2025 Rust Belt Fibershed Symposium Learning Stations & Vendors

January 25 at 78th Street Studios

1:00-2:00 pm: morning symposium ticket holders only

2:00-4:00 pm: Free and open to general public (there will be a place to drop donations)

Address: W 78th Street Studios, 1300 W 78th St. Cleveland, OH 44102

Ever wondered what alpaca fleece feels like? How to crochet, sew, or felt? What botanical dyes are? How to create beautiful things out of native grasses? How to soften buckskin leather? How linen is made? Want to buy local, beautiful fiber for knitting and other projects directly from farmers? Support slow fashion makers in our region?

Check out our Hands-On Learning Demos and Vendor Listings Below!

For full weekend agenda and details, please see the main symposium page.

LEARNING TABLE/DEMO HOSTS:

For full weekend agenda and details, please see the main symposium page.

INFO TABLES

Great Lake Erie Southern Shore (GLESS) Bioregion
Come learn more about the goal of GLESS is to cultivate connection, communication, cooperation and collaboration among the human – and more-than-human – members of the Great Lake Erie Southern Shore Bioregion.
Website

One Year, One Outfit (A Rust Belt Fibershed Project)
Swing by and learn more about the current One Year, One Outfit Project from the Rust Belt Fibershed. See participants making their outfits in-action, ask questions about their materials, and learn about ways to celebrate our regional fiber and slow fashion
Website

Rust Belt Linen Project (formerly the Cleveland Flax Project)
The Rust Belt Linen Project is a community-powered grow project that aims to connect participants in our community with where our clothing comes from, as well as to revitalize the conversation around locally-grown linen. Come by the table and see what we’ve been up to!
Website

VENDORS

Current Official List

Fiber Farms

yarn, fleece, raw wool, hides

The Buzzard Farm
The Buzzard Farm is a small fiber farm in Western Pennsylvania which focuses on the sustainability of alpaca fiber. The farm offers custom orders of hand spun, dye free, yarn and custom, dye free, hand spun hats all made from alpaca grown on their farm.
Instagram | Website

Powers Acres / Oxbow Orchard
Oxbow Orchard and Powers Acres raise Icelandic sheep on regenerative farms in Northeast Ohio. We transform the wool we produce into beautiful yarn and felt products that we sell at our farm store and at local farmer's markets. Our farming efforts go beyond mere production, we are cultivating a deeper connection between our community and the land.
Powers Acres: Instagram | Website
Oxbow Orchard: Instagram | Website

Ross Farm Mercantile
The Ross Farm is a generational operation in Southwestern PA raising multiple rare and heritage breeds of sheep and producing yarn, roving and products from their sustainable wool. Nearly all of our products are minimally processed, breed specific, undyed, unblended and produced by small, family farm-based businesses. We are committed to limiting our footprint and raising our livestock in an ethical and sustainable way. While the farm is located in PA, the products are housed in OH at our studio.
Instagram | Website

Frayed Knot Farm
Frayed Knot Farm has participated in growing flax since the Cleveland Flax Project began back in 2018, and will be offering dried arrangements with flax. Frayed Knot Farm is located 30 miles east of downtown Cleveland and grows over 100 varieties of annual and perennial flowers and foliage on less than an acre. Using hand scale and regenerative farming practices, the flowers produced and foraged are offered in CSA bouquet subscriptions, wholesale to florists, for events and workshops.
Instagram | Website

Fabric, Fiber & Notions

Blue Thistle Fibers
Blue Thistle Fibers is a small-batch, naturally dyed fiber company based in the mountains of West Virginia. We offer sustainable, ethically sourced raw wool, yarns, wool roving, knit, and woven fabrics. All are dyed by hand with natural dyes and crafted using traditions passed down from our grandmothers.
Instagram | Website

Tansy Recycling
At Tansy Recycling our mission is to tackle the plastic waste challenge in Summit County by recycling plastics that are otherwise not handled locally. We believe that our work making sewing notions out of local plastic waste along with growing and using natural dye plants aligns closely with the mission statement of the Rustbelt Fibershed.
Instagram | Website

Old Flame Mending Co.
Old Flame Mending is a Pittsburgh-based sewing service. We help you keep your beloved garments + textiles out of the landfill through repair, tailoring/ alterations, and custom work.
Instagram | Website

Finished Goods

Upcycle/Scrap Reuse

Flux Bene
FLUX BENE is a line of zero-waste garments & accessories thoughtfully created in Pittsburgh, PA. All Flux Benes are one of a kind, gender neutral and made from upcycled materials. Care is taken to ensure that each piece is constructed to last and that an inclusive of sizing options are available. Pockets!
Instagram | Website

Local Cut & Sew

Cleveland Sewing Company
Cleveland Sewing Company's unwavering commitment to offering heirloom quality home goods not only encourages folks to participate in sustainability but also supports local artisans and American manufacturing. By replacing single-use items with durable and eco-friendly alternatives, we enable our customers to embrace a more sustainable lifestyle, reduce waste and strengthen our local communities.
Instagram | Website

Faan Slow Goods
Faan is a slow fashion brand creating workwear-inspired unisex pieces from organic and salvaged fabrics since 2015. Each piece is cut and sewn by a small team in Cleveland, and every production scrap is reused or composted. Faan’s domestic supply chain, organic sourcing and natural dye program underpin our mission to help establish a circular model for apparel production within the Rustbelt Fibershed.
Instagram | Website

Found Surface
Found Surface is a Cleveland-based apparel and soft goods manufacturer specializing in circular and sustainable textiles. Using advanced digital knitting and cut-and-sew techniques, we create high-quality products made from natural fibers and other responsibly sourced materials. By composting textile waste with Rust Belt Riders and prioritizing domestic supply chains, we ensure a transparent, closed-loop process that supports the Rust Belt Fibershed’s mission of regenerative and community-oriented production.
Instagram | Website

Worth Dry Goods
Worth Dry Goods is a small fiber business based out of Buffalo, NY. We are passionate about building a local, sustainable, and planet-friendly textile economy! Focusing on high-quality, environmentally-conscious materials and merchandise for makers, we offer locally-produced goods and hand-dyed local fiber.
Instagram | Website

Vintage

Sun in Leo
Sun in Leo is a circular marketplace with up-cycled and responsibly sourced apparel and accessories. We take accountability for where our products come from as well as provide services like alterations to ensure longevity on all kinds of products.
Instagram | Email

Natural Dyes

Praxis Fiber Workshop
Praxis Fiber Workshop builds the international network of fiber artists and makers through classes, workshops, residencies, and collaborative projects that teach the art form and demonstrate how fiber art can be used to build healthy, resilient, and inclusive communities. Since 2018 Praxis has grown and processed Japanese indigo on vacant lots in our residential neighborhood. We now have extracted pigment indigo dye kits available for sale along with hand-dyed and printed Praxis Fiber Workshop T Shirts.
Instagram | Website

Ethical Sourcing

Harkin
Custom designed leather goods slowly made in Cleveland, crafted in traceable vegetable tanned leather. The story of the animal to the material to the end product only travels through a few hands across a few states while maintaining low waste and a high end product.
Instagram | Website