On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about punch needle with my guest Micah Clasper-Torch.

Micah Clasper-Torch is a Los Angeles-based artist, designer, and educator helping to lead the modern revival of punch needle rug hooking. With a background in fashion design from The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City and the Polytechnic Institute in Milan, Micah blends fine art, heritage craft, and wearable design to create one-of-a-kind textile pieces that range from coats and accessories to wall hangings and soft sculpture. 

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This episode is sponsored by Amy Barickman.

Are you looking for a special gift for a friend? Take a look at Amy Barickman’s new book. Love You to Pieces is a heartwarming, whimsical, cheerful ode to friendship featuring a charming cast of vintage fabric characters set amidst a backdrop of glorious handmade quilts. 

This book is perfect for makers, collectors, and lovers of quilts, dolls, and other textiles as well as anyone nostalgic about the fabric pals that comforted them as children!

Join the pre-launch festivities at amybarickman.com/loveyoutopieces to get sneak peeks, giveaways, and first dibs when it launches!

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

We’re so pleased to bring you this special episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast. This is a recording of the State of the Industry panel discussion which took place live on stage on May 7 at h+h americas 2025 in Chicago. With over 800 people in the audience, our panelists dove into the biggest issues and ideas the crafts industry is wrestling with right now. It was an exciting conversation among four industry professionals each of whom has a unique vantage point and perspective.

Our panelists included Jakob Lang of Lang Yarns, Anna Maria Parry, Adam Blumenthal of Lion Brand, and Lucy McDermott from Stash Charlotte.  We hope you enjoy listening to this conversation and we invite you to join us at h+h americas 2026 which will be held May 6-8 in Chicago.

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about building a fabric company with my guest Arvin Pairavi.

Arvin is a visionary entrepreneur and the driving force behind Shannon Fabrics, a leading name in the textile industry known for its luxurious, high-quality Cuddle fabrics. Under his leadership, the company has redefined the market, setting new standards for innovation, craftsmanship, and customer satisfaction.

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast we're talking about museum exhibitions with my guests Nora Palermo and Pam Weeks of the New England Quilt Museum.

Nora has served as Executive Director of the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, Massachusetts since 2013. Her broad experience in development for museums, cultural organizations and teaching hospitals brought a strategic approach to improving the NEQM’s finances and expanding its audience. With support from the Board of Directors and a committed group of volunteers, Nora has led a small professional team to overhaul its exhibitions and public programs, successfully engaging new and diverse audiences in the art and history of quiltmaking and textile arts.

And Pam is the Binney Family Curator at the New England Quilt Museum. Pam started making quilts as a result of the craft revival inspired by the Bicentennial in 1976. As the Binney Family Curator of the New England Quilt Museum, she works with many different quilters, collectors, institutions, and co-conspirators to plan exhibits for the museum, and research the quilts in the museum's collection.

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This episode is sponsored by The Academy for Virtual Teaching.

Feeling invisible online? Overwhelmed with too many things on your plate? You’re not alone. You know you need to create a marketing video, but you just don’t have time. At the Academy for Virtual Teaching, we help creative business owners like you create simple, streamlined, and effective videos. No fancy equipment needed. Sign up for our free 3-Step Promotional Video Mini-Course at A4VT.com and get started creating videos that convert and connect!

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we're talking about quilt kits with my guest Michael O'Dell. 

Mike is a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist who administers anesthesia in a pediatric hospital, but his passion has always been art.  He has worked with every material he’s ever had a chance to get his hands on, and quilting came to the fore in 2018 when his wife took up the hobby.  As his wife worked on a 9-patch quilt as her first project, Mike saw each square as a pixel, which brought him back to his youth, drawing pictures one pixel at a time on early home computers.  

Wanting to enhance his first pixel quilt, Mike discovered foundation paper piecing and saw the technique as a wonderful way to help others sew works of art.  His quilt pattern and kit company, Legit Kits, was founded to spread the feeling of accomplishment, which can only be experienced by making a masterpiece.

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This episode is sponsored by LastStitch.co. 

Got fabric? Got crafts? LastStitch.co is your creative hub. Repurpose unique fabric for your own projects, sell your handmade goods, or even pass on your extra fabric to other makers. It’s all about saving textiles and giving them a second life. Join the sustainable crafting community at LastStitch.co — where makers buy, sell, and save fabric, together.

