🌟 This episode was originally published on the Making Conversation YouTube channel on Nov 23, 2024. 🌟 Makers need snacks! We also need to take care of ourselves because if we do not, how will we take care of others? That part is so VERY important, especially right now. I popped into my kitchen to record with the WONDERFUL Chef Andreya Nightingale who shares two easy and oh-so-very delicious snacks with us. We also take the time to talk through some ways to cope with our feelings right now arou...
Mar 05, 2025•50 min•Ep. 169
I jumped in the car and headed to Portland for Sacred Sheep —a vibrant maker festival brought to you by the team at Ritual Dyes ! If you love yarn, fiber arts, pottery, handmade jewelry, inspiring classes, and creative community , this festival is for you. In this episode of Making Conversation , I chat with some of the incredible makers who vended and attended Sacred Sheep ( learn more here ). From indie dyers to fiber artists, ceramicists, and beyond, this event celebrates the heart of the mak...
Feb 26, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 168
In this special episode, I hit the road to Portland, OR, to sit down with Rachel, the creative mind behind Ritual Dyes and founder of Sacred Sheep , a festival dedicated to makers, especially those passionate about the fiber arts. From discovering her love for knitting and hand-dyeing yarn to the creation of a highly curated, community-focused fiber arts festival that celebrates all things making, you'll love getting to know Rachel! Grab your WIP and hit play! Psssst...tickets are still ava...
Oct 19, 2024•45 min•Ep. 167
The world of crafting and making should be a space where everyone feels welcome and empowered. However, there are barriers—both visible and invisible—that can exclude or marginalize makers with disabilities. In this episode I am joined by the super fabulous Beth Gorishek, The Adaptive Knitter & Kira Dulaney of Kirk K Designs and we chat about the ways in which ableism manifests in our community and, more importantly, how we can actively work to dismantle these barriers. If you prefer to watc...
Oct 05, 2024•32 min•Ep. 166
We're back with some wonderful Fall episodes to celebrate hunkering down with your current favorite WIP and enjoying an episode of the Making Conversation podcast. ;) Just a heads up, this episode is VERY visual. If you prefer to watch, pop over to our YouTube channel . xoxo In this episode, I am so lucky to chat with Amy Swanson of June Cashmere and learn all about the special goats and farmers they work with to create their beautiful yarn. We then get to learn about knitting a wedding dre...
Sep 28, 2024•53 min•Ep. 165
To know Jess is to love Jess and Jess' love of this special fiber arts community is very evident in everything she does. From in her yarn shop on Bainbridge Island, WA to Flock Fiber Festival , a yarn show in Seattle, WA, celebrating a love of all things wool, the fibers arts community is so very lucky to have these two spaces to come together and celebrate these things that we love and bring us the most joy! Jen hopped on a ferry and headed out to Bainbridge to chat with Jess about La Merc...
Jul 26, 2024•36 min•Ep. 164
The universe definitely brought this fabulous human to Making. Ashley chats with our crochet-loving engineer all about her journey in craft, her path to leadership and computer sciences, and how we were so lucky to have Abi join the team. To know Abi is to love Abi! Grab your WIP and hit play. :) Abi's crochet website If you're in Seattle, catch her at these markets: Pride Market at Lifelong Thrift on June 15th Cutiefest Pride on June 22 Find us on the Making app: Abi @abisanti Ashley ...
Jun 08, 2024•45 min•Ep. 163
Award winning embroidery artist, mother, teacher, author, and all around lovely human! If you don't know of Emily Botelho aka Salt Stitches, you're in for a treat! (If you do, you are too!) Emily joins Jen and not only do they chat about her beautiful art, how her favorite places and values come through as inspiration but also her new book which is more than just a pattern book but a guide on how to release self-assigned boundaries of creativity that we can sometimes place upon ourselv...
May 11, 2024•4 sec•Ep. 162
Ashley and Jen share some really exciting features that are coming to Making VERY SOON. We kick off a new segment where we will share business and/or makers in our community that help spread our values and Ashley dives into the topic of fear and decision-making. Grab your WIP, your favorite snack, and hit play! If you are a designer, sell finished goods, make supplies for makers to create, or just love being a part of a beautifully diverse community in an app that wants to prove that you can bui...
Apr 27, 2024•40 min
Hello, makers! Super excited to bring you this episode with our pal, Catherine. Just a heads up, there are parts of this episode that are a little more visual as we give a shop tour. Click to watch instead! Brooklyn General Store has been the go-to place for crafty supplies of all kinds for NYC makers since 2002. We sat down with the Queen of Union Street, BGS owner, designer, maker, event planner extraordinaire–Catherine Clark. Get to know her maker journey, the story of how Brooklyn General mo...
