PODCAST · leisure
The Long Thread Podcast
by Long Thread Media
The artists and artisans of the fiber world come to you in The Long Thread Podcast. Each episode features interviews with your favorite spinners, weavers, needleworkers, and fiber artists from across the globe. Get the inspiration, practical advice, and personal stories of experts as we follow the long thread.
Episodes
-
What to Make Next: The Yarn Barn of Kansas List of Great Project Books
The best project books not only combine gorgeous designs with clear instructions, they also expand your fiber-arts horizon with a trip to a new part of the world, a collection of the best ideas of fellow crafters, an in-depth tour of a great technique, or the chance to incorporate your favorite...
-
Sally Pointer, Experimental Archaeologist
How did people make and use the textiles we’ve created for millennia? From nalbinding to netting to bast fiber processing, Sally Pointer looks for answers by working with her hands. Some fiber crafts are as old as humanity, even recorded in cave paintings. Some fiber crafts are so little…
more -
Melissa M. Littlefield, Reinventing Wool
How could you possibly improve on wool, the perfect fiber? In the 20th century, scientists thought they could do just that. Some of their innovations have disappeared . . . but some remain. In the middle of the 20th century, with technology promising a modern lifestyle that would be newer and...
-
David Richie, Green Mountain Spinnery
A small group of Vermonters wanted to improve the environment and preserve the rural character of the state. Along with two friends, David Richie and his wife found a way: they founded the Green Mountain Spinnery. David Richie and his wife, Diana, wanted to keep their home state and region green...
-
Karen Elting Brock, PieceWork
A love of words, stories, and cloth led Karen Elting Brock around the world and back to PieceWork. ”All This by Hand” appeared on the first covers of PieceWork magazine, intended to capture the scope of material between the covers. Stitching, lacemaking, and other needlework, certainly, but other...
-
Lir Shilton, Ribblr
As a budding crochet designer, Lir Shilton ran into obstacles and annoyances that many beginning crafters face. But instead of learning to live with them, she and her partner decided to make a platform that offers a different approach. Lir loved to crochet, and she especially loved creating…
more -
Emily Whitted, Texile Historian
A pair of silk stockings, mended again and again below the ankle, set Emily Whitted on the path of discovery that has led her through archives and museums of early American history. The stockings belonged to Philadelphia’s Stephen Girard, who was one of the wealthiest men in America. Museum…
more -
Books off the Beaten Path: The Yarn Barn of Kansas List of Hidden Gems
Book Club Podcast: What lesser-known treasures do Yarn Barn fiber artists love to share? Susan and Melissa share some of their favorites in weaving, spinning, and knitting. Liz Gipson drops by to talk about one of her books that Susan and Melissa adore. Book-loving crafters generally have a few...
-
Loretta Pettway Bennett, Gee's Bend Quilter
A fifth-generation quilter from the legendary community of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, Loretta Pettway Bennett turns well used cloth into her own expressions of color and community. Loretta Pettway Bennett began her quilting journey as a child, threading needles for her mother as she sewed scraps into...
-
Diana Wiley, Handspun Hope
With no background in fiber but a calling to help women in need, Diana Wiley built a thriving organization on handspun yarn, needlefelted gorillas, and a holistic community for over 200 women. Stepping into the Handspun Hope booth at a fiber festival feels like entering a luxury boutique filled...
-
Pamela K. Schultz, Spin Off
As Spin Off nears 50 years old, editor Pamela K. Schultz sees herself as the host of a wonderful spinning party that welcomes one and all. Taking a day off from the grind of law school, Pamela Schultz visited an art fair and saw a spinner with a spinning wheel. A longtime knitter, she had…
more -
Reweaving Marguerite Porter Davison’s Handweaver’s Pattern Book
Among four-shaft weavers, A Handweaver's Pattern Book is commonly referred to by just the author’s name—Davison—or as “the green book,” a reference to the iconic cover of many of the book’s printings. Since Marguerite Porter Davison first published it in 1944, it has been a foundational…
more -
Kate Larson, Farm & Fiber Knits
Editor, teacher, and shepherd Kate Larson makes the case that every knitter is already part of the farm-to-fiber story—whether they know it or not. Kate Larson is the editor of Farm & Fiber Knits and a beloved teacher of spinning, knitting, and weaving. She took time out from lambing season to…
more -
You Need This Book! The Yarn Barn of Kansas Required Reading List
Book Club Podcast: Fiber art veterans Susan Bateman and Melissa Parsons compare notes with host Anne Merrow about the books every weaver, spinner, knitter, and crocheter should have on the bookshelf—plus big news about a classic weaving directory. They’re the first books you reach for, the ones...
