Stitching Tales

Sometimes a business pivot starts with a carefully planned strategy. Other times it starts with panic, burnout, a global crisis… or just the growing feeling that something isn’t working anymore. In this episode, Malena and Johanna talk about the messy reality of changing direction as creative entrepreneurs. From freelance work and sewing businesses to bridal alterations, PDF patterns and unexpecte...

Johanna and Malena unravel the surprisingly complicated world of elastic, and hopefully they didn't stretch this topic too far! This elastic deep dive covers everything from comfy waistbands and sports bras to swimwear and activewear. Plus lots of practical tips for measuring elastic, joining the ends neatly, preventing twisting and rolling, and even how to use elastic for gathers. Johanna also ex...

You spend days making a precious garment. And then, with wash and wear, it starts to break down. In this episode, Malena and Johanna talk about what affects how long handmade clothes actually last, such as fabric choices, how you wash your makes, and the things that slowly wear garments down. If you’ve ever had something you made lose its shape, fade faster than expected, or just not hold up, this...

The sewing world has never been more connected, or more fragmented. 15 years ago, most online sewists gathered in a handful of forums and blogs. Today, conversations are spread across Facebook groups, memberships, Discord servers, Substack, online courses, Instagram, YouTube, and platforms that may or may not still exist by the time this episode airs. On one hand, it's easier than ever to find...

Sewing thread seems simple, until you realise that there is a thread jungle out there, and that choosing the right thread can affect everything from seam durability and stretch to stitch quality and how smoothly your machine sews. In this episode, Malena and Johanna are diving deep into the world of sewing threads. From regular all-purpose thread to overlock cones, stretch thread and heavy topstit...

What happens when the thing you used to enjoy doing starts feeling like dread? Because burnout and exhaustion often creep up on us, and can be hard to nip in the bud. In this candid conversation, Johanna and Malena talk about their own experiences with burnout, losing motivation, and what happens when a hobby, passion, or creative business no longer feels inspiring. Because even something you genu...

Summer has (almost) arrived in Sweden, and Malena and Johanna are ready to talk about warm-weather sewing. It starts with a linen pants therapy session where Johanna has some saggy struggles; luckily, Malena has the solutions. They move on to shorts and how we can hack our favourite pants sewing pattern into a pair of shorts (hint: the answer might surprise you). Then Malena pulls out a roll of fa...

The coverstitch machine can easily become an expensive hemming machine. So in this episode, Johanna and Malena talk about why it can do so much more than just finish the bottom of a t-shirt. Johanna is on a roll in this episode, and dishes on everything from reverse coverstitching and bindings to seams inspired by ready-to-wear activewear and even denim! Then the conversation turns to using woolly...

Malena and Johanna open the mailbag again and answer your pressing sewing questions! Should you purge patterns that no longer fit? Who gets the final word when Malena and Johanna disagree on a technique? And can you skip the grain line when sewing samples? These and many more questions are answered in this very meaty Q&A episode. Email us more questions at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠stitchingtalespod...

What does it actually take to launch a sewing pattern brand and find an audience for your creations? In this episode, Johanna and Malena sit down with Sanna Myers from Paradise Patterns, a Swedish pattern maker now based in Hawaii, and talk through the inner workings of building a pattern brand. They follow her path from pattern school in Sweden to experimenting with her own clothing line in Hawai...

Everyone knows the neckband. It’s the default option for finishing knit tops. But surely there must be more ways? Perhaps even better ones? In this episode, Malena and Johanna step away from the most common knit neckline finish and explore eight alternative methods, the ones that don’t get as much attention, but are equally as good, if not better, in some circumstances. If you’ve ever felt stuck u...

Johanna is launching a new sewing pattern after an 18-month hiatus and is a bundle of nerves. Has all the hard work of the past few months been for nothing? Malena steps in to talk her off the ledge, and together they agree that you have to play the long game. Everything we make, release, and stumble through is part of a bigger learning process. And speaking of learning curves, Malena has been dee...

