Unique Batik

www.uniquebatik.us

Unique Batik Artisans in Pakistan

We are a small business that makes a big impact.  We work with artisans in the developing world  (many of whom have perfected the traditional crafts of their ancestors) to bring these unique pieces of art to open markets.  Unique Batik is a Fair Trade wholesaler of clothes, bags, jewelry and accessories.  In business since 1991, we now have partnerships with artisans in Guatemala, Ghana, Thailand and Pakistan.  Fair Trade means our artisans are guaranteed fair wages, sustainable relationships and safe working conditions that are free from discrimination and forced child labor.  What makes Unique Batik different is its commitment to working alongside artisans to design beautiful products that meet demand in the developed world. 

Location:  Raleigh, North Carolina, USA

Memberships:  Fair Trade Federation

Languages spoken:  English and Spanish

Fair Trade Products from Around the World

Tags:  Fair Trade, recycled, hand-dyed, batik, woven, bead work, comalapa, corte,  ikat, traditional crafts, embroidery.

Bernie Rowell

"Wren Stories" Art Quilt by Bernie Rowell

www.bernierowell.com

I am a professional artist passionate about making painted quilts.  My painted quilts are a hybrid of the fine art techniques of painting and collage with the stitching techniques of quilting and embroidery.

My painted quilts have been commissioned for hospitals, universities, corporate spaces and private homes throughout the United States.


Artist's Statement:  As a child I learned one true thing: making art made me happy.  That is still true today.  The solitary aspect of studio work is my daily meditation, and the problem solving that art making requires has kept me interested over the years.

My aim is twofold; to create a beautiful work of art that will reconnect the viewer with the beauty of the natural world while referencing the tactile/textile memories to home, family, community and women's work; the very essence of ""quilt"".


Location:  Asheville, North Carolina, USA
Online shop:  bernierowell
Blog:  artstudioblaablaa
Memberships:
    SAQA Studio Art Quilt Associates
    Southern Highland Craft Guild
Languages spoken:  English

"The Fledgeling" Art Quilt by Bernie Rowell

Tags:  fiber art, mixed media textiles, quilts, botanical art, prints, painted quilts

Marge Rohrer Designs

www.margerohrerdesigns.com

I specialize in creating hand-woven accessories for ""the woman who loves to wrap herself in luxury"".  Our elegant collection of  flings, capes and shawls are woven of soft and luscious fibers for a refined, classic look or in more rugged textured yarn for casual wear.  The hand-work and personal touches given to each piece proclaim each a MARGE ROHRER DESIGN.

I've been following the ever elusive thread for 40years, inventing and reinventing myself and my creations.  My husband, David, joins me in MARGE ROHRER DESIGNS as my chief weaver while I am the designer of both fabric and garment. Our studio is nestled amidst a forest of trees and a rippling creek high in the western North Carolina mountains. Nature's beauty constantly inspires us to produce exciting and ever-changing collections of  luxurious hand-woven accessories by MARGE ROHRER DESIGNS.  We would love for YOU to own one.

You can find our work in these shops: The Bascom Art Gallery (Highlands, NC), The Tin Roof Studio (Highlands, NC), and Arrowcraft Shop (Gatlinburg, TN).

Artist's statement:  I love yarn in any shape , size or form. I've been a weaver and designer for 40 years. As I will be morphing into my eighth decade of life this fall I find myself not only continuing the designing and creating of our luxury collections of accessories but yearning to play with other fiber techniques and mixing them all together in new shapes and forms.  Patterns and rigid techniques do not interest me, I want to indulge in a dialog between  ideas, materials and techniques to tame the beautiful, elusive threads to bend to my heart's desire. 


Location:  Highlands, North Carolina, USA

Social Media: facebook, twitter
Memberships:
   Southern Highland Craft Guild
   The Bascom Art Gallery    
   Highlands Chamber of Commerce
Languages spoken: English

"Fling", Handwoven shawl by Marge Rohrer Designs

Tags: hand-woven, fashion, accessories, luxury, flings, butterfly capes, hats, needle felting, rayon yarns, novelty yarns, shawls

Susan Fennell / Oriba Shibori

www.susanfennellstudio.com

I am a textile artist principally working in shibori and indigo dye.  I dye silk scarves, furoshiki (Japanese wrapping cloths) and other cloth items that reference Japan.  For 10 years I taught Japanese language in a Raleigh, NC high school. Through the Artists in Schools program I’ve taught Japanese textile arts across North Carolina. Currently, I teach classes at a non-profit center for the arts, Artspace, in downtown Raleigh.

