If you have read my 10 things about me, you’ll know that I’m a complete sucker for period dramas and a most lavish BBC adaptation of Jane Eyre will be gracing our British TV this fall. A material featured heavily in the costumes undoubtedly will be lace, also a big big trend this summer. It was of course a sign of status in the 19th century to be able to wear this intricate, handcrafted material. What most people won’t know is that the lace used in this 21st century adaptation was made in Sri Lanka where a vibrant lace making craft has existed since the 15th century. However, the Boxing Day tsunami of 2004 utterly destroyed this by frightening off tourists who would have bought this lace. 
UK costume designer Andrea Galer has taken this cause under her wing by making a documentary on the plight of the Sri Lankan lace makers and promoting the use of Sri Lankan lace in costume making as demonstrated in Jane Eyre which has provided the Sri Lankan lace makers with 2 months work.
"All the well-to-do characters wear lovely jabots (ruffs) made out of Sri Lankan lace, and most have lace frills on the ends of their sleeves," she says. "And I’ve put lace all round the collar of Jane’s wedding dress."
This enterprise named Power of Hands is now fighting the cause by generating orders from establishments like the National Theatre, the Royal Opera House and of course other major period dramas (we get a LOT of them in the UK!).
If you would like to help the cause too, you can purchase lace wristbands (as modelled by Christina Cole in the picture above who places Blanche in upcoming Jane Eyre drama) from the Power of Hands site or even buy lace by the metre. I would use it for all sorts of things, trims on t-shirts hems and sleeves, lace neck chokers for that Madame de Pompadour look or simply tie some around your head for an easy headband. You could sew some lace along the buttons on a men’s shirt for that Baroque men’s shirt feel. I would really support the cause if you can because genuine handcrafted goods are hard to come by in the world we live in so don’t let them die out!