Hi there!
I want to share with you a little bit about myself as a weaver, and I'm hoping you will share your story with me too.
Weaving seems to draw different people in for different reasons. For me, I first became interested in weaving when I saw a floor loom demonstration at a farmers market. The intricate patterns and endless possibilities of the loom fascinated me. I knew I needed to learn.
Before I was a weaver, I was a runner. I went to university in North Carolina to run track and field. I ran every day and raced most weekends during track season. You would think weaving would be the furthest thing from running, but I find it has a lot in common. The calming cadence of right-left-right-left-right-left of running is similar to the passing of the shuttle. It requires similar focus and endurance, a willingness to keep coming back after failure. It is this same balance of meditative calm and challenge that keeps me coming back to the loom.
I am also a total nerd. Want to talk about weaving history? I’m your girl. I’m always finding stories, folklore, and mythology that references weaving and I eat it all up. One of my favourites is a story about a weaver who emerges from an anthill and uses her teeth as a loom to “speak cloth.”
Weaving is a practice that is at once very old and very new. The computer or phone on which you are reading this email was developed largely because of advancements in weaving technology. Ask me more about this if you want to chat for a long while :)
I weave because I feel connected to generations of weavers before me, because weaving feels like a quiet resistance to mass production, and because I’m addicted to the tactile process and rhythm of working at the loom.
I would love to hear your weaving story! Send me an email or message us via instagram or facebook.
-Kim