Fiber Talk

Counted-canvas needlepoint is this week’s technique and we got to talk about it with Kathy Rees, one of the best designers in that world. Kathy earned a business degree, got tired of the corporate world, worked with her parents in their needlework shop, then owned her own shop. When that era came to an end, she committed herself to full-time designing and teaching. One of her signature series is annual mystery projects. She just announced her latest mystery, Liberty, through the Shining Needle Society. Registration is open for that class which offers four color ways. Deadline for registering is Feb. 16, so act quickly. Kathy is also planning a stitching cruise with Toni Gerdes. That nine-night Caribbean Cruise sails in April 2027. We learned a lot talking with Kathy and encourage you to visit her website and explore her catalog of terrific designs.—Cindy and Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video. 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: Needle Delights Originals website Needle Delights on Facebook Shining Needle Society website Sailing Stitches Facebook group Fiber Talk’s new Patreon page We hope you enjoy our conversation with Kathy Rees. 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.

It’s Midweek Chat time. This week we started out with the planned topics and were doing well until the subject of “Land of the Free” by Kathy Rees came up. That led to her new Shining Needle Society class, then we remembered Color Waves, and then it was all over. We simply went to needledelights.com and gushed and remembered all of the great designs. The spending of money will happen in the next few days. Our apologies to the folks who listen to the show on podcast apps. We also cooked up a live show to kick off National Embroidery Month. Join us on the FiberTalk YouTube channel at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, Sunday, Feb. 1 for a couple of hours of stitching fun. Be sure to check out our first Fiber Talk Canvas video and leave any questions or comments to help us put together the next show. Also, consider becoming a Patreon supporter at patreon.com/FiberTalk.—Cindy and Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video. 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: Fiber Talk’s new Patreon page Needle Delights Originals website EGA website EGA website CyberPointers website Avlea Folk Embroidery website 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.

Our guest this week is Ruth Cartwright of Craft with Cartwright. The show is sponsored by the Embroiderer’s Guild of America at egausa.org. In our conversation, we learn about Ruth’s business, her Friday free designs, and her 2026 365 Days of Crafting challenge. Our main focus is discussing topics Ruth has posted on her Instagram account. Among those are copyright infringement, granny crafts, why cross stitch is viewed as needlework’s “poor cousin,” organizing floss by color or number, and those magic moments when the house is empty and you’re left to stitch in peace. We hope these topics will get you thinking and invite you to offer your reactions in the comment section.–Beth and Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Podbay, and Podbean. 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: Embroiderer’s Guild of America website Craft with Cartwright website Ruth Cartwright on Instagram Ruth Cartwright on Facebook Ruth Cartwright on YouTube We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with Ruth Cartwright. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show.–Gary 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.

Kate Cross, of Bespoke Embroidery, joins us this week. Kate is a lifelong artist who connected with textile art when her grandmother suggested she visit an exhibition at the Royal School of Needlework. That led to studying and graduating from the RSN and she now teaches students and future tutors for the school. In addition, she has her own Bespoke Embroidery business. That involves design work using a long list of whitework and other stitching techniques, commissions, and more teaching, her second love after stitching. She’s a multi-faceted and highly talented artist and we had a great conversation about her career and love of needlework. Enjoy the show and visit her website to learn more and see more of her work. Teach Me Tuesdays are your chance to learn from Kate in online classes.—Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Podbay, and Podbean. 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: Bespoke Embroidery website Kate Cross on Instagram Kate Cross on Facebook We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with Kate Cross. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show.–Gary 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.

Our long Holiday Hiatus is finally over and we’re back to our regular schedule. This week we talk about our upcoming needlepoint series (send us questions and things you want us to cover), a cool hand massager Beth got for Christmas (enabling alert), our stitching plans for the coming year, what we’re stitching for our needlepoint series, and we gush over Christmas cards Cindy Russell sent us. We also invite you to support Fiber Talk by becoming a Patreon subscriber at patreon.com/FiberTalk. Sunday’s guest: Kate Cross of Bespoke Embroidery. Listen to the podcast: Watch the video. 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: Fiber Talk’s new Patreon page EGA website CyberPointers website Avlea Folk Embroidery website 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.