Shagho watches three types of people arrive at her embroidery circles.
There are complete beginners discovering they can create with their hands. There are those following the trails of their women ancestors, reverse engineering knowledge so it can take root with them. And there are returners finishing projects that called them back after working years, life years away.
Shagho, founder of Folk Lounge, an LA-based craft collective, will bring her embroidery circle to Pasadena Heritage on Saturday, January 31, from 10 a.m. to noon.
“What I’m witnessing in our circles are three beautiful threads,” she said. “There are complete beginners who’ve never held a needle, discovering they can create with their hands—that agency is profound. Folks following the trails of their women ancestors, picking up techniques, building fluency, reverse engineering knowledge so it can take root with them. And those who coming back to the craft after years away—working years, life years—returning to something they loved, finally finishing projects that called them back.”
The free gathering is part of a series held every four Saturdays at various Los Angeles locations. Folk Lounge describes its work as “redefining what cultural preservation looks like in the 21st century—not as museum work, but as urgent community infrastructure.”
Pasadena Heritage, the second largest preservation group in California with more than two thousand members, has helped preserve hundreds of Pasadena landmarks, including the Colorado Street Bridge, since it was founded in 1977.
Participants of all skill levels can bring projects or start new ones.
Embroidery Social will run on Saturday, Jan. 31, at 10 a.m. Pasadena Heritage, 160 North Oakland Ave., Pasadena. For more information, call (626) 441-6333 or visit https://www.pasadenaheritage.org/events-tours/t6ucpvi9ks2t7olc8vj7gbsg3zfn9o. Ticket prices: Free.
