If you want a brief respite from the hussle and bussle of the German Market in the City Centre, I can highly recommend the Lost in Lace exhibition at the Gas Hall of Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. The exhibition is specifically created for the space in the Gas Hall and looks at Lace in some highly original, and in many cases visually stunning ways. The inverted Crystal Cathedral, which contains a quarter of a tonne of Swarovski crystal and the highly imaginative piece of work entitled After the Dream by Chiharu Shiota were my favourites.

The exhibition is free and runs until 19 February 2012. It has been produced as a partnership between Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the Arts Council, in association with the University for the Creative Arts. More details are available at www.lostinlace.org.uk.