I studied art at the Maryland Institute in Baltimore, MD and textiles at Meredith College in Raleigh, NC.  In 2001, I was awarded the Leonard White award by Miriam Schapiro during a juried exhibition at Meredith College.

Artist's Statement:  My textile work references childhood years in Kagoshima, Japan where my neighbors dyed threads in indigo and wove them in long swaths for kimono. The colors, patterns and other imagery reflected in my work are an exploration of that experience integrating language and surface design.


Location:  Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
Online shop: sfennell
Blog:  Ito de/ By Thread 
Memberships: Threads - a local textile study group in Raleigh
Languages spoken: English and Japanese　

"Two Bottles", shibori dyeing by Susan Fennell

Tags: Textile art, fiber art, shibori, indigo dyeing, aizome shibori, shiborizome, surface design, silk, cotton, linen, rayon, Japanese textiles, scarves, furoshiki

Folkwear

www.folkwear.com

Since 1976, Folkwear has offered unique sewing patterns based on ethnic costume and vintage fashion. Each multi-size pattern includes full-size pattern pieces ready to trace or cut out; easy-sew and special construction techniques clearly explained and illustrated; historical lore that sets the garment in its own time and place; and instructions for traditional embellishment.

-Kate Matthews

Mission:  We believe that ethnic and historical garments have a lot to offer in the way of inspiration, imagination, and design details, as well as aesthetic and functional beauty. When you combine historic or ethnic styles with modern materials and innovative fabrication, the resulting garments become unique expressions of the maker's vision. Folkwear is proud to contribute one element to each maker's creative process.


Location: Asheville, North Carolina, USA
Online shops: Folkwear patterns can be found at www.folkwear.com. The Dealer Locations page of our web site links to the web sites of Folkwear dealers around the world.
Languages spoken: English

Tags: costume, ethnic dress, historical clothing, central asian, japanese, victorian, edwardian, cultural clothing, peasant dress, fisherman's pants, clothing for men

Colin's Creatures

www.colinscreatures.com

Colin's Creatures is a collection of hand carved, lifelike, fine porcelain wooly animals, primarily sheep figures (approx 5" tall).

I make the head, legs, horns and such out of porcelain for its detail. The body is a cast stone for stability with a wonderful substantial feel and the fur is a woven fabric of wool, mohair or alpaca from the same German source that Steiff teddy bears uses.

Artist's Statement:  My customers tell me that my creatures speak to them and put a smile on their faces. That has become my mission.

Location: Asheville, North Carolina, USA

Online Stores: Colin's Creatures, Etsy

Languages spoken: English

 Porcelain and wooly sheep by Colin's Creatures

Tags:  sheep, lambs, sculpture, wool, farming, animals, children, clay, figurative, agriculture

Day Style Designs

"Release Your Light" by Leah Day

www.daystyledesigns.com

My name is Leah Day and I'm a quilter and online quilt store business owner.

I'm looking to connect with other professional artists who make money not by selling art pieces, but information (patterns, tutorials, videos, etc) on how to make art.

I'm also thirsty for knowledge about how to balance it all: business, creativity, family, without going insane!

Artist Statement: I love quilting because with fabric and thread you can create 3 dimensions of design using color, shape, and texture.  I experiment with texture on a daily basis on my blog, where I'm working my way through 365 different textures to create with thread on fabric.

Although I'm now working through a series of quilts featuring goddesses, I don't currently make quilts for sale. Instead, I create patterns and videos on techniques to offer for other quilters and fiber artists.

Location: Shelby, North Carolina, USA
Online store: Day Style Designs Quilt Shop
Blog: Free Motion Quilting
Languages spoken: English

"Torn Tree" by Leah Day

Tags:  daystyledesigns, quilting, free motion quilting, quilting demos, goddesses, female imagery, nature