Johanna and Malena dig into a new arm of garment sewing, namely the sleeves. They talk through the different types, from set-in to raglan and why they behave so differently once you actually sew them. They also get into the fit and why sleeve issues are often misdiagnosed. Is it really the sleeve… or is the armhole the real culprit? Plus, why adding more ease to the cap isn’t always a great idea....

Remember the t-shirt book Johanna and Malena said they were working on? Well, this is the update, and again, they need your input! Johanna and Malena share what’s happened since the last episode, what decisions they’ve made, what turned out to be more complicated than expected, and how your feedback has shaped the book. They talk about seam allowances vs stitch lines (and why that became a whole t...

Ever tried gathering fabric and wondered why it sometimes works… and sometimes it's a real struggle? In this episode, Johanna and Malena dig into gatherings, and not the social kind. They share their favourite methods, how to distribute gathers evenly without guesswork, and what to adjust when things start going wrong. Plus, how fabric type affects the final result, because gathering a crisp c...

100 episodes (!!) and still talking sewing every week . In this celebratory episode, Johanna and Malena share how Stitching Tales started (mostly as a way to keep talking after finishing Fit for Knits). They also talk about choosing a very casual and candid format, plus the decision to do a video podcast from the start, and how that completely messed up Johanna's YouTube channel! They also ans...

Johanna and Malena share what’s currently been happening behind the scenes. Johanna is launching a new sewing pattern soon (hopefully), and let's just say, it's a lot! From sewing photo samples under pressure to navigating real-life setbacks and experimenting with new instruction formats. Not to mention the constant worry that the pattern will launch to crickets. Malena has also been busy in the p...

Johanna and Malena hand over their creative control to the spinning wheel and play Fabric Roulette. A game where fabrics are chosen at random, and then Malena and Johanna have to figure out what to sew. Unfortunately, some fabrics are on their no-no list, but somehow they still manage to come up with some pretty cool designs. Especially since they don't actually have to sew them! Between the wild...

If you think your serger can do better, then this episode is for you! Johanna and Malena talk about their (arguable) favourite sewing machine and give tips on how to use the underutilised features of an overlocker. Including some unknown gems, which they are pretty shocked by themselves! They also get into the unglamorous but essential topic of learning your machine. Manuals are defended, rolled h...

Malena and Johanna brave the chilly Swedish winter to discuss a decidedly warmer topic,  spring fashion! They talk about elevated athleisure, utility wear, the comeback of bold colours, sheer fabrics, camisoles and perhaps the most pressing question of all: will the Wuthering Heights movie craze have us all dress as goths? Then Johanna declares that the most important fashion trend in 2026 is…pock...

Moving from wovens to knits can feel like stepping into a parallel universe, similar tools, but completely different rules. In this episode, Malena and Johanna demystify knit fabric sewing and explain what actually matters when you're ready to make the leap. They break down the fundamental differences between knit and woven fabrics, why some knits are beginner-friendly while others will test your...

Johanna and Malena welcome their very first guest, Emily Hundt, founder of In The Folds, for an honest conversation about running a sewing business and making pivots when things are no longer working for the season you are in. They talk about finding your place in the sewing industry, what sustainability actually looks like when you’re self-employed, and how plans tend to change once life gets inv...

Malena has made a big life decision: she's reducuing here freelance pattern work to 80% to reclaim time for other projects. Now she's splitting her extra time between her own projects and working at a bridal shop. Johanna has been wrestling with website updates and other tech nightmares behind the scenes, reminding us all that running a sewing business isn't just about the fun stuff. In this hones...

Johanna and Malena do something slightly uncomfortable in this episode – they talk about themselves. With a growing number of new listeners (hi everyone!) it seemed like a good idea to explain who they are and how they ended up talking about sewing into microphones. Johanna unpacks her rather non-linear path, from teaching herself to sew, to working as a librarian, then a journalist, then a commun...

Press as you go, sew like a pro! Johanna and Malena dive straight into one of sewing’s most underrated skills, pressing. Malena (aka Sweden's biggest pressing ambassador) insists it's the unsung hero behind every great sewing project. While Johanna admits she once skimped on this crucial step, she then had to pay for it later. Between technique tips and favourite tools, they make a good ca...