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about creating a best-selling art and illustration company with my guest, Mary Engelbreit.

Over 40 years ago, Mary Engelbreit launched her own company with a strong desire for creative freedom and a line of 12 greeting cards. The head of a highly successful business bearing her name, Mary is one of the country’s premier designers and artists. She is known throughout the world for her distinctive illustration style and design sensibility, modestly referred to as “eclectic traditional”. Mary’s signature art, imbued with spirited wit and warmth, appears on thousands of products, including greeting cards, books (design, gift, children’s, cooking, home, and art), calendars, stationery, fabric, crafts, kitchen accessories, dinnerware, and other home décor items.

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Today's episode is sponsored by Eucalan. “Looking for the best way to care for your handmade and delicate items? Eucalan Delicate Wash is a no-rinse, eco-friendly laundry solution designed for knitwear, quilts, embellished garments, and more. With five gentle scents and a formula that extends the life of your fabrics, Eucalan is a must-have for knitters and crafters alike. Learn more at Eucalan.com

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

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On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we're talking about running a brick-and-mortar yarn shop with my guest, Annissa Essaibi-George.

Annissa is the owner of Stitch House. She taught at East Boston High School for 13 years before being elected to the Boston City Council. In 2021 she ran for Mayor of Boston.

Annissa recently served as CEO and president of the Big Sister Association of Greater Boston and now is the Partnership Advisor for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Massachusetts. Annissa is a mom to 4 great boys 20-year-old Douglas and 18-year-old triplets Charlie, Kayden, and Samir. Annissa and her husband Doug are both lifelong residents of Dorchester and live just up the street from the Stitch House.

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This episode is sponsored by Thinkific, the easiest way to turn your crafting expertise into an online education business. Whether you're teaching painting, quilting, jewelry making, or any other craft, Thinkific makes it simple to share your skills, grow your audience, and generate a new income stream. Start your free trial today at Thinkific.com.

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about product and surface design with my guest Hollei Hayes.

Hollei is the owner of Hollei Anne Design Co. After honing her craft for over ten years in the design industry, she made the leap from working in Fortune 500 corporations collaborating with esteemed brands such as Toys R Us and Skip Hop. Now, she's fully immersed in her passion as a Surface and Product designer and has had her art seen in big box retailers like Target, TJ Maxx, Hallmark and more!

Today, she's fortunate to own a creative studio where she dedicates her efforts to providing trending art and design to elevate product collections and brand identities for entrepreneurial women in retail for the homegoods, stationery, gift and textile industries.

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about activism with my guest Omakri Williams.

Omkari Williams is the Gold Nautilus award-winning author of Micro Activism: How You Can Make a Difference in the World (Without A Bullhorn). Her book helps readers identify their “activist archetype" and map a personal action plan for engaging in small, change-making activities with potentially big impacts.

She has worked as an actor, political consultant, and coach. Now she welcomes all people into the world of micro activism, a sustainable path to change-making based upon honoring the inherent dignity of all people. 

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.

On today's episode of the Craft Industry Alliance podcast, we’re talking about embroidery with my guest Melissa Galbraith.

Melissa is the fiber artist behind MCreativeJ. She was born and raised in the desert of Washington state where her mother instilled a love of making things by hand at an early age. Melissa shares her love of nature through whimsical and modern hand embroidery kits, hands-on workshops, and her books, How to Embroider Texture and Pattern and DIY Embroidered Shoes.

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This episode is sponsored by The Academy for Virtual Teaching.

You know video is the most effective way to market your brand, but as the “CEO of everything,” you have NO time to make it happen. It’s overwhelming. We get it! We want to help you to stop leaving money on the table.

The Academy for Virtual Teaching FREE webinar, “Make a Promotional Video in 3 Easy Steps!” No stress, no fancy gear—just your phone. Learn how to create quick, engaging videos that work. Register now at AcademyForVirtualTeaching.com or a4vt.com—that’s A, the number 4, VT.com.

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To get the full show notes for this episode visit Craft Industry Alliance where you can learn more about becoming a member of our supportive trade association. Strengthen your creative business, stay up to date on industry news, and build connections with forward-thinking craft professionals. Join today.