Tuft the World

Our newest (and fluffiest) tenant is spinning up something fun!

What is Tuft the World all about?

Tuft the World (TTW) started as Tim Eads’ home-based side-hustle in 2018. Over the next few years, it grew into a West Philadelphia company that ships rug making supplies to artists and makers in more than 120 countries. Tim and co-owner Tiernan Alexander aim to provide customers with the high-quality tools, materials, and instruction they need to make their own tufted projects. Tiernan and Tim’s combined experience as crafters and educators drive their desire to make tufting widely accessible while staying true to their values of equity and sustainability. As an antidote to single-use packaging, Shred the World was launched in 2022, where cardboard that would otherwise be bound for the landfill is collected, shredded, and sold for other small businesses to use in their packaging.

Transport Cycles

Bike tune-up, $55-$75 transportcycle.com

Get your wheels ready for a sunny ride on the Schuylkill River Trail

Rider Ceramics

Iridescent bud vase, $60 each riderceramics.com

The perfect vessel for your freshly-picked tulips

What brought you to Bok?

We first visited Bok during the renovation process and have always hoped to have a reason to work in the space. As Philadelphia artists, we’ve attended events, shopped, and spent time with friends in the building over the past seven years. Nicole and Jordan Haddad of Lobo Mau, an early Bok tenant, were looking for someone to share their space with at the same time that TTW’s education department needed to expand. We are thrilled to be able to offer tufting classes and other fiber arts events in partnership with our friends at Lobo Mau!

What are you most excited about doing in your new space?

The TTW staff includes a number of fiber artists with great teaching skills: quilters, clothing designers, shoe makers, lace makers, printers, and more. Our dream has been to expand our tufting education to include other techniques and practices, and the move to Bok gives us the space to offer a wider variety of textile-based classes to the Philly community.

Who is rug tufting for?

Tufting is for everyone! If you like to make things then tufting is definitely for you. Our tufting machines are very easy to use and they make tufting instantly gratifying. Most people are able to start tufting their own works of art after just one beginner class. Who doesn’t want to live in a fluffy, colorful world of their own making?

What is the craziest thing you have tufted?

We are currently working on tufting a multi-tier cat tree and a fully tufted armchair. At one point Tim tufted the walls, floor, and ceiling of a small room! Honestly, you can tuft almost anything! tuftinggun.com