Weaving has always been a part of my life. It started with my baby
blanket handwoven by my great-grandmother. While growing up, it
helped instill in me a sense of creativity and confidence at a time
when my self esteem was developing. During my years while working,
in what I like to call "Corporate America", weaving helped
give me sanity and feel a sense of productivity, which was very
important while working on long-term projects when day-to-day progress
was not evident.
In 2001, changes in my life provided me the opportunity to dedicate
myself to weaving fulltime. One of the earliest undertakings, that
has had a huge impact on my life and my weaving, was tackling the
Handweavers Guild of America's (HGA) Certificate of Excellence in
Handweaving (COE-W). In October 2002, I successfully completed the
Level 1: Technical Skills in Handweaving. In October 2004, I successfully
completed Level II: Master in Handweaving with the specialized study
Loom-controlled Stitched Double Cloth.
I am fascinated by the infinite possibilities of crossing threads
and love coming up with new ideas to create fabric and transform
it into something that has never existed before. My intrigue with
stitched double cloth encouraged me to explore the many ways to
weave double-faced fabrics as a way to create versatile fabrics
that are reversible, self-lined, etc. In addition to double-faced
fabrics, I love to discover uncommon and unusual weave structures,
especially if they can be woven on only four-shafts. Recently, I've
also been studying how elaborate trims can be woven on narrow warp
weaves.
For many of us, weaving is a type of circle of life. The loom my
great-grandmother used to weave my baby blanket on over 45 years
ago is in use on a daily basis helping me transfer my inspirations
into new fabrics and inspiring new generations of weavers.