Lace Pattern Book

lace pattern book, collection of decorative lace patterns produced in the 16th and 17th centuries. The earliest known printed pattern books, beginning with those published in 1527 by Matio Pagano in Venice and Pierre de Quinty in Cologne, were dedicated to and intended for royal and noble ladies. The earliest booklets rarely provided technical instruction.

Books geared to a wider public were published eventually, and by the 17th century the lace and embroidery designs of Federico de Vinciolo of Paris (1587), Cesare Vecellio of Venice (1592), Isabetta Catanea Parasole of Venice (1595), and William Hoffman of Frankfurt (1604, expanded 1607) were popular. Also well known in England were Geoffrey Whitney’s A Choice of Emblemes (1586), John Taylor’s The Needle’s Excellency (1621), and Richard Shorleyker’s A Schole House for the Needle (1624).