| Original Message: Lacemaker's 'Evil Eye' Beads |
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These swirled beads were specifically chosen by English 19th (and 20th century) lacemakers and given the title of "Evil Eye" beads. They believed the beads would prevent them from making mistakes in their work. When lacemakers were paid by the length worked, and financial deductions were made by the dealers for mistakes in the lace, it was essential that as few mistakes as possible were made! Hence the superstition about the bead. If one of these beads was included among the bobbins being used on a lace pillow, then it was believed that it
would help. I still sell modern variants of these types to lacemakers who like to keep up the tradition! LOL To my knowledge the English lacemakers' "Evil Eye" bead is the only one which does not actually have an eye symbol or representation of an eye or dot of some sort on it, but merely a continuous trail around the bead, ideally starting at one hole and ending at the other. If anyone knows of any other cultures with non-eye versions, I'd be very interested. Carole All rights reserved by Bead Collector Network and its users |
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