Episode 67 : Making Stitches 2023 Christmas Special

Hello there and welcome to the Making Stitches Podcast 2023 Christmas Special. Join me for a selection box of treats looking back at the past 12 months in my podcast world.

You can hear from guests including Dr Mia Hobbs from the ‘Why I Knit’ Podcast on the mental health benefits of being creative, Dr Fran Darlington-Pollock from the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity about their yarny Christmas appeal this year and some more of my guests from the podcast this year. Also joining me are some of the lovely people I met at this year’s Great Northern Textile Show who will be sharing what’s on their Christmas wish list.

Thank you to all of my guests who joined me on this episode, and throughout the year. Thank you to you too for listening! I hope you have a lovely Christmas and that 2024 is kind to you.

Lindsay x

My guests in this episode include:

And if you would like to support the Black Sheep Wools ‘Deck the Halls’ charity campaign in support of the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity, you can find all the details here.

To join the mailing list for the Making Stitches Newsletter, please click onto this link.

Making Stitches was a finalist in the 2023 Independent Podcast Awards

The theme music is Winter Trip by Audioflame from Melody Loops other music used in this episode is Happy Sunshine by Roman Cano, also from Melody Loops.

The Making Stitches logo was designed by Neil Warburton at iamunknown.

You can support Making Stitches Podcast with running costs through Ko-fi.
Making Stitches Podcast is supported by the Making Stitches Shop which offers Making Stitches Podcast merchandise for sale as well as Up the Garden Path crochet patterns created by me & illustrated by Emma Jackson.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay Weston.

Episode 61 : From Food Styling to Sewing with Jen Rich

Photo Jen Rich wearing a striped jumper — Jen Rich

Hello and welcome back to Making Stitches Podcast, it’s so good to be back with you. I had to take and extended break from podcasting due to a lot of ‘stuff’ going on, but I’m thrilled to be back with you now with the first episode of Series 7!

Two houseplants sitting in stitched fabric plant pot holders — Fabric Plant Pots

My guest this time is Jen Rich, a food stylist & photographer who bought her first sewing machine back in the days of Covid lockdown. Just three years on from teaching herself how to sew, Jen has written a book called ‘Stitch: Sewing Projects for the Modern Maker’. She says she has written it with both beginners and established sewing enthusiasts in mind.

Orange and pink fabric jewellery roll — Jewellery Roll

Jen says she wrote the book she wished she could have read when she was first starting out, taking you through the steps of each project. However, the projects should also appeal to established sewers providing short ‘palette cleanser’ projects for when you need a break after working on larger projects. The fact that they are small items also makes them ideal projects for using up scraps of fabric left over from previous makes.

Pale blue denim sports bag with pocket zip open to show blue and white checked lining — Overnight bag

It’s a truly stunning book, and Jen’s experience both at the sewing machine and behind the camera are shown to their advantage. Among the 30 projects included are scrunchies, an insulated picnic bag, a reversible tote bag and Christmas stockings (along with all the projects featured in these photographs).

There are extensive instructions taking you through all the steps and techniques needed to finish each project. There are also tips on choosing the right fabric for what you are working on.

Book cover of Stitch: Sewing Projects for the Modern Maker. Cover is pale pink and shows spools of thread, scissors, pins, a chalk pencil and wooden buttons

My sincerest thanks to Jen for agreeing to speak to me for Making Stitches Podcast. You can find Jen at her on Instagram at @stitchcraftandcook

Full length photo of Jen Rich wearing a blue denim jump suit. — Jen wearing the jumpsuit we mentioned in the podcast episode

Image of illustration in pink, turquoise, black and white, showing a microphone, smart phones, piano keyboard, musical notes, video games handset, headphones, sound waves & and eye. Wording reads: Independent Podcast Awards Finalist

Earlier this month, I was thrilled to learn that Making Stitches has been nominated for the first ever Independent Podcast Awards. It’s such an honour to be included in the shortlist!

To sign up for the Making Stitches Newsletter, please follow this link. Making Stitches Podcast can be found on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher and many other podcasting platforms.

Episode 56 : The Power of Sewing with Clare Hunter & Michelle Edwards

This time on Making Stitches, I’m sharing a couple of chats I had recently with authors who have written about sewing and the power it gives, from offering respite and hope in the hardest of situations and a voice to those who have had theirs silenced and the simple ability to fix a hole in your clothes.

Clare Hunter has worked with textiles for many years, working as a community artist, exhibition curator and banner maker. After hearing many stories about how important sewing and embroidery had been in peoples’ lives throughout history, she decided to write a book about it. Threads of Life; A History of the World Through the Eye of a Needle was published in 2019 and went on to become a Sunday Times Bestseller. Inspired by what she learned about Mary Queen of Scots during her research for Threads of Life, Clare went on to write a book about her too, an alternative biography called Embroidering Her Truth; Mary Queen of Scots and Her Language of Power.

You can find out more about Clare and her work through her website.

Michelle Edwards is a children’s author and illustrator working in the USA, her latest book; Me and the Boss; A Story About Mending and Love is based on a true story recounted to her in a yarn store one day. It charts the story of a young boy called Lee who is taken by his older sister (the Boss) to a sewing lesson in a public library. Along with the story, which is illustrated beautifully by April Harrison, is a sewing project for young readers to have a go at too. Michelle is passionate about teaching children about using their hands and has run childrens sewing classes herself as well as writing a column for a well known knitting magazine in the United States.

You can find out more about Michelle and her work through her website.

One of my former podcast guests, Olesya Lebedenko, a Ukrainian patchwork quilt designer and maker, who featured in Episode 41 is hosting a fundraising Art Quilt online auction. It runs until 16th December 2022 and you can bid on one of four beautiful art quilts on sale. All proceeds raised by the sale will go to supporting charities helping people and animals affected by the war in Ukraine. You can reach the auction through this link.

**LISTEN TO THE EPISODE HERE**

To join the mailing list for the new Making Stitches Newsletter, please click onto this link.

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.
The Making Stitches logo was designed by Neil Warburton at iamunknown.

You can support Making Stitches Podcast with running costs through Ko-fi.
Making Stitches Podcast is supported by the Making Stitches Shop which offers Making Stitches Podcast merchandise for sale as well as Up the Garden Path crochet patterns created by me & illustrated by Emma Jackson.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay Weston.

Episode 12 : Bag making with Mrs H & Yarndale@home 2020

Samantha Hussey aka Mrs H

This week on Making Stitches I have two guests for you; Bag Maker Extraordinaire Samantha Hussey (also known as Mrs H) and Carole Rennison from Yarndale. Last weekend saw the first ever Yarndale@home as the yarn festival was forced to go online because of the current Covid restrictions. I caught up with Carole earlier this week to find out how the new-look festival had gone.

Before that though, you will hear from Samantha Hussey of Patterns by Mrs H. A bag maker who is on a mission to share the love of her craft with anyone who wants to have a go. Her book The Complete Bag Making Masterclass is packed with tips and ideas for creating your own beautiful bags. It comes with several patterns with detailed instructions on how to make your own.

In addition to that, Samantha runs bag making retreats and supports an online bag making community. She tells me all about how her bag making journey developed and why she believes she has a very special super power which helps with her designs.

You can find Samantha here: mrs-h.com Swoon patterns can be found here.

You can find Yarndale here: yarndale.co.uk

The bloggers Carole & I spoke about during our chat were Martin Up North & Kwannie Cheng from Studio Manya

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops

YOU CAN LISTEN TO THE PODCAST EPISODE HERE