In Laos, people who are skilled weavers of silk skirts and scarves are greatly admired. They are all the more admired and respected in the United States where few still have looms at home, know how to weave, and take the time to weave. In her village of Sam Neua, Leanne's family made a livelihood as weavers for generations. She first learned from her mother when she was ten years old. Leanne is particularly skilled at "embroidering" designs into the warp during the weaving process resulting in decorated fabric of extraordinary beauty.
Her apprentice is her own daughter, Vilayphone Thephavong. Leanne taught her the basics twenty years ago in Laos, and has now come to an age where she has time to devote to learning the advanced artistic skills her mother can teach. In California, mother and daughter take their loom and spinners to demonstrate at festivals and exhibitions. Last year, at "Textile Arts of Laos," a major exhibit of Central Valley southeast Asian textile artists at the Fresno Art Museum, southeast Asian visitors told them, "We're so glad to see that a Lao person still knows how to do this."
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