Guilty by Lace

Saw a very good movie the other night--The Letter starring Bette Davis.

What made this movie over-the-top excellent for me was that lace was featured prominently in it. Lace was not only a plot point and a metaphor--but, it also seemed to be a character itself.

The Bette Davis character is a hooker. . . uh, that is a crocheter.



Look at that--Bette needs magnifying glasses.

When Bette is asked why she shot a man, she answers that he made advances towards her while she was working on her lace.
Sounds like a good reason to shoot somebody to me.

Later, Bette's lawyer asks why she does lace and Bette says she has nothing else to do and that it soothes her. Her lawyer, doubting Bette's motivation as to why she really shot the man, responds in a sinister manner that it also helps her to forget things.

Well that lawyer obviously never worked lace! I don't know about you, but when I'm knitting lace, my mind tends to wander away from the K2togs and yarn overs and I start thinking about what that Noreen said to me in third grade after lunch on the Thursday when we had the telling-time arithmetic test and it snowed that day.

But maybe it's different for hookers. . . uh, crocheters.

Anyways here's Bette's lace project:



Cue the dramatic music and the meaningful "yeah, right" exchange of looks. Bette claims it's going to be a spread for the bed she and her husband share.

Not only is crocheted lace featured, but Bette wears some beautiful lace accessories. She wrapped herself in this gorgeous huge shawl while on a tense, mysterious mission.
Sonja, you'll have to tell us what kind of lace it is:


And later. Poor Bette! Will there be blood on this jabot?


I think I have to see this movie again. Next time, I'll take more pictures of the lace pay more attention to the story.