Upstairs Studio
About Us
In the mid 70's I bought into a partnership of a knit shop, southwest of Houston. That shop was the beginning of my experience in retail sales.
The shop closed for many reasons, and I went to work in 1979, earning a wage doing what was normally considered a man's job.
In 1989 I started a new adventure, upstairs in a small room on main street in La Porte, Texas.
I was doing invitations for weddings, posters, tee shirts, etc.
I rented a space in a junk store down on the street level and decided that I needed to go ahead and rent a store front. That first store front was 304 West Main Street and we were there for over 11 years. We moved next door but decided to down size and moved in 2002 into our workshop at 111 1/2 North Second Street, La Porte, Texas 77571.
I learned to weave from my mother Donna Rae Harris in high school in the early 60's.
My mother learned to weave from Mrs. Hickman at Milby High School as a student teacher.
Mother's first loom was a Bexal, that she bought from a man in down town Houston. It was a huge 45” counterbalance 4 harness 6 treadle loom.
I opened the store as an art gallery and sold mother's oil and water color paintings. We also painted cow skulls, more tee shirts and lots of other stuff. Mother ran the store while I worked my un-normal job.
Mother got so bored that she brought one of her looms to work on, then another, and then a spinning wheel.
We sat at the shop one day talking and she told me that a weaving store down town that had been in business for a long time just went out of business. Now that is not a very good reason to start selling weaving supplies but there was no other store except in Conroe and so we said, “Why not try”.
Our policy since day one has been to teach and educate ourselves and the public about the craft of weaving. We learned very quickly that we had lots to learn, and we have been learning ever since.
When customers came in the store, just to find out what we were doing, we would show them how the looms worked, talk about weaving, the art of it, the history of it, how much we loved weaving and how it helped our sanity.
We teach Beginner Weaving. We are able to teach 3 students as they come in, all others have sign up on a waiting list.
The cost of Weaving Lessons $150.00 for 4 eight hour days. The class includes a “Learn to Weave Book” and all the materials to weave a sampler.
We also teach Beginner Spinning on a spindle and then advance to the spinning wheel for $75.00. The class includeds a spindle, fleece, and a book. The time is unlimited for this class. We will stick with you as long as you need so you can learn. Remember this: they once taught children at the age of three to spin. (With a spindle not the wheel)
We have workshops during the year for paper making, book binding, felting, dyeing and much more. So bookmark this site, and visit us often, or come see us in person at our retail store.
We still demonstrate to customers that come see us. We demo our weaving looms, spinning wheels, spindles, dyeing in our 3 year old indigo pot, and felting with water and needles. You got a question we will try to help. Sometimes we have find someone to help us. Remember I said we are still learning.
I don't think I will every get tired of learning about textile crafts, they have been a part of our lives for 20,000 years. I love watching customers faces when I tell them that.
It is as important as the clothes on your back, sheets on your bed, covers on the seat of your car, the webbing on your lawn chairs, gauze bandage on your arm, curtains on your windows, the tablecloths and napkins at the resturant, the covers to protect your computer, quilts and blankets on your bed, the rugs on your floor and the flag that flies out front.