Craft to Career

What if you could see how a pantograph will look on your quilt before you ever load it on the frame? Barbie Mills, longarm quilter and pantograph designer behind The Quilting Mill, joins the podcast to share how she built her business and the tool she created to help quilters choose their quilting with confidence.

Barbie has loved sewing since she was a little girl and made her first quilt as a teenager. She studied Family and Consumer Science in college and taught in public schools for seven years before turning her love of quilting into a full time business. In 2012, she began longarm quilting by hand, and when she added a computerized system to her studio, she discovered a new passion: designing digital pantographs. Her designs are known for minimal to no backtracking, so they stitch out smoothly and efficiently.

Barbie's newest project is her Pantograph Preview Tool. Upload a photo of your quilt, and you can try different pantograph designs, thread colors, and sizes to see what each would look like before you stitch. She also teaches a class for quilters who want to design pantographs of their own.

Barbie lives in Utah with her family and is an active member of the Salt Lake Modern Quilt Guild.

In this episode, you'll hear:

• How Barbie went from teaching Family and Consumer Science to running her own quilting business
• What led her from hand guided longarm quilting to designing digital pantographs
• Why she designs pantographs with little to no backtracking
• How the Pantograph Preview Tool works, and how it helps quilters and longarm clients choose a design
• What it takes to design your own pantographs, and how her class teaches it
• Barbie's advice for growing a quilting business of your own

Connect with Barbie:

• Website: thequiltingmill.com
• About Barbie: thequiltingmill.com/pages/about-me
• Pantograph Preview Tool: https://thequiltingmill.com/pages/preview-tool
• Pantograph design class: https://thequiltingmill.com/pages/join
• Etsy shop: The Quilting Mill
• Instagram: @thequiltingmill

Why Your Email Promos Aren't Selling (Live Coaching Call with Allison Austin of The Kitschy Creative)

If you've ever sent a promotional email and gotten silence, or worse, a wave of unsubscribes, this episode is for you.

It started with a post in a Facebook group for quilt pattern writers. Allison Austin of The Kitschy Creative shared that despite emailing consistently every week, rotating between tips, personal updates, promos, and blog roundups, her promo emails were getting zero sales and multiple unsubscribes.

I asked if she'd be open to working through it together, live, on the podcast. She said yes.

In this episode, we go through three of Allison's past emails together, along with her answers to a few questions about her business, and work through real changes she can make, not just to her emails, but to her brand as a whole.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• What to include in your regular emails to keep your list excited to open them
• Why branding matters just as much as your email strategy, and how to stand out as a designer
• How to identify and communicate what makes your business uniquely you
• A few strategies Allison has used to grow her own email list and sales

Whether you're a quilt pattern designer or run any kind of creative business, this episode will help you rethink how you talk to your audience, and what makes people actually want to buy from you.

Connect with Allison Austin: The Kitschy Creative on Instagram: CLICK HERE Website: CLICK HERE

What happens when you build a business, then rebuild it, then rebuild it again? In this episode, we sit down with Missy Luukkonen of The Little Green Bean to talk about a decade of growth that looked nothing like a straight line.

Missy started out leaving a retail job to create gnomes and burlap products, and has since evolved her business into selling quilt patterns and running a digital membership. Along the way, she's leaned on mentors at every stage, made bold pivots when something wasn't working, and built a business that reflects who she actually is, not just what was trending.

We talk about:

• How Missy's business has evolved over the past decade, from gnomes and burlap to quilt patterns and membership
• Why she has consistently sought out mentors, and who hers have been
• What has driven her decisions to pivot, again and again
• What she loves most about running her business
• What's been the hardest part of the journey

Missy is genuine, delightful, and refreshingly open about what has actually worked (and what hasn't) to help her grow. If you've ever wondered whether it's okay for your business to change shape over time, this episode is for you.

https://thelittlegreenbean.com

Quilting is centuries old, so how does a brand-new product become a must-have in an industry that's already full of tools and traditions? In this episode, we sit down with the team behind Sew Tites to find out.

SewTites makes magnetic cutting mats and rulers designed to keep fabric steady while cutting, and to make cutting far less painful for quilters with arthritis or hand pain. It's a simple idea on the surface, but one that's become hugely popular in a short amount of time, and the company has more products already out and even more in development.

We talk about:

• How SewTites got started, and the problem that sparked the idea
• What it actually takes to launch a brand-new product in an industry that isn't new at all
• How they knew there was real demand before they built the product
• The marketing strategy that helped SewTites take off
• What's next for the company, including new products in the works

Whether you're a quilter curious about the tools that make cutting easier, or a quilterpreneur wondering how to spot an unmet need in a mature market, this episode is full of takeaways.

