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Needle lace is a general term applied to various forms of lace made with a needle, including embroidered lace, embroidered net lace and needlepoint lace. See the schematic survey of lace forms. See e.g. Puncetto.

Embroidered lace is a general term for a needle lace that is made with a needle and thread on a woven ground, rather than on a (knotted) net ground, which would result in what is classed as embroidered net lace. Extant pieces of embroidered lace represent the earliest examples of European lace and date back to the fourteenth century. The four main forms of embroidered lace are: 

A feature of North European domestic needlework is the production of darning samplers. Darning samplers were made in Belgium, Britain, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands between the eighteenth and early twentieth centuries. They were usually made by school girls as part of their education, either at home or in a school class.

Crochet is a form of lace worked with a hook and a continuous thread. The English word comes from the French crochet for a small hook. Crochet consists of a series of individual loops comparable to a chain stitch, which are combined in a number of different ways to produce various lacy effects.

A cope is a Christian ecclesiastical vestment in the form of a long mantle or cloak, which is open down the front and fastened at the chest with a band or clasp (morse). The earliest European references to copes used by clergy appear to date to the eighth century AD, but it was not until the twelfth century that elaborate copes became a standard part of the Western ecclesiastical dress.

A chestnut bud is a quilt pattern popular in North America, based on the buds from the chestnut tree (genus Castanea). There are a number of variations on this theme, all with the same name.

Applied decoration (also called applied work) may include, for decorative needlework, the sewing down of items onto cloth, leather or a similar ground material. These items are normally sewn down in a deliberate and decorative manner and are often combined with decorative stitching. Applied items may include beads, bracteates, cloth, coins, chains, mirrors, seeds, shells, wire, etc.

An amulet (Latin: amuletum) is any object that is worn to protect its owner or wearer from danger or harm caused by disease, evil, witchcraft, etc. It is sometimes sewn onto clothing as a form of applied decoration.

See Cornely machine.

The Cornely machine produces chain stitch embroidery. The history of the Cornely machine mirrors the history of machine embroidery stitching. In the nineteenth century, there were various attempts to produce a simple, commercial machine that could produce a continuous chain stitch.