http://tinyurl.com/3z795mq EXQUISITE ROSALINE LACE HANDKERCHIEF W/ROYAL PROVENANCE
Size: ~12″ x 12″
Starting price: $45.00 with reserve
Auction ends: May 10, 2011 08:19:33 PDT
Offered by: Maria Niforos Ebay seller mithya, London-New York, United States
Comments: This is finer than what one normally thinks of as Rosaline. Maybe a little too fine, the work seems a bit crowded. Maybe it’s the bride ground – it’s a little overpowering. In Rosaline the motifs have a larger say in the design. These small meandering Belgian pieced laces are in need of research.  Condition and workmanship are excellent.

   $56.00, 4 bidders, reserve not met.

http://tinyurl.com/3wluyy2 ANTIQUE LACE-BRUSSELS LACE W/POINT DE GAZE
Size: 4.5″ x 54″
Starting price: $145.00
Auction ends: May 10, 2011 08:28:24 PDT
Offered by: Maria Niforos Ebay seller mithya, London-New York, United States
Comments: Good solid length of Duchesse de Bruxelles. Work on the bobbinlace is very nice; dense with well defined raised work. I like the ‘fan’ effect in the scallops. Needlelace is a bit plain. Very good length, has a few brown spots, but no damage I can see.

   Did not sell.
Relisted as #150668868708

http://tinyurl.com/3rv39zv ANTIQUE LACE-Circa 17THC. MEZZO PUNTO LACE
Size: 6.5″ x 64″
Starting price: $45.00 with reserve
Auction ends: May 10, 2011 08:37:48 PDT
Offered by: Maria Niforos Ebay seller mithya, London-New York, United States
Comments: Great piece of Mezzo Punto; Italian braided tape with needlelace fillings. Interesting bobbin-made engrelure – you see things like that in Milanese. The lower edge looks original. Hard to tell a date on pieces like this. Seller mentions the ‘cool’ threads – dealers make more of this as a sign of very early lace than I do. The texture of the lace has more to do with finishing than age – and there was a substantial amount of dry pressing that went into pieces like this.  Excellent design and work, and I can’t see any problems in condition.

   $47.99, 2 bidders, reserve not met.

http://tinyurl.com/3qjxt94 KLUMPE SPANISH DOLL LACE MAKER
Size: 11″ tall
Starting price: $19.95 with reserve
Auction ends: May 10, 2011 13:32:56 PDT
Offered by: Ebay seller 22eloise, Walnut Creek, CA, United States
Comments: Spanish molded felt lacemaker by Klumpe (note the tag on the back of the skirt). Note the inverted V shaped eyebrows – a characteristic of Klumpe. Looks in excellent shape.

   Did not sell.
Relisted as Ebay #250818258924. Sold for $45.00, 6 bids.

http://tinyurl.com/3sboggo Antique Vtg BRUSSELS POINT DE GAZE LACE Bertha Collar
Size: 6-1/2″ wide, ~40″ around neckline.
Starting price: $49.99
Auction ends: May 10, 2011 18:04:28 PDT
Offered by: Ebay seller adtjmd, RED VELVET BENCH, United States
Comments: Good bertha of Duchesse de Bruxelles. Design of flowers, leaves, swags is quite typical of this style. Not a very ambitious piece, but appears in good condition (seller sites a few tiny breaks and some age discoloration).

   Sold for $265.00, 11 bidders.

http://tinyurl.com/3td48wy * Antique IRISH YOUGHAL NEEDLE LACE Collar – 1880/1900*
Size: Back of neck 5.5 inches (14cm) deep. Front edge 5 inches (13cm) depth.
Starting price: $19.99
Auction ends: May 11, 2011 11:43:40 PDT
Offered by: Ann Rosenthal, Ebay seller jaruk, Worcester., Worcs., United Kingdom
Comments: Wonderful little Youghal collar from Ann. Small sprigs, nicely made, condition appears excellent.

   Sold for $179.99, 9 bidders.

http://tinyurl.com/3vfoadq * Antique Large IRISH CARRICKMACROSS LACE COLLAR c1890*
Size: Not given, but appears to spans shoulder width.
Starting price: $19.99
Auction ends: May 11, 2011 11:46:26 PDT
Offered by: Ann Rosenthal, Ebay seller jaruk, Worcester., Worcs., United Kingdom
Comments: Another very nice piece from Ann.  Carrickmacross applique on machine net. Cream color – don’t try to wash it, it’s fine. She cites two tiny breaks in mesh, otherwise appears in excellent condition.

