Thread Cult

Folk art and fine art meet this week in a facinating interview with weaver and textile designer Catharine Ellis, creator of the woven shibori technique. If you love beautiful fabrics, natural dyes, or just like learning about something new, don't miss this episode! Outro music: "Little Wooden Church," by The Trumpeteers.

There's no fabric more luxurious to wear, or tricky to sew, than silk. This episode, Christine gets the scoop on working with this delicate fabric from silk expert and Threads magazine contributor Katrina Walker.

Summer has officially arrived! When it heats up, few fabrics are more refreshing to wear than linen. This episode, Christine and Linda Lee, of The Sewing Workshop, discuss sewing with this natural fabric—from buying the right kind to cutting, stitching, and finishing techniques. Linda's expert advice is sure to get you amped for making something light and lovely this summer. Outro music by Drama for Yamaha. 

From the timeless silhouettes created by Madeleine Vionnet and Madame Grès to the futuristic designs of Issey Miyake, there's nothing quite like bias-cut clothing. This episode, Christine chats with Julianne Bramson and Susan Lenahan, co-founders of Fashions in Harmony, a pattern and fabric company specializing in bias-cut garments. Julianne has studied and taught this method of sewing for years and shares some of her favorite tips on fabrics, finishing techniques, and patterns to use when exploring this tricky but highly rewarding style of design and sewing.  

The sewing industry has seen a boom in independent pattern companies over the past few years, and Colette Patterns has been at the forefront of this indie movement. This episode, Christine chats with Sarai Mitnick, founder and designer of Colette Patterns. If you're interested in indie pattern design, and just sewing in general, this is a great episode filled with tips and insights that any sewer will appreciate!

Jeans are probably one of the toughest garments to sew and get right (you know, so they don't look homemade). This episode, Christine catches up with Angela Wolf, contributor to Threads and Sew Stylish magazines, founder of ABO Apparel, and custom jean maker extraordinaire. Angela dishes on what to look for in fabric, how to distress denim (hint: a trip to Home Depot is in order), the perfect pockets, and how to get great topstitching. If you've been thinking of making jeans, or already tried and want to learn more, this is the episode for you! 

Producing clothing and other sewn goods locally and sustainaly is no easy task, particularly in our global age. Yet there are still dreamers and doers out there actually making things on their own turf—and their own terms. This episode, Christine catches up with Libby O'Bryan, an artist and founder of the Western Carolina Sewing Company (a.k.a. Sew Co.), a full-service cut-and-sew manufacturer of high quality clothing and other products. Sew Co. operates out of the Oriole Mill, in Hendersonville, NC. Check out episode #15 to learn more about this amazing Jacquard mill.

If you love beautiful fabrics, don't miss this episode! Christine takes Thread Cult on the road to interview Bethanne Knudson, co-founder of The Oriole Mill in Hendersonville, North Carolina. The mill specializes in Jacquard woven textiles made exclusively from high-quality natural fibers, and produces some of the most beautiful heirloom quality linens you'll likely ever see. Visit www.daughterfish.com for some amazing images of the mill and fabrics. 

If you sew, or aspire to sew, you surely have questions about that most important piece of hardware—the sewing machine. Perhaps you're in the market for a new one, want to maintain your current one, or wonder whether it's worth fixing Grandma's hand-me-down? Christine gets the answers from Harvey Federman, master sewing machine repairman and owner of Sew Right, a sewing machine and quilting shop in Bayside, Queens. 

Have you ever daydreamed of ditching your 9 to 5, stretching your creative muscles, and sewing fulltime? Nayantara Banerjee—a.k.a. The Williamsburg Seamster—did just that six years ago when she started her own concierge tailoring service and custom design shop. Christine and Tara chat about how she launched, as well as about favorite sewing notions and machines, and a cool textile-related volunteer opportunity (hint: it's in Peru!). 

This episode, Christine catches up with Kate Sekules, founder of Refashioner, a new website that acts as a curated consignment shop for pre-loved couture and designer fashions. The women chat about what it means to invest in a beautiful wardrobe, why we should keep good clothes in rotation, and how the site differs from other online e-sellers, like eBay and Etsy. 

By now, most people recognize the environmental and health benefits of eating natural, organic, and sustainably-raised food. But what about the fabrics we sew with and wear? Should we hold them to the same standard? In this episode, Christine chats with Tara Bloyd, founder of NearSea Naturals, an online retailer specializing in organic, sustainable, and domestically produced cotton, wool, silk, and hemp fabrics. 

Making perfect-fitting clothes is one of the toughest sewing skills to master. In this episode, couture designer and sewing expert Kenneth D. King gives his tips on achieving perfect fit, as well as details on his new Threads DVD series "Smart Fitting with Kenneth D. King."

Textile designer Lotta Jansdotter is the epitome of Scandinavian cool, even when she's designing in her Brooklyn studio. Christine catches up with Lotta on what's inspiring her now and her newest projects, including lines of fabric, rugs, and melamine picnic ware, out this spring.

The New York Times has called her the artisanal dyer of the fashion world, but Audrey Louise Reynolds, a Brooklyn-based natural dye and color expert, could also be considered an alchemist, as she turns fabric and natural plant dyes into high fashion. Christine chats with Audrey about creating colors, nature as muse, and her new line of kid-friendly natural crayons, paints, and molding clays. 

Small crafts have become big business, with the likes of West Elm and Anthropologie trolling booths at the Renegade Craft Fair for the next big thing. This episode, Christine speaks with Sarah Spies, director of vendor relations for Renegade, about the growth of the indie craft movement, starting a crafts business, and tips for getting into one of the most influential indie craft fairs in the country.

Christine chats with renowned couture sewing expert Susan Khalje about sewing women’s dreams (wedding dresses!), fabric shopping in Paris, and a new series of online couture classes she’ll soon launch. 

Since the industrial revolution, fashion has been inextricably linked with technology. From the invention of the sewing machine to the zipper to high-performance fabrics, technology has continually changed the way we make and wear clothing. This episode, Christine chats with Ariele Elia and Emma McClendon, co-curators of Fashion and Technology, a new show at the Museum at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) in Manhattan. Along with talking about the exhibit, they also discuss how new inventions—such as 3D printing and fabrics made from bacteria—may change what we wear in the future. To see images of the show, visit Christine’s blog, www.daughterfish.com.

This episode, Christine chats with Stephen Fraser, co-founder of the digital fabric printing company Spoonflower, which has allowed crafters and small businesses to order custom-designed fabrics at affordable prices. Along with the company's origins, they talk about how internet-based businesses can innovate and change the way manufacturing is done in the U.S. today.

In this season of gift giving, Christine teams up with Oona, of Oonaballoona.com, to try and answer an elusive question: Why is it so hard to sew for your significant other? They tour Mood Fabrics in Midtown for a lesson in mens' shirting fabrics, and a frank and laugh-inducing discussion on why it's so dang hard to sew for men!