From Chambers's Encyclopaedia 1864
"The second class is Pillow lace, sometimes called Cushion or Bobbin lace, from the pillow or cushion being used to work the pattern upon, and the various threads of which the figures are made up, each being wound upon a bobbin, usually of an ornamental character, to distinguish one from the other. The pattern on parchment or paper, being attached to the pillow or cushion, pins are stuck in at regular intervals in the lines of the pattern, and the threads of the bobbins are twisted or plaited round them so as to form the net work arrangement which is characteristic of this class of lace (figs 3 and 4), the patterns, or figured portions, being worked out by a crossing of threads, which, although actually plaiting, gives the effect of weaving, as in fig 5. The varieties of this lace are - Spanish, Grounded Spanish, Saxony Brussels, Flemish Brussels, Mechlin, Valenciennes, Dutch, Lisle, Chantilly, Silk and Cotton Blonde, Limerick, Buckinghamshire, and Honiton. The last has of late years become the most beautiful of all the varieties made in Great Britain. The Irish or Limerick lace has also taken a high position."
