Studio Proprietress Shares Passion for Teaching, Fabric, and History

Photos: Angie Latham Kozlowski

Ireatha Leona Woods, the owner of Leona’s Sewing Studio in Savage Mill, has been sewing nearly her entire life. She has also been drawn to learn about Africa for just as long. Her interest in Africa and African fabrics began when she was a preteen, thanks to her many visits to a bookmobile. She was also a budding seamstress in those years. She recalled that as a young girl, “I used to study Ethiopia a lot, and then the first person that I met to supply me with African fabric was Ethiopian.”

Her interest in and early aptitude for sewing led her to be selected for a five-year commercial sewing program at a vocational high school. She continued to sew, making clothes for herself and taking on clients during her successful 35 years in corporate America that included a stint with the Department of Homeland Security.

But now, in “soft retirement,” she has found herself doing what fulfills her. She loves teaching “her kids,” and loves the grassroots nature of her business, being one that thrives on referrals. She says that her business model is teaching in a small, intimate setting with quite a bit of one-on-one attention, and a whole lot of fun.

Woods noted that her Ethiopian contact has been selling her fabrics since she was about 14 years old. As she became more interested in the different fabrics, Leona grew closer to the suppliers, who, in turn, embraced her and began sharing the stories told by the fabrics. They relayed not just the stories of the fabrics themselves, but also where they originated and how they were made.

Woods uses African fabrics in her sewing classes, especially with those who are new to sewing. She says, “I love using it for teaching because it is such a very easy textile to work with,” and because “[I] always want to find the easiest way for us to get you to where you need to be, because I want you to be hooked like me. I’ve been sewing for fifty years.”

“Threads of Heritage” Exhibit

Seeking fulfillment not found in her 9-to-5 career, Woods opened Leona’s Sewing Studio in Historic Savage Mill 11 years ago.

In the early 1800s, the Carding building was used for processing raw cotton, carding, spinning, and weaving. Underscoring her gratitude for being able to tell a new story—very different from the one that formed the early history of the mill, and not shying away from acknowledging the weightiness of her charge—Woods observed that she “intentionally came to the mill” knowing its history, but also knowing that she “could reimagine my people in here another way.” She described Savage Mill as “the perfect backdrop for me to work with cotton [fabrics], knowing that I am doing the work in the mill as it was intended,” with the sewing studio.

Woods welcomed the opportunity to curate an exhibit for the mill, titled, “Threads of Heritage: African Print Fabrics & the Stories They Carry.” Speaking with glowing praise for the supportive management and staff at Savage Mill, Woods says the idea to create the exhibit sprung up organically during a conversation in her studio with some of the mill team. As she rolled some African fabrics that had come in, she asked them if they knew that the fabrics tell stories. They did not know that about the African fabrics but thought they were beautiful and that it would be nice to display them. She was all for the idea.

That serendipitous conversation led to nearly one month of preparation for the exhibit’s February 12 opening. The physical installation of the exhibit took about two days and required cranes to hang the fabrics from the ceiling rafters in the New Weave Commons building.

In describing what the exhibit meant to her, Woods said, “I’m just honored. Overwhelmed. Grateful.”

Woods then read her opening night remarks:

There are journeys that begin long before we realize we are traveling. For me, this one began as a little girl stepping into a bookmobile. Each visit carried me into the continent of Africa through stories, images, and histories that stayed with me long after the doors closed. I returned there again and again, not knowing then that those early encounters would shape how I see fabric, culture and belonging.

Over time, African print fabric moved from inspiration to practice. As I grew into my craft as a dressmaker, these textiles became part of my design language and, eventually, the foundation through which I teach. This exhibition is not a performance, nor is it a personal showcase. It is an act of stewardship, made possible by the lived experiences of artisans, suppliers, and community members, many of whom come directly from the countries represented here. Their voices and generosity shape this work.

This story is also inseparable from the space we are standing in—Savage Mill, built in 1822, is tied to the history of cotton and to the enslaved people who bore that burden. Today we gather here in a place where our ancestors could not stand freely.

“Threads of Heritage: African Print Fabrics & the Stories They Carry” was one of nine featured events at the mill to honor Black history under the overall theme of “History Remembered: Futures Reclaimed.” The vibrant exhibit featured colorful fabrics draped throughout New Weave Commons rafters, as well as display panels highlighting African fabrics, their history, and story vignettes. A community quilt was created during the exhibition, which ran through April 3, 2026.

---

Angie Latham Kozlowski is a staff writer and member of the Board of Directors for the Laurel History Boys. In addition to her investigative reporting, her articles frequently spotlight Howard County.