Stitching Communities Together
Stitch Buffalo is a textile art center committed to empowering refugee and immigrant women through the sale of their handcrafted goods, inspiring creativity and inclusion through community education, and stewarding the environment through the re-use of textile supplies.
Our Values
Community Building: Bringing people together through the textile arts.
Empowerment: Maintaining a welcoming environment that fosters fair and equitable opportunity and self expression.
Trust: Forging an inclusive and trustworthy space where each individual’s cultural traditions and lived experiences can be expressed and preserved.
Passion: Working, learning and celebrating together in pursuit of innovation and personal expression.
Environmental Stewardship: Reducing waste by keeping useful materials out of landfills and in the hands of creative people.
Programs: What We Do
Stitch Buffalo (501c3) was founded in 2014 with the simple desire to gather and create—but has grown into a fully equipped textile arts center. Our programs include:
1. Refugee Women’s Workshop
The Refugee Women’s Workshop is a thriving community of women artists from Bhutan, Burma, Nepal, Thailand, Egypt, Afghanistan, and beyond who sew handcrafted goods for sale in the community. Through the creation of handcrafted textiles, each artist nurtures her artistic heritage while affirming her self-worth as a woman and a human being. LEARN MORE
2. Community Classes
We offer textile arts classes each month taught by our staff, experts in the community, and members of the Refugee Women’s Workshop. From embroidery and dyeing to sewing and weaving, our classes inspire creativity and foster cross-cultural interactions in a diverse and welcoming space. LEARN MORE
3. Second Stitch
Through our Second Stitch sustainability program, we give a second life to donated textile art supplies. These materials are integral to the products in the Refugee Women’s Workshop and the projects in our community classes. Items we can’t use directly are offered to the community at substantial discounts—to keep useful materials out of landfills and in the hands of local artists. All proceeds directly support Stitch Buffalo programming. LEARN MORE
We are a grassroots organization
committed to building community
through creativity.
What Makes Us Different
Focus on Textile Arts: A wide range of traditional, contemporary and locally handmade crafts, plus unique products and custom services.
Inclusive and Diverse: A trustworthy space where people gather to create, regardless of their differences.
Service to Local Refugee and Immigrant Women: Supporting the creative process through mentorship, education, and economic opportunities.
Sustainability: Affordable community access to a curated selection of recycled textile art tools and materials.