Work

Throughout history, many different types of lace have adorned clothing and home furnishings. A large percentage of the lace used now is machine made, but the art of making lace by hand is alive and well and continuing at the hands of Belle Plaine, Minnesota, resident Lori Knish. She embodies the twenty-first century version of Van Eyck’s description of the “maiden seated at her work.” Lori’s specialty is bobbin lace, a combination of braiding and weaving lengths of thread wound around bobbins.

For more than 18 years, Lori has created bobbin lace designs ranging from miniature doilies and bookmarks for dollhouses to intricate collars and framed samplers. Her fascination with the art began when she watched a woman make the lace at a demonstration during a local parade. “I knew immediately that I had to figure out how to do it,” she says. With the help of her husband, “We put together the pieces and parts and within six months, I created my first piece.”

Lori explains how the lace is made, “A pattern called a pricking is pinned to a bobbin lace cushion or pillow. The pillows were usually filled with straw or dried seaweed; now they are typically made of polystyrene. Natural threads such as linen, cotton or silk are fastened to the pricking with pins. On each thread hangs a bobbin, which also serves as a weight. The threads are then braided into pairs. The patterns formed are secured with more pins pushed into the cushion. For most techniques, you move only four bobbins at a time. You then work through your bobbins in rows (there can be between three and 200-plus pairs on a cushion, depending on the pattern) picking up pairs as needed. The resulting lace is a filigree fabric in which not only the threads, but the open part, make up the design.”

In addition to being delicate and beautiful, bobbin lace has a fascinating history. Here are some interesting facts from Lori:

• Only royalty once wore this lace. Anyone caught wearing this lace that was not at least a nobleman, could be hung.
• Young children started making lace by the age of seven.
• The young women did not have a long life span, for the rooms they made the lace in were kept damp and without sunlight. Dampness kept the linen pliable and made it easier to work with. Keeping the sun out was necessary to prevent it from decaying from the moisture. The women died at an early age from the cold and damp and often went blind from the lack of good light.
• They had lace wars and would try to smuggle lace across enemy lines. To do this, they would take two dogs, fatten one up and starve the other. They would then kill the fat one and skin it and cover the thin dog with the fur. Then they would put the lace between the layers and walk the dogs to the edge of enemy lines. Someone would be waiting for the dog and take the lace.
• Bobbin lace was made in many different areas in Europe, each having a slightly different look to it. The names of different types of lace, including Torchon, Honiton, Buchinghamshire, Bedforshire, Milanese, Buck’s Point, Dutch and Withof were taken from the areas in which they were made.
• Many countries claimed that they had started the lace making. No one knows for sure where it really started. The Venetians so prized their lace that if a teacher left the country and then tried to teach the skill, the state sent assassins after them.
• During the 1800s British inventors developed the bobbin net machine which made finer lace faster than the most industrious woman, putting many poor people out of work.
• Bobbins were made of many things, mostly of wood and bone. Some were highly decorated. Bobbins were passed out at hangings as a form of souvenir. Men would give women bobbins as a marriage proposal. If they accepted anything less than seven, they were considered a loose woman and the man could take back his proposal.
• Sixteenth century laces used fewer pins than later laces; temporary pins were put in place and then moved as the plaits were made. The reason for this was it took many people to make just one pin, each doing a different task. That did not change until the nineteenth century when a machine was invented that could make a headed pin all in one piece.

In addition to adapting and using supplies locally available, Lori relies on the Internet to acquire patterns, special pins and threads. She also has a friend who travels and has brought back what Lori refers to as “bags of goodies” for her.

“This is a time consuming hobby,” Lori says, “But when you are finished with a piece that you have worked on for hours, the satisfaction that you receive from the finished piece outweighs any frustration that you may have encountered in making it. This hobby is not for the impatient. Some pieces take years to finish. This is not to scare you off, for once you understand the basics, it is not as hard as it looks.”

Lori also does tatting, constructing lace using knots and loops. She is an accomplished quilter, musician and seamstress. Both Lori and Gary, her husband of 30 years, are involved in the community theater. Lori loves to act, work with props and sew costumes while Gary works behind the scenes constructing sets. Lori says, “Theater has provided a great creative outlet.”

Without fail every year, Lori attends and demonstrates her lace making at the Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Reunion (WMSTR) near Rollag, Minnesota approximately 40 miles from Fargo. The large event is held over Labor Day Weekend and the 2009 show double feature is Harvest Machinery and WMSTR Women. Lori says, “It was started by my family and we have a farm nearby. My folks live right there and our whole family is a part of it.”

In January, 2009, Lori and Gary received some life-changing news: Lori has been diagnosed with stage four small cell cancer in her lungs, liver and brain. She has endured weeks of radiation treatment and chemotherapy. Her illness has sapped her strength, so for now, she is focused on her husband and family.

Remaining circumspect and positive, Lori reflects, “My life has been good – many people can’t say that. I don’t regret anything. I’ve met so many interesting people. Nobody knows how long they have, I just have a little advanced notice.”

With a smile, Lori says, “Many of my friends say that I should write a book about my life. But it would probably sound more like fiction.” She has indeed led an interesting journey filled with joys, trials, hardship and now a life-threatening illness. Similarities between her life and her art come easily: Ordinary threads, patience and determination combine to create something of beauty and value.