Portrait in Painting with Thread

Working in hand embroidery, Nicole will teach you in this workshop the skills of working in portraiture whether that be self-portraiture, a portrait of someone else or working with a still life composition to represent a portrait of someone.

Nicole will guide attendees through the process of working from photos, drawing up the design for reference, selecting colours and deciding on stitch directions (for anatomical structure), as well as how to transfer designs to material for the embroidery.

About the Workshop

Throughout the three days Nicole will guide your individual projects for you to make a start on a portrait, laying down the foundations so that you will be able to continue beyond the workshop.

Skills you will learn:

*Working from a reference photo – sourcing your own, tips on lighting and using high-quality photos

*Drawing up designs to think through the stitching lines and contrast

*Transferring to backing materials – various options depending on materials and final use

*Tonal studies and recommendations for thread colour use for shadows, mid tones and highlights referencing different skin colours

*Stitches to use for thread painting in portraiture.

Needle, Thread and Colour Workshop

This is a workshop for everyone, for anyone who wants to gain confidence in the use of needle and thread and colour on textile to communicate with their viewing audience.

In addition to these skills, participants will hear how Nicole has used the medium to bring embroidery into the modern world, with modern themes, challenging mainstream ideas.

Strong Contemporary Voice

Nicole has long been excited and inspired by those who have embroidered in the decades and centuries before us.

Now she brings a strong contemporary voice to the medium, with technical skills that she will teach over the three days.

Nicole has most recently been honoured to be one of 40 artists selected for the 2026 prestigious Lester Prize in Portraiture. 

The Joy of Stitching

Nicole aims to share the joy of using thread and stitch as a medium of communication. She uses the thread like paint, mixing and blending to achieve particular effects through tone and form.

Every participant will use their thread differently – this is the joy of seeing the maker’s hand emerge in the expression on the fabric over the three days.