WEBSITE: https://www.sewtites.com/

If you sell digital quilt patterns, you've probably wondered whether a marketplace is worth it, and what actually goes on behind the scenes to make one work. Ruth Erdei joins the podcast to talk about Quilting Books Patterns & Notions (QBPN), the family business she co-owns, and why she believes so strongly in transparency as a business model.

Ruth is a serial entrepreneur, designer, and creative business strategist with more than 20 years of experience building businesses across the craft, creative, and e-commerce industries. Her background spans custom cosplay, crochet, digital products, fashion, quilting, and cross-stitch, which gives her a wide view of both the creative and business sides of the industry. She's the co-owner of QBPN and co-founder of Craft Hatchery, two marketplaces supporting hundreds of independent designers and connecting makers with customers around the world.

In this episode, Ruth shares:

• How she got started with QBPN and how the company has grown
• How the QBPN business model works and what makes it different from other marketplaces
• Why pattern writers might consider selling their patterns through QBPN
• The different revenue streams the company offers designers

We also talk about something that doesn't always get discussed: what it actually costs to distribute digital patterns. It's easy to assume digital products have no overhead since there's no shipping or warehousing involved. But platform fees, protecting designers' intellectual property, keeping listings current, customer support, marketing, and ongoing file management all take real time and resources. Ruth talks through what that investment looks like at QBPN and why supporting and protecting designers is central to how the company operates.

If you're a pattern designer weighing where to sell, or just curious how a marketplace like this runs behind the scenes, this episode is worth a listen.

Eli McCann on Writing "Stitched": Quilting, Comedy, and the Drama of a Sewing Circle

What happens when a group of older women who quilt together also happen to be full of secrets, rivalries, and sharp opinions? Author Eli McCann joins the podcast to talk about his debut novel, Stitched, a comedic look at a fictional quilting group and all the drama that unfolds within it.

Eli is a lawyer by profession and writes a humor column for the Salt Lake Tribune. Stitched is his first novel, and the idea came straight from his own family. His mom has quilted for years and been part of the same quilting group for most of that time. Eli grew up playing under the quilts she and her friends made together, long before he had any idea how much material was sitting right there in that sewing room.

The book took shape after one dinner conversation, when his mom told him, "You won't believe all the drama in the quilting world," and spent the next few hours proving it. His husband was the one who suggested he turn it into a novel.

In this episode, Eli talks about:

• The real conversation that sparked the idea for Stitched
• Why he pushed back when publishers wanted a younger main character and a romance subplot
• Writing older women as complex, funny, and entertaining without needing a love story to carry the book
• What it's been like watching quilters respond to a book that hasn't even released yet

Stitched isn't out yet, but it's already generating buzz in the quilting community. Tune in to hear how a lifetime spent around quilters became the foundation for Eli's first novel.

LINKS: Order the book: https://www.torreyhouse.org/stitched-mccann

Eli's website: https://www.itjustgetsstranger.com/

This week I'm joined by Jamie Bright of Craft a Dream, and what a treat this conversation is. Jamie is a sharp businesswoman with a real gift for marketing, and her path into quilting is not the one you might expect.

Jamie did not start out in the quilting world at all. She built her business knowledge in a completely different field first, and then quilting found its way to her. With that foundation already in place, she grew a vibrant, self-sustaining business in the quilting industry, and she's generous about sharing how she did it.

In our chat, Jamie opens up about growing her email list, the summits she has run so successfully, and some smart, practical ways to earn more money from every quilt pattern you create and sell. What I love most is that her advice reaches beyond quilting. Because so much of her experience comes from outside the industry, the skills she shares apply to almost any creative business.

If you have ever wanted to turn your quilting passion into something steady and sustainable, this one is for you.

In this episode:

How Jamie came into quilting after building her business skills elsewhere

The strategies she used to grow her email list

What makes her summits work, and how you might run one of your own

Practical ways to earn more from each pattern you sell

Why her business lessons apply far beyond the quilting world

Connect with Jamie:

Website: craftadream.com

Links from this episode: Collab Interest Contact Form: craftadream.com/collab?utm_source=quilterscandypodcast&utm_medium=podcast Quilters Paradise Summit Speaker Application/Sign Up: https://masteryroute.com/speakers Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jamiembright?sub_confirmation=1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamiebrightquilts Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamiebrightquilts The dance video of my daughter with almost 3M views: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3PjHc5oAZ8

About Joshua

Joshua Dunn is the quilter and designer behind Lifting and Stitching. Based in North Carolina, he creates modern quilts inspired by the cosmos, where memory, color, and story meet. His first pattern, A Trip Around the Universe, drew on the James Webb Telescope's Cosmic Cliffs image, and his work has been featured in quilt shows. His pattern Snapshot, a memory quilt, appears in the Summer 2026 issue of Quiltmaker Magazine alongside a designer spotlight.

