I first travelled to Laos in 2010, instantly falling in love with the country, the people and the culture. After volunteering in Laos for six weeks and travelling to Cambodia several times, I had seen during these visits, so many beautiful handmade artisan products that I wanted to share and showcase with others back home in Australia.
I began to appreciate the processes of producing beautiful Lao Textiles, and learnt that some villages were known as Weaving Villages. From the growing and harvesting of the cotton, hand spinning the yarn, measuring the lengths of cotton strands, and then setting up their Looms, which are usually placed under their houses or in the shade of the verandah. I learnt that most of these hand woven textiles were also dyed with natural plant based dyes, a craft of sourcing beautiful colours from nature which has been used for many years throughout Asia. Learning that beautiful textiles created in very basic conditions, using traditional methods, made me curious to want to know more.
Soon the idea of LOOM Designs began to form in my mind. During my travels in September 2014 I filled a big suitcase with these beautiful hand-loomed textiles and hand-made jewellery directly from Laos, and on returning home I rented a small space within a local retail store, in my home town of Willunga in South Australia, and from there LOOM Designs was officially born. With the name LOOM Designs comes from the traditional looms a team of women weavers in Northern Laos use to weave these beautiful textiles.
“After volunteering in Laos for six weeks and travelling to Cambodia many times, the idea of Loom Designs began to form in my mind.”
Keo is my ‘go to person’ for everything in Laos, and her and I have worked together now for the past eleven years to create my own unique range of handmade textiles, that honours their traditional artisan skills and village craftwork. Our team of women weavers work the looms from their homes, allowing them to earn an income within their communities, remaining with their families and participating in everyday village life.
Keo and her team of Village Weavers make all of our naturally dyed hand woven cotton textiles and turn them into our beautiful tea towels, hand towel, face washers and beach towels. While providing opportunities for the women to develop any new techniques and to ensure our textiles are of the highest quality.
LOOM Designs started to grow, and within a short time we expanded into the wholesale market. Which was the beginnings of a integral part of our business here at LOOM. Our beautiful hand-loomed and hand-made products were starting to be stocked in so many boutiques and unique stores in a number of locations around Australia. Which we have the fortune to be able to continue to nourish today, after eleven years and a lot of hard work. We would not be where we are today without Our Stockists - we thank those past and present for their ongoing support of our little sole-operator small business here in South Australia.
In 2021 I started to produce my own range of handmade jewellery and accessories working with Jasmine who runs a Women’s Sewing Collective in Cambodia supporting women affected by HIV. Jasmine and her Sewing Collective make many of our accessories like our keyrings, glasses cases and cotton pouches
Through a collaboration with Jasmine, I started working with Nith in Phnom Pehn in Cambodia, a talented Jewellery Artisan creating beautiful items from recycled metal. Sitting with him and watching while he handmade one of our Hammered Brass Rings was a magical moment! He melts down brass artillery and bullet casings using very basic tools and in a small workshop, turning these remnants of war scrap into beautiful and meaningful Brass Jewellery.
We have talented Makers in Laos who create our range of Peace Project jewellery and key rings from aluminium war scrap using a traditional methods. By pouring molten aluminium into moulds made of packed sand, they then finish the pieces with sandpaper to make sure edges are smooth. These families now create a livelihood out of something that once devastated their homeland, by recycling this scrap metal into a sustainable range of jewellery and souvenirs.
“I feel like Laos really chose me. It has been one of the most humbling and hardworking experiences of my life! ”
We hope through your continued support and ongoing production of this range, we are able to be an impact for positive change for our makers and their families, by giving them continued work with fair pay. More and more we are becoming aware of the importance of ethical production and supporting artisan crafts. We know that every textile and each piece of jewellery has been meticulously handmade with care and determination, and that it will make a positive difference in the lives of the makers.
I really feel like Laos really chose me, and it has been one of the most humbling and hardworking experiences of my life, and hope that it will continue to be more many more years to come. Thank you for your support and taking the time to read about our humble beginnings. - Carol Harrison [LOOM Designs]
