EDITORIAL LISTING: This listing was prepared by the AtelierBound editorial team using publicly available information. Dates, availability, final pricing, and any options such as occupancy or materials should be confirmed directly with the host before making any plans. If you run this retreat, contact us at hosts@atelierbound.com to claim your listing and take full control of your page, add your own photographs, and respond to guest enquiries. From 20 to 27 September 2026, at La Faye, a restored stone farmhouse in the Vienne countryside of western France, artist and designer Madeleine Kear hosts a seven-night needlepoint and tapestry retreat for six guests. Each guest works on a 30 by 30 cm tapestry of their own design at their own pace across the week, with all wools, canvas and frames provided. Two light-filled workshop spaces open onto outdoor tables in the garden. Around the studio time, days take in a French haberdashery in Chauvigny, medieval Montmorillon (a Cité de l'écrit et des métiers du livre), Angles-sur-l'Anglin and the Romanesque abbey at Saint-Savin, a UNESCO site fifteen minutes from the door. Madeleine's husband Stephen runs the kitchen alongside their potager and hens, and meals are shared indoors in the rustic dining room or outdoors with wine as the evening cools. All-inclusive, capped at six. Pricing shown is an approximate USD equivalent converted from EUR. Please confirm the final price, currency, and options for single or double occupancy with the host directly before booking.

Website Link

https://giteholidaysinfrance.com/tapestry-retreat/?utm_source=atelierbound&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=listing

What's Included

7 nights' private-room accommodation at La Faye, all meals with wine, daily needlepoint tuition with Madeleine Kear, all tapestry materials and frames (30 by 30 cm canvas of the guest's own design), meditation sessions, guided visits to Montmorillon, Angles-sur-l'Anglin, Saint-Savin and the Chauvigny market, farewell dinner at a Saint-Savin restaurant, courtesy minibus transfer from Poitiers TGV station or Poitiers-Biard airport

Leader Bio

Madeleine Kear is an artist and designer whose background spans arts, crafts and theatre; her teaching at La Faye merges traditional needlepoint with contemporary design. She hosts the retreat alongside her husband Stephen at their restored stone farmhouse in the Vienne countryside, where the couple also run gîte holidays throughout the year.