About Us

The Oregon Weaver
Unique Handwoven Designs from the Pacific Northwest

Karen Gelbard, "The Oregon Weaver", specializes in
designing and producing handwoven coats, jackets and
scarves. In her studio on the Oregon Coast, Karen
creates unique and elegant fabrics that are shaped into
classically styled garments. Her scarves, with themes
such as "Driftwood" or "Grasses of Summer," are well
known as color landscapes of the Pacific Northwest.

After Karen graduated from the University of Kansas
with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Design in 1974,
she focused her creative energies on color and texture
using fiber. She has gone on to demonstrate her
weaving and clothing design skills in schools, classes
and museums across the country.

Karen is one of the artists who help with the on-going
restoration of historic Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood in
Oregon. Since 1979, she has woven over 260 yards of
upholstery fabric for the lodge in the style of the
original artisans.

In 1984, Karen was commissioned by Larry Kirkland to
assist in the design and fabrication of 44 rugs in the
main lodge at Sunriver Lodge in Bend, Oregon.

Karen's fabrics were used in the original costumes
designed by Susan Lily for a production of Aurthur
Miller's "The Crucible," performed in Portland, Oregon
in 2001.

Karen's work can be seen at juried art fairs and
galleries in Oregon, Washington, California, Utah,
Missouri and Illinois.