Quilting on the Side

Send us Fan Mail Six seasons. Over a hundred episodes. Three years of real talk about building a quilting business on the side — and Tori and Andi are not done yet. In this Season 6 finale, the co-hosts take a walk down memory lane through what turned out to be their longest season yet — 21 episodes packed with guests, trade show adventures, solo experiments, and more than a few lessons learned th...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when a tech editor, a marketing coach, and three quilt pattern designers and teachers walk into the h+h americas Trade show? These are five quilting business owners with wildly different game plans — and a lot of honest hindsight. In this special panel episode, Tori and Andi sit down with three of the friends they spent the week with at h+h Americas in Chicago — Kaitl...

Send us Fan Mail h+h Americas is a huge fabric and fiber arts industry trade show. Andi and Tori spent the week in Chicago and met a bunch of amazing people! In this episode, Andi walks the show floor and asks a variety of attendees about their experience. Meet longarm quilters, pattern writers, tech editors and fabric desigers. We hope you enjoy this peek behind the scenes.  Did you hear that the...

Send us Fan Mail What if the best marketing strategy for your pattern business had nothing to do with Instagram? Brooke Stambersky of Brooke's Bitchin' Stitches started her entire quilting business the old-fashioned way - walking into quilt shops, showing up in person, and letting her passion do the talking. Just relationships, discipline, and a really good pixelated Michigan quilt. In t...

Send us Fan Mail Andi flies solo this episode to share why YouTube has been her go-to social media platform for the past two years — and why she thinks it should be on every quilting business owner's radar. From the nuts and bolts of monetization requirements to the surprising longevity of a single well-timed video, she breaks down what's actually working for her channel. She also gets r...

Send us Fan Mail What do you do when distributors keep saying no and social media isn't getting your patterns in front of the right people? In this solo episode, Tori shares the story of Joyce - a pattern designer and client who built a growing pattern business by going straight to quilt shops with smart research, personalized outreach, and a willingness to put the actual product in people&ap...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when the business you love physically can't come with you? In this episode, Andi sits down with Cindy Bader of Patterns on the Prairie to talk about building - and rebuilding - a quilting business around the realities of your life. Cindy started quilting as a first-generation quilter on a $60 Walmart Singer that she had to spin the flywheel to start. Nearly two d...

Send us Fan Mail What actually goes into a media kit — and do you even need one? In this episode, Tori and Andi break down the nuts and bolts of building a media kit for your quilting business, from headshots and bios to class sample photos and social media handles. They walk through how your kit should look different depending on whether you're pitching a podcast, approaching a guild, or rea...

Send us Fan Mail What does it look like to build a quilting business almost by accident? In this episode, Tori and Andi sit down with Monika Henry of Penny Spool Quilts to talk about her journey from a six-year first quilt (cut with cardboard templates and scissors) to running a pattern design business, teaching an improv quilting workshop, and launching a Canadian quilt subscription box that took...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Tori and Andi dig into a topic they've been hearing about from both sides - the relationship between pattern designers and quilt shops. Are they competitors? Partners? Somewhere in between? They break down the real economics of pattern design (spoiler: a $12 retail pattern doesn't go far at wholesale or distributor pricing), why most designers can't...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Andi sits down with Kathryn LeBlanc of Dragonfly's Quilting Design Studio (and author Kathryn Mykel) to talk about what it really looks like to keep reinventing your creative business when the thing that's working stops working. Kathryn opened a brick-and-mortar quilt shop with no money, no inventory, and no business background - then closed it right bef...

Send us Fan Mail Quilt Market is gone. After decades as the destination event for quilting industry professionals, the fall show has been canceled indefinitely, and Tori and Andi have thoughts. In this episode, they pull back the curtain on what the end of Quilt Market might mean for your business and the quilting industry as a whole, why it may not be the bad news everyone's making it out to...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Quilting on the Side , Andi and Tori welcome back Theresa Benson  - the AI Quilter for a fascinating conversation about how artificial intelligence is showing up in the quilting world. Since her last appearance on the podcast, Theresa has been busy speaking at guilds, mentoring quilters, presenting on the big stage at QuiltCon, and researching some of the bigges...

