Argentan was established at the same time as Alencon and also produced lace in imitation of Venetian Point. It can only be distinguished from Alencon after Alencon adopted the reseau. Argentan kept to the bride ground of a six-sided mesh worked over with, button-holed stitches. The large bride ground could support bolder and larger flowers and in heavier and higher relief than the reseals ground. The bride picot& is also a characteristic of the Argentan Point. Checked by the Revolution, it was re vived in 1810; but in 1830 cotton, instead of linen thread, was used and debased the quality. Argentan Point became rare about 1858 and the secret of making it was lost in 1869. Although France borrowed the technique of lace-making from Italy, she put her own stamp upon it, and gradually brought it to such perfection that both Point d'Alencon and Point d'Argentan enjoyed enormous vogue. Other workshops were founded at Le Quesnoy, Arras, Rheims, Paris and Sedan.
French Pillow Lace.— Ten years before Colbert made French lace such an item of trade Le Puy had become a centre for lace making, and the Duchesse de Longueville, Condes sister, had established lace-makers at Chantilly. Le Puy was the oldest lace-centre in France. It was noted for its thread laces and silk guipures. These guipures were made in bands, for which designs of geometric char acter, squares, stars and formal blossoms were used. Some of the Le Puy laces were known as °guipures de Cluny," from the Cluny Museum in Parts. Flax, silk, worsted, goat's hair and Angora rabbits' hair were used with equal facility at Le Puy.
Valenciennes is the most beautiful of all French pillow laces. Bobbin lace was made in Valenciennes in the 15th century, when the town belonged to Flemish Hainault. After Colbert founded Le Quesnoy the lace industry at Valen ciennes revived and supplanted that in the neighboring town. Owing to the number of bobbins required, Valenciennes was the most expensive of all pillow-lace, though the workers who sat in dark cellars from four in the morn ing until eight at night, with only a little light concentrated on the pillow, received but a few pennies a day. Many went blind. A piece of lace "worked all by the same hand," therefore, was rare and commanded a large sum. In the town was made what the trade called °true Valenciennes' and in the suburbs °false Valen ciennes' was produced. At the Revolution many workers fled into Belgium and settled in Alost, Ypres, Ghent, Merlin, Courtrai and Bruges. Every town made a characteristic reseal( Valenciennes was revived, but the mod em productions are not so fine as old Valen ciennes. In the 18th century Valenciennes was
much used for ruffles, cravats and trimmings. 14 was not regarded as a lace for full dress, nor was it a Church lace. Valenciennes is all made in one piece, the threads forming a continuous reseau and toile. There is no cordonnet. The reseau is composed of circles in the earliest ex amples, but of squares in later examples. The flowers in early examples are tulips, anemones, iris, or carnations- and have almost the appear ance of cambric. Later specimens usually have a scalloped border containing a leaf, petal or feather, and the rennin is sprinkled with dots. Machinery has imitated this lace very success fully and a vast amount of it is sold. It is commonly called "Val." Chantilly was also famous for its lace. After having produced lace of second rate value of the Valenciennes and Mechlin type, Chantilly suddenly achieved reputation by making silk lace, especially black. The mate rial used was a silk, called grenadine d'Alais. The peculiar twist in spinning these threads so diminished the lustre that people frequently imagine Chantilly is made of flax, dyed black. The reseau is a six-pointed star known as "Fond Chant," an abbreviation of Chantilly, often used by other workshop.;. Chantilly also used the Alencon ground and sometimes used the Alencon and the Fond Chant in the same piece. The patterns of old Chantilly (whether in white or black) were often of vases of flow ers and other decorations similar to ornaments on Chantilly pottery. Chantilly lace ceased to be made during the Revolution, but was popu lar again under the Empire, when "blonde" lace became the rage in Paris. Chantilly was first made in bands and invisibly joined. After 1840 (in the reign of Louis Philippe) it en joyed great favor and large pieces were made, such as shawls, fiches and bridal-veils, and smaller articles such as "barbes," parasol covers, handkerchiefs, fan-mounts, etc. In the days of Napoleon III flounces and dresses and all other articles of Chantilly were made even more popular by the Empress Eugenie and they found a large market among wealthy Ameri cans. In 1870 the workshops became bankrupt. Modern Chantilly is made at Calvados, Caen and Bayeux.
Bayeux made exquisite black lace in which the elaborate patterns of flowers and other ornaments are rendered with the utmost delicacy of shading. At first Bayeux made lace in the Venetian style, then it followed the styles of Chantilly, and so beautifully that experts are puzzled to tell the difference. Many so-called "Chantilly shawls" were made in Bayeux, but arc none the less valuable for that.