Linens and Lace

by Tricia Foley

Book Overview

Domestic bliss is to be found in a well-stocked linen closet Linens and Lace is about stocking that closet -- and then using its contents to bring comfort and elegance into your home. Tricia Foley, author of the best-selling Having Tea and an expert on fine linens, tells us how to find and evaluate vintage household linens -- the most intimate of antiques. We learn how to judge the age of a piece of fabric, how to spot dams and mends, how to tell machine-made lace from handmade. We learn how to care for our treasures: how to wash, iron, and store even the most delicate scraps of lace. Most of all, we learn, through Lilo Raymond's exquisite photographs, how to use lace and linens at home: An old tablecloth makes a wonderful filigreed curtain against the sun; a star-shaped doily softens the line of a bathroom shelf; a heap of plump little pillows invites us to linger in bed. Every image gives us another inventive and easy way to bring some romance to bed, bath, or table, and a thorough source guide tells us where to find the pieces we'll need (even where to find good contemporary reproductions when antique linens are impractical -- or just too expensive). For those of us whose fantasy of grown-up life include snowy tablecloths set for dinner, swagged curtains at mullioned windows, and padded clothes hangers trimmed with lace ribbons, Linens and Lace is an essential guidebook.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0517576805
• ISBN13: 9780517576809
• Release Date: September 1990
• Publisher: Clarkson Potter Publishers
• Length: 87 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 7.8" x 10.3"

Customer Reviews

Linens and Lace

A must book have for a collector of linens and lace. Rarely, do I find a book with such beautiful photographs, but valuable information from distinquishing manufactured from reproductions, types of lace and choosing a good reproduction. I especially liked the ideas of how to display the linens and lace rather than just tuck them in a drawer.My favorite idea is the use of linens and lace for window treatments. If you love linens and lace, buy this book for yourself and one for a friend. Linens and Lace makes a great gift.