For the very first episode of brave space, I met with Kristen Tynan, a weaver, at her home studio in Morristown, NJ. We immediately dive into discussing labels and our comfort/discomfort with them. Kristen shares how her weaving journey emerged after earning an art degree and how she views her weaving practice as a protest to the rigidity of her experience in art school. She tried her had at tapestry weaving when at an artist residency in New Mexico.

Kristen then took a solo trip to Iceland and engaged with floor looms; she's now working primarily out of her home studio creating practical objects and preparing for her first craft market.

We talk about our need for accountability, the struggles of being productive at home, and the joys of working in public spaces. Kristen explains why in weaving, planning is so important, and I out myself by sharing my dislike for the (important) process of knitting swatches... We also gripe about how pricing your work is so difficult when your average consumer doesn't understand why American-made goods cost what they do. Kristen and I think we should all be alarmed by how inexpensive clothes produced via fast fashion are and question these practices. Still, we check our privilege when thinking about access and acknowledge that we both shop at big-box stores sometimes.

For more information, visit www.bravespacepod.com