Clara Wæver

Clara Marie Wæver (7 April 1855–18 August 1930) was a Danish embroiderer who in 1890 opened a successful business in Copenhagen. Recognized for its high quality, it also provided instruction and training in needlework for young women. In 1903, Wæver enhanced her wares by acquiring the studio where Kristiane Konstantin-Hansen, a daughter of the painter Constantin Hansen, and Johanne Bindesbøll, a sister of Thorvald Bindesbøll had worked, including all its artworks, models and designs. In 1917, she transferred ownership of the business which then became known as Eva Rosenstand Clara Wæver. It survives today in the centre of Copenhagen as Eva Rosenstand.

Biography

Born in Stubbekøbing on the island of Falster on 7 April 1855, Clara Wæver was the daughter of Christian Pedersen Wæver (1821–1905), a skipper, and his wife Hanne Elizabeth Fester (1827–1913). The family name stemmed from her great-grandfather who was a weaver. In 1875, her father retired from the sea and moved to Copenhagen with his wife and his two daughters (Clara and Augusta). Clara Wæver took up needlework, taught in a girls school and worked in S.B. Wiegand's embroidery shop.