Creativity Loom: A Framework for Weaving Purpose and Self-Expression
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.
“Threads were among the earliest transmitters of meaning.”
—Anni Albers
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).
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
"Weaving (...) implies the grid, and the grid can suggest weaving."
— Harmony Hammond
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.
Putting it Together in 5 Steps
Step 1: Grab your Loom
Grab your piece of paper or blank spreadsheet (example below).
Step 2: Define Your Warp
List your verticals (foundations) as column headers. Keep it to 3–5 items—core values or the pillars that sustain your identity.
Reflection Tip: List all possibilities first, then take a step back to merge, split, or refine them into your most fundamental values.
Practical Tip: If using a spreadsheet, start your column headers from column B.
Step 3: Add Your Weft
List your horizontals (variables) as different row headers: the ways you show up in the world (skills, media, creative outlets).
Reflection Tip: These can be as many and as colorful as you'd like (or have time for). They may evolve or change. Sometimes, you might want to revisit your Warp and move items into the Weft (foundations and expressions often blur).
Practical Tip: If using a spreadsheet, list your horizontals under column A, starting from the second row.
Step 4: Weave It Together
Look at your loom-in-progress and fill in the space between: where each expression of Warp and Weft intersect. Column headers = foundations. Row headers = expressions. Fill the cells with ideas, past experiences, projects, or offerings.
Now, creatively connect the dots:
How are you applying your top skills in service of your core values?
Where are the overlaps?
What feels hard to fill in?
Refine your Warp and Weft labels as clarity emerges.
5. Reflect on your Final Tapestry
Your woven grid becomes a visual map of your impact. Take a step back to look and reflect on what it reveals.
Ask yourself:
What intersections feel most alive?
Which ideas or projects excite me most?
Which skills are underused or missing?
How would I describe myself based on this tapestry?
What offering could combine 3+ of these threads?
Templates + Practical Examples
While this is a very personal exercise, and no Loom looks like another, I have created a few resources to support you in this process, including:
1. Blank template based on what has worked for me.
You can find it (and work from it) here.
2. Public Figure Example: Frida Kahlo’s Creativity Loom
I chose a public figure with a distinctive, recognizable style and voice: Frida Kahlo.
Using a bit of AI assistance, I prompted GPT with this article, the Creativity Loom framework, and Frida’s persona to generate an initial version of her Loom.
I then edited the result based on my own understanding, refining the structure and filling in key gaps. The outcome powerfully illustrates how Frida wove together her art, personality, and politics. She built one of the most iconic artistic legacies of the 20th century, while also contributing to a broader cultural movement that uplifted national identity over colonial ideals.
Repeating: the areas where your values and creative expressions overlap the most often reveal your greatest potential for impact.
3. The Author’s (Laís’) Creativity Loom
This is my own, very personal experience crafting a Creativity Loom (still a work in progress). Feels vulnerable sharing, but I hope it inspires you to do the same!
A few reflections that might be helpful:
You might start by listing 5–10 items under your "Warp," then narrow it down to the core few. Also, and especially if you're a generalist, it's normal to list 15+ items under "Weft" before trimming to what truly matters right now (think: this season, this life stage).
Some areas of expression (e.g., Writing and Experience Design) serve as umbrella categories that support and amplify others across the loom.
Once you begin "weaving," you can always revisit and refine your labels across both Warp and Weft. It’s part of the process.
See below visual representation of what I’m talking about:
My Creativity Loom started like this…
And got simplified as this:
Why does it matter?
Reflecting on the above, I can see that the crossroads between my foundations and expressions reveal a clear pattern: I operate at the intersection of human connection, creativity, care, and cross-cultural insight, and use these to:
Design transformative experiences
Architect meaningful communities
Tell resonant stories
Advise mission-driven organizations
This brings me clarity: I’m not here to fit neatly into the box of entrepreneur, strategist, or creator. I’m here to serve as a guide through transformation—personal and collective—through every venture, project, or chapter I take on.
Final Words: What About You?
Creating your own Creativity Loom isn’t about being artistic or perfect: it’s about pausing long enough to see yourself with clarity.
In a world that often demands speed and specialization, this simple framework invites you to slow down and explore the threads that truly make you you.
Your Warp holds the values you return to, again and again.
Your Weft reveals how you express and create in the world.
And in the spaces where they intersect the most, something honest and powerful begins to emerge: your unique impact.
Whether you’re at a moment of reinvention, navigating transition, or simply seeking clarity, the Loom gives you a visual, intuitive way to organize your complexity.
It doesn’t give you a final answer, but it does offer something just as valuable: a mirror, a map, and a place to begin again, with intention.
So go ahead! Grab a sheet, a spreadsheet, or anything in between. Start naming your threads. You may be surprised by the story they start to tell.
And if you need some help, or have some feedback to share, do reach out!