Battenberg lace collar. Source: Etsy.
Battenberg – sometimes spelled Battenburg – lace is a style of lace trim dating from the late 1800s. It is machine woven, embellished with hand-stitching. As production for Battenberg was much faster than it’s totally-handmade predecessors, it was therefore cheaper to buy and quickly became popular within Victorian society.
Traditionally made from cotton or linen yarns, there are totally-machine-made Battenberg-style laces out there made with artificial and/or natural yarns.
These days, it’s largely found as ‘tape-style’ trim – a long, narrow strip, something you’d associate with the edge of a fancy handkerchief. In the 19th century, larger pieces were common, used to embellish fancy table linens, as doilies, or as embellishments on fine dresses.
Tape-style Batternberg lace trim.
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