Jan Hewitt Towsley

I love to weave. I love to explore all kinds of weaving and fiber art techniques that bring it all together. Starting with those little pot holder looms I used as a child, I was intrigued with the creation of fabric using patterns, textures and color play. I earned my BFA in Weaving & Textile Design at RIT (School for American Craftsman), and continue to weave utilitarian and art pieces in my Studio #202 at the Anderson Arts Building in Rochester, NY. I am honored to have my work at many locations, such as RIT, Strong Hospital, Lipson Cancer Center, and the Susan B. Anthony House. I am an active Weavers’ Guild of Rochester member as well as a member of the Weavers’ Guild of Buffalo and Handweavers Guild of America. I love to teach weaving forward as a teaching artist in area schools and The Weaving & Fiber Arts Center of Rochester. I also occasionally lecture/offer workshops in other locations. I look forward to weaving connections at this great conference! 

For more, see http://andersonalleyartists.com/artists/?artist=jan_hewitt_towsley 

Neal Howard

A North Carolina native, Neal began her journey with color and fiber at an early age. She has over 30 years of professional experience weaving and dyeing silk. Neal holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with a double major in Sociology and Psychology from Guilford College, an Associates degree in Professional Crafts/Fiber from Haywood Community College, and a Certificate in Theology from the School of Theology, the University of the South. Her award winning work can be seen in private collections and at venues across the United States including – as part of a collaboration with Sari Srulovich and Ruth Cox – the Judaic collection of the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, NC. She is a member of Southern Highland Craft Guild and Piedmont Craftsmen, Inc. Neal teaches weaving, dyeing and Nuno felting at John C. Campbell Folk School and other regional arts organizations. Recently, Ms. Howard has returned to maternal family roots incorporating embroidery into her handwoven, hand-dyed and nuno-felted pieces. The various techniques and processes Neal employs have become as much a spiritual practice as a career.

For more, see: https://nealtheweaver.com

Textiles & Tea Episode 188 Neal Howard

Tom Knisely

Tom has made a career of teaching spinning and weaving for over four decades. He has spent much of his life studying, collecting and teaching about his love of all things fiber.

He is an author of nine books on the subject, including two children’s books. He is a frequent contributor to Handwoven Magazine.

For more, see: www.redstoneglen.com or any of Tom’s numerous books or his many articles in Handwoven Magazine.

Micala Sidore

Micala first studied weaving in 1973, completed her first tapestry in 1979 and, between1984 and 1987, spent over two years as an intern at La Manufacture Nationaldes Gobelins, the French state tapestry studio. Her first solo exhibit of tapestries was in 1984. She has since had three other one-person shows and participated in many group exhibitions. In 1987, she established the Hawley Street Tapestry Studio. Micala wrote her first article in 1991 for the German quarterly Textilforum. Since then, she has written over 45 articles and lectured on tapestry and fiber art in 11 countries. In 1991, she began the series called “Black + White + Red All Over” and in 1998 showed the first 19 episodes in Poland.  There are now 68 in the series. In 2014 she curated a traveling exhibition called “The Art is the Cloth” and in 2020 Schiffer Books published a book of the same name.  Micala is currently working on a second book for Schiffer, the subtitle for which is “The Language of Handwoven Tapestry.” It will be published in the spring of 2026.

For more, see: www.hawleystreet.com or The Art is the Cloth.

Cindy Koedoot Knisely 

Cindy is an admitted Fiberholic. She has been playing with fibery things since early childhood when she made clothes for her Barbie Dolls. She crochets and knits, sews, quilts and weaves baskets, but her favorite pastimes are spinning and weaving. She is never happier than when having fiber of some sort in her hands. She loves sharing her addiction with others.

For more, see: www.redstoneglen.com

Liz Spear

Liz Spear has been working with her hands since 1978, and has been a full-time craftsperson in Western North Carolina since 1992. She is primarily a weaver of cloth and a maker of fine garments and accessories, as well as a line of exhibition-worthy coats, incorporating other fiber artists’ cloth and colors. For several years, Liz has also been producing nuno-felt yardage, also made with silk fabrics dyed and/or printed by others. This nuno-felt collage fabric is cut up and combined with the handwoven fabrics for exciting coats and jackets. 

Teaching and demonstrating for national craft schools, weaving/fiber guilds and conferences are an important part of Liz’s continuing to master her craft. She is a member of the Southern Highlands Craft Guild, and Piedmont Craftsmen, Inc. and has taught at Penland and Arrowmont Schools of Craft, John C.Campbell Folk School, and Appalachian Center for Craft.

For more, see: https://www.lizspearhandwoven.com

Debbie Penley

Debbie is a multimedia artist with a recent concentration in fiber art. With a focus on nature and wildlife animals, her work ranges from the realistic and life-like to the abstract and whimsical. She enjoys the tactile qualities of her work and is often amazed at the almost magical transformation of the raw materials from a fluid state into something more enduring and solid. She often imbues a spirit of play and joy into her pieces with the intention of inviting the audience along on the journey.

For more, see: whiteoakcreations@verizon.net