Page 378 - J. C. Turner - History and Science of Knots

A History of Lace 371

show through. As a rule, Filet-lacis was used for the bigger pieces, while mat
designs were made using the meshes of the net arranged in different ways.
Both in France and in England tambour -work was considered an aristo-
cratic amusement . Portraits and passing references (e.g. in Sheridan's `School
for Scandal') show the tambour- frame as a drawing-room item, prettily deco-
rative although having a proper function , just as the little table-top spinning
wheels of the previous half-century were tools for use. However , it is not
clear whether the ladies' tamboured work resulted in embroidered muslin or
in something more closely resembling lace.
In Britain, the fashion followed the tastes of the royal family, and the
embroidered laces of Dresden in Saxony and Hedebo in Denmark were much in
vogue. In the latter half of the century, one Luigi Ruffini started a workshop
in Edinburgh teaching the techniques of Dresden work to apprentices. His
designs were outstandingly good, and he maintained their quality by ensuring
that his apprentices over the age of 13 were given the chance to study at
the Drawing Academy for a six-months ' probationary period; if the student
showed promise she was allowed to continue for the full two years. At the turn
of the century, the famous Paisley Shawls (Jacquard woven woollen shawls in
imitation of the Indian Kashmir webs) were being priced off the market and
the Glasgow weavers forced into producing cotton muslin. Ruffini 's work had
a strong influence upon what followed.

The Nineteenth Century

The century is associated with industry and technology. The ginning machine
was invented in 1793 , and by the turn of the century cotton manufacture was
a fully automated process. The Battle of Waterloo ended fears of further wars
and the world settled to a time of consolidation.
The Paisley weavers set up their own tamboured-muslin factories and,
using the design principles laid down by Ruffin, sold enough work to offset
their losses. In 1814, an Ayrshire lass (Lady Mary Montgomerie) returned
from the Napoleonic wars with a French maid, a baby son and a christening
gown. The Hon. Mrs Jamieson, an agent for the websters of the Glasgow
area, saw the christening gown , learnt the stitch techniques from the French
maid, and taught them to the embroiderers of the workshop . This was the
beginning of the famous Ayrshire whitework embroidery , a cottage industry
where the women sat round the village green exchanging pieces of work and
conversation . Each girl specialized in one particular technique associated with
the craft: thus all the outlines would be padded by one, stitched by the next,
the needlepoint fillings made by several girls-each of whom was expert in one
variation,the cloisons filled by others . The standards were maintained by
stringent inspection of the finished pieces; and as the `Flowerers' were paid