What Makes Ghost Owl Textiles Special
My name is Sal and I'm the owner, operator, and single employee here!
This business is, in every way, a natural progression for me. I will keep making things and learning new techniques as long as I'm lucky to keep breathing, which means I have far more than I will EVER be able to use myself or gift away.
One of my very first memories was being pushed in a stroller through a fabric store, seeing all the colors and patterns on the bolts towering over me in pure joy and wonder like it was just piles of candy. I remember reaching out and grabbing one, pulling the delicious rainbow wonder down into my grasp and sending several other bolts spilling out onto the aisle floor. I was told years later by my grandma that the fabric I chose was a tessellating cartoon cat pattern in full neon rainbow, and that she ended up having to buy a piece for me to bring home because I was absolutely distraught at the idea of having to leave it behind. In retrospect, it makes perfect sense - most of my life since has been experimenting with color and texture and fiber in every spare moment that I can.
I'm wholeheartedly committed to both environmental and personal safety. There's no such thing as a leftover dye bath here, no metals going into the plumbing or the planet - everything is exhausted and reused. There are certain dye techniques that I WILL NOT offer for sale or even experiment with, because there is no way outside of a chemical clean room to ensure that there's nothing escaping containment (and even then, mistakes happen). I feel the cottage dyeing industry has the responsibility to NOT repeat the flagrant environmental pollution that has marked the last hundred years of industrialization.
I am mostly self taught - I was lucky enough to be able to learn a little bit about quilting and spinning yarn and knitting from my elders, and take some various intro fine-arts classes when I was young. Combined with my interest in science and a pretty D.I.Y. family background, I feel uniquely qualified when it comes to taking these traditional arts and applying modern knowledge and supplies.
ALWAYS interested in doing custom dye batches, spinning, etc - ALWAYS feel free to reach out! I've also been known to barter.
Lastly, since I am chronically ill, autistic, and gender nonconforming - your support is real lifesaving magic. The culture of this country was not built for people like me, and surviving in spite of it is no small task. Thank you for everything, including browsing!!