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Fiber Talk with the Eye Doctor

“Steampunk” glasses are a big help when specifying stitching glasses.
Lined tri-focals with an 8×35 magnification area are recommended for stitching glasses.
Kelly Lea Teske joins Gary this week to talk about Gary’s trip to the eye doctor to get new everyday glasses and lined-trifocal stitching glasses. In a show we did on April 6, 2024, we talked with Kelly about how stitchers should approach an eye doctor visit with the intention of getting glasses that will help with stitching. Gary followed Kelly’s advice and had an excellent experience with two of the three professionals involved. He had to stick to his guns when it came to actually specifying and purchasing the glasses, but it worked out. In this week’s show, we take you through the experience so you can be better informed the next time you visit the eye doctor. Huge thanks to Kelly for making time on short notice to do the show. Also note that Kelly is doing two talks at the Great Wisconsin Quilt show, Sept. 5 to 7 in Madison, WI. Go to quiltshow.com to get all of the details.–Kelly and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

This show is also available on FlossTube. Click here to view it.

Hear Kelly Lea Teske’s talks at the Great Wisconsin Quilt Show, Sept. 5 to 7, quiltshow.com.
You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses.

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We hope you enjoy the show. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show.

To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.


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Fiber Talk Midweek Chat, 8-28-24

Cindy Baldwin’s version of Debbie Rowley’s Fantasia was an Iowa State Fair winner.
Robin Rossignol earned Best in Show honors at the Iowa State Fair with this beautiful piece.
The weekend is two days away so we connected through the interwebs to talk about Elizabeth Ashdown and creating finishing pieces, how counted-canvas needlepoint fits in the lineup of techniques, the 2024 ANG Seminar and what Cindy and Robin are expecting to experience, Lorene Salt’s “Holst Meets Webb” design, and how plans are firming up for the Fiber Talk Stitch Weekend in March, 2025. We’re also looking for suggestions about what you want to learn in classes and at help tables. This week we introduce Tool Talk, a new segment in which we talk about tools you can use for needlework that you don’t necessarily by from a local needlework store. This time we talk about clamps for woodworking, telescoping/lighted magnets, and dental picks. Do you have any tools you use? Share them with us. Note that there will not be a podcast this Sunday. We’re taking a break for the Labor Day weekend. Our regular schedule will resume next Wednesday with a Stitch Hour show.–Cindy and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

This show is also available on FlossTube. Click here to view it.

You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses.

Here are some links:

We hope you enjoy the show. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show.

To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.


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Fiber Talk with Elizabeth Ashdown II

“Passementerie,” by Elizabeth Ashdown, is a valuable resource for making the cords and other trimmings you need to finish your needlework.
In her book. Elizabeth shows you how to make stunning pieces such as this one.

“Passementerie” is the title of the new book, the author is Elizabeth Ashdown, and the show is sponsored Sassy Jacks Stitchery. When we first talked to Elizabeth, July 8, 2023, she was in the early stages of writing the book and we agreed to do a show when it was published. It’s now available at all of the usual sources. “Passementerie,” is an excellent how-to book for making contemporary trimmings, fringes, tassels, and cording. It also provides extensive guidance for those who want to learn to weave passementerie on small looms. In addition, Elizabeth offers several new projects that can be done by all skill levels. In the UK, passementerie is about to be listed as a critically endangered craft and this book goes a long way toward preserving the art form. It’s an easy-to-follow book that will enable you to make the trimming pieces that finish your needlework at a new level.–Beth and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

This show is also available on FlossTube. Click here to view it.

This week’s sponsor is Sassy Jacks Stitchery at sassyjacksstitchery.com.

You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses.

Here are some links:

We hope you enjoy the show. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show.

To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.


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Fiber Talk with Ann Beck

Ann Beck’s Nightbirds embroidery design.
Costume designed by Ann Beck for figure skater Brian Boitano.
This week’s show is sponsored by the Embroiderers’ Guild of America and Sassy Jacks Stitchery. Our conversation this week is with the amazing embroidery artist, Ann Beck. Ann has been doing embroidery in one form or another for most of her life. She spent most of her career in the fashion world, primarily creating and making costumes for performers such as members of the San Francisco Ballet and ODC/Dance San Francisco. She also has designed costumes for Olympic and World Champion figure skaters, specifically Brian Boitano, Kristi Yamaguchi, Dorothy Hamill, and Tara Lipinski. These days she’s shifted away from that world to focus on embroidery design and teaching. Ann is most excited about teaching her new design, Nightbirds, in April 2025, at a four-day workshop in the medieval city of Provins, just south of Paris. The workshop, offered by the embroidery tourism company Creative Experiences, will also include a three-day stay and shopping excursion in Paris and Versailles. Ann’s work is outstanding and it was fun to learn of her journey and what lies ahead for her.–Beth and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

This show is also available on FlossTube. Click here to view it.

Visit the EGA website at egausa.org and consider joining.
This week’s sponsor is Sassy Jacks Stitchery at sassyjacksstitchery.com.
You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses.

Here are some links:

We hope you enjoy the show. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show.

To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.


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Fiber Talk Midweek Chat, 8-14-24

Beth’s Dawn to Dusk is looking rather stunning.
Wednesday has arrived again and we had stuff we didn’t get to two weeks ago, so consider this part II. It’s a long one. We had lots to talk about. Among the topics are our Tour de Broderie Femmes shows; Krista West’s new book “Everyday Folk;” Beth’s Dawn to Dusk progress and how she’s modified the design; showing your needlework to non-stitchers; cultural appropriation and whether it’s a thing in the needlework world; getting bogged down or never starting a project because you’re waiting for just the right thread, ground cloth, or needle; and why we’re not using all of the stash we’ve accumulated. Some of these topics are going to generate some thoughts. Share them with us. Sunday’s guest is Ann Beck.–Beth and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

This show is also available on FlossTube. Click here to view it.

“Everyday Folk” is a new book from Krista West of Avlea Folk Embroidery.
You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses.

Here are some links:

We hope you enjoy the show. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show.

To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.