Border

This narrow border of needle lace could have been used to edge a variety of men's and women's dress items, including cuffs and sleeve trimmings, neck cloths and kerchiefs, lace caps and other types of coiffure.

The French needle lace industry, centred in Alençon and Argentan, was badly affected by the early eighteenth century slump in trade. It could not adopt the muslin–like quality that fashion required in that period, and bobbin lace could assume; but with continued patronage from the Catholic church and some court use, particularly in Spain, Russia, and Poland, where French needle lace remained the prime lace for ceremonial occasions, the industry saw gradual development again.