The Straight Stitch: A Podcast About Sewing and Other Fiber Arts

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Every T-shirt quilt you've ever seen owes something to this week's guest. Andrea Funk invented the puzzle-style T-shirt quilt back in 1992 — ditching the uniform square block in favor of variable-sized pieces that let every graphic, logo, and collar print stay whole and uncropped. In this conversation, Andrea walks through how she landed on the puzzle-piece layout, the practical realities of working with knits, stretch, and graphics, and the details involved in running a business. If you’ve ever been curious about making a T-shirt quilt, you won’t want to miss this episode.
Show notes for each episode: www.thestraightstitchpodcast.com
My website: www.janetszabo.com
See my sewing projects at: www.janetszabo.com/blog
E-mail me!  janet@janetszabo.com

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T Carter's quilts don't just tell stories—they tell the stories history books leave out. As a trained historian and a national award-winning fiber artist, T pairs research with quilting to spotlight voices of women, people of color, and indigenous communities, from forgotten tribes to a small-town gas station's bootlegger legend. Join Janet as T shares how quilts bring those stories to life through fabric. 
Show notes for each episode: www.thestraightstitchpodcast.com
My website: www.janetszabo.com
See my sewing projects at: www.janetszabo.com/blog
E-mail me!  janet@janetszabo.com

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Every sewing machine brand seems to be releasing something new this year—but is any of it actually new, or just a new box for the same machine? We round up what's genuinely changed across sewing machines, sergers, and coverstitch machines from every major brand, brand by brand, so you can hear what's real without wading through marketing copy yourself.
Show notes for each episode: www.thestraightstitchpodcast.com
My website: www.janetszabo.com
See my sewing projects at: www.janetszabo.com/blog
E-mail me!  janet@janetszabo.com

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Do you know exactly how much fabric you own? Would you tell anyone if you did? Between the guest-room closet, the bins under the bed, and "the good stuff" you're saving for someday, most of us carry more fabric guilt than we admit. Let's unpack where that guilt actually comes from, practical ways to organize a stash that's gotten out of hand, and how to let fabric go without feeling like a failure. Your stash should be a resource, not a regret.
Show notes for each episode: www.thestraightstitchpodcast.com
My website: www.janetszabo.com
See my sewing projects at: www.janetszabo.com/blog
E-mail me!  janet@janetszabo.com

Send us feedback about this episode!
Janet scratched her itchy traveling foot recently with a twelve-day trip from Montana to Seattle to Cleveland and back, with a stop on the Olympic Peninsula and a teaching stint at a quilt store along the way. Curious to see how fabric and quilt shops around the country are faring in the wake of Joann's 2025 closure, she ducked into ten different stores across three states and taught four classes at Quilting Mayhem in Snohomish, WA. Come along as she recaps the trip, the shops, and what she heard and saw.
Show notes for each episode: www.thestraightstitchpodcast.com
My website: www.janetszabo.com
See my sewing projects at: www.janetszabo.com/blog
E-mail me!  janet@janetszabo.com