Support Local Cloth's Resilient Fiber Artists and Farmers

On September 27, 2024, Local Cloth, located in the heart of Asheville's River Arts District, was devastated by Hurricane Helene. The Local Cloth Studio was almost completely destroyed from flood waters and debris, which knocked out our front door and windows and rose inside the walls to more than 10 feet.

As you can imagine, this has impacted our entire organization, disrupting our retail and workshop operations, damaging equipment and tools, and wiping out entire collections from our fiber artists and farmers. Some of our Resident Artists lost everything.

Local Cloth is a non-profit organization. Our mission is to support and strengthen our local fiber economy. Just a week ago we accepted the 2024 award for Best Boutique Retail Shop in Asheville. Our Shop, which features local, one-of-a-kind and handmade items from our members, supports both the fiber artists and farmers who make them and Local Cloth. The destruction from Hurricane Helene is an incredible loss. It threatens the livelihoods of fiber artists and farmers who comprise our 600+ member network.

However, we have found strength and comfort in community. Local Cloth members have shown up in mucky boots and gloves to help us take stock and begin the long, slow clean up process ahead of us.

If you know fiber art, then you know that you can create something beautiful from old, damaged pieces of cloth, strengthening what was there originally and offering it a new life. This is also true for our space. If you are familiar with fiber farmers, then you know that strength and perseverance run in their veins. This is true of our community. Hurricane Helene did not destroy our community; our community will help us rebuild the space that we have come to call home.

Your donation will help us in two ways: to support our fiber artists and farmers who have lost work in the flood; and to help our resident artists replace their work. Because of donations received for our workshop and studio space, we have removed that amount from our original goal. Thank you.