INSTRUCTIONS AND PATTERNS IN GUIPURE D'ART
Ancient Guipure was a lace made of thin vellum, covered with gold, silver, or silk thread, and the word Guipure derives its name from the silk when thus twisted round vellum being called by that name. In process of time the use of vellum was discontinued, and a cotton material replaced it. Guipure lace was called intelle à cartisane in England in the sixteenth century. Various modern laces are called Guipure, but the word is misapplied, since Guipure lace is that kind only where one thread is twisted round another thread or another substance, as in the ancient Guipure d'Art.
In every design where lace can be introduced, Guipure d'Art will be found useful. It looks particularly well when mounted upon quilted silk or satin. The squares, when worked finely, look well as toilet-cushions, or, if worked in coarser thread, make admirable couvrettes, and as covers for eider-down silk quilts are very elegant. Guipure squares should be connected by guipure lace, crochet, or tatting, or they may be [504] edged with narrow guipure lace and joined at the corners only when placed over coloured silk or satin; thus arranged, a sofa-cushion appears in alternate squares of plain and lace-covered silk; a ruche of ribbon and fall of lace to correspond completes this pretty mounting.
Not one of the least important attractions of Guipure d'Art is the speed with which it is worked, and the ease with which fresh patterns are designed by skilful workers.
GUIPURE D'ART is an imitation of the celebrated ancient Guipure Lace, and is worked in raised and intersected patterns upon a square network of linen thread, Mecklenburg thread of various sizes being used for this purpose. The needles employed are blunt, and have large eyes, to admit the linen thread.
Materials required: One frame of wire covered with silk ribbon; one square of Mecklenburg thread net (fillet), either coarse or fine; Mecklenburg thread; netting-needles and meshes of various sizes.
The netted foundation, or "fillet," upon which this elegant work is embroidered, can be made by ladies very easily, and at much less cost than when bought ready made.
The square is worked by netting with coarse No. 2 or fine No.10 thread over a mesh measuring three-quarters of an inch or more, in rows backwards and forwards. Begin with 2 stitches, and increase 1 at the end of every row till you have one more stitch than is required for the number of holes. Thus, if a square of 26 holes is required, continue to increase up to 27 stitches, then decrease 1 at the end of every row till 2 stitches only remain. The last 2 stitches are knotted together without forming a fresh stitch.
The completed foundation is laced upon the frame, taking the lacing cotton through the double edge formed by the increased and decreased [505] stitches. If the four corners of the netting are tied at each corner of the frame before beginning the lacing, that operation is greatly facilitated. The netting should be laced as tightly as possible, it being far easier to darn on than when loose.