Type of lace: Freehand Alpine lace (without any pricking)
Location: The « Vallée de la Maurienne » is in Savoie, south of Tignes. These areas have always been “far” from each other, separated by the huge Massif de la Vanoise, and also because there never has been any exchange between them.
The
tools:
 |
The pillow is filled with sawdust and is
covered with a piece of plain fabric. The sides are often made with a piece
of flowery or striped fabric. It is often very colourful and decorated.
It sits on a “saddle” foot in front of the lace maker.
The bobbins are quite elegant, turned or carved, usually the shape of a fir-tree. The lace maker puts few pins, just on the edges. |
The lace:
Either modest, but still elaborate, |
…or flowery and elegant… |
 |
…or still more complicated
and original,
on a Point de Paris (=katstitch) ground. "samples made by Françoise Monneret/extract from her catalogue.(see below)." |
This lace was the work of women who totally invented their designs. Keeping in mind this lace was made without any pricking, we can easily imagine that the Savoie women took a real pleasure making these patterns for themselves. Because, contrary to the some of the other French Alpine laces, (Tignes, Megève) this lace was not sold.Its production in the Vallée de l’Arvan started at the end of the 18th century, and was particularly flourishing in the 19th century, but it finally stopped after the 1st World War when the women gave up wearing their costumes.
It was made to adorn the women’s or the girls’ “coiffes” (=caps). It can be as large as 11 or 12 cm, or in the case of narrower pieces, they were sewn together to make a large lace. In general, the thread was fine linen (50 up to 80) and up to 150 bobbins were necessary to make the large laces. One can but wonder how they were able to make them without any pricking!! But there never has been any found so far… Each village had his own “type” of pattern, and each lace maker in the same village had her own “knacks” and variations.
A detail of the coiffe from Jarrier (Vallée
de la Maurienne)
Another pattern for this “coiffe” from Jarrier.
Contacts :