Texas-born textile designer Caitley Symons relocated to Egypt with her family at age 12; perhaps her early immersion in Egyptian culture accounts for her affinity for the geometric motifs of Alexandria and Old Cairo. As an adolescent, the hieroglyphic-lined tapestries and Khayamiya, a decorative appliqué used on Arabic tents, infused her creative spirit, the Texas landscape more remote than the Nile.
Symons studied fashion design in London and then graphic design. She spent 15 years as a costume designer, first in Los Angeles for film and TV, later for theatre in New York City.
Visions of mandala-like patterns lay dormant until 2008, when she moved to Little Switzerland, a community located about an hour’s drive northeast of Asheville.
Nestled between Mt. Mitchell and artisan-rich Toe River Valley, Symons found both her “true self” and her preferred medium: hand screen-printed textiles.
“I didn’t’ set out to start a business — it chose me,” she says, describing her journey as a self-taught textile designer. “And when life unfolds in an unexpected way, you have to be open to it.”
Harkening back to her Pharaonic youth and a yearlong stint working for a homewares company, she began “putting the puzzle pieces together” in her 1940s-era barn-turned-studio. Soon, hand-sketched lotus blossoms and whirling vectors were stamped onto yards of high-end Belgian linen at a Rhode Island mill. Jewel-toned dyes ranging from a neutral olive to a deep ruby seeped into myriad cellulose fibers. Symons was home again.
The screen-printing process is similar, she says, to “watching a couple dance.” It’s a romantic, albeit laborious, craft. Lyrical patterns contrast against the natural crème of unbleached flax; clients have described her Champa, Khema, Malli, and Nigma collections as “subtle yet complex.”
Following the patterns of Middle Eastern praxis, Symons basks in the blemishes and pits of her textiles. Imperfection is perhaps the common thread between Cairo and Marion’s Grassy Mountain — a unique quality that appeals to Appalachian natives and globetrotters alike.
“My aesthetic is different from that of WNC,” admits Symons. “But my patterns are versatile. They can resonate with all walks in some way.”
Visit www.caitleysymons.com to learn more about Caitley Symons Textile + Design.