp stitch (bobble) is a trademark of the Estonian shawl.  The price of the shawl was determined by its weight; the nupp increased the weight and, therefore, the price.

Willow leaf was one of my favorites -

 
















Below is a comparison of Estonian and Orenburg lace shawls (Estonian on left and Orenburg on right).  Orenburg shawls are made from the hair of Ural Mountain goats.  These shawls have the reputation of being able to pass through a wedding ring.


More lace

                        
The exhibit included a small display of Estonian mittens


The Lacis Textile Center and Retail Store is an amazing resource for all textile arts - tatting, beading, knitting, hat making...  My souvenir was a curved abalone crochet hook!  Take a peek -



12 comments:

Janet O. said...

Wow! That lace leaves me awe-struck! Incredible.

antique quilter said...

I have always been intrigued with lace and how could they ever make those designs! ok those mittens are beautiful another thing on my list to learn how to knit designs like that!
thanks for sharing and oh great quilt btw! great backdrop for those blouses and oh my girls would have loved those umbrellas!
Kathie

Me and My Stitches said...

Wow - what beautiful lace. And what a shop! It looks like you could spend days in there and still not see everything!

Lori said...

When I've seen lace making I've always been amazed. It is such a beautiful exhibit!!

Kyle said...

Thanks for sharing these amazing pictures. It makes you realize there are so many wonderful creations that people make with some form of a needle and thread.

Barb said...

Thanks for showing, that laces is amazing!

Dawn said...

Wow! Stunning.
Thanks so much for sharing.

regan said...

Vicki....thank you so much for this post! I have just spent 2 hours reading through the different exhibit catalogs that the museum put out, and perusing the retail catalog.....oh boy, there are some things I don't think I can live without! Bobbin lace is something I learned years ago, but haven't touched in ages....and I'd love to get back into it....I have all the tools, so with a few new patterns, I could get started again!

Thanks....this made my day....and the next time I'm in CA....I'm making my way up to Berkeley!

Mimi said...

Beautiful!

Barb said...

beautiful post!
that store is incredible - seriously.
I recently watched someone bobbin lacing, it's fascinating and beautiful.

Donna Becker said...

Uh-oh. I think I just felt another obsession kick in. Yep, sure enough! Thank you for posting these wonderful photos.

Nicky said...

Stunning lace! What a great exhibition!