Creativity Loom: A Framework for Weaving Purpose and Self-Expression
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A simple yet powerful tool to help you map who you are and what you’re here to create, especially in times of reinvention. Inspired by a MoMA exhibition.
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“Threads were among the earliest transmitters of meaning.”
—Anni Albers
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We all reach moments where we crave clarity. Not just about what we do, but why we do it, and how it all fits together. That’s what led me to create the Creativity Loom: a visual, intuitive framework that helps you map your inner foundations (your values, identity, and worldview) against your outward expressions (your work, voice, and creative practices).
In Part I: A Metaphor is Born, I share the origins of this framework (5 min)
In Part II: Build Your Own Loom, I walk you through it step-by-step (2 min)
In the final section, Templates + Examples, I include real applications (2 min)
Whether you're navigating a life transition, shifting careers, or simply craving more alignment, this exercise invites you to pause, reflect, and reconnect with the deeper thread that runs through everything you create.
Part I: Background Story: A Metaphor is Born
Let me start by admitting that I know little about weaving, but I’ve always been drawn to it as a metaphor for creativity and community building—recently using it to describe what I’m working on these days:
“I’m weaving my own story, colors, and passions into something uniquely mine: rekindling my love for personal growth, boutique experience design, creative writing, storytelling, and community building.”
— Source: Unveiling Nest & North: A Personal Reinvention Venture (Part 1/2)
I’m also magnetically drawn to weaving as an art form. Over the years, I’ve collected pieces in various shapes and materials: straw bags, rattan baskets, and handwoven fabrics, clothing or tapestry found from Brazil to Southeast Asia.
Bearing woven pieces grounds me in my roots. It feels homey and familiar. I come from a region deep in the Brazilian countryside where artisans still preserve the ancient art of the tear de algodão (a traditional cotton loom).
Aside from weaving a few wooly scarves as a child (on a handmade loom fashioned from four wooden sticks and a row of nails to hold the warp), I never learned the terminology or any advanced techniques.
Then last week, I went to MoMA to grab coffee with a new friend—we had connected over the idea of "endless becoming" prompted by motherhood (her words, more about it here)—and stayed to see one of the exhibitions she recommended: Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction.
In MoMA’s words:
"[The exhibition] reveals the links between this art form and abstraction. Incorporating basketry, apparel, and over a century of textile works that challenge the divisions between fine art and craft, this exhibition broadens the story of abstraction, suggesting that not only ideas but materials—like woven, knotted, and braided fabric—are crucial to its understanding and success."
As I walked through the exhibition, pausing at specific pieces for a macro view of their textures, I went from "this is pretty" to more intricate reflections: What makes the piece? My mind began weaving itself into the exhibition, threading through its walls and corridors like a strand getting braided through the warp.
Like good art does, it carried me from unconscious knowing to conscious meaning.
The Making of an Applicable Metaphor
After the exhibition, I walked into the Creativity Lab, a space offering themed activities that extended the experience. There were colored pencils, patterned paper grids, and a co-weaving station where visitors could contribute to a shared piece.
There, four improvised looms awaited: vertical threads (the warp) stretched across frames, and a basket of loose threads (the weft) ready for weaving. It consisted of four improvised looms: each with vertical threads attached at both ends (the warp), and a basket of loose threads to weave through them (the weft).
The “collaborative loom” at MoMA’s Creativity Lab
This metaphor starts right there.
Still entranced by the exhibition, I dropped my bag, picked up a thread from a basket, and started to weave. My neighboring weaver was likely a second grader, his mom filming proudly.
As I began, the obvious struck me with simple clarity:
The Basics of Weaving
Loom (The Frame): The structure that holds everything in place and enables the act of weaving.
Warp (The Foundation): The vertical (lengthwise) threads stretched on the loom that form the base of the fabric.
Weft (The Expression): The horizontal (crosswise) threads woven through the warp to create the fabric.
That’s it.
Now let’s set you up with your very own “Creativity Loom”.
Part II: Build Your Own Creativity Loom
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"Weaving (...) implies the grid, and the grid can suggest weaving."
— Harmony Hammond
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Why This Matters
Your Creative Loom is a living tapestry. Your expressions (weft) animate your foundations (warp). By crafting your own Loom, you may begin to notice:
Patterns in what fuels you
Opportunities to realign your work with what matters most
Latent threads (skills, desires, curiosities) ready to be reawakened
The main reflection from looking at my own Creativity Loom, as well as that of public figures (like the example I created for Frida Kahlo below) is this: the most significant merged areas, where multiple expressions and foundational threads combine, often reveal the most potent zones of personal impact.
These intersections reveal where our work feels most true to who we are.
You’ll Need:
1. Loom
Your framework. Start with a blank sheet of paper or a spreadsheet.
2. Warp (Verticals)
The lengthwise threads representing your foundations: the constants that define you. These often include your core values and key identity pillars.
3. Weft (Horizontals)
The crosswise threads representing your variables: what you’re weaving through. These often reflect your expressive threads: creative outlets, preferred media, and ways of working. In short, they represent how your work shows up in the world.
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