-
Angela Tong, Multidisciplinary Maker
Knitters and crocheters know Angela Tong as a designer with hooks and needles, while weavers recognize her work in rigid-heddle and pin looms. Visitors to galleries and artisan markets know her as a potter. Angela thinks of herself simply as a maker, always drawn to creating beauty with her…
more -
Amy Sadler, Knitty
Before Ravelry, before knitting podcasts, before the internet fully found its craft obsession, there was Knitty. Amy Sadler shares the inspiration and evolution of the online knitting phenomenon. In the early 2000s, as the internet became part of daily life for millions, Amy Sadler began a…
more -
Coming Soon: The Yarn Barn of Kansas Book Club
What new craft books are can't-miss? Which are the classic reference books that every crafter should have on the shelf? In the Yarn Barn of Kansas Book Club, teachers and book lovers talk about the books they wouldn't be without. Sponsored by Yarn Barn of Kansas Learning how to weave but need the...
-
Curtis Gregory, George Washington Carver National Monument
Best known for his work with peanuts, renowned agricultural scientist George Washington Carver had a lifelong passion for needlework. Park Ranger Curtis Gregory shares stories about Carver’s interests in handwork and natural dyeing. Born in 1865 near Diamond, Missouri, George Washington Carver is...
-
Gudrun Johnston, The Shetland Trader
Gudrun Johnston has a deep legacy in Shetland knitting: her father’s family comes from the islands, and her mother founded a knitwear company that blended contemporary silhouettes with Fair Isle motifs, a business she called the Shetland Trader. But although Gudrun grew up wearing her mother’s...
-
Christina Garton, Little Looms
Christina Garton didn’t get to be the editor of Little Looms by taking weaving too seriously. First introduced to weaving in a class post-college, she joined Handwoven as assistant editor in 2011. She developed her passions for editing and weaving while working on both multishaft and rigid-heddle...
-
Chick Colony, Harrisville Designs
Small textile towns were once common in New England, with stout brick buildings harnessing the power of the region’s water to mill yarn and cloth. The Colony family had been owners of a mill in Harrisville, New Hampshire, since before the Civil War, but by the mid-twentieth century, such…
more -
Jane Cooper, The Lost Flock (classic)
The picture of a flock of primitive-breed sheep, the last of their kind, living on an island off the northeast coast of Scotland, has a certain romance to it. Plenty of knitters, spinners, fiber artists, and citizens of the modern world might idly dream of living on such an island and tending…
more -
Elena Kanagy-Loux, Lacemaker & Historian (classic)
When you picture lace, what comes to mind: an old-fashioned once-white piece of Victorian embellishment? The elegant, possibly itchy decoration on a wedding gown? If you are a needleworker, you might picture an array of bobbins leashed to a cluster of pins and arrayed on a pillow, or a tatting...
-
Laverne Waddington, Backstrap Weaver (classic)
Laverne Waddington discovered weaving by accident—bike accident, to be precise. Recuperating from a mountain biking crash in Utah, she discovered a book on Navajo weaving and was immediately intrigued. A local exhibit of Diné textiles enthralled her, and she set about learning to weave in the...
-
Masey Kaplan & Jen Simonic, Loose Ends Project (classic)
When Jen Simonic and Masey Kaplan’s friend lost her mother, she had the challenge of going through her mother’s things while grieving her loss. Among her posessions was something almost every crafter has at least one of: a work in progress. Jen and Masey had each finished projects for bereaved...
