Hello My Quilting Friends

Latest Episodes:

037. Massive Business Transformation with Stephanie Soebbing Nov 29, 2017

Show notes

This week's guest is Stephanie Soebbing, the owner of QuiltAddictsAnonymous.com. Eight months ago Stephanie owned only an online quilt shop, but then expanded to create a studio, then expanded again to create a full scale brick and mortar quilt shop. In this episode hear how this transformation has worked for Stephanie and some of the struggles she's experienced along the way.

036. Prewash Fabric for Quilting? Great Quilting Debate with Leah Day Nov 22, 2017

Show notes

Do you prewash fabric before cutting and piecing a new quilt top? Learn about this Great Quilting Debate with Leah Day and hear why she believes prewashing fabric is a very important step in the quilt-making process.

035. Quilt Market Recap with Sheri Cilfaldi Morrill Nov 15, 2017

Show notes

Meet Sheri Cilfaldi Morrill, the designer behind WholeCircleStudio.com and what she noticed at the 2017 fall Quilt Market! Hear about the trends, pretty fabrics, and new gadgets Sheri noticed while attending this quilt industry trade show.

034. Is Starch Bad for Our Quilts? Great Quilting Debate with Leah Day Nov 08, 2017

Show notes

Yes, the choice to use starch on your fabric is a contentious subject in the quilting world and over the years I've gotten comments ranging from "You're ruining people's quilts with your bad advice!" to "Wow! Starch made such a difference to my fabric and piecing is so much easier now!" One thing I forgot to include in the podcast is why I use starch - I find it stiffens the fabric nicely, which makes squaring it and cutting pieces and strips much easier and more accurate. I also find starch fabrics are less likely to fray on the edges. Lately I've been testing the stability of my starched fabrics by not pinning units together. Even with the seams pressed open and no pins, my seams are matching every time and I think a lot of that has to do with all the fabrics in the quilt feeling and acting the same. I don't have one fabric that's going loosey goosie while another is stiff as a board. So yes, I'm on Team Starch and I use it to prepare the fabrics in every single quilt we make. If we're using precuts, every single strip or square is starched on both sides before it's cut or pieced into the quilt. As for Team Starch is Evil, I get it! If you've been taught that a substance is bad for your fabric and you've never used it before and got along just fine, that's great! When researching starch, I found a lot of helpful information at OldandInteresting.com. I do think the whole bug-loving-starch thing is a bit silly and I shared my opinion on where that story got started in the podcast. It makes absolutely no sense that a substance used for hundreds of years in clothing that washes out of fabric completely could make a moth more likely to chew up your quilt! There are a lot more products out there like fusible webs, spray basting, and permanent marking pens that can wreck far more havoc on your quilts and I don't see a massive concerted effort to demonize them. As with our last Great Quilting Debate podcast on pressing seams open, I think there's room for every technique, every method, and every opinion. Please don't feel like just because you don't use starch or press your seams open we can't be friends! Read more in the show notes here: http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/2017/11/is-starch-bad-for-quilts-podcast.html Find more podcast episodes and show notes at www.LeahDay.com/Podcast

033. Crafting a Book with Janice Brewster Weiser and Karen Sulmonetti Nov 01, 2017

Show notes

Meet Janice Brewster Weiser and Karen Sulmonetti the team behind creative girlfriends press. Check out their website at: https://creativegirlfriendspress.com/ Both Janice and Karen have years of experience in book and magazine publishing and have helped me on three books so far. Learn how Janice can help you transform your text into excellent quilting patterns or books. Her editing skills will polish up your first draft perfectly. Karen Sulmonetti can then take your words, photos, and diagrams and add her magical pixie dust to create your finished book. Find Karen's website at: http://www.sulmonettidesign.com/ Both the Janice and Karen helped me create my new book Explore Walking Foot Quilting with Leah Day. This in book is now available for preorder at: LeahDay.com/WalkingFoot

032. Pressing Seams Open Debate with Leah Day Oct 25, 2017

Show notes

Do you press your seams open on your quilt blocks or to one side? This is a Great Quilting Debate that I get asked about almost daily in comments and via email. In this episode I share why I believe pressing seams open is better than to one side, but also why many quilters believe the opposite is a better method. I also share lots of sneak peeks and details about my new book which will be available for preorder on November 1st! Find the show notes, plus many more podcast episodes at LeahDay.com/podcast

031. Teach Quilting in Spanish with Luis Sanchez Oct 18, 2017

Show notes

Today I have a wonderful interview with Luis Sanchez, our first international quilter on the show! Luis is a hobby quilter, but has started sharing quilting tutorials in Spanish to help spread this wonderful craft in his home country of Costa Rica and beyond. Find Luis's YouTube Channel Here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBQZqkX3AZ35QlXBL-fX1Ig The videos are all in Spanish, but you can use the translator to read the translation in English. Luis was raised listening to a sewing machine hum because his grandmother sewed all the clothing in the house and also worked as a seamstress in two factories. The sound of the machine running was relaxing to him so when his grandmother passed away 7 years ago he inherited her machine. He learned how to sew first and created basic projects, then moved on to wallets, purses, and bags. From the videos he found he learned the basics and eventually ran across my videos on free motion quilting, but had no idea what I was doing in the video, but thought it could help make his bags a bit better. I had a wonderful time getting to know Luis better in this chat and I hope you will check out his YouTube videos!

030. Etsy Success with Deborah Fisher from Fish Museum and Circus Oct 04, 2017

Show notes

Meet Deborah Fisher, a successful ceramic artist, quilter, and writer who has had terrific success with her Etsy shop. I found Deborah at Quilt Con and instantly fell in love with her whimsical ceramics which are also pincushions too! In this episode we talk about creating the pincushion creatures, how Deborah manages a high demand item, and her plans for attending quilting shows in the future. You can find Deborah's Etsy shop here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/FishMuseumandCircus

029. Make Hoop Quilts with Anne Marie Chany Sep 19, 2017

Show notes

Hello my quilting friends! Today I have a terrific interview with Anne Marie Chany from Gen X Quilters. Anne Marie hosts a yearly sampler quilt along, is the author of several quilt books, and has recently created Hoop Quilts - a new way to create and display mini quilts! Let's learn more about Hoop Quilts! I fell in love with this over the summer as Anne Marie began posting pictures to Instagram. I LOVE this idea because it takes care of a big issue I have with mini quilts - what do you do with them after they're done!? Anne Marie has created a beautiful quilt pattern for you to make your own mini hoop quilt with sixteen half square triangles you can mix and match. She also has templates you can cut out and piece the curved seam to create this pretty circle too. Hoop Quilts are also a great way to use up small scraps of fabric and play with embellishment. I love the idea of gluing on buttons and stitching decorative threads on the surface. Anne Marie was originally inspired to create Hoop Quilts after spending a lot of time hand embroidering while recovering from surgery so this seems a terrific way to try new techniques on a small, manageable project. Learn more about Anne Marie and find her hoop quilt pattern at: http://www.genxquilters.com/

028. Love Yourself Quilting with Jennifer Farsh Sep 06, 2017

Show notes

Meet Jennifer Farsh, a quilting hobbyist and how she's used quilting to transform her life and the way she feels about herself. Quilting is a powerful, transformational craft and you can use it as a creative tool for change. Hear about quilting from a hobbyist perspective and why Jennifer was drawn to making quilts after building a chicken coop and barn in her back yard. Find the episode show notes here: http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/2017/09/love-yourself-quilting-with-jennifer.html

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