Friday 24 April 2015

Who said doilies were boring?!

Oh dear, March went by and April is almost done and I have been ignoring the blog!

Partly because I have been busy acquiring new stock for the website and much washing and ironing has been required. Just as well I have a steam generator iron which can help me whizz through the piles of damask at speed.

However, it has not all been linen and damask - lurking in the bottom of one huge box obtained from an auction in Ballycastle was a group of the most gorgeous doilies.

The doily is a strange item, it comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes, made from many different types of thread. Mostly they are cream or beige but this latest find was a riot of Neopolitan ice cream colours.



I have seen the green ones before, in fact I seem to remember Granny having some just that colour, but the pink are so pretty too. I suspect these are from the 1950s, the colour palette is a bit of a pointer in that direction.


Then there was a lacy silky one in shades of peach and green - a very open style of crochet and so dainty. Perfect for a dressing table. I think Granny used to keep these under a glass top to a side table.

The last one to emerge from the box is an absolute beauty and I will not be parting with it. Maybe you will see why........!


So often Irish crochet lace comes in pure white, or I have some on the website at the moment in a warm ecru colour, but this piece brings the exquisite art to life in a very different way.


The Clones knots are worked skilfully in a champagne coloured thread and the frilled flower heads in bubble gum and calamine pink are just gorgeous. The chevron motifs in apple green just pop from the centre making this the prettiest of mats.


To be honest I am not a huge fan of lilac as a colour, but somehow these neatly worked roundels may just have won me over.

So, whilst the peach,  pink and green doilies will be making their way onto the website, this little beauty is staying well and truly with me.