   Sold for $191.49, 8 bidders.

http://tinyurl.com/4yjox37 Lovely Antique Handmade Lace and Mother of Pearl Fan
Size: 11″ long
Starting price: 9.99 GBP
Auction ends: May 11, 2011 12:00:23 PDT
Offered by: Ebay seller baraud, Newton Abbot, United Kingdom
Comments: Brussels applique on machine net fan leaf, attached to mother of pearl sticks. Some breakage in the sticks, but leaf appears ok, seller says it’s ‘a little grubby’. Has original tassel and box. It’s probably just the photo, but the MOP is a little bright, overpowers the lace a bit. Usually you see MOP with Duchesse leaves; this one is a little unusual.

   Sold for 100 GBP, 8 bidders.

http://tinyurl.com/3vjlmec Antique Brussels Duchesse handmade lace collar & cuffs
Size: 13″ inside edge, just over 6″ down the front points, the cuffs measure 9-3/4″ along the top  by 4-1/2″ down the centre, 2-1/4″ side edge.
Starting price: 49.99 GPB
Auction ends: May 12, 2011 04:32:16 PDT
Offered by: Ebay seller discover4, London, United Kingdom
Comments: Not the greatest design on this Duchesse set, but the fact that the collar and cuffs have survived together is unusual. And I like the very dense workmanship in the motifs.  The yellowing at the inner edge of the collar is due to the fact that a tape has been sewn in – there doesn’t seem to be any damage.

Sold for 49.99 GPB, 1 bidder.

http://tinyurl.com/3vfp3ol GORGEOUS HM LEFKARITIKA VENETIAN NEEDLELACE TABLECLOTH
Size: 22.5″ x 69″
Starting price: $995.00
Auction ends: May 12, 2011 18:22:12 PDT
Offered by: Ebay seller twist-in-time, Philadelphia / DFW, United States
Comments: This is a good chance to talk a little about Lefkaritika ‘lace’ from Cyprus. This runner combines the Lefkara cutwork with Cypriot free reticella – an impressive presentation. The local name of cut-work in the Lefkara embroidery is “tayiadha”, derived from the Italian “punto-tagliato”. Good pieces like this don’t come up too often.
Legend has it that Leonardo da Vinci visited Lefkara in 1481 and bought a lace altercloth for the cathedral in Milan. Two small problems – even this kind of cutwork lace didn’t exist in 1481 (it was probably a ‘potamos’ embroidery), and there are no official records of any da Vinci visit to Cyprus at all. Nevertheless, Cyprus issued a set of postage stamps in 1981 honoring the 500th anniversary of visit and the lace, and a new stamp was issued in March of 2011:

After a big marketing push for their embroideries in the late 1890’s, Lefkara cutwork appears to have evolved in the 1920’s and 30’s  – the piece shown in the first stamp was made in the 1950’s. Lefkartika work was included in UNESCO’s representative List  of Intangible  Culture  Heritage of Humanity on September 30, 2009. See http://www.lefkara.org.cy/HandmadeLace/tabid/56/language/en-US/Default.aspx for a good discussion Lefkara embroideries.
Note also the reticella needlelace motifs in this piece – quite distinctive and little acknowledged today.

   Did not sell.

http://tinyurl.com/43ogs4b Point de Gaz Lace 19th Century Stole/Veil/Shawl
Size: 20″ x 82″
Starting price: $4,800 for auction, $5,800 Buy-it-now
Auction ends: May 12, 2011 20:45:13 PDT
Offered by: Ebay seller dapper365, USA, United States
Comments: A respectable Belgian needlelace shawl – point de gaze type with raised petal roses. Ummm. Work seems a bit ‘grainy’, worked a little loosely. I don’t see a lot of variety in the motifs.  But it is big and looks … big.

   Did not sell.
Relisted as #230626896836, $1800 with reserve. $1,925, 2 bidders, reserve not met.
Relisted as #230655138311, $3000, ending Aug 08, 2011 19:46:26 PDT. No bids.
Not sure what happened to it after that.

http://tinyurl.com/3scvf9o antique black chantilly lace collar tie lapette
Size: 41″ x 3-1/2″ at widest point
Starting price: $50.00
Auction ends: May 13, 201111:44:44 PDT
Offered by: Ebay seller fifini, White Plains, United States
Comments: Handmade Chantilly just pops out at you – you can never mistake it for the machine stuff.  A sweet lappet set, even a little bit of shading on the inside edges. Looks in very good shape.

   Did not sell.