The Hanji Crew

When Libby Pomroy joined a folk-art class at her daughters’ Korean Saturday school, she was quickly hooked on hanji, Korea’s unique, strong-fibered paper that lends itself beautifully to intricate paper cutting. She shared the craft with friend Kat Wesley, who found it irresistible. Together, they created the Hanji Crew, a small business that teaches hanji techniques and creates items for sale. All proceeds are donated to Korean cultural organizations. Since 2011, they’ve taught countless classes for adults and worked as instructors at Korean culture camps for children in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and Colorado. Trips to Korea to further their studies and fill suitcases with rolls of paper help fuel their love of hanji. For this class they are joined by another Korean culture camp instructor, Julia Dahle, a Macalester College Fine Arts graduate who has a growing reputation for her one-of-a kind floral arrangements.