Sew What?

In this episode, Isabella interviews PhD student Emily Wells about her research on the geography education of elite girls in the pre-Civil War American South.  The two discuss map samplers, Westtown globes, and the involvement of southern needleworking girls in the region's slavocracy.  Images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a...

In the first mini episode of season 3, Isabella explores traditional Eastern European needlework. She examines the stitched aspects of folk dress from Albania to Ukraine and everywhere in between.  Images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In the first episode of season 3, Isabella interviews fashion historian Amber Butchart about her curating an exhibition at the British Textile Biennial, her TV show A Stitch in Time , and her work on forensic garment analysis. Images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpod...

Season 3 of Sew What? is (almost) back! This is a tiny sneak preview of season 3's episode structure and offerings. Yeehaw! As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In the final episode of the season, Isabella interview Gretchen Guidess and Jackie Peterson-Grace, the textile conservators of Colonial Williamsburg, about preserving and protecting historic needlework in museum collections. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/s...

In this episode, Isabella interviews artist Cayce Zavaglia, who uses embroidery to stitch hyperrealistic portraits of her family, friends, and fellow artists. The two discuss Cayce's process, her favourite parts of stitching, and groundbreaking contemporary textile artists. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a we...

In this episode, Isabella discusses needlework made by boys and men in the 18th and 19th centuries. She focuses on professional embroideries, sailor woollies, trench art, and schoolboy samplers. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In this episode, Isabella interviews PhD student Naomi Clarke about her passion for quilting and her PhD work focusing on crafting during Coronavirus. The two discuss paper piecing, craft diaries, and signature quilts. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhat...

In this episode, Isabella discusses the technique and history of tambour work (including tambour embroidery, lace, and beading) and punch needle. She also spends time exploring American rug hooking. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In this episode, Isabella interviews PhD student Cat Gay about schoolgirl samplers and stitching in 19th-century Australia.  As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In this episode, Isabella discusses the subject of her PhD, Quaker women's needlework before 1800.  She explores the stitching aesthetic of Quakers, also known as Friends, in and around London in the 17th century.  As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwha...

In this episode, Isabella interviews fashion historians Dr Bethan Bide and Dr Lucie Whitmore about 20th-century Jewish fashion makers in London. The trio discuss where Jewish Londoners got their stitching skills and the Museum of London's collection of extant clothes designed and made by Jewish fashion makers in the city. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitt...

In this episode, Isabella interviews Bisa Butler, famous American fibre artist known for her vibrant quilts celebrating Black life, and Dr Erica Warren, associate curator of textiles at the Art Institute of Chicago. The trio discuss Bisa's artistic practice, the curation of her work, and its current display at the Art Institute of Chicago.  As always, images and sources are available at @seww...

In this episode, Isabella interviews Amelia Peck, curator of textiles and period rooms at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and supervising curator of the Met's Antonio Ratti Textile Center, and Melinda Watt, the head of the textiles department at the Art Institute of Chicago.  As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a w...

In this episode, Isabella discusses the embroideries and lace designs of Austria's Wiener Werkstätte, one of the longest-lived design movements of the twentieth century. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In this episode, Isabella interviews Dr Alexandra Makin, a textile archaeologist and professional embroiderer who researches and recreates early medieval embroidery.  As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In this episode, Isabella covers a variety of Indian embroidery techniques from across the subcontinent. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a new website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In this episode, Isabella interviews Thomas Cooper, a PhD student who researches May Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. In the episode, the two discuss May Morris's embroidery designs and works, as well as what inspired and influenced the Arts and Crafts movement. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a new we...

In this episode, Isabella discusses samplers and other needleworked items stitched at eighteenth- and nineteenth-century English charity and orphan schools. Special attention is given to the St Clements Danes school samplers and Bristol orphanage samplers.  As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a new website, sewwhatpodc...

In this episode, Isabella interviews Dr Kathy M'Closkey, a scholar of Navajo weaving. The two discuss Navajo rug and blanket motifs, how economic and agricultural changes affected Navajo weaving, and Kathy's long career as a weaver and freelance curator. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a new website, seww...

In this episode, Isabella discusses nalbinding, a stitching technique that predates both knitting and crocheting. Isabella examines the history and technique of over 8,500 years of nalbound goods. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a new website, sewwhatpodcast.com, and a Patreon, patreon.com/sewwhatpodcast.

In this episode, Isabella interviews Ruth Singer, an artist and maker exploring personal and collective narratives through textiles. In the episode, they discuss everything from the transition from museum work to historic needlework-based art making, to corded and trapunto quilting, to pin cushions. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook....

In this episode, Isabella interviews Caster Pettway and Mary Margaret Pettway, two Gee's Bend quilters. The trio discuss Caster and Mary Margaret's favourite quilt designs and colours, learning to quilt from their mothers, and their favourite parts of the quiltmaking process. As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast h...

Sew What? is back with season 2! In this first episode of the season, Isabella explores minuscule needleworked objects made by 17th-century British schoolgirls, such as tiny purses, bite sized birds, embroidered eggshells, and decorated nutmegs.  As always, images and sources are available at @sewwhatpodcast on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The podcast has a new website, sewwhatpodcast.com, an...

In this bonus holiday episode, Isabella discusses Fair Isle jumpers. She talks about the history of the area's knitwear, as well as its style. Be on the lookout for season 2 of Sew What?, arriving in February 2021.