How do you find other lacemakers?

With a craft that is of limited exposure and interest such as bobbin lace, it's really easy to feel isolated. For those people who are introverts, that's great! For those of us who like to make lace with other people around, it can be difficult to find others who share our passion.

So - where are they? Look for the guilds!

There are a number of organizations that lacemakers belong to.

In the US, the largest group is the International Organization of Lace, Inc. (IOLI), which holds an annual convention. IOLI also has a lace discussion group that you can join. There are many other groups, often one or more in each state, as well as the New England Lace Group (NELG) that covers the New England states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Here are a few other guilds:

• Canada has a variety of lace guilds, though their websites (if they exist) are difficult to find.
• The British Isles - The Lace Guild
• Ireland - Traditional Lacemakers of Ireland
• Europe - Bobbin Lace European Network (BLEN)
• France - The International Bobbin and Needle Lace Organization (OIDFA)
• Germany - German Lace Guild
• Netherlands - LOKK
• Denmark - Danish Lace Guild
• Australia - Australian Lace Guild

This is just a small representation of the guilds that are out there. Use your favorite web search tool, such as Google, to look for the area you are interested in.