Episode 85 : The Gift of Crochet with Marianne Rawlins of Maz Crochets

Image shows Marianne Rawlins the guest of this episode standing in the foreground of the photo smiling at the camera

The image shows Marianne Rawlins, the guest on this episode standing in the foreground of the photo smiling at the camera. — Marianne Rawlins

For so many of us, crochet (or any craft) is as gift which offers mental release, a chance to focus on something away from the day-to-day worries of life and that creative spark so many of us need. When Marianne Rawlins was working part-time whilst raising her very small children, crochet arrived in her life. It gave her a creative outlet and ultimately an additional career, as her hobby developed into writing and designing for Simply Crochet magazine.

Our paths crossed through her work for Simply Crochet and I asked her to come onto the podcast to talk about how her hobby had opened up new doors for her. Whilst crochet is not Marianne’s ‘day job’ it does play a very important role in her life and she takes great pleasure in not only designing and making crochet items herself but writing articles for the magazine about other makers and testing new yarns which have come onto the market for practical features.

You can find Marianne on Instagram as @mazcrochets and on Ravelry too, where she sells her crochet patterns.

Image shows a large crocheted dice which is the size of a stool or foot rest.

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The theme music 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 84 : Carry on Crafting with Justine Robson

My guest for this episode, Justine Robson

After dreaming about a craft festival one night, Justine Robson woke up and decided she should arrange one. Two months later, she’d booked the venue (the South of England show ground) and ten months later Carry on Crafting opened its doors for the first time.

This summer sees the fourth edition of the summer craft festival and with over 600 people camping (tickets to camp sold out in a week) a huge range of craft workshops, stalls and entertainment, it’s going from strength to strength.

That’s not all that Justine does though, she teaches crochet, runs 8 crochet retreats each year, is the custodian of Little Box of Crochet, after its creator Amanda Bloom sought her out to take it on and she’s planning to open a bricks & mortar shop!

Listen to Justine explain how creativity has been a constant in her life, how reconnecting with her creative side helped her recover from a nervous breakdown and how she gets such joy from doing what she does.

Thank you Justine for sharing your story with Making Stitches Podcast!

You can find the Carry on Crafting Festival website here & the Little Box of Crochet website here.

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

The theme music is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops .

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

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

Episode 81 : Making Stitches 2024 Christmas Special

Hello and welcome to the Making Stitches 2024 Christmas Special! As always at this time of year, I’m taking a look back at some of the year’s highlights for Making Stitches.

Included in this year’s extravaganza is Tansy Forster from The Longest Yarn, author and academic Barbara Burman, crochet designer Emma Varnam, Dr Gemma McKenzie from Threads of Protest, Heather Gibbs from Keep Calm And Crochet On, Lisa & Lynda-Rose from The Crochet Sanctuary. Thank you to everyone who has spoken to me for Making Stitches Podcast this year!

I’d also like to thank Jackie, Rachel, Nick, Nickie, Jen, Penny & Steph my fellow Crochet Sanctuary attendees who gave me their 2024 highlights for this episode.

Thank you to you too for listening and following my podcast adventures for the past few years – I’ve loved being able to bring these creative chats to you for you to enjoy!

I hope you have a happy and peaceful Christmas and that 2025 is good to you!

Lindsay x

If you would like to support my fundraising effort for FareShare Greater Manchester, you can buy the FareShare Festive Feast Wreath crochet pattern here.

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

The theme music is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops .

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

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

Episode 78 : Yarndale 2024

Hello and welcome to the latest episode of Making Stitches – back after a longer than anticipated break!

This time, I’m sharing a bumper episode featuring lots of creative chats with some of the lovely people I met at this year’s Yarndale festival in Skipton two weeks ago.

You will hear from:

Zoe Coates from British Wool
Eleonora from Coastal Crochet
Lindsey from Curate Crochet Box and Lottie & Albert
Cathy from Dear Emma Designs
Amanda from Joe’s Toes
Becky from William & Tilda
Nat from Woven in Kirklees Festival

You can find the websites for all my guests by clicking on the links above, and you can find the website for Yarndale here.

Eleonora giving her talk at Yarndale 2024

Thank you to everyone who took the time to speak to me for this episode – it was such fun to record!

The view to Skipton Auction Mart from the Yarn Walk

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

The theme music 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 77 : Threads of Protest with Dr Gemma McKenzie

My guest for this episode of Making Stitches Podcast has a background in law and human rights and a passion for crochet too. Dr Gemma McKenzie is a researcher in the Midwifery Department at King’s College London specialising in maternity rights and obstetric abuse. She has decided that in order to raise awareness about her work in the field of maternity rights, she is going use crochet (and knitting) to help her.

Next year, Gemma is holding an exhibition called Threads of Protest in Southport in the North West of England and in central London too, to raise awareness about her work and yarn is at the centre of it. Gemma is collaborating with yarn artists to create works focusing on different aspects of abuse but is also asking for anyone who wants to join her, to send crocheted or knitted squares which will be used as part of a yarn bomb within the exhibition.

Some of the granny squares Gemma has received already

The granny squares can be of any type, any colour, any yarn and use any design as long as they measure approximately 15 x 15 cm or 6 x 6 inches. They can be sent to:

Threads of Protest
PO Box 239
Liverpool
L37 8YU
UK

To find out more about Gemma’s work and the Threads of Protest Exhibition, please check out her website. Gemma can also be found on Instagram.

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

The theme music is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops .

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

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

My podcast inspired granny squares for Granny Square Day 2024

Episode 76 : Creating a Digital Yarn Community with Jane Abraham from the Cornish Flock

When my guest on today’s episode was about to leave a career in London for a quieter pace of life on the Cornish coast, one of her first concerns was where she would be able to buy yarn from. Fast forward a few years and Jane Abraham not only has her own yarn shop, she hosts creative retreats, has her own You Tube channel and has built an online community for crafters ‘of a certain age’ – the Cornish Flock.

