THE AUSTRALIAN TAPESTRY WORKSHOP

My favourite piece in the showroom

This piece was named " Williamstown ". I think it's the most impressive and lively piece in the showroom that I saw. The overlap of colours and attention to detail make it all really come alive.

A close up shot of the first tapestry 

Colour blocking is always a dance for the eyes!

Medieval tapestry is what bought me to my love for textiles and tapestry in general. To me, anything that requires that much time, effort and labour is something to be truly appreciated. It's a privilege to be in close proximity to anything which has required so much work to create and tapestries to me, are some of the most painstaking creations on earth! Of course, these days there are machines which do all the hard work for us and yes they do make some really nice tapestries. But it's just not the same when machines do the work. Anything done by hand automatically commands respect. 

The Workshop is located in South Melbourne ( Details here ) and what I liked the most about this place was that there is a balcony which is right above the workshop so you can see the weavers do their thing live. When I visited, there were only two at work but easily it could have been more at any other given time. Unfortunately the tapestry which was being worked on this month was turned over so I couldn't see the fantastic designs in person but maybe you will if you decide to visit.

I enjoyed my time there, the only thing I'd say was that I wish that there were more tapestries on view. But seeing as they take so much time and effort to make, it's probably not feasible to have more than a couple. If you're into textiles, the workshop gives you a good glimpse into what's happening with the tapestry world in Australia and I'd recommend it if you're near the area.

You could buy rolls of thread in the front shop in virtually every colour imaginable. I love taking photos of places where there are lots and lots of the same thing, so I really liked this corner 

Really loved this space especially all the mood and inspiration boards on the walls which were colour coded 

One of the machines that they use to make the ' skeleton ' of the tapestry before they weave the colours onto it. I'm pretty sure that's a painting of one of the tapestries which were in the front show room. It must've been the 'blueprint' for the actual piece

A framed info board detailing how they begin and the methods of which they use to do so 

A lot of work and detail as you can see here