Elegant Vanity Tray with Hand-Embroidered Insert made in the village of Lefkara, Cyprus.

Wooden frame with metal handles. Back is of leather. Glass covers the embroidery.

A piece worth having. Can be used variously as you decide.

The tradition of making embroideries in Lefkara goes centuries back and the embroideries are famous all over the world as the 'Lefkaritiko' lace. According to one famous painter, the Lefkaritiko lace that was developed in the 1920s and 1930s is perhaps within the ten best kinds of traditional art, internationally.

The main characteristics of Lefkaritiko lace are:

1. It has a neutral color

2. Both sides of the cloth look the same and cannot be separated.

3. The designs create light and shadow

4. They are geometric.

5. There is an interchange of the type of design used.

6. Single thread is always used.

The tradition dates back to the Venetian period (1489 - 1571) Now, five centuries later, women of this community still sit in doorways nimbly working pieces of beige Irish linen with deft strokes of needle and thread.