Lace Tatting Workshop at Leicestershire Craft Centre

I love sharing my skills at workshops and it's lovely to see how people progress during a three hour workshop.  And this time was no exception.

It was lovely to have a mix of adults and teenagers. It shows both generations that a new skill can be challenging whatever your age is. However, the challenge for me was that I had 2 left handed people in the group.

As the time moved on there was evidence of progress appearing on the table and delighted faces.  I find that teaching with chinese silk cord makes it easier for people to understand how the flip works which is one of the key techniques for being able to produce tatting.

At the end of the three hour session I received some lovely feedback and the group have decided that they would like to meet on a regular basis to improve their skills, which I hope I am able to do.  One lady had brought with her her grandmother's tatting shuttles and some beautiful examples of what tatting can be. She shared that her grandmother had taught her how to tat when she was a teenager but she didn't really take much notice at the time, now she wished she had.

Lace UnArchived

From having a tatting shuttle in my sewing box for over 30 years, I decided not long after I graduated I would try and learn how to do this heritage craft.  The problem was finding someone to teach me.  I even joined a group called, "The Ring of Tatters", but never quite managed to link with anyone to get me started.  I eventually taught myself with the aid of lots of reading, a short DVD tutorial and plenty of You Tube watching until I got my skills up to an acceptable level.

I have to say I am still learning different techniques and ways a creating the lace I want to create but all in all I find tatting a delightful and relaxing craft.

Lace illustrating Russia and the Red Square - William Pegg

Recently I spotted that there was to be a series of events to celebrate Nottingham Lace, one of which was the Lace Unarchived exhibition at Bonington Gallery, Nottingham Trent University.  It's an exhibition of traditional and contemporary work from past students, modern designers and archived samples.  I think my favourite piece was created by a 1930's famous lace maker and designer called William Hallam Pegg in which he expressed his socialist beliefs.

In light of this contemporary piece I was left with the question, "So what is lace?" What defines a piece of lace.  The dictionary definition gives the following:-

...a fine open fabric of cotton or silk, made by looping, twisting, or knitting thread in patterns and used especially for trimming garments.  Oxford Dictionaries

...lace is a very delicate cloth which is made with a lot of holes in it.  It is made by twisting together very fine threads of cotton to form patterns. Collins Dictionaries

Anyway, I will leave you with this video I found about the exhibition, it may inspire you to pay a visit.

As tatting has holes, uses loops, twisting, has lots of holes and creates patterns I will continue to create lace using this very old craft.

My next lace adventure will be a one day Lace Symposium at Newstead Abbey, which is the former home of Lord Byron which I am thoroughly looking forward to.

Lace Tatting Demonstration at the National Centre for Craft and Design

As a Fellow member of the Design Nation, incorporating Design Factory we all have the opportunity to provide a demonstration of our work to the public.  There are many, many members and most are keen to share their work.

My slot had been booked about 6 months ago so there was plenty of time to decide what I would share in my demonstration, in this case tatting.

If you have never heard of tatting I describe it thus, an handmade lace created by making a series of tiny knots using a shuttle or long needle, not unlike Macrame but on a very small scale. Loops, chains and picots are repeated to form patterns that make up the lace.  I tend to use it in my jewellery, but more recently I have been exploring different ways I can utilise the final product.  Here is one way I currently use the lace by making "Petite Flowers" which are available at NCCD or on my online shop at madebyhandonline

There's one thing I enjoy about being around people is sharing my craft, my making skills and my joy at seeing people just having a go.

So, being no exception, I was able to show one lady who was currently working towards her Final Major piece on her foundation course how to tat.  The challenge was that she was left handed but between us she got there.  Another lady who I had been conversing with on twitter came along to find out how to join pieces together, again she went away happy and shared some ideas she had about working with shells.  It sounds very interesting.

I laid my work out so that people could see how it looked blocked out and I had a selection of just finished pieces with all the raw threads showing that people could handle.

