CraftSanity #111 1.5.10

This week my podcast guest is Rashida Coleman-Hale, 33, of Atlanta, who writes the I Heart Linen blog. A busy mama and super talented designer, Rashida’s story is sure to inspire you run to your fabric stash for a quick patchwork project fix. We chatted about her creative journey to becoming a craft project designer and published author and the challenges she’s encountered along the way. Rashida has a contagious laugh, so we did plenty of giggling. But we also had a serious discussion about how making beautiful things helped Rashida through postpartum depression. So if you’re going through a rough patch, this episode might be particularly helpful. Rashida’s first book, “I Love Patwork: 21 Irresistible Zakka Projects to Sew” just hit bookstores and features great designs including instructions to make the lovely blossom pincushions pictured above. (p. 71) Projects in the book include a combination of machine and hand sewing and feature lots of linen (no surprise there!) and the English paper piecing techniques that I find so fantastically additive. Rashida’s designs carry a strong Japanese influence reminiscent of the time she spent living abroad as a child. So if you love Zakka craft, you’ll enjoy making Rashida’s designs to adorn your creative space.