The Lace Museum, Detroit, a new gallery space that will feature a collection of antique lace and fashion, will open on Nov. 18 in downtown Northville.
About 100 pieces, along with 15 gowns, will be on display at a time in the museum, located at 133 W. Main St.
“I’ve bought and accumulated a collection with a dream that one day (I would have) some sort of space to display these pieces of history,” says Mary Salmon, founder of The Lace Museum, Detroit, who is working with family members to run the space. “There’s rotating exhibits, so there’s always going to be something different and special about (the museum).”
Exhibits will feature sewing machines from before the Industrial Revolution to around 1880 to 1900, hand-made lace and fashion from Central Europe, Ireland, England, and the United States, and more from Salmon’s 2,500 piece collection, which has been preserved following guidelines established by textile conservators at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and The Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C.
Salmon says the exterior of the museum was configured to look like a lace shop in Paris during the mid-1800s. The interior offers high ceilings, wood floors, antique glass chandeliers, pillars from an 1850 home in Detroit, and a salon-style layout with seating options for attendees.
The space also contains a humidity-controlled back room where special pieces are stored as well as a second room with vintage fashion and textiles, which will be for sale.
There is no cost for admission to the museum. Hours of operation vary, and appointments can be made to view The Lace Museum, Detroit’s collection. Special events, such as a grand opening and weekends dedicated to a specific type of lace, will also be held quarterly in the space.
“It’s its own world,” Salmon says. “I just want people to see the history of this unusual art form.”
For more information, visit thelacemuseumllc.com.
