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An invitation to the Third International Lace Festival run by the Dentellières de Quincy in March, 2009, was the opportunity to visit the Berry region in the heart of France, with the help and support of Val Reynolds. Nearly 1000 visitors, many who knew little about lace but were just fascinated by it, came through the door on the first day, to the delight of the organisers, and the salons of lace displays and suppliers remained packed on the second as well.
This fascinating event was complemented by a display in the local pottery museum, la Pôle de Porcelaine, of costumes by Sylvie Façon. While none were precisely lace, they showed what could be achieved by lace-like methods in embroidery and fabric manipulation, using all manners of material. Denim and Hessian made especially strong impressions, but all had a delicate, fairy-like quality that was totally mesmerising.
Among those visiting the event it was a pleasure to encounter Pierre Varenne, whose work continues to enthral. The festival gave me the chance to offer my patterns to the French market, which proved surprisingly popular. One truly delightful lady, dressed as a Goth, drew the cash for her pattern book out of a handbag shaped like a coffin.
This is a region often driven-through on the way to somewhere else. A visit to Bourges on the quiet day we had allowed to recover from the journey proved that it deserves to be the target for a return visit. Kind hospitality, including one of the organisers conducting us along the back roads to our hotel in Vierzon to make sure we got home safely after their banquet, made this a very memorable event.
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