Figure 1--These German boys have large lace collars. It looks to us like truce lace, but we are not sure about just what type. We are not sure what they are wearing, but it appears to be back buttoning. |
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We note different types of lace being worn by German boys. This includes both proper lace and eyelet lace. There were many different types of true lace, but identifying the type of lace from a photograph is very difficult and we are not experts on lace. True lace could be very expensive. This lace in America was often called Belgian lace because it was imported from Belgium or becauyse Belgium was well known as a producer of high quality lace. There was a very important lace industry in Belgium, part of a textile industry dating back centuries. It was the same expensive lace women wore on their dresses. We do not know if Germany had a lace industry or if it was imported from Belgium and other countries. Eyelet lace was a less expensive alternative that looked somewhat like lace. Here holes were cut out of fabric and often embroidered. And unlike true lace it can be easily identified from photograohic portraits. We are not yet sure what the German term for this was. Crochet laace was anoyther relstiveky in expensive type of lace, but we are not sure yet how common crochet lace was. Crochet lace is another type of lace that is easy to identify. The threats used in crocheting tend to be much thicker than the threads used in true lace.
There were many different types of true lace, but identifying the type of lace from a photograph is very difficult and we are not experts on lace. True lace could be very expensive, the kind of thing that only the well-to-do would add to boys' clothing. This lace in America was often called Belgian lace because it was imported from Belgium or because Belgium was well known as a producer of high quality lace. There was a very important lace industry in Belgium, part of a textile industry dating back centuries. It was the same expensive lace women wore on their dresses. We do not know if Germany had a lace industry or if it was imported from Belgium and other countries.
Eyelet or cut out lace was a less expensive alternative that looked somewhat like lace. And it was not that expensive to create the large collsrs fashionable duriung the Fauntleroy era. The German is something like Ösenspitze or Spitze ausgeschnitten.Here holes were cut out of fabric and often embroidered. And unlike true lace it can be easily identified from photographic portraits. We are not yet sure what the German term for this was. We have found only a few examples of boys wearing eyelet lace in Germany. But this may relect that lace in general was not as commonly used for boys clothing in Germany as in most other countries.
Crochet laace was anoyther relstiveky in expensive type of lace, but we are not sure yet how common crochet lace was. Crochet lace is another type of lace that is easy to identify. The threats used in crcheting yarn tends to be much thicker than the threds used in true lace. We have, however, seen some rarher fine laced that was crocheted. We do not yet examples of crochet lace in Germany. But home knitting was very common in Germany. We suspect there was also a great deal of crocheting. Crochet in German means Krabbe Häkelarbeit. To crochet is häkeln.
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