Apr 15, 2024•40 min•Ep. 160
Author Jane Cooper joins us to talk all about her book, The Lost Flock: Rare Wool, Wild Isles and One Woman’s Journey to Save Scotland’s Original Sheep. Jane and Jen chat about why the Orkney Boreray sheep are so very special, Jane's maker journey, lambs...lots of lambs, and what it's like writing your first book. About The Lost Flock Purchase Paperback Purchase Audiobook From Viking times to pastoral Highland crofts to odious research experiments, this is the untold, real-life detecti...
Mar 16, 2024•49 min•Ep. 159
In the final episode of this series, we get to hear from a few more makers that we chatted with during our last visit to NYC! Get to know some very special humans that we invited to join us for our Brooklyn General Store booth Meet and Greets at Vogue Knitting Live and also from our special maker meetup that we hosted with Brooklyn General Store and La Bien Aimée! This episode’s guests: Jennifer Wiese Workroom Social @WorkroomSocial Kassandra Sustaita @Kassandra.Sustaita Amanda Solomon Melanated...
Mar 09, 2024•52 min•Ep. 158
We're continuing our Making Meet and Greets from NYC with crafty friends, old and new! The lovely Catherine of Brooklyn General Store and Aimée of La Bien Aimée asked us to bring a bit of our Meet and Greets to their 2024 Vogue Knitting Live booth and we also co-hosted a maker meet-up at Brooklyn General Store. Lots of great conversation, stories, and even a dance break. We've got it all, folks! And course, stay tuned for the next few weeks of more awesome NYC-created content to get to...
Mar 02, 2024•49 min•Ep. 157
In this episode of the podcast, we’re taking it back to New York City! If you’ve been following along for a while you know that we’ve been visiting events around the world, collecting and then sharing important stories. (Mostly fiber arts related but we want to expand that. Hey other maker events, hit us up!) This time we did things a little differently. The lovely Catherine of Brooklyn General Store and Aimée of La Bien Aimée asked us to bring a bit of our Meet and Greets to their 2024 Vogue Kn...
Feb 24, 2024•46 min•Ep. 156
During Vogue Knitting Live 2024, Jen took the stage with big names in the fiber arts and maker industry to talk about how we can adapt to the ever evolving world of craft-what has changed, where the opportunity is, and advice on what to do when things are challenging. Our Panelists Jonna Hietala is the co-founder, creative director and CEO of Laine Publishing and the editor-in-chief of Laine Magazine. Jonna has worked in lifestyle and crafts magazines both in Finland and in Sweden. Before Laine,...
Feb 07, 2024•34 min•Ep. 155
Liza Laird is a fiber artist, human mom, dog mom, cancer survivor and author of Yoga of Yarn , a knitter’s guidebook to self discovery. (Don't worry dear maker! The book is for makers of all kinds. We chat about that too!) We journey through Liza's life--deciding to leave the corporate world to pursue her passions, how she approached writing a book (with good tips if you've been thinking about venturing into it!), her journey with cancer, and of course some of the wonderful learni...
Jan 29, 2024•55 min•Ep. 155
"How do I price my makes?" "How do I price my services?" "As a maker that does not sell...how can I help change perceptions so my community can get paid what they're worth?" "How do you price handmade items?" Let's talk pricing. Out with the gatekeeping. Patterns, services, finished goods, etc. They name names, spill tea, get really real, and share numbers. Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/pswl2xRPgZ4 Our guests: Quayln Stark - https://linktr...
Jan 13, 2024•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 153
In this podcast episode, we're heading back to Barcelona Knits in…you guessed it…Barcelona, Spain! Get to know some of the vendors, artists, and vloggers who all share the love of all things fiber art, yarn, knitting, crochet, cross stitch, and more! This is a special group of people, dear makers! :) https://www.barcelonaknits.com Who you'll meet: Laura Algarra www.lauraalgarra.com A crochet teacher, designer, and woodworker from Spain who runs her own workshops and classes and makes w...
Jan 06, 2024•2 hr 38 min•Ep. 152
In this podcast episode, we're heading back to the Sacred Sheep Fiber Festival in Portland, Oregon! Get to know some of the vendors, artists, and vloggers who all share the love of the act of making. The full meet and greet videos are coming soon, so make sure you are subscribed. :) https://thesacredsheep.com Who you'll meet: THE SHEEP. Casanova AKA Larry & Daphne Fiona of FionaKayKnits Vanessa of Ōshen Knits Joanna of Stitching the High Notes Chinua Matthews Emily of Kitty with a ...
Dec 06, 2023•49 min•Ep. 151
Ashley and Jen come together to share stories of their beginnings in the tech industry and how they discovered their passion for building authentic community with Making. 🌟 Support the Podcast: 🔔 Subscribe on YouTube – youtube.com/@making_co ☕ Buy me a coffee on Ko-fi – ko-fi.com/makingconversation 📢 Tell your maker friends – Spread the love! If you'd like to give a shout-out, have a question that you'd like us to answer on the podcast, or are interested in sponsoring Making Convers...
