Arounna Khounnoraj is a Canadian artist and maker working in Toronto where she immigrated with her family from Laos at the age of four. While her education includes a master’s degree in fine arts in sculpture and ceramics, her experiences eventually led to a career in fibre arts where she focused on a range of printing techniques for textiles as well as embroidery, patchwork and punch needle. In 2002 she started bookhou, a multi-disciplinary studio, with her husband John Booth where she creates utilitarian textile objects such as bags, home goods and textile art.
Arounna has explored a wide range of techniques, methods and materials expressing a passion for everyday creativity and the importance of the handmade in everyone’s life. Her work emphasizes slow design, intuitive thinking and the importance of handwork. She teaches workshops on a variety of fibre arts and crafts both in Canada and internationally. In 2019, she published her first book, Punch Needle: Master the Art of Punch Needling Accessories for You and Your Home. In 2020, she released Visible Mending, which introduced mending and the reuse of clothing as a personal and hands-on way to address issues of overconsumption and fast fashion in the textile industry. Her third book, Embroidery, was released in 2022. In the fall of 2023 she will be releasing Contemporary Patchwork: Techniques in Color, Surface Design & Sewing, followed by Winter Celebrations, A modern guide to a handmade Christmas.