Museum
in Retournac

Musée des Manufactures de Dentelles

From bobbin lace to mechanical lace, the museum will introduce you to the life of the lacemakers, as well as the know-how of this craft, witness to the history of Retournac and Velay.
The Retournac Lace Factory Museum is unique in France in the field of decorative arts. It retains all of the contents of a lace factory, all in its original building! The collection is impressive with more than 450 pieces.

You will be greeted by a lacemaker upon your arrival at the museum. You will discover, in a friendly atmosphere, the unsuspected world of lace-making art, its beauty, its history and its techniques.

You will begin your visit on the 1st floor of the old factory with the history of lace in Europe, from the XNUMXth century until today. You will discover extremely rare old pieces which make the museum an essential center of textile museums in France and Europe.
You will then discover the life of lacemakers. The words of the last lacemakers of Retournac have been collected and retrace their apprenticeship in bobbin lace, their life punctuated by orders from factories and everything that constituted the daily life of these workers of the 20th century. You will also see the importance of lace factories in the economic and daily life of Retournac through these stories.

On the ground floor, a reconstructed workshop will take you through the different stages of lace manufacturing, from the creation of its model to its international marketing. You will discover the role of the designer, creator of new lace models, in the manufacturing process.

Your visit will end in the old mechanical lace workshop. You will see in particular the machines which weaved the lace, in their original location.

The visit to the museum is regularly enriched by events and temporary exhibitions, demonstrations of hand or mechanical lace, but also by initiations and lace workshops.
Further information) :
The museum offers reception and specific workshops for groups and schoolchildren (by reservation only).
Portrait

Marion Faure is a professional lacemaker at the Returnnac Manufactures Museum. She discovered the world of bobbin lace by joining the team of the Center for Teaching Bobbin Lace (CEDF) in Puy en Velay. First store manager, she obtained in 2019 the CAP Art of Lace in order to teach this technique. After a few years of teaching and sharing with students, she left the CEDF for new horizons. However, the lace, the transmission and the sharing with the students very quickly began to miss him. It is therefore with pleasure and passion that she joins the Museum of Lace Manufactures in Retournac in 2023. His job ? To rediscover the pieces of the museum's collections by redrawing the layouts so that the lacemakers can make them again. She will continue to pass on this delicate technique of bobbin lace during workshops or weekly classes, and by welcoming you during your visits to the museum.

We speak: English, French

Video

Themes:

  • Science and technology
  • Arts and culture
  • Textiles
  • craft
  • Decorative Art
  • Graphic arts

Visit

Average duration of the individual visit: 90 min.
Average duration of the group visit: 90 min.
Minimum group size: 10 person(s)
Minimum group size: 40 people

Customers

Suitable for: Reception of summer camps, Reception of school groups, Reception of groups

Language(s) of the visit

English French

Individual visit services

  • Unguided individual tours permanently
  • Guided individual tours on request

Group visit services

  • Unguided group visits on request
  • Guided group tours on request

Opening

Opening hours from March 15 to June 30, 2024
MondayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
TuesdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
WednesdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
ThursdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
FridayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
SaturdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
SundayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
Opening hours from July 01 to August 31, 2024
MondayOpen from 14 a.m. to 19 p.m.
TuesdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 19 p.m.
WednesdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 19 p.m.
ThursdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 19 p.m.
FridayOpen from 14 a.m. to 19 p.m.
SaturdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 19 p.m.
SundayOpen from 14 a.m. to 19 p.m.
Opening hours from September 01 to December 15, 2024
MondayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
TuesdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
WednesdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
ThursdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
FridayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
SaturdayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.
SundayOpen from 14 a.m. to 18 p.m.

Exceptional Closure(s)

  • 01/01/2024
  • 01/05/2024
  • 25/12/2024

Prices

Free for every 1st Sunday of the month.
Free entry with the Culture card (membership of the media library: 3 euros for children, unemployed, and RSA person, 15 euros for adults, 7 euros for students, summer visitors and second adult)
Free for children under 12 years)

Payment methods

  • Bank / credit card
  • Cheque
  • Cash

Services

Equipments

  • Parking
  • Private parking lot
  • Coach parking
  • defibrillator
  • Show room
  • Elevator
  • Air-conditioning
  • Toilets
  • Entertainment room

Services

  • Educational visits
  • Coach access
  • Theme visit
  • Shop
  • Tourist Documentation
  • Tourist information
  • Free visits
  • Guided tours
  • Numerous ticketing

Activities on site

  • Manual workshops
  • Temporary exhibitions
  • Children's entertainment

Home animals

Pets are not accepted

Adapted tourism

Adapted service: Independent wheelchair accessible, Elevator meets standards
From 5 € / adult

Address

14 station avenue
43130 Returnnac
How do I get there?

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