Woven Poetry: Thoughtful and Practical Brooms from Sunhouse Craft in Kentucky

I’m not usually one for Valentine’s Day, but I would take a beautiful broom or well-designed utilitarian implement anytime (as my boyfriend knows—he got me a table crumber one year, Iris Hantverk dish brushes on another occasion; we frequently give each other brushes and scrubbers of all sorts).

The latest object of my admiration? Particularly poetic brooms by Sunhouse Craft, “inspired by the timeless traditions of Appalachian crafts, designed and made in the rolling hills of Berea, Kentucky,” recently spotted online via Maine shop Minka.

Sunhouse is the project of designer and broom-maker Cynthia Main (along with Doug Stubbs, who makes the shop’s wooden wares), and all brooms are “hand-woven with a non-electric process, and time and attention is paid to the details of each piece. Wood is sustainably sourced and harvested from nearby and locally farmed, and natural fibers inform the design process,” according to the Sunhouse site.

Before we dive in, we should note that, fittingly enough, Sunhouse is reopening their shop after a winter hiatus on February 14th, Valentine’s Day. Everything is available for pre-order before then. And, they add on Instagram: “Mark your calendar for our first seconds sale on 2/22!”

Take a look:

Above: The whimsical Rainbow Broom ($35) is a “bent broom made of formed broomcorn,” wrapped in cotton of dark pinks, blues, or a custom color of your choice.
Above: I particularly love the small, simple Knot Broom ($8), with a handle of tied broomcorn.
Above: Two brooms in one: Each Double Broom ($95) is custom made.
Above: Frankies Broom ($15) is the first I spotted on the Minka website, with a charmingly imperfect wrapped handle. (It’s $15 via Minka as well.)





Above L: The little Haystack broom ($5). “I wanted to make something to celebrate my years as a grain grower, and celebrate gathering tasks, and group labor. This little broom is it,” writes Cynthia on the Sunhouse Craft site. It’s perfect as “a little desktop broom (confession, I use it to sweep crumbs off my laptop) with a nylon gold thread.” Above R: The multipurpose Scrub ($7) can be used on “cast iron, shovels, and other hard scrubbing tasks,” Cynthia writes, or a strand can be pulled out to use as a cake tester.



Above: The Wilder Broom ($10) is wrapped with indigo-dyed organic linen and has a small leather loop on the back for hanging.
Above: Hemp Wings ($18) are available in many colorways, woven with hemp from Weaver House in Philadelphia.
Above: “Inspired by the curve of a crescent moon,” Suncraft’s Gibbous Broom ($18) is wrapped in black mercerized cotton, dyed with “indigo and vinegaroon,” and fitted with a raw leather hanging loop.
Above: And Suncraft’s neutral Shaker Series Handbrooms, made in collaboration with the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill in Kentucky, are “patterned after brooms they used to produce at the Pleasant Hill Historical site.” The collection includes a pot scrubber ($7), whisk broom ($10), and turkey wing ($20).

More brushes and brooms we are endlessly admiring:


Simple Utility: Foraged, Hand-Bound, “Generational” Brooms, Made in Canada
Object of Desire: Handmade Luxe Brooms from a Brooklyn Artist
Studio Visit: The Iris Hantverk Workshop in Stockholm, Sweden

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