't Apostelientje web site

[Nancy A. Neff]

I am using the pretext of telling everyone that 't Apostelientje, the lace shop in Bruges, now has a website, www.apostelientje.be, to actually tell you what a surprise I got accompanying the piece of lace I bought from them. The lady included a postcard with the following note "Thank you for your order. Although the shop exists already 35 year, we only started the webshop a few weeks ago. I find it nice to let you know you are my first web client!  Sincerely, Anne 't Apostelientje"  Please visit their website--they have lovely pieces for sale, and remember--you heard it here first!. (I bought a length of a  needle-lace flounce with  an Art Nouveau design. Pictures to follow.)

[Nancy A. Neff]

The pictures of the piece I bought are still on their website, and are probably better than anything I could take:  www.apostelientje.be/shop/antiquelace/point-de-gaze-2/?v=7516fd43adaa.

[Lorelei Halley Administrator]

very interesting shop.  I would not have labeled your piece as point de gaze. The bar ground filling is not something I think of as part of point de gaze.  Their number 15/67 among the round laces looks like point de gaze to me, but they have labeled it point de rose. Your piece is certainly lovely.  

Any other comments on the labels?  They seem to have the bobbin lace labeled correctly. Sorry if I seem a little compulsive about this, but lace sellers often invent names. And I also am not that familiar with the buying-and-selling aspects of lace. I have not heard every label applied to various laces. So I may be just ignorant. My needle lace knowledge is not that deep.

Lorelei

[Nancy A. Neff]

My needle-lace knowledge is practically non-existent so I won't hazard any comments on any other pieces, but you'll notice that I didn't call it point de gaze in my postings--it doesn't look like it to me either. It is more like a very fine version of the much more recent generic Chinese needle-lace seen in cutwork pieces, but the design is so perfectly Art Nouveau and the piece is so clearly part of a flounce or wide edging that I think their dating of it is correct--1890 to 1920, and I don't know what to call it.  I'll send the links to Laurie Waters for her identification: she's my go-to person for puzzling pieces. But whatever it is, I could stare at that design all day! (it's even prettier "in person")

[Lorelei Halley Administrator]

I agree with you about the likely date. The shape of the motifs fits with that time period.