It's seems the textile fad that defined the 1970s, macramé, is back.
And passionate Colac textile artist Chrissy LoRiccco, who describes herself as a "70s girl at heart" could not be happier.
Chrissy is set to host a series of macramé workshops as part of COPACC's upcoming fibre and textile art exhibition CrossXpollinatioN in June and July.
People taking part in the workshops will learn the skills of an artform that's been around for centuries, and today is the on-trend art form in interior decorating.
They'll reef knot and hitch their way through the sessions and walk away with their own macramé masterpiece.
Chrissy, who says she's been creative her whole life expressing her creativity through photography and interior design, started macramé after being inspired by a beautiful piece she bought to cheer herself up two years ago.
She was intrigued about how it was created.
"I thought it was such a beautiful piece and appreciated the effort and skill that went into creating it, and I thought I'd like to have a go at macramé and making my own."
Her creative effort generated a favourable response from friends and family keen for a piece for her work. She's also tapped into the online opportunities and built up an audience on Facebook and Instagram where she shows her latest pieces.
"I like making wall hangings and experimenting using different fibres and cottons. I'd define what I do as traditional macramé with a modern twist.
"I've started investigating combining what I do with other applications and techniques as well as introducing the use of non-conventional threads," she said.
Chrissy finds macramé enjoyable, relaxing and therapeutic; she also gets a lot of satisfaction from seeing her final product in people's homes "when they share a picture of where they've hung it and how it fits with their taste".
She's now sharing her macramé skills through her workshops and said teaching, although sometimes challenging, was very rewarding and she liked teaching people new skills.
"Often, they start off saying they can't do it and when you see the look on their faces when they make it, that's very satisfying," she said.
Chrissy LoRicco's CrossXpollinatioN macramé workshops take place on Saturday 6 July and Sunday 7 July in the COPACC gallery foyer from 10am to 2pm. All materials are supplied and participants will leave with their own wall hanging.
Chrissy's workshops usually $120 but will cost $100 during CrossXpollinatioN thanks to a COPACC subsidy via Creative Victoria funding. The workshop also includes tea and coffee, with espresso coffee available at cost.
