Spinning Wool Knowledge is a new chapter of Kriyā Atelier, inspired by learning the craft of wool alongside the women of Bucos. With your support, you help create a vibrant space for education, textile creation, and the transmission of knowledge.
There are types of knowledge that don't disappear overnight.
They are becoming silent.
They live on in the hands of those who learned them from mothers, grandmothers, and neighbors. They remain in gestures repeated over generations, in the slow rhythms of the land, and in the crafts that, for centuries, helped to clothe, warm, and sustain entire communities.
Today, much of this knowledge is at risk of disappearing.
It was precisely this encounter that brought me to Bucos, in Cabeceiras de Basto.
Fiando saberes da lã. A Fiação
Over the past few months I have learned the complete cycle of the traditional wool craft directly from the Women of Bucos, guardians of a unique ancestral knowledge. From hand shearing with scissors to fiber preparation, from spinning to weaving, I have immersed myself in a living heritage that continues to exist thanks to the dedication of a small group of women who have preserved it for decades.
But preservation is not enough.
It needs to be activated.
To create opportunities for this knowledge to continue to be practiced, valued, and transmitted.
It was from this conviction that this new chapter of Kriyā Atelier was born.
A vibrant space dedicated to wool, textile arts, contemporary creation, education, and cultural regeneration.
A place where children, young people, and adults can learn traditional and contemporary techniques. Where local wool can once again be valued. Where artists, creators, and researchers will find inspiration. And where memory remains alive, transforming into innovation through practice.
The project is already underway, through field research, documentation of traditional techniques, and learning alongside the women of Bucos.
The funding will allow us to acquire the specialized tools needed to begin processing local wool and to launch the first workshops, educational experiences, and programs to transmit this knowledge.
Over the past few years, many have walked with me through the Kriyā Atelier.
In classes, workshops, educational projects, creative encounters, and transformation journeys.
Fiando Saberes da Lã · A Tecelagem
Today I invite you to help me create a home for everything we have been weaving together.
By supporting this campaign, you are not only contributing to the creation of a workshop.
You are helping to keep a cultural heritage alive.
You are supporting the transmission of knowledge that is at risk of disappearing.
You are investing in a project that combines tradition, contemporary creation, education, and territorial regeneration.
Each contribution is a thread.
Together we can weave something greater.
We can guarantee that this knowledge remains alive, inspiring those who come after.
Thank you for being part of this network.
Fiando Saberes da Lã · A Cardação
What is born with the studio:
• A space dedicated to the preservation and transmission of wool knowledge.
• A place for creation, learning, and cultural regeneration.
• A meeting point between tradition and contemporary style.
• A living laboratory for future generations.
With your support, it will be possible to develop:
• Learning the complete wool cycle.
• Transmission of knowledge from the women of Bucos.
• Workshops and training programs.
• Textile arts: weaving, sewing, felting, natural dyeing and botanical printing.
• Contemporary textile design.
• Educational experiences.
• Artist residencies.
• Promoting the value of local wool.
• Cultural regeneration of the territory.
About the author
Sofia Queirós develops her work at the intersection of textile arts, education, and regenerative practices, creating bridges between heritage, contemporary creation, and community engagement.
She is the founder of Kriyā Wear (2015), a project dedicated to creating sustainable textiles and wellness products, and Kriyā Atelier (2018), a learning and experimentation space where she has been leading classes, workshops, educational projects and creative experiences in the areas of sewing, pattern making, natural dyeing, botanical printing and textile arts.
Over the past few years, her work has sought to bring people closer to manual skills, promoting a more conscious relationship with materials, the territory, and the creative processes.
Currently, she is developing a learning and research path dedicated to the complete wool cycle, in direct contact with the Women of Bucos, in Cabeceiras de Basto, guardians of a unique intangible heritage linked to the traditional craft of wool.
It is from this encounter that the Spinning Wool Knowledge project was born, continuing the path developed through the Kriyā Atelier and affirming a new commitment to the preservation, appreciation and transmission of this knowledge to present and future generations.
Holding a degree in Food Engineering from the Catholic University of Portugal and training as a dressmaker from Modatex, she combines technical knowledge with practical, artistic and educational experience, developing projects that integrate creation, education and cultural regeneration.
She believes that preserving knowledge means keeping it alive through practice, sharing, and the ability to inspire new forms of continuity.
Sofia Queirós · Kriyā Atelier
Budget and due dates
Each contribution will be invested in the creation of the Kriyā Atelier Textile Arts Workshop, a space dedicated to learning, creating, researching and transmitting knowledge about wool.
The funding will enable the acquisition of specialized equipment for all stages of the complete wool cycle — fiber preparation, spinning, weaving, textile creation, and educational activities — creating the necessary conditions to develop workshops, community projects, artistic residencies, and learning experiences.
Projected distribution of investment
| Equipment / Investment |
Estimated value |
|---|
| Manual carding machines |
450 € |
| Drum carding machine |
500 € |
| Traditional spindles and spinning wheels |
360 € |
| Spinning wheel |
500 € |
| Tabletop looms |
1,500 € |
| Pedal loom |
2,000 € |
| Strip loom |
120 € |
| Shuttles and shuttles |
150 € |
| Wool combs |
150 € |
| Sarilho and dobadoira |
150 € |
| Industrial sewing machines |
1,500 € |
| Materials for creative and educational activities |
1,000 € |
| Organization and adaptation of space |
500 € |
| Platform and processing fees |
~900 € |
| Total projected |
9,780 € |
The values presented are estimates and may be subject to minor adjustments depending on the availability of new or second-hand equipment, always maintaining the purpose of this investment: to create a functional workshop dedicated to learning, creating and transmitting knowledge of wool.
Scheduling
July – August 2026
• Acquisition of initial specialized tools and materials.
• Continued learning in the territory, field research and documentation of traditional knowledge among the women of Bucos.
• Development of initial prototypes and teaching materials.
September – October 2026
• Beginning of the first workshops and pilot projects.
• Testing and developing methodologies with different audiences.
• Continuation of the handcrafted creation and documentation of the process.
November 2026 – January 2027
• Conducting workshops and knowledge transfer activities.
• Consolidation of artisanal production.
• Dissemination of the project and public sharing of the work developed.
Throughout the entire journey
• Photographic and audiovisual record.
• Collaborative work with the community.
• Continuous research, experimentation and development.
This schedule represents the starting point. The studio will continue to grow and take shape through learning, creation, and the relationships built with the community, keeping alive a heritage that deserves to continue inspiring the present and the future.
