Make and Decorate with Stephanie: Sew, Quilt, Knit & Home Decor

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! 1 Year Anniversary of the Make and Decorate with Stephanie Socha Design Podcast!  My first episode published on July 19, 2018.  A huge thank you to all of you who subscribe and listen to this podcast.   I am so pleased to have Christa Watson back on the show to continue our series on the different types of quilting.  Christa quilts all of her own quilts on...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Our Quilting Series continues on the Different Types of Quilting.  Today's episode is on Hand Quilting.  I am so thrilled to have professional quilter and educator, Heidi Parkes on the podcast today. http://www.heidiparkes.com/ Don't skip this episode, even if you detest hand sewing and hand quilting.  We chat about so much more, and Heidi shares...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! In this episode, I am starting a new series on Quilting: An in depth look at the different types of quilting.  My guest on this episode is Jacquie Gering, a professional quilter, teacher and book author.  We talk about domestic machine walking foot quilting and modern quilting.   In Jacquie's book, Walk , she shares 80 new machine quilting designs, an...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! On this episode, I chat with Leah Day, quilter, pattern designer, business owner, and a writer.  Leah has an online shop with her patterns, quilting tools, and is a dealer of The Grace Company Longarm machines, and frames  https://graceframe.com/en   If you have followed Leah Day over the years, you know she started out as a machine quilting expert in free...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! In today’s episode, the first segment begins with my recap of the Libs Elliot workshop, Embrace the Chaos, I went to last weekend.  It was one of the most amazing classes I have experienced! My guest on this episode is Latifah Saafir. https://www.latifahsaafirstudios.com/ Latifah is an independent quilt pattern designer, and is a fabric designer with Hoffm...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! It's a jam packed episode with me, Stephanie Socha! There are a lot of projects on my table, and I'm in the completion phase of a couple of quilts.  Find out what portable hand sewing project I took with me to jury duty last week, plus learn about hand sewing with silk thread. I present a semi-review of the newer Singer Featherweight C240. I say...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! In this episode, I talk with Kristin Nicholas of Kristin Nicholas Designs. Kristin is an artist, designer and book author.  Kristin excels in many areas of art: in the fiber artist world, as a pottery maker/artist, and a fabric/surface designer on Spoonflower.  She is an author of 12 books on color, stitching and home decor.  Kristin lives on a working she...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! It's episode 25🎉and my guest on the podcast today is Christa Watson of Christa Quilts! Christa is a quilter, teacher, book author, pattern designer and fabric designer for Benartex Fabrics . Christa's latest book, Piece and Quilt with Precuts , is available on her website, and all of her fabric collections are available in her online shop as wel...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! I recorded this episode from Thimbles Quilt Shop in Lockport, IL, a southwest suburb of Chicago. Tammy Newton is co-owner of Thimbles quilt shop, and she sat down with me in the beautiful 2nd floor of the shop that is their classroom and meeting place for all of the shop's events. We chat about it all - sewing, quilting, fabrics, Babylock and Bernina...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Welcome to episode 23 of Make and Decorate with Stephanie Socha Design!  There are a lot of exciting things going on here, I am about to start the Alison Glass Trinket sew a-long. This is a foundation paper pieced pattern, and I hope I can keep up with the 1 block per weekday for 8 weeks!  I am looking forward to it. My guest this episode is Kristin Rauch,...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! On today's episode, I chat with Mister Domestic, Mathew Boudreaux.  Mister Domestic has built a genuine community of creative followers from his instagram feed, YouTube Channel, and fabric designer for Art Gallery Fabrics.  We talk about the above, and focus on what's beneath the surface for Mathew, ie his inspiration, what gives him the most joy...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Happy Valentine’s Day!  On today’s episode, I chat with Frances O’Rourk Dowell.  Frances is a fiction novelist/author, mostly of young adult fiction, but also more recently, of Quilt Fiction.  Some of you may have read Birds in the Air , Frances’ first quilt fiction novel.  A follow-up novel Stars Upon Stars is due to release around June 2019. In addition...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Happy February!!  Here we go - this new year has taken off at breakneck speed.  In this minisode, I talk about current projects in my studio, and happy to report that the king size butterfly quilt is now at the longarm quilter - yay!   I have some new to me quilting notions to share with you: Clearly Perfect Angles, mini wonder clips, Olfa endurance blades...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! In the first segment, I update on the goings on here, and a mini-review on my new iPhone XR. I share my research on the notable differences from the iPhone XS.  My podcast guest this week is Sara Lawson, from Sew Sweetness Patterns!!!!  Sara is a bag pattern designer and has two weekly live facebook and youtube video shows, AND she is a fellow Chicagoan wo...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Welcome back to part 2 of my conversation with the amazing Jessica Pierce, owner and creator of 5 out of 4 Patterns.  Have you checked out her website, downloaded and made any of her patterns?  Let me know. Also, in the first segment of this podcast I talk about my current WIP's, and recent installation of motorized roman shades. You can find the show...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Happy New Year Everybody!!! On the first segment of this episode, I chat about what I did, what I made and what I watched on Netflix during the holidays.  Check my show notes for links. Segment 2: Meet Jessica Pierce, owner of 5 out of 4 Patterns.  Jessica is an amazing person, and we had such a great time chatting about her, and her family and her awesome...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Ooops!  If you downloaded earlier than noon cst 12-20-18, you got my "directors cut" long version of episode 16...sorry about that. This is the edited episode 16 with a new segment on making vanilla extract!  So be sure that you have episode 16 that is 52:40 minutes long. It is the last episode of 2018! Do you find at the end of every year, you a...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! There is sew much going on here in Make and Decorate-land!  Since I removed several handmade gift items off of my to do list, I have been able to breathe and enjoy this holiday season so much better this year!  On this mini-sode episode, I recap the previous Sugaridoo episode with some sources of craft shows with crochet, knitting, yarn and possible amigur...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! My guest today is Irene Staal, owner and pattern designer of Sugaridoo.  I had so much fun chatting with Irene, and learning more about her patterns in Amigurumi crochet stuffed animals, and foundation paper pieced quilts.  Irene is in the Netherlands, and I discovered her YouTube channel early this year, called Sugaridoo.  Irene is a great teacher and her...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! There is a lot of great information packed into this mini-sode.  Get tips and a link to a great video from Sew Sweetness' Ask Sara YouTube video, to learn how to reduce not only holiday stress, but anxiety and stress in your daily life. Sara's guest is Dr. Stephanie Palmer (she is the creator of the Quilter's Planner). I talk about a new win...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  This is truly a special episode, I cannot tell you what a joy it is for me to have Stephanie Kendron from http://modernsewciety.com/ ; The Modern Sewciety Podcast on the show today!  Aside from Pat Sloane, Modern Sewciety is one of the first sewing related podcasts I subscribed to, and I have been a loyal listener ever since....

