I started selling my work online in July of 2005. Etsy was brand new and I opened a shop as soon as I heard about it. In those early days Etsy was a lot clunkier than it is today – creating a new listing required entering information on five different pages – but it was…
Archives for September 2016
Report from Sew Pro 2016
I’ve just returned from a wonderful weekend at Sew Pro, a brand new conference for sewing professionals that took place in Chicago on September 16-17. The event was organized by Sara Lawson of Sew Sweetness and Brenda Ratliff of Pink Castle Fabrics. Between the two of them Sara and Brenda have designed fabric for two…
Podcast Episode #81: Roost Books
On today’s episode of the While She Naps podcast we’re talking about publishing craft books with my guests, Sara Bercholz and Jennifer Urban-Brown of Roost Books, an imprint of Shambhala. Sara is the Executive Vice President of Shambhala and the publisher of Roost Books. She started Roost Books with Jenn in 2012. Shambhala was started…
F+W to Donate Quilters Newsletter Archives to the University of Texas
In July the quilting community was saddened to learn that Quilters Newsletter, the beloved magazine started by Bonnie Leman 47-years-ago, was being shut down by F+W Media. Leman founded Quilters Newsletter in 1969 and published the first issue in September of that year from her kitchen table. Quilt historians and experts agree that by researching…
Goldfish Hat from Fleece Hat Friends by Mary Rasch
My middle son Simon, loves to wear hats. All summer he wore a Spiderman baseball cap. When he gets dressed up he wears a fedora. And in the winter he likes to have a fleece animal hat to wear. Most of the winter animal hats in stores are for little kids and after lots of…
Lessons From My First Job: Tara Swiger
In the final post in the “Lessons from Your First Job” series we hear from Tara Swiger. I met Tara in person for the first time at Craftcation a few years ago and we’ve since connected at several crafty business conferences. Tara is a down-to-earth, warm, supportive friend and business coach. She helps dozens of…
Podcast Episode #80: Maddie Kertay of the Badass Quilters Society
On today’s episode of the While She Naps podcast we’re talking about diversity and inclusion in the quilting community with my guest, Maddie Kertay. Maddie Kertay is the mother of 6 children, the founder of BadAss Quilters Society, an industry consultant and a rabble-rouser. She’s bent on setting a bigger table, not building a higher fence…
Lessons from My First Job: Stephanie Palmer
When we look back at our lives and trace the path that brought us to the work we’re doing now often we see early signs of our talents and interests. Although our current job might be radically different from where we began, as it is for our guest today, there are lessons that we picked…
Lessons from My First Job: Jacquie Gering
Very few people come right out of college saying, “I’m going to be a quilt designer!” and begin earning a living in the quilt industry right away. Most people who call quilting their profession started out doing something else – they worked in graphic design, or accounting, or marketing – and somewhere along the way…