Historical information
These lace collar and cuffs could be attached to and detached from clothing as needed in order to embellish an outfit and for ease of cleaning as collars and cuffs would soil more quickly than the rest of an outfit. Their original owner is unknown, but they were purchased in the late 1990s by the donor who later moved to Emerald but, at the time, had a 2nd hand decoration shop in Camberwell when she purchased this as part of a group of garments which included bloomers, lace collars and cuffs, camisoles etc - all of which have been donated to the Museum. The donor was informed at the time of purchase that the garments were over 100 years old.
Significance
This lovely set of handmade collar and cuffs enabled more personalisation and variety in people's outfits as well as enabling more efficient cleaning of clothes.
Physical description
Pair of cream-colored lace cuffs. One side has a more rounded end than the other side. Hand-made.