-
Amy Oxford, Oxford Punch Needle
As a college student and weaver, Amy Oxford fell in love with the punch-needle method of rug hooking almost by accident, a surprising benefit from a babysitting gig. She followed her interest from doing piece work on existing designs to creating large commissioned rugs in her own business. In…
more -
Jordana Munk Martin, Tatter
At an unexpected juncture in her life, artist Jordana Munk Martin turned to the legacy of her grandmother’s trove of textile books. Edith Wyle founded the Craft and Folk Art Museum in Los Angeles in 1973, curating unconventional exhibits and instilling a love of art in her family. Her…
more -
Mary Anne Wise, Multicolores
Fiber artist Mary Anne Wise first went to Guatemala hoping to collect local textiles and inspire her own practice. Just one visit wasn’t enough, and she visited several more times, eventually offering a class in rug hooking to local women artisans. Although the women didn’t have a rug-hooking...
-
Sahara Briscoe, Creative Multicrafter
Sahara Briscoe has a challenge for you: Do more with yarn. Knit your spinning, spin your knitting, rug hook with yarn, paint on your swatches, embroider with yarn, and question your assumptions about what your stash is for. Working from a compact Bronx studio, Sahara can’t be easily classified...
-
Bea Bonanno, Wooldreamers
In the history of wool, Spain means Merino, the legendary finewool sheep so prized that their export fell under royal control. From their Spanish origins, Merino genetics formed the basis of wool breeds around the world. The foundations of most finewools, especially in Australia and the United...
-
Anne’s Book Club: Anna Hultin, Louisa Owen Sonstroem & Safiyyah Talley, Storey Publishing
This is Anne’s Book Club, a spotlight episode of the Long Thread Podcast where we share conversations about exciting new craft titles. This episode features three new books from Storey Publishing: The Stitched Landscape by Anna Hultin, The Handsewn Wardrobe by Louisa Owen Sonstroem, and Knitting...
-
Sarah Pedlow, Threadwritten
Sarah Pedlow was enjoying an artist’s residency in Budapest when a museum visit changed the course of her artwork and her career. In the Ethnographic Museum, displays of traditional clothing and dowry goods from Hungarian villages showed an extraordinary variety of skills. Many of the intricately...
-
Nicole Nehrig, Crafter & Psychologist
Most of us crafters know instinctively that working with yarn, fiber, and cloth makes life better. Believing that handwork is good for our well-being has sparked memes about knitting as “the new yoga” and sold tee shirts that read, “I knit so I don’t stab people.” But feeling good while…
more -
Anne's Book Club: Swatch Critters & Profile Drafting for Handweavers by Deb Essen (Schiffer Craft)
Anne’s Book Club is a new series of interviews with the authors of new fiber art books that I think Long Thread Podcast listeners will love. This episode features new books by Deb Essen, a frequent contributor to Handwoven and Little Looms. Deb Essen may weave plenty of blocks and squares, but…
more -
Barry Schacht and Jane Patrick, Schacht Spindle Company
Some spinners and weavers picture the Schacht Spindle Company’s factory as a large-scale operation churning out equipment by the hundreds. After all, Schacht’s products are easily recognized in stores, studios, and guilds around the world. Others see the handmade touches—such as the ladybug on...
-
Clara Parkes, Bestselling Author and Wool Promoter (classic)
Clara Parkes became many knitters’ guiding light and best friend when she launched Knitter's Review in 2000. One of the early standouts in the early online knitting landscape, the site developed a devoted following for its in-depth, objective yarn reviews and lively forums. Several years after…
more -
Hazel Tindall, World’s Fastest Knitter
Hazel Tindall can’t remember a time before she knew how to knit. Hazel learned to knit when knitting for sale was the only way that women earned money, when a job outside the home in town was too far to travel. Although her mother found knitting a chore, Hazel liked it, not only knitting sweater...