Dec 02, 2023•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 150
Chef Andreya is back to share so much amazing information about how to host a holiday party without the stress. She walks us through the planning stages that she has perfected as a chef, along with many valuable tips she has picked up over her amazing career. But what Chef Andreya really wants to remind you is that a holiday gathering (or any gathering with friends and family) should be about sharing space, love, and community, and a delicious meal is a great reason to come together. Wait, what ...
Nov 25, 2023•2 hr 39 min•Ep. 149
Jen and Val took Making on the road to Barcelona Knits this past weekend. It was a journey that further solidified our belief in the power of local unity, connection, and creativity. The vibrant sense of togetherness at Barcelona Knits is only magnified by our interview with Aimée Gille of La Bien Aimée . Jen and Val took Making on the road to Barcelona Knits this past weekend. It was a journey that further solidified our belief in the power of local unity, connection, and creativity. The vibran...
Nov 22, 2023•1 hr 2 min
We got a sneak peek of Sacred Sheep's setup the night before the inaugural festival and were honored to chat with these amazing vendors and artists! Hannah Thiessen Junebug and Darlin' Spincycle Yarns Three Fates Yarn Handmade Renee The Wandering Flock PortFiber Ritual Dyes The first year of the Sacred Sheep fiber festival took place on Saturday, November 4, 2023, and we were invited to show off a little of what set-up day looks like at a festival and share more about the amazing artis...
Nov 08, 2023•37 min
Y'all are in for a treat. Terrance of Terrance Williams Designs joins Jen for an episode full of big laughs. :) Terrance shares his maker journey that was sparked by a love of fashion, which grew into learning how garments are made and the art of sewing, which led to launching his business! He then dives into tips for sustainability, talking to the media, and the absolute joy of building a supportive community by being authentic with every interaction. Terrance and Jen also explore cultural...
Nov 02, 2023•1 hr 3 min
Autumn is out here doin' the important work! She joins Jen to chat all about size inclusivity in the maker space. We kick it off with the (not-surprisingly frustrating) history of sizing because if we want to change the world, we must know where we came from. Autumn tells us all about her passion project of sharing designers and patterns that are size-inclusive and yarn dyers that also support, and then she shares how designers can ensure they are inclusive. And in the year of our Beyonce 2...
Oct 25, 2023•57 min•Ep. 144
Ashley joins Jen to share all about what's happening with Making . We go pretty deep, get very real, and share honestly. A lot has happened this year...but also not (tbh), and we'll talk allllll about it. BUT MOST EXCITING: we will dive into what's next! 🥳 If you are a designer, sell finished goods, make supplies for makers to create, or just love being a part of a beautifully diverse community in an app that wants to prove that you can build a business based on the idea of peopl...
Oct 21, 2023•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 143
The oh-so-lovely Hannah Austin of Needle OR Thread joins Jen to discuss the good ol' topic of “fine art vs craft” and how the community is shifting the dialogue and understanding while touching on how art forms/crafts typically labeled as "female" have usually been considered inferior to those traditionally done by men and the intersectionality of it all. Hannah also shares how she started her business and how her art has been healing through tough times. Prefer to watch your podc...
Oct 04, 2023•58 min•Ep. 142
Tina Tse joins Jen for episode 141! Tina tells us what it's like to go from industrial knitting machine operator by day to knitwear designer by night. Jen covers the history of the knitting machine, which...is comical? Yeah...that. They also dive into some reasons why they are both so very thankful for therapy. Prefer to watch your podcasts? Watch on YouTube ! Find us on the Making app: Tina: @Tina.Say.Knits Jen: @KnitPurl TinaTseKnits.com 🌟 Support the Podcast: 🔔 Subscribe on YouTube – y...
Sep 27, 2023•52 min•Ep. 141
The fabulous Whitney Marie Anderson joins Jen for Ep. 140! They cover how Whit learned to crochet and knit (a new one for this podcast!), going with the flow while also knowing your worth, the importance of representation, and then they dive into a brief history of Amigurumi, which is how Whit started her business. Oh, and how could we forget to mention that co-star Renee (Whitney's ADORABLE daughter) pops in to say hi! ;) Get Whit's crochet hooks, stitch markers, patterns, and more: w...
Sep 20, 2023•52 min•Ep. 140
SPOOKY SEASON IS HERE, Y'ALL and Kelley (owner and dyer at Dye Mad Yarns ) joined Jen for episode 139. All things Dye Mad Yarns is inspired by all things weird Ohio, which includes cryptids! So let's kick off this blessed season of spooky together. Grab your project and buckle in! Prefer to watch your podcasts? Watch on YouTube ! Find us on the Making app: Kelley: @DyeMad Jen: @KnitPurl Dye Mad Yarns Cryptid Collection Cryptid Wiki Flock Fiber Festival 2023 Meet and Greets 🌟 Support t...
Sep 14, 2023•56 min•Ep. 139
