Sassy Jacks Stitchery

Posted on April 20, 2024 by Gary Parr — Leave a comment

Fiber Talk with Sian Fish

The Dead Unicorn Society design by Sian Fish.

Blackwork is our topic this week and our guest is Sian Fish of The Urban Stitches. The show is sponsored by the Embroiderers’ Guild of America and Sassy Jacks Stitchery. Sian Fish is a self-taught stitcher and designer who loves to work in the macabre/gothic world of needlework design. But not all of her topics are focused on the “dark side.” She has a unique talent for putting a different twist on “regular” topics. No matter what the subject is, it’s almost alway worked on black or gray ground with black threads. She also does amazing work creating portraits with blackwork and regularly conducts popular SALs. Her work is quite unique in not only the world of blackwork, but in needlework design in general. After you enjoy our conversation, visit her website to learn more and consider participating in her SALs. They’re approachable for stitchers of all levels and will give you a chance to try blackwork.–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.

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We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with Sian Fish. We’re always looking for guests, so let us know if there is someone you’d like us to have on the show.

Posted on March 16, 2024 by Gary Parr — Leave a comment

Fiber Talk with Krista West II

It’s been four years since we did a full interview with Krista West of Avlea Folk Embroidery and much as happened since that initial conversation. This show is sponsored by Sassy Jacks Stitchery, sassyjacksstitchery.com. When we first talked to Krista, Avlea was in its infancy. In the time that has passed, Krista has made Avlea into a significant contributor to the art of needlework, while carving out and establishing a niche for needlework that is used on a daily basis instead of framed and hung on a wall. The history and culture of her designs and color palette add yet another unique dimension to her work. In this conversation we learn about the Avlea journey since 2019, the new work bag kits, and Folk Flourishes, a new series of designs for garment embroidery. Wednesday, March 20, Krista will join us live for the Fiber Talk Stitch Hour to show some of her new designs, particularly the work bags and Folk Flourishes. Join us at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on the Fiber Talk YouTube channel.–Beth and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

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

Here are some links:

We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with Krista West. We’re always looking for guests, so let us know if there is someone you’d like us to have on the show.

Posted on February 11, 2024February 28, 2024 by Gary Parr — Leave a comment

Fiber Talk with M’Lou and Bill Bancroft

Some of the ladies of Honduras Threads preparing their needlework products for sale.

Beautiful embroidery produced by the ladies of Honduras Threads.

This week’s show is sponsored by Sassy Jacks Stitchery. Our guests are M’Lou and Bill Bancroft, originators of Honduras Threads, which started with a church mission trip and has become a life-changing operation for the families in Honduras. M’Lou and Bill guided the business through its initial growing pains to become a significant income generator that has empowered the women stitchers and helped their children realize their dreams of advanced education. Along the way, the Bancrofts have received support from their congregation and many people in the textile arts community. They’ve also benefitted from some commission work that raised the bar for everyone in the organization. In our conversation we hear the story of Honduras Threads. In our Feb. 21 Stitch Hour, at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on the Fiber Talk YouTube channel, M’Lou and Bill will join us live so we can experience and talk about the products the ladies in Honduras create and sell. Visit the Honduras Threads website to learn how you can support this tremendous program.–Beth and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

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

Here are some links:

Feb. 21, 2024 Fiber Talk Stitch Hour with Bill and M’Lou Bancroft.

We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation about Honduras Threads. We’re always looking for guests, so let us know if there is someone you’d like us to have on the show.

Posted on February 3, 2024 by Gary Parr — Leave a comment

Fiber Talk with Deb Rucker

Deb Rucker’s Woodlawn award-winning design.

Our focus for this first Sunday of Black History Month is Afrocentric needlework and our guest is Deb Rucker of Stitches of Heritage. Sassy Jacks Stitchery is our sponsor and to help recognize Black History Month, Sassy Jacks is offering a free pdf download of the Sassafras Samplers Rosa Parks portrait sampler. To obtain your free copy, go to sassyjacksstitchery.com and scroll down on the home page until you see the image of Rosa Parks. Deb Rucker has extensively studied African American history with a focus on the role needlework has played since slaves were brought to the U.S. She also is an active designer/stitcher of representation artwork that raises awareness of racism in today’s culture. Our conversation and her experiences are educational and extremely enlightening. It was a true pleasure to talk about this important subject with Deb. Toward the end of the conversation, we talk about the websites diversityinstitching.com and lordlibidan.com. They are two websites you should bookmark and diversityirstitching.com is one you should visit frequently. Lots of talent at that site. Huge thanks to Deb for making the time to share her knowledge and experiences with us.–Gary

Listen to the podcast:

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

Rosa Parks sampler from Sassafras Samplers.

Here are some links:

We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with Deb Rucker. We’re always looking for guests, so let us know if there is someone you’d like us to have on the show.

Posted on January 27, 2024 by Gary Parr — Leave a comment

Fiber Talk with Nicola Jarvis II

Fairhurst Fox, one of the projects in Life in Seasons.

Nicola Jarvis returns this week to talk about her new book, “Life in Seasons: The Embroidered World of Nicola Jarvis.” The show is sponsored by Avlea Folk Embroidery and CyberPointers. Nicola’s book is published by the folks at “Inspirations” magazine. While it’s filled with beautiful projects, presented in the familiar “Inspirations” format, it’s much more than a project book. “Life in Seasons” is the story of what Nicola experienced during her daily walks down the lane and in the woods with her dog Quince. Through words, photos, needle art, poetry, and artisans who helped her along the way, Nicola takes us with her on those walks so we can see what inspired the projects in the book. This book is the first of two. It covers the Winter and Spring seasons. The second book will be published in Sept. 2025 and will share her Summer and Autumn experiences. The book is available now at Sassy Jacks Stitchery or wherever you purchase needlework books. Projects kits can be purchased from the “Inspirations” website to ship from Australia or from Nicola’s website to ship from the UK. Enjoy the conversation and stitching the art Nicola has created.–Beth and Gary

Listen to the podcast:

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

Please support our sponsor, Avlea Folk Embroidery at avleaembroidery.com.

Join CyberPointers at cyberpointers.org.

Here are some links:

We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with Nicola Jarvis. We’re always looking for guests, so let us know if there is someone you’d like us to have on the show.