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BARBARABARBARAEXPERT IN LACEEXPERT IN LACE

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•1926, Marcel Bena starts to work as a sole trader and sets up his workshop in Paris, to manufacture corsets made of elastic tulle, in Paris.

• 1944, he goes into partnership with Charles Fossez to manufacture women’s shape wear made of stretchy tulle and lace . They name the brand Barbara, after the name of a good friend.

A HISTORICAL EXPERTISE IN LACEA HISTORICAL EXPERTISE IN LACEA HISTORICAL EXPERTISE IN LACEA HISTORICAL EXPERTISE IN LACE

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A HISTORICAL EXPERTISE IN LACEA HISTORICAL EXPERTISE IN LACE

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BARBARA INNOVATES WITH LACEBARBARA INNOVATES WITH LACE

• In the 70’S, lace was considered by women to be a beautiful fabric but it often lacked comfort as it was rigid and not particularly soft.

• 1981, Barbara launches the first women’s lingerie made of stretchy lace. Barbara uses Textronic lace from Calais, France for its exceptional softness

• Barbara, soon becomes well – known for the quality and the comfort of its laces.

CéciliaCécilia

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BARBARA INNOVATES WITH LACEBARBARA INNOVATES WITH LACE• 2012, Barbara launches Beauty Perfect, an innovation in second skin lace and shapewear. The lace is not only pretty, but it is also perfectly smooth and seamless in order to be invisible under the tightest items of clothing; It also has a light control effect.

• This line has been created to embellish women.

Beauty PerfectBeauty Perfect

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BARBARA LACE EXPERTISEBARBARA LACE EXPERTISE

• Barbara works hand in hand with the most prestigious French lace makers; Noyon and Desseilles.

• Laces are chosen from the lace makers’ collection and then redesigned to meet Barbara’s high standards in style, comfort and softness.

• Different types of lace are chosen in order to meet various consumer needs:Leavers will be chosen for a high quality, visual, opulent, sensual lineJacquard for a comfort, everyday lineTextronic for an ultra soft everyday line

• All laces go through extensive quality tests in order to meet customers’ high expectations.

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BARBARA OFFERS A LARGE CHOICE OF LACE BARBARA OFFERS A LARGE CHOICE OF LACE TO COVER WOMEN’S NEEDS TO COVER WOMEN’S NEEDS

SENSUALSENSUAL EVERYDAY WEAREVERYDAY WEAR EXCEPTIONAL EXCEPTIONAL SOFTNESSSOFTNESS

INVISIBILITYINVISIBILITYSHAPEWEARSHAPEWEAR

RavageRavage OpaleOpale CéciliaCécilia Beauty PerfectBeauty Perfect

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LACE HISTORY LACE HISTORY & KNOW-HOW& KNOW-HOW

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THE HISTORY OF LACETHE HISTORY OF LACE

• We have no precise information on the birth of lace.

• Lace seems to appear in the 16th century in Venice.

• It was first named ‘passementerie’ (1539).

• In 1545, the term lace ‘dentelle’ (little teeth) appears for the first time in the inventory of the dower of François 1er’s sister.

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THE HISTORY OF LACETHE HISTORY OF LACE

• First used in men’s clothes, lace was then worn by women in 17th century.

• In the 19th century, Napoleon 1st decided that lace should only be worn by women.

• In France, the first factories were set up in the 17th century on Colbert’s initiative.

• The first looms appeared around 1820.

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• In 1809, John Heathcoat from Nottingham (UK), a young mechanic, invents the first tulle loom, made with a system of bobbin and carriage.

• The patent is rapidly filled.

• French customs were not allowed to trade with England, but these new machines illegally made their way to France and spare parts arrived in Calais.

• Saint Pierre – lès – Calais was the first town to have a mechanical loom in 1820.

• 1830 : the jacquard system is associated with the Leavers machine and enables to transform tulle into lace.

THE HISTORY OF LACETHE HISTORY OF LACE

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• 1830, Mr Leavers has the idea to mix the jacquard technique with John Heatcoats’s mechanical process.

• This made it possible to change tulle into Leavers lace and to create all sorts of different patterns.

• Leavers lace is well known worldwide for its finesse, its rich backgrounds and the variety of patterns that can be designed.

Woven background with extreme finesse. Pattern with relief. Elaborate designs. Loop shape picots.

LEAVERS LACELEAVERS LACE

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• A total of 17 different techniques are necessary to make Leavers lace.

• The machines are large and extremely heavy (several tons).

• Most machines used today by well known manufacturers are 50 to 100 years old.

• Leavers lace is woven with 15 000 extremely fine yarns.

• The machine carries out more than 8000 mouvements per hour.

LEAVERS LACE PRODUCTIONLEAVERS LACE PRODUCTION

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•The ‘esquisseur’ creates the design in collaboration with a stylist.

•The sketch is passed on to a technician who draws the design onto a design card.

•The design is enlarged in order to show each thread in the loom.

•Each thread movement is transcribed on a plotter which saves all the information on disc. This data will drive the machine which punches the card

THE ESQUISSEURTHE ESQUISSEUR

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• The cards are read by the jacquard which transmits the information to the loom.

• The ‘jacquard’ is the loom’s brain.

• The most important part of the carriage is its bobbin.The rivited copper bobbin holds 80 to 100m of thread.They are placed at the center of the carriage, which acts as a support and guide.

• Inside the loom, several thousand carriages perform the same shuttle mouvement to form the weft of the lace.

THE JACQUARDTHE JACQUARD

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• Quality control, finish mending is systematically performed.

• The lace is washed ans preformed on a carriage.

• It is then dyed, stabilised in length and width and softness.

• The lace is produced in a very wide width, bands have to be divided from each other either by fraying or scallopping.

• Folding is made on bobbins which allows a last quality control.

THE FINISHINGTHE FINISHING

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• Mid 20th century, Karl Meyer (Germany) creates in the first ‘Rachel’ machine.

• Lace is knitted instead of woven.

• These machines are faster than Leavers lace machines.

• Jacquard, Textronic laces are produced using this technique.

JACQUARD & TEXTRONIC LACEJACQUARD & TEXTRONIC LACE

Textronic :Knitted backgroundPattern with relief, great softnessPicots shaped as teeth instead of loops.

Jaquardtronic :Knitted backgroundFlat lace, invisible under clothingPicots shaped as teeth instead of loops.

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THE 3 MAIN TYPES OF LACETHE 3 MAIN TYPES OF LACE

LEAVERSLEAVERS JACQUARDJACQUARD TEXTRONICTEXTRONIC

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THE 3 MAIN TYPES OF LACETHE 3 MAIN TYPES OF LACE

LEAVERSLEAVERS JACQUARDJACQUARD TEXTRONICTEXTRONIC

Fleur de SucreFleur de Sucre OpaleOpale CéciliaCécilia