Fiber Talk
Fiber Talk is a podcast for textile-art hobbyists and designers. Host Gary L. Parr interviews a wide range of leading personalities in the needle arts world, while talking about the latest trends in fibers, designs, and techniques.
Episodes
Lindsay Swearingen Converts Medieval History to Unique Cross Stitch
The Embroiderers’ Guild of America sponsors the return of cross-stitch designer Lindsay Swearingen of Tusk and Cardinal. Lindsay’s new book, “Cross-Stitch from the Dark Ages,” is likely one of the most unique collections of cross-stitch designs you’ll encounter. She did a ton of research into medieval arts and practices to come up with a collection of 25 projects designed to “plague your walls.” T
Midweek Chat: Silk Threads, Jessica and Hazel Classes, Embroidery Cloth
It’s Midweek Chat time a week early. The show is sponsored by CyberPointers at cyberpointers.org. This week it’s all three of us talking about needlepoint canvas at Avlea Folk Embroidery, top-quality embroidery ground cloth, shiny silk embroidery threads, a new line of silk needlepoint threads, Beth’s new portable magnifier light, slate frame, and slate-frame alternatives. Sunday: Lindsay Swearing
Chicken Scratch and Quilting with Carolyn Forster
Textile artist Carolyn Forster of Quilting on the Go is our guest this week. The focus of our conversation is her two new books, “20 To Make: Chicken Scratch Embroidery” and “1930s Quilts.” Carolyn has been sewing, stitching, and quilting all of her life. She tried cooking in school but things went wonky so she stayed with needle and thread. We have great fun learning about all of the things she d
Fiber Talk Canvas #9: Prep is Key for Red Rocks Bright Sun Success
In show #9 of our Canvas Series, Cindy and Beth discuss how they prepared to stitch Wendy Moore’s Red Rocks Bright Sun design. The show is sponsored by Cyberpointers (cyberpointers.org) and Avlea Folk Embroidery (avleafolkembroidery.com). Red Rocks Bright Sun is an advanced design that presents several stitching challenges. In the video we talk about many of those hurdles and how Cindy is working
Hazel Blomkamp’s New Book and Website Raise the Embroidery Bar
This week, Hazel Blomkamp returns to talk about her Workroom subscription program, her updated technique books, and the terrific new collaboration book, Crewelwork Then & Now, she wrote with Phillipa Turnbull. The show is sponsored by the Embroiderers’ Guild of America and Avlea Folk Embroidery. This is the second time we’ve had the privilege of talking with Hazel and, as the first time, it w
Fiber Talk Remembers Margriet Hogue
Margriet Hogue, creator and owner of The Essamplaire, passed away on Sept. 14, 2026. As our way of remembering the tremendous contribution she made to samplers, and the needle arts in general, this week we re-play the conversation we had with her April 15, 2023. Margriet Hogue, from The Essamplaire, joins us this week to talk about the world of reproduction samplers, particularly from the 16th and
Gabrielle Noe Shares The Silk Snail’s Printed Canvas Story
Gabrielle Noe, of The Silk Snail, is our guest and the show is sponsored by CyberPointers, the online chapter of the American Needlepoint Guild. Learn about them at cyberpointers.org. Gabrielle and her partner Kylie met through TikTok, then IRL at a Houston needlepoint store. That meeting evolved into their new printed-canvas business, The Silk Snail. Their first set of canvases went on sale Tuesd
Midweek Chat: Lights, Nepal, Goldwork, and the Stitch Beth Loves
When Wednesday arrives, we like to get together and talk about needlework. In this week’s Midweek Chat, sponsored by CyberPointers, Beth and Gary talk about portable magnifier lights and portable batteries; helping the people of Nepal by direct contribution or purchasing products from Fibres of Life; what Beth’s going to do with her wool felt eyeglass case; Beth’s MH 1656 sampler and her favorite,
Tatiana Popova Helps You Experience Crewel Embroidery
We learned all about Tatiana Popova, of Owl Crafts, in our Feb. 8, 2026 show when we talked about her background and her excellent book Contrast in Crewel Embroidery. At the time, she mentioned that a new book was in the works. The book, Modern Crewel Embroidery for Beginners, is now available and we spent a few minutes with Tatiana learning about it. If you’ve never done crewel embroidery,
Creative Embroidery and Impressive Projects Define Natalie Tyler
Natalie Tyler joins us this week in a show sponsored by the Embroiderers Guild of America at egausa.org. The pandemic was a turning point for Natalie, providing an opportunity to apply her art background to embroidery and develop her version of the art form. The result is a wide array of designs and design types, including pet portraits (including a snake), people portraits, 3D pieces, and using a
