Season 1 / Episode 8: Fabric Care for All!

Confession time: we’ve all let fabric sit a little too long in a bin or wondered if we can really throw that delicate textile in the wash. In this episode, we’re tackling the mysteries of fabric care with easy, down-to-earth tips. Because when you care for your fabric, your fabric takes care of your making. Nikki, our fabric care expert, discusses the journey of fabric care- where to start, how to identify fabric, and what to avoid along the way. 

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

Season 1 / Episode 7: Her Story - Ancient Egypt

Linen & Knitted Socks of Ancient Egypt

Join Nikki and Rachael for a journey through time, stitches, and stories that remind us why handmade matters.

Nal Binding Socks

Linen

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

Season 1 / Episode 6: “Where the F*ck Did Home Economics Go?!?”

Home Ec isn’t just about sewing aprons and baking casseroles—and it never was. In this fiery episode, we’re pulling back the curtain on the real roots of Home Economics and asking why it disappeared from classrooms (and our lives). Spoiler: it has everything to do with power, gender, and who gets to decide what's considered "serious education."

We spotlight the story of Ellen Swallow Richards, the unsung science badass and first female student at MIT who practically invented the field of Home Economics. She believed women deserved access to science and viewed the home as a site of innovation and empowerment, rather than drudgery.

We’re talking kitchen chemistry, class dynamics, and the slow erasure of skills that should’ve never gone out of style. So grab your embroidery, your grocery list, or just your curiosity, and let’s reclaim the radical roots of “women’s work.”

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

Season 1 / Episode 5: Curating Your Sewing Toolkit – Hand Sewing Edition

Ready to thread the needle on your sewing journey? In this episode, we’re going back to basics—and making them beautiful. Rachael and Nikki break down the essential tools every hand-sewist should have in their starter kit (spoiler alert: it’s less than you think!), plus a few fun extras if you’re ready to level up.

We’re also spilling the tea on the biggest beginner mistakes we’ve seen (and made!) and sharing our favorite dos and don’ts to keep your stitches strong and your spirits high. Whether you’re mending jeans, sewing a patch, or just starting from scratch, this episode is your warm, no-judgment invitation to start building a toolkit that works for you.

Let’s stitch slow, stitch proud, and stitch together. 💛✂️

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

🧵Bonus Episode 1: Buzz Buzz...The Sewing Hive 🐝

Jamie (Nikki’s fabulous friend and fellow stitch sorceress) shares her sewing story, the spark that started The Sewing Hive, and how this buzzing community hub is helping people of all ages and skill levels fall in love with the art of making. From teaching techniques to building confidence behind the machine, The Sewing Hive is more than a school—it’s a place where creativity swarms.

Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned sewist, you’ll leave this convo inspired to stitch your heart out.

🎧 Tune in, thread up, and get ready to meet your new favorite sewing spot.

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

Season 1 / Episode 4: You're Sew Gay - Happy Pride 2025!

The Rainbow Was a Revolution: Gilbert Baker & the Original Pride Flag 🌈✂️

Pull up a chair and grab your favorite sparkly thread — this week, we're stitching a story that changed the world. In this special Pride episode, Rachael dives into the vibrant legacy of Gilbert Baker, the artist and activist behind the original rainbow flag. 💖🧵

After reading Baker’s unapologetically fabulous memoir Rainbow Warrior, we’re bringing you the radical, colorful, queer-as-heck history of how one sewing machine, a whole lot hand dyed fabric, and a dream of liberation created an icon of love and protest. 🌈✊

We talk drag nuns, sewing as resistance, why hot pink matters, and how Baker’s flag became the banner of a movement. This episode is a love letter to creativity, community, and the power of making something beautiful in the face of injustice.

✨ Whether you’re waving your rainbow flag high or just learning where it came from, you’re welcome in our stitch & bitch circle. Let’s honor the thread that binds us all.

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

Season 1 / Episode 3: 

In this delightfully inky episode, Rachael and Nikki roll up their sleeves and dive into the wonderfully textured world of block printing. Whether you’re curious about carving your first lino block or you’ve admired the crisp charm of hand-pressed woodblock prints from afar, this is your cozy beginner’s guide.

The duo chats through the basics—what makes wood and linoleum blocks different, the tools you’ll need to get started (hint: don’t skimp on the carving tools!), and their own trial-and-error stories from their earliest prints. Expect plenty of practical tips, a few chuckles over inky mishaps, and their favorite ways to use block prints in everyday crafting—from greeting cards to tea towels.

Pull up a seat in the studio, pour yourself a cup of something yummy, and get ready to fall in love with the tactile magic of printmaking. 🎨✨

Links for the episode: 

The Invention of Woodblock Printing in the Tang (618–906) and Song (960–1279) Dynasties - Education

Woodblock Prints in the Ukiyo-e Style - The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Woodcut | The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Woodblock Printing | Brian P Coppola

https://www.britannica.com/art/printmaking

The History of Printmaking from Wood Blocks to the Digital Age : SNAP

HIstory of Lino Printing

The History of Lino Printing and its Artists

The Evolution of Linoleum

Linoleum cut | MoMA

Woodcut Printmaking For Beginners – What You Need to Get Started - Jackson's Art Blog

A Guide to Linocut Printmaking - Jackson's Art Blog

#MetKids—How to Make a Potato Print

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

Season 1 / Episode 2: The Magic of Thrifting Your Supplies!

This episode features a chat with Nikki's Dad about his sewing journey :)

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]

Season 1 / Episode 1: Sew...I Guess We Podcast Now.

Meet Rachael and Nikki — Our Story, Our Why, and What We’re Stitching Today

Welcome to the very first episode of Handicraft and Stitch: The Podcast! We’re Rachael and Nikki—two friends, makers, and big believers in the power of slow stitching, shared stories, and community care.

In this kickoff episode, we’re sitting down (probably with a mug of something warm) to share how Handicraft and Stitch came to be. From the moment we met to the spark that started this whole thing, we talk about what brought us together and why this work feels so important.

We unpack what Handicraft and Stitch really means to us—more than thread and fabric, it’s about making do, making together, and making change. And because it wouldn’t be a proper catch-up without it, we end with a peek at what we’re currently sewing on (spoiler: it’s never just one project).

Whether you’ve been sewing for years or are just curious about getting started, you have a seat at this table. We’re so glad you’re here.

Links to stuff we mentioned in the podcast:

⁠Rachael's new custom dress form ⁠

nfession time: we’ve all let fabric sit a little too long in a bin or wondered if we can really throw that delicate textile in the wash. In this episode, we’re tackling the mysteries of fabric care with easy, down-to-earth tips. Because when you care for your fabric, your fabric takes care of your making. Nikki, our fabric care expert, discusses the journey of fabric care- where to start, how to identify fabric, and what to avoid along the way. 

Follow us on social media!  

Support our season one podcast sponsor - The Sewing Hive.

Do you have ideas for future episodes, or would you like to send us a note? Contact us at [email protected]