Send us Fan Mail Taking your quilt business from a digital screen to a physical trade show booth can feel like a high-stakes challenge. In this episode, Tori and Andi pull back the curtain on the "messy middle" of booth prep and the vulnerability of being seen. You'll discover: The "Top-Down" Strategy: How to design for visibility so your brand is seen from across the room...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Quilting on the Side, hosts Andi and Tori interview Jamie Bright with Craft a Dream, a successful quilter and entrepreneur. Jamie shares her journey from starting quilting at a young age to building a thriving business in the quilting industry. She discusses the importance of marketing, collaborations, and organic growth strategies for quilters looking to turn t...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Quilting on the Side, Andi and Tori reflect on their journey since the podcast's inception, discussing significant changes in their businesses, personal growth, and the evolution of their creative identities. Tori shares her transition to full-time coaching and the launch of her self-publishing incubator, while Andi highlights her success with YouTube and t...

Send us Fan Mail In this conversation, Andi and Tori McElwain delve into the essentials of digital marketing for business owners, focusing on how to effectively show up online. Tori shares her insights on the importance of building an email list, nurturing leads through content, and the critical role of launching products. They discuss strategies for managing multiple projects and the significance...

Send us Fan Mail In this engaging conversation, Andi and our guest Dara Tomasson explore the complexities of navigating conflict, overcoming self-sabotage, and finding joy in business. They discuss the importance of emotional resilience, the impact of imposter syndrome, and the necessity of taking control of one's reactions in a chaotic world. Dara shares her insights on personal growth, the...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Quilting on the Side, Andi and Tori McElwain delve into the evolving landscape of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and its implications for quilting businesses. Tori shares her insights gained from extensive research, particularly focusing on the integration of AI search bots into SEO strategies. The conversation highlights the importance of using relevant keywo...

Send us Fan Mail In this engaging conversation, Brandy Maslowski, Tori McElwain, and Andi Stanfield explore their quilting journeys, the evolution of their businesses, and the impact of podcasting in the quilting community. They share personal stories about their first quilts, discuss the significance of color trends in quilting, and delve into the role of AI in their businesses. The episode also...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Tori and Andi kick off Season Six by discussing the challenges of work-life balance for entrepreneurs, particularly those in the quilting community. They explore the unrealistic expectations of balance, the importance of self-care, and the need to acknowledge tougher times. The conversation emphasizes the significance of structuring time for learning and creativit...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Andi and Tori reflect on their journey through five seasons of the Quilting on the Side podcast. They discuss the importance of community engagement, key business insights shared throughout the season, and highlight memorable guests who brought unique perspectives to the quilting industry. The conversation also touches on industry trends, the impact of AI, and pre...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Quilting on the Side, Tori and Karlee Porter discuss the evolution of quilting, particularly focusing on graffiti quilting. Karlee shares her journey from working with long arm machines to developing her unique artistic style. The conversation explores the importance of community, the impact of self-publishing, and the accessibility of quilting machines. Karlee...

Send us Fan Mail  In this episode of Quilting on the Side , Tori and Andi break down how quilt pattern designers, quilting teachers, and longarm quilters can prep their businesses for the busy holiday season - without being glued to their laptops. They walk through what really needs to stay consistent (like newsletters and YouTube), how to set up simple holiday sales systems on your website, and w...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Quilting on the Side, host Andi introduces Jessica Steele, a quilt pattern designer known for her sports-themed quilts. Jessica shares her journey from a hobbyist to a full-time business owner, discussing the inspiration behind her designs, the challenges of balancing family life with her quilting business, and her approach to marketing and social media. She als...