-
Tamara White, Wing & A Prayer Farm
Tamara White always has one eye on the skies. Whether she’s getting her sheep ready for shearing, welcoming visitors to classes and events on the farm, or watching over the yarn in kettles of natural dye, there isn’t a moment when the weather isn’t on her mind. Although rain and heat make hard…
more -
Madelyn van der Hoogt, The Weaver’s School
With Madelyn van der Hoogt’s extensive knowledge of loom-controlled structures and techniques, you might be surprised to learn that the celebrated weaving teacher spent her first years as a handweaver working on a backstrap loom. On a sabbatical in Latin America from her teaching career in…
more -
Cecelia Campochiaro, Curious Knitter
When you first learned to knit, you might have wondered why certain stitches made fabric that curled, or why right-leaning and left-leaning decreases didn’t quite match, or why charts didn’t really show what the knitted fabric would look like. Knitting patterns might have seemed completely...
-
Sara Bixler, Red Stone Glen
At a time when many fiber arts stores are closing, Sara C. Bixler is bucking the trend. With degrees in both fine art and education, she had developed a studio practice as well as a teaching repertoire at the Pennsylvania weaving school where her father, Tom Knisely, had taught for decades. When...
-
Spotlight: Cashmere on Ice
You know about North Pole and the South Pole, where polar bears and penguins live. Have you heard of a third pole? West and south of the Tibetan Plateau, a mountainous area holds more glaciers than any place in the world outside the Arctic and Antarctic poles. This region has a special…
more -
Tom Knisely, Generational Weaver
When Tom Knisely decided to buy his first item in an antique shop, he had two strokes of luck: the spinning wheel that he chose included all the parts needed to make yarn, and he lived not far from the landmark weaving store The Mannings. There, he learned to spin and eventually to weave.…
more -
Susan Strawn, Knitting Historian
A lifelong lover of fiber arts, Susan Strawn’s career in textiles began in an unexpected corner: with training as a biomedical illustrator. She found cloth far more exciting than biology, so she turned her eye for detail to illustrating PieceWork magazine. She added photostyling to her duties,...
-
Sissal Kjartansdóttir Kristiansen on Faroese Knitting
Knitting and wool are so essential in the Faroe Islands that in the early 1800s, exports of sweaters and socks made up about half of the economy. Today, the nation of about 55,000 people has 8+ knitwear brands, 2 active spinning mills, and 70,000 ewes. Sissal Kristiansen, the owner of knitwear...
-
Shay Pendray, Stitcher, Entrepreneur, Cowgirl (classic)
When young Shay Pendray told the head of her school that she wanted to learn to sew, he had a prerequisite: He would give her a lamb, and she would learn to process the wool, spin it into yarn, and weave it into cloth, and then she could learn to sew. It was an extraordinary home ec class, but…
more -
Robin Lynde, Meridian Jacobs
Some shepherds research extensively and choose the breed that best matches their needs. Others come across an animal or a whole flock and everything falls into place—it becomes clear that these are the sheep they’ve been waiting for. Robin Lynde had a farm with a few sheep in the mix, but when a...
-
Laura Nelkin Knits for Food
Listening to her college-aged daughter making calls for AmeriCorps in 2020, Laura Nelkin was surprised at how many people in her community faced food insecurity and hunger every day. A problem that had seemed far away suddenly felt much closer to home, and Laura wanted to find a way to help. She...
We're indexing this podcast's transcripts for the first time — this can take a minute or two. We'll show results as soon as they're ready.
No matches for "" in this podcast's transcripts.
No topics indexed yet for this podcast.
Loading reviews...
ABOUT THIS SHOW
The artists and artisans of the fiber world come to you in The Long Thread Podcast. Each episode features interviews with your favorite spinners, weavers, needleworkers, and fiber artists from across the globe. Get the inspiration, practical advice, and personal stories of experts as we follow the long thread.
HOSTED BY
Long Thread Media
Loading similar podcasts...
Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Long Thread Podcast have?
The Long Thread Podcast currently has 160 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Long Thread Podcast about?
The artists and artisans of the fiber world come to you in The Long Thread Podcast. Each episode features interviews with your favorite spinners, weavers, needleworkers, and fiber artists from across the globe. Get the inspiration, practical advice, and personal stories of experts as we follow the...
How often does The Long Thread Podcast release new episodes?
The Long Thread Podcast publishes regularly with 160 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to The Long Thread Podcast?
You can listen to The Long Thread Podcast on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Long Thread Podcast?
The Long Thread Podcast is created and hosted by Long Thread Media.
URL copied to clipboard!