About this episode

Angela Tong discusses her journey as a multidisciplinary maker in various crafts.

Knitters and crocheters know Angela Tong as a designer with hooks and needles, while weavers recognize her work in rigid-heddle and pin looms. Visitors to galleries and artisan markets know her as a potter. Angela thinks of herself simply as a maker, always drawn to creating beauty with her hands. Her first professional job set the tone: after earning a degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology, she produced fine platinum jewelry for Tiffany & Co. But beginning in her teens, she keenly felt the urge to learn to knit. A colleague at that first job taught her the knit stitch—just the knit stitch—and opened the world of fiber arts for her. Discovering a talent for clarifying instructions while test knitting other designers’ work, she began submitting designs for publication. Although she had not initially pictured herself as a teacher, that skill of clear explanation led her to teaching, and she eventually became a certified knitting instructor. Angela discovered another fiber-arts love in PieceWork March/April 2010, which featured pin looms on the cover. She tracked down a handmade pin loom from a small maker, wove a doll blanket, and never looked back. Her pin-loom and…

People in this episode

Guest: Angela Tong

Topics covered

• fiber arts
• knitting
• weaving
• pottery
• design
• craftsmanship

Keywords

• knitting
• weaving
• pottery
• design
• fiber arts
• instruction
• craft

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Fashion Institute of Technology, Tiffany & Co., PieceWork, Little Looms, Weave Together

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