All in all it was a lovely day made all the better by a steady supplier of hot drinks. form the cafe. If you would like  to see more of my work please visit my Facebook page.

I will be running a Lace Tatting workshop on Wednesday 9th April at the Leicester Craft Centre, Market Harborough.  If you would like to join me please click or contact me via my Facebook page.

Workshop Treat - learning how to make buttons with Gina-B Silkworks

Question:  When do I ever go to a workshop that isn't run by yours truly?

Answer: Very rarely.

On Saturday 11th October I booked myself on a button making workshop which included all sorts of buttons; Dorset, Death's Head, Shirt Wing with Gina Barrett, star of Create and Craft.

It was a few months ago whilst researching the technique of Dorset buttons that I came across her book, Buttons, A Passmenterie Workshop Manual and subsequently bought it.  I absolutely adore technical books and exploring new techniques.

When I taught myself how to do lace tatting a couple of years ago, I could find no-one to show me despite getting in touch with the Ring of Tatters organisation.  So teaching myself was literally all trials and tribulations, starting off, then realising that I had been working back to front, getting the tensions right, understanding patterns, basically the whole kit and caboodle.

Before I bought the book I had researched a little on the subject and come up with what I thought were successful attempts at Dorset buttons but kept wishing that there was a workshop available to attend as some of the button structures were quite complicated. I had seen that Gina had received plenty of requests to do a workshop.  I signed up to her mailing list, as you do, to keep up to date, hoping upon hoping that I wouldn't be inundated with email after email asking to buy this and buy that, offer this and opportunity that.  I really hate that don't you.  I like to think that occasionally an artist will let me know what's going on in their world then I can attend exhibitions, workshops or talks if they are close enough.  I just like to be informed not nagged.

Anyhow, digressing slightly, when I did receive the newsletter I had been waiting there happened to
be the long awaited workshop opportunity, as you can imagine, I was right on the button (excuse the pun) in making sure I secured a place for the day.

The workshop was held at the Whipper Inn at Oakham in Rutland.  Lovely location very rural town, lots of interesting shops and a few galleries to explore.  The workshop was held in the conference room so was a great space with plenty of room.  Perhaps my only criticism was the lighting was a little poor in the afternoon but then conference rooms aren't designed with stitchers in mind.

I arrived ever so slightly late due to my SATNAV's insistence that I wanted to go the market square which is where the front of the hotel is situated.  I hadn't missed too much fortunately and very quietly and quickly got out my scissors, notebook and pin cushion.  All eyes were then on Gina.

The first button we explored was a Death Head button (green button) which immediately made me think of the moth's with a similar name.  I don't think there was one person, apart from Gina, in the room that didn't worry about overlapping their threads as they wrapped their way to the first completed button.  Along the way we discovered how to keep our tension in check and how there are different ways to achieve this by using pointed wooden dowels of various thickness or a mental pokey tool similar to my bookbinding awl.

Everyone worked at their own pace, which is how I like it in my workshops.  I managed to squeeze in a second Death Head button.  (black and white).  Lunch came around to quickly.  Some of the group had brought lunch with them, others like me ordered from the bar.  As a veggie there normally isn't a great deal to choose from and the same was said for this venue., unless I wanted a large sit down meal.   I opted for a cheese salad roll (very special roll) and some onion marmalade.  Sounds lovely?  All I can say was it was a bit strange to have marmalade and red onion mixed together as a condiment and not onion made into marmalade as one usually expects.

In the afternoon we moved onto other buttons including the shirt wing (blue button) and passementerie button (small round button).  By this time the group had become very loose and a little more confident about trying new techniques and different styles of buttons which Gina moving attentively around the group to ensure we all were happy with our attempts.

I thoroughly enjoyed my day and would highly recommend the workshop with Gina.  The fabric buttons are very versatile and could be used in a myriad of ways.