In this episode

• The memory quilt in Quiltmaker Magazine, and the story behind it
• How quilting keeps Joshua connected to his mother, who was a quilter herself
• The way he uses quilting to explore his love of outer space
• His path as a newer pattern designer, from quilt shows to a magazine feature
• Why quilting stays a creative outlet rather than a full time job, and what that gives him
• A look at his life beyond the sewing machine, including weightlifting and his approach to healthy eating

A few takeaways

• A quilt can hold memory and connection, not just fabric and thread
• You do not have to quilt full time for it to be a meaningful part of your life
• Designing from what you love, whether that is family or the stars, gives your work its voice
• Sharing your designs can inspire others to start creating too

Connect with Joshua

• Website: https://www.liftingandstitching.com/
• A Trip Around the Universe pattern: https://www.liftingandstitching.com/atatu
• Snapshot in Quiltmaker Magazine, Summer 2026 (digital available now, print on newsstands June 16): https://www.quiltingdaily.com/product/quiltmaker-summer-2026-digital-edition/
• Etsy shop: https://liftingandstitching.etsy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/liftingandstitching/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@liftingandstitching
• Patreon: https://patreon.com/liftingandstitching

Mim Jenkinson sells stickers, and she has grown that into a business earning over $1 million a year. In this episode of Craft To Career, Mim opens up about what she sells, how her business has grown year after year, and the choices that made the biggest difference.

She talks about the role her courses and membership play in her success, and how learning from people who are a few steps ahead of her has shaped her growth. Mim also shares a recent shift in how she builds her email list. For years she relied on seminars, and she has since moved to a new model that has worked better for sales.

If you want to grow your own creative business, Mim's story is full of lessons you can apply. Come get to know Mim, her sticker business, and the thinking behind how she keeps it growing.

About Mim

Mim Jenkinson is a sticker making educator who has taught more than 20,000 crafters to make stickers using Cricut, Silhouette, and Canva. She started making stickers at home in 2016, built a five star shop, and now runs a creative education business that earns over $1 million a year.

In this episode

• What Mim sells, and how the pieces of her business fit together
• How her courses and membership became central to her success
• Why learning from people ahead of her has been a driver of her growth
• The pivot from seminars to a new model for building her email list, and why it has worked better for sales
• The habits and decisions that keep her business growing year after year

A few takeaways for your own business

• Growth often comes from learning openly from others, not figuring everything out alone
• Courses and memberships can create steady income and deepen your relationship with your audience
• When a list building strategy stops serving your sales, it is worth testing a new approach

Connect with Mim

• Website: https://www.mimjenkinson.com/
• Free Sticker Making Starter Kit: https://www.mimjenkinson.com/guide
• Free Sticker Starter Class: https://www.mimjenkinson.com/freeclass
• Secret Sticker Society (membership): https://www.mimjenkinson.com/sss
• Business coaching: https://www.askmim.com/unstuck/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mimjenkinson
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/mimjenkinson

What does it look like to grow a quilt pattern business when you lean fully into your roots and design what you genuinely love?

In this episode of the Craft To Career Podcast, Helene of Scandi Quilts shares how her business has grown since taking the Quilt Pattern Writing Course. Helene has built a beautiful niche around Scandinavian-style quilts, and she's seen real growth in both her sales and her email list along the way. In our conversation, she opens up about what's actually working for her business right now.

Helene shares the role on-brand photography has played in her growth, and how adding unique, story-rich elements to her photos has helped her quilts feel instantly recognizable as hers. We talk about what it looks like to build a brand that feels cohesive across patterns, social media, and email, and why leaning into a specific aesthetic has helped her stand out rather than blend in.

In this conversation, you'll hear:

• How Helene found her Scandinavian niche and why it has resonated with quilters
• The shifts she made after the Quilt Pattern Writing Course that started moving the needle
• How she approaches on-brand photography for her patterns and social content
• The little details and unique elements she adds to her photos to make them feel like Scandi Quilts
• What's working for her email list and pattern sales right now
• Her honest take on what it takes to grow a pattern business one step at a time

Whether you're just starting to think about your brand or you're ready to refine the niche you already have, Helene's story is a beautiful reminder that the most sustainable businesses are often the ones built around what you love most.