Kailua Village Artists

I have been engaged in a variety of art forms including textile art since I was a teenager in the 90’s and have had over a decade of experience in retail fabric crafts. My admiration of Japanese art and culture led me to shibori in 2017. At that time, I attended an indigo dyeing workshop and loved it so much I wanted to learn more! At the time, no one was teaching more advanced classes near me, so I hunted for any resource I could find (mainly books, as there was very little online). There was a lot of experimentation and A LOT of trial and error, but within a year, I was experimenting with my own designs.

Shibori is a Japanese art form that is centuries old. It involves folding, binding, gathering or hand stitching to manipulate fabric to resist dye, creating unique patterns and designs. My current art uses the stitch resist technique. It starts with strategically hand stitching the design, tightening numerous threads and knotting them, dyeing the fabric, then carefully removing each thread to reveal the piece. A binding technique is used to create the designs on my towels and most of my scarves. Shibori traditionally uses an indigo dye, but my love of color drew me to fiber-reactive dyes, which is now my preferred medium.



In 2020, I turned my passion for shibori into a full time career. My designs are mostly inspired by the diverse natural environment here on Hawai’i Island and its surrounding waters.