Healing with Weaving is a transformative initiative dedicated to utilizing the therapeutic benefits of not only the viewing of art but the making of it, especially weaving, to promote emotional well-being and foster creativity. Through weaving, individuals are provided with a unique opportunity to find solace, express themselves, and embark on a healing journey. With a focus on accessibility and community engagement, Healing with Weaving offers weaving kits, workshops, and outreach programs, empowering people of all backgrounds to discover the profound benefits of this ancient craft. Join us as we weave together a tapestry of healing, hope, and resilience.
Mission Statement
Our mission is to promote healing, reduce stress, and foster creativity through the therapeutic power of weaving, art making, and art viewing. We aim to provide accessible weaving experiences through kits, workshops, and community outreach programs, empowering people to find solace and inspiration through the art of weaving.
Vision Statement
To create a world where the meditative and healing benefits of weaving are widely recognized and utilized, fostering a supportive and creative environment in hospitals, medical facilities, counseling centers, and communities. We envision a future where weaving is a common tool for emotional and mental well-being, offering solace and strength to those in need.
Purpose Statement
Healing with Weaving integrates the art of weaving into therapeutic practices, enhancing the emotional and mental health of individuals in various settings. By providing resources, education, and community support, we aim to empower people to use weaving to self-express and heal, promoting overall well-being and resilience.
About the Artist & Creative Director
My name is Debbie Barrett-Jones, and I am a local textile artist in the Kansas City area. Since 2006, I have been creating one-of-a-kind, custom-colored, hand-woven textiles for homes, businesses, places of worship, and hospitals. My hope is that my artwork will inspire hope, harmony, and healing. As a weaver, I am able to be apart of the transformation of a simple white cone of yarn into a colorful, delicate piece of fabric.
In addition to my large woven pieces, I love making scarves. Scarves are my learning tools; they help me understand how colors work together, which I then apply to my larger pieces. I strive to create beautiful, genuine, thoughtful, and inspiring work.
My Journey
As a child, I struggled with finding my own identity. Being the fourth of five children, I often compared myself to my siblings and lacked confidence. I always enjoyed working with my hands and creating crafts but never took myself seriously. I knew two things: I loved being creative and a strong desire to help people.
After high school, I stopped being creative. I lacked confidence in my artistic abilities and needed to pursue a serious career. At 21, engaged to my husband, I thought nursing was the perfect profession. I excelled in my prerequisites and felt proud. However, I realized it wasn’t for me once I started the nursing program. I felt a constant sense of discomfort and knew I had to quit, which led to many tears of shame and confusion.
After leaving the nursing program, I was unsure about my future. My husband Brandon and I got married, and I found a job at a decorating store, helping people with color choices. This changed everything. I rediscovered my love for working with colors, studying color charts, and creating collages and mosaics from paper swatches.
In 2002, my sister, who was finishing her BFA at the Kansas City Art Institute, encouraged me to apply to KCAI. Despite my doubts, I applied with a portfolio of paper mosaics and was surprised to be accepted with scholarships. In 2003, we moved from a small town in Iowa to Kansas City, and I started art school. Initially unsure of my abilities, I felt a sense of peace that I was in the right place. When I chose the fiber department and was introduced to weaving, I knew I had found my passion.
Professional Milestones
My first commission came from Community Christian Church on the Plaza during my first semester of weaving. Another commission from them after graduation helped me purchase my loom, which I’ve used for the past 17 years.
In 2014, I was selected to create a piece for the Lisa Barth Interfaith Chapel at Children's Mercy Hospital. This opportunity came at a time of doubt in my career. We had two children, and it was challenging to pay the bills. I also faced the grief of a miscarriage. Creating the woven textiles for the chapel was a healing process for me. My commissioned woven piece was installed in their “family room” next to the chapel. This room can be converted into their one and only hospice room in the hospital. I remember the day I had my tour and could see it for the first time. I remember clearly the feelings of failure and shame I felt when I quit the nursing program. I had a big desire to help with people’s healing process, but I thought I failed at that, here I was years later, being able to in a completely different way than I imagined. I realized that I was fulfilling my original desire to help others through art. This reinforced my commitment to my art and craft.
In 2016, I envisioned the "Healing with Weaving" initiative to highlight how art, specifically weaving, can be a powerful therapeutic tool. My work has brought solace and reflection to visitors in hospitals and places of worship, but I wanted to offer a more hands-on healing experience. By teaching people in these spaces to weave, I could share the direct therapeutic benefits of the process.
In 2021, I started pursuing my MFA at the University of Kansas. During this Spring semester of my first year in graduate school, I taught a remote Introduction to Weaving class using portable, laser-cut frame looms. For their second project, I asked students to focus on something or someone they had recently lost while weaving. This project turned out to be incredibly meaningful and healing for both my students and me. It reminded me of what I said years ago as a featured artist at the ArtsKC Inspiration Breakfast: I wanted to help people heal through weaving.
That summer, with support from ArtsKC’s Inspiration Grant and generous supporters, I will launch the first Healing with Weaving Community Outreach Program at Children’s Mercy Hospital Adele Hall Campus in Kansas City, MO. This project will provide 200 Healing with Weaving Frame Loom Kits, complete with instructions, to patients, family members, and staff, enabling them to explore the meditative and therapeutic benefits of weaving. Designed for accessibility, these kits offer tools and a creative process to help anyone experiencing anxiety, stress, grief, and loss. Additionally, funds will cover professional videography services for a weaving tutorial video.
The mission of Healing with Weaving extends beyond this summer's pilot project. I aim to continue making and donating weaving loom kits to other local Kansas City hospitals, medical and counseling facilities, and provide community weaving workshops. By expanding this initiative, we hope to bring the healing power of weaving to many more individuals in need.
Personal Reflections
Weaving has been a therapeutic gift, helping me heal from loss, manage health issues, and cope with anxiety. Every day at my loom is an act of creativity and therapy. I am passionate about creating work that is beautiful, genuine, thoughtful, and inspiring.
Future Aspirations
I dream to continue creating artwork for hospitals, mental health facilities, and places of worship. I also want to share the healing power of weaving through Frame Loom Weaving and Paper Weaving Kits for medical facilities. These kits can help patients, families, and staff find comfort and healing through creativity. I hope to turn this initiative into a nonprofit to reach thousands of needy people.
Please subscribe to Healing with Weaving for updates on learning to weave and its healing benefits. Your support can help fund Frame Loom Kits for Children's Mercy Hospital, benefiting young patients, their families, and staff. If you’d like to support my mission through messages or donations, please get in touch with me via my website with the subject "Healing with Weaving."
Thank you for taking the time to read my story and for your support. I am grateful to my husband, family, friends, collectors, customers, and online followers for encouraging me to be creative every day.
With much love, healing, and hope,
Debbie