DOTTY WIDMANN

Artist, environmentalist & heart of the community

 Dotty Widmann opens craft shop - The Net Loft - as the purple Lupine begins to bloom in late May in Cordova, Alaska. These plants act as time-keepers for Widman as she drives alongside the plants on her way into town. The shop’s logo is inspired by the scenery of Widman’s drive.  Now open all year long, The Net Loft is a nest for local creatives to gather on ground built on science and art.

 

Home

About

Blog

"Dotty is one of my closest friends. I've always said, she's like the sun, and we are planets that orbit around her. In our community here in Cordova she's created a special place. It's a store but it's really a community center. That store is also like the sun. It warms us in the cold dark months of fall and winter. She's created a place for people to tuck in out of the rain and fill up our eyes with beautiful colors and take in intoxicating scents. Over the past couple of years her shop has become integrated into community festivals. She's brought art and craft to our festivals that are at their core, scientific observations. The Copper River Delta Shorebird Festival was hatched from a science symposium. Dotty now offers classes and workshops as part of the long running festival. Those handcrafts attract folks to a bird festival that were previously uninvolved. The renewed interest in the Cordova Fungus Festival I'd credit to Dotty's interest in natural dyes. She has an interest and then she shares it with the community in an actionable way. The Net Loft is a special shop and Dotty provides the energy for it."

 

Christa Hoover

Cordova

Widman’s color palette is harvested from Cordova’s native flora. As a former science illustrator, much of Widman’s background is rooted is both art and biology. The Crater Lake Trail in Cordova Proper is abundant with the flora that is reflected in the natural beauty of The Net Loft’s products. The shop’s logo is adorned with Lupinus polyphyllus or garden lupin, which is amongst the many plants growing in the Chugach Forest. The plant is a constant reminder of how The Net Loft brings the natural world into an art based shop.

 

 

The Net Loft’s line of yarn, Alaska Fisherman, is created upon a Cordovan color palette. Each strand of hand-dyed yarn encompasses a different biological feature of the town’s landscape. The Prince William Sound inspires a dark teal blue yarn while the spectrum of greens allude to the trees that line the mountains around the town. These woven fabrics are foundational to Widman’s workshops and craft-based community. It is these color-ways that bring the scenic science of Cordova into The Net Loft.

 

Net Loft Warehouse Cordova Colorway

Gilnet Cordova Colorway

Seaweed Three Irish Girls Yarn Cordova Colorway

"Dotty is one of my closest friends. I've always said, she's like the sun, and we are planets that orbit around her. In our community here in Cordova It's a store but it's really a community center. That store is also like the sun. She's created a place for people to tuck in out of the rain and fill up our eyes with beautiful colors and take in intoxicating scents. Over the past couple of years her shop has become integrated into community festivals. She's brought art and craft to our festivals that are The Copper River Delta Shorebird Festival was hatched from a science symposium. Dotty now offers classes and workshops as part of the long running festival. Those handcrafts attract folks to a bird festival that were previously uninvolved. The renewed interest in the Cordova Fungus Festival I'd credit to Dotty's interest in natural dyes. She has an interest and then she shares it with the community in an actionable way. The Net Loft is a special shop and "