Diane Horning describes her new Lawrence gallery as “part studio, part gallery and part retreat.”

That may seem like a lot of roles for one space, but this is no ordinary gallery.

Diane’s Artisan Gallery, 801 1/2 Mass., occupies an airy second-floor room above Round Corner Drug Store. The ceiling in the 500-square-foot area rises nearly 14 feet. Strategically placed spot lights illuminate pottery, glassware, wood turnings, woven garments and jewelry by fine craftspeople from around the country.

That takes care of the gallery. But what about the studio, the retreat?

The answer sits in the northwest corner of the shop. That’s where Horning keeps her loom, always warped and ready for weaving.

“Early on in my career as a weaver, I was reading about other weavers. They said always keep something on your loom because that way when you have a half hour or an hour or five minutes, you can go weave,” she says. “When I don’t weave I get a yearning for it.”

Horning, a Pittsburgh native, opened the gallery May 21. In November, she moved to Lawrence with her husband, Al, who had been transferred by his company.

Horning has been weaving since 1996 and has peddled her work in the East Coast fine craft festival circuit.

But that’s a hard living. She wanted a home base, a retail space where she could sell her work and that of other artisans she admired.

Diane Horning, owner of Diane's Artisan Gallery, 801 1/2 Mass., weaves a shawl on her loom. The gallery, which opened May 21, doubles as Horning's studio. Her garments, as well as glass, ceramics, jewelry and wood turnings from artisans across the country, are available at the shop.

She hadn’t been in Lawrence long before she decided it was just the place for her gallery.

“I really felt like this was the right place for it,” she says. “Lawrence is very supportive of the arts, and people seem really interested.”

About 50 people stopped by the gallery during its opening weekend. Several walked away with original artwork. People in the area seem to share Horning’s appreciation for the work, she says.

“I have lived in other areas where the people living in the community don’t understand the value of buying American craft and supporting what’s made and reflective of our culture and our time,” she says. “I think that people here — not everybody, but a lot of people here — understand that already. So in a way my job’s easier.”

Horning’s own work is characterized by its color and texture. She specializes in scarves, stoles and shawls and infuses patterns that range from simple lines to complex interlocking shapes. Although she loves rich reds and purples, she’s more drawn to subtle colors.

Diane's Artisan Gallery, 801 1/2 Mass., showcases fine craft from across the country. The shop, which opened May 21, occupies a second-floor space above Round Corner Drug Store.

“I like things that I can wear,” she says. “I really get a lot of joy out of wearing my stuff.”

Horning discovered her craft serendipitously after 21 years working in the corporate world as a certified public accountant. She recalled being intrigued by a loom she saw in her early 20s and decided to find someone who could teach her to use one. She found an elderly woman in Hawk Mountain, Pa., the rural community where she was living at the time.

She took to it right away.

“I didn’t have a lot of time, so it was almost a year before I completed my first big project with her,” Horning says. “And then I bought a loom, and that was it. … I just started weaving like crazy.”

She spends about 20 hours on each shawl and two to five hours warping and weaving a length that will yield four or five scarves.

Although she created the gallery space based on her own pared-down aesthetic, Horning hopes it will be a retreat for customers as well. She uses subtle essential oils to scent the air, keeps coffee brewing and plays soft music.

“It’s away from the street,” she says. “You’re up above and you can look down on Massachusetts and Eighth. It just feels like it’s a little bit away from the normal everyday.”