CDG - The Costume Designer

Summer 2016

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16 The Costume Designer Summer 2016 THE COSTUME DEPARTMENT HISTORY OF DRESS A Lace Primer The Big Bopper sang about it, kings paid huge sums for it, and thieves stole it more often than jewels. Lace, as we call it today, did not really come to be until the late 16th century. First, it was embroidery around cut holes. A later style was called punto in aria, or "stitches in air." This needlepoint lace was created with buttonhole stitches done over thread that was laid over a parchment pattern. First created in Europe, lace was affected in style by sumptuary laws, import regulations, wars, revo- lutions (especially the French Revolution in 1789), new machine inventions, and the vagaries of fashion. Lace can be divided into four main types. These are the centu- ries in which they achieved the height of their artistry: 16th century: Embroidered lace was usually made in linen, where thread is removed or bound, then embroidered around the holes; cutwork, drawn work, pulled work. Geometric shapes were predominant as they are determined by the warp and weft threads of the fabric. 17th century: Needlepoint lace is where a buttonhole stitch is worked with a needle over a thread, such as reticella (filling in holes in the fabric) or punto in aria (an edging, usually pointy). Styles are often named after the city where they originated.

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