Beaded Fruits Workshop with Justine Bonenfant

Join us for a relaxed and rewarding evening spent making something cute and beautiful with your hands!

During this workshop, you will be introduced to the versatile embroidery techniques that are felt padding and beading. This workshop is suitable for beginners.

You will learn how to create a neat and smooth felt padding before beading over it. Then, you will practise the chain stitch to add details to your little fruit. You will use fine couture materials such as glass beads and metallic thread.

You will be shown samples with beaded padding to get inspired and see how this beautiful and satisfying technique can be used on your own designs.

You will be taken through all the techniques to be able to finish your project at your own pace and then attach your cute berries to your favourite garments or accessories.

The fabric, beads, felt and thread are included in the kit, they can be brought back with you. The frame, needles and scissors are not included in the kit but they will be provided during the workshop.

The tickets are non refundable but if you are not able to make it, you may pass the ticket on to someone else. Please contact us to change the booking name.

About Justine Bonenfant:

Justine is a French Lesage-trained embroidery designer, maker and teacher specialising in Haute Couture embellishment and tambour beading. She is based in North London.

Justine’s delicate work is inspired by poetry and nostalgia with a french je ne sais quoi. Her romantic aesthetic is shaped by her love of happy memories, storytelling and her quest to find beauty and purpose.

She graduated in fashion design from ESMOD in 2010 before pursuing her hand-embroidery training at the Lesage School (Chanel Group) in Paris. Justine is a Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust alumni and she was awarded by HRH the Prince of Wales at Clarence House to carry out an apprenticeship in Goldwork and Monogramming at Hand and Lock, London based embroidery atelier since 1767.

Her embroidery know-how combines both extensive French Luneville and British needle techniques.

She has lived in Paris, Marrakech, London and Chennai, cities with rich artisanal heritages, where she worked for a broad range of fashion houses and ateliers, from Haute Couture to Ready to Wear and bridal. These include Chanel, Dior, Valentino, Alexander Mc Queen to mention a few.

Some of the luxury pieces she worked on were worn by the likes of Beyonce, Naomi Campbell, Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie. Justine also works on theatre projects for Disney’s musicals.

Justine is a guest lecturer at the Royal School of Needlework and a tutor at Hand and Lock. She has taught international classes in the US, Australia and Indonesia.

Justine is also the founder of accessory label Clo de Vila. Her intricately detailed and witty hand-embroidered neckpieces and brooches got featured in Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, l’Officiel, Sunday Times Style, Hunger and Elle to name a few.