Portraiture need not be confined to a painted canvas.

This workshop will teach you how to transform thread into a likeness. Using the machine lace technique, you will create a beautiful and ethereal portrait with thread. We will begin with an explanation of the methodology and a discussion of how to use the tools and materials required. Then we’ll get to work on two supplied designs to master the basic skills and experiment with form.

The first design is pure lace comprising only thread, while the second is a hybrid that incorporates coloured fabric into the lace form. Once you have become proficient in the basic techniques you will begin a major work of your own design.  You will learn how to ensure your design has inherent structural integrity, how to use shading, how to support larger works with wire, and the best methods for displaying and lighting your creations. We’ll also be discussing artists that work in this field and how lace has had an international mini renaissance in the last decade or so.

Lace is holey, let’s worship its beauty! 

Student Requirement List