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! Another mini-sode this week - yay!  Just a little chit chat, I have a new podcast email  info@makeanddecorate.com in addition to my main email stephaniesochadesign@gmail.com I review rotary cutters from Clover, Olfa, Fiskars, Gingher and Tula Pink.   What am I watching on YouTube?  I talk about three channels that I subscribe to and watch on YouTube.   Sho...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! We have two weeks to go before Thanksgiving...do you have your tablescape planned out yet?  Create a beautifully decorated table with your own handmade table linens or make last minute semi-diy linens with embellished ready made linens.  I share workroom tips on standard dimensions of table cloths, placemats, table runners and napkins.  In addition to line...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! I am trying something new with my "mini-sodes", mini-size episodes on the weeks in-between the regular bi-weekly episodes.  These mini-sodes will be about the most recent updates with me, projects I'm working on, seasonal things and any thing else I think of between main episodes.   If I don't have any new updates, then there will not b...

Click Here to Send me a Fan Mail Message! I recorded this episode on-site in Sarah Clevenger's sewing room!  We had the best time talking about sewing, machines, fabrics and pattern making.  Sarah gives a couple of sewing hacks/tips, and she talks about some of her niche sewing interests like costume and renaissance style sewing, and how she loves sewing coats.   If you have any hesitation on...