Jane’s ‘Flock’ focuses on knitting, crochet, health and the wellbeing of ‘mature women’. Jane says “Many women of a certain age feel isolated, under valued and overlooked. They believe that their interests and feelings are underestimated and there’s not enough digital content that connects with them and caters for their continued interest in fashion”.

You can find Jane at her website, on Facebook, Instagram & You Tube.

Jane’s YouTube channel; The Cornish Knitter

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

The theme music is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops .

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

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

Episode 75 : Finishing a Creative Legacy with Jen Simonic from the Loose Ends Project

Masey Kaplan (left) & Jen Simonic (right) from Loose Ends Project (Photo credit: Winky Lewis)

One of the unexpected things many people experience when they lose a loved one and have to sort through their posessions, can be unfinished craft projects. Maybe the person who has died was partway through making a baby blanket for a new family member, a quilt for a forthcoming wedding or simply a pair of socks or jumper for a loved one.

If there’s someone within the family with the skills and ability to finish that project, that’s great, but in many circumstances that’s not the case. That’s where the Loose Ends Project can help.

Two friends, Jen & Masey, decided that there must be people out there who have the skills and time to finish important craft projects which are left unfinished when someone dies or is no longer able to continue with it. They started matching unfinished projects with volunteer finishers, who complete and return the garments, blankets and accessories.

In the space of less than two years, the friends’ idea has mushroomed and they have registered ‘finishers’ in 64 countries around the world. To date, they have paired projects in 12 different countries.

Jen Simonic, one of the founders of the Loose Ends Project, joined me for this episode of Making Stitches to tell me all about this remarkable organisation.

You can find the Loose Ends Project Website here.

All photos featured in these show notes were provided by Loose Ends Project, Credit : Winky Lewis.

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

The theme music is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops .

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

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

Episode 74 : Finding Joy in Making with Emma Varnam

This time on Making Stitches Podcast, I’m thrilled to be sharing a chat I had with knitting & crochet designer, Emma Varnam.

To date, Emma has written 13 books filled with inspiring designs for your home and to gift, from granny square homewares to adorable cuddly toys and crocheted pot plants! Emma is also a regular columnist for Inside Crochet magazine where she shares her passion for crochet and creativity.

It was such a thrill for me to meet Emma and chat about all things crochet – as well the common curse of friends and families of makers who have handmade gifts thrust upon them whether they want them or not!

You can find Emma’s website here, and her Instagram page here.

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

The theme music is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops .

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

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

Episode 72 : The Longest Yarn – Commemorating the D-Day Landings in Yarn

Yesterday marked the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy. Along with the military commemorations, there was a very special one created in yarn, by hundreds of knitters & crocheters around the globe – The Longest Yarn.

Diane & Gill’s panel featuring a Horsa glider & 13 paratroopers

Tansy Forster, who has lived in Normandy for over 20 years, was inspired by the Post Box toppers she saw when she traveled to visit Arundel, in southern England. She thought she would have a go at something similar for her garden gate to commemorate this special anniversary. That idea soon morphed to create an 80 metre long yarn masterpiece showcasing scenes from the build up to and of the landings themselves as well as the days immediately after.

Paratroopers waiting to board the glider

Tansy, with the help of Facebook, soon enlisted the help of hundreds of makers from around the world to create metre long panels, each with a scene from that time. Not only that, Tansy has written a book about the project too. The Longest Yarn has featured on TV shows and news programmes around the world, and is set for a tour around the UK, then onto the United States before returning to Carentan in Normandy, where it will remain on permanent display.

In this episode, we hear from Tansy Forster and from Diane McCoombs and Gill Wright from the North West of England, who contributed one of the metre-long panels to the Longest Yarn.

Read more about this amazing project on The Longest Yarn website.

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

The theme music is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

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

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

Episode 71 : Creativity for Mental Health

Hello I’m thrilled to be back with another series of episodes of Making Stitches Podcast. This time I’m doing something a bit different, instead of launching the new series with a new interview, I’ve taken a dive into the archives.

Since I last spoke to you, Making Stitches celebrated its 4th birthday (which I think is pretty decent in podcasting) so I thought I’d indulge in a look back at some of the voices which have featured up until this point.

One theme which has been consistent throughout, is the very real benefit that being creative can have on your state of mind. It can be a light relief at a time of high stress, a positive outlet during anxiety and depression, a focus in the midst of paralysing grief.

Quite a few of my guests (not all included here) have spoken about how their craft has helped them during hard times. Speaking from experience, my creativity, be that through crochet, sewing or even making this podcast has really helped me over the years. I am a real advocate for being creative as a result.

Join me as I share chats from the Making Stitches archive:

Lisa & Lynda-Rose from The Crochet Sanctuary about the Pandemonium blanket crochet-along during Covid https://www.crochetsanctuary.co.uk
Patchwork quilter Emma Jones from the Vintage Sewing Box on the importance of making for mental health https://www.vintagesewingbox.co.uk
Textile artist Matthew Downham on finding stitches to ease his anxiety. https://matthewdownham.wixsite.com/mysite
Former BBC Brussels correspondent, Mary Jane Baxter on leaving a high pressure career for a creative life on the road in her Bedford Bambi campervan. https://unbound.com/books/sew-on-the-go
Peace & anti terrorism campaigner Figen Murray OBE on how knitting has helped her grieve the loss of her son, Martyn in the Manchester Arena bomb attack. https://www.figenmurray.co.uk
Dr Mia Webb, clinical psychologist, knitter and podcaster on the Why I Knit podcast on the benefits of knitting for mental health. https://www.therapeuticknitting.org