
Show Notes
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 17th centuries. If you’re searching for new and different samplers, particularly those that go beyond standard cross stitch, The Essamplaire is your destination. Margriet has a collection of reproductions unlike any you’ll see elsewhere. We explore her interest in samplers, what she’s learned studying them in museums, the silks and linens that were used to stitch the originals, and Margriet’s role in sharing samplers with the needlework world. We also learn how linen has changed through the centuries. It’s an enlightening conversation with one of the leading reproduction artists in the needle-arts world.–Beth and Gary Listen to the podcast: This show is also available on FlossTube. Click here to view it. You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Stitcher, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses. Here are some links: The Essamplaire website The Essamplaire on Facebook We hope you enjoy this week’s conversation with Margriet Hogue. We’re always looking for guests, so let us know if there is someone you’d like us to have on the show.
More from Fiber Talk
This week we’re sponsored by Avlea Folk Embroidery and our topic is the health benefits of needlework. The inspiration for our conversation is an Instagram post by @thedoctorofshopping that explores how much more you get out of that initial expenditure for a needlework kit. You’ll learn about things such as the IKEA effect and The Third Place. For Fiber Talk Patreon members, we continued the conversation to explore muscle memory, flow, and advancing your stitching. This was a fun one that prompted some thinking. Share your reactions in the comments section.—Beth, Cindy, Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses. Here are some links: Avlea Folk Embroidery website The Doctor of Shopping on Instagram Kristin Armstrong TedxMacatawa 2026 talk (Kristin at 3:38:50) Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting, Lisa Genova Craft Psychology, Anne Kirketerp We hope you enjoy this week’s. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show. To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.
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.” Throughout the conversation, we all share our favorite designs and learn about the inspiration behind the book and how Lindsay worked with sample stitchers and a great photographer to create a terrific book.—Beth and Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses. Here are some links: Embroiderers’ Guild of America website Lindsay Swearingen’s first show Tusk and Cardinal website Tusk and Cardinal Etsy shop Tusk and Cardinal on Instagram Tusk and Cardinal on Facebook Tusk and Cardinal on TikTok We hope you enjoy this conversation with Lindsay Swearingen. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show. To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.
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 Swearingen—Beth, Cindy, and Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video. Click here to view it. You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses. Here are some links: CyberPointers website Avlea Folk Embroidery website Jessica Grimm’s Gothic Pansy class Hazel Blomkamp’s Workroom Bradley Needlepoint Silk Threads Brighttech LightView lamp Fiber Talk’s Patreon page We hope you enjoy the show. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show. To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.
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 does, including organizing Stitchtopia Craft Holidays. If you want to spend some vacation time with needleworkers in interesting/historic venues, check out the upcoming schedule at Carolyn’s website. We hope you enjoy the conversation and encourage you to give chicken scratch a try.—Beth and Gary Listen to the podcast: Watch the video You can listen by using the player above or you can subscribe to Fiber Talk through iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Audible, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Podbay, Podbean, and many other podcast sources. To receive e-mail notification of new podcasts, provide your name and e-mail address below. We do not sell/share e-mail addresses. Here are some links: Carolyn Forster website Carolyn Forster on Instagram Carolyn Forster on Facebook Carolyn Forster on YouTube We hope you enjoy this conversation with Carolyn Forster. We’re always looking for guests, so let me know if there is someone you’d like me to have on the show. To add yourself to our mailing list and be notified whenever we post a new podcast, provide your name and email address below. You won’t get spam and we won’t share your address.
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 through them and Beth plans to handle them when she starts the project. We hope this discussion will help you approach any new project, particularly counted-canvas designs that present stitching challenges. As always, leave your thoughts and questions in the comment section. Below are all of the necessary links so you can explore Wendy’s designs. Links: CyberPointers website https://www.cyberpointers.org/ Avlea Folk Embroidery website https://www.needlepoint.org/default.aspx Fiber Talk show with Wendy Moore https://wetalkfiber.com/2025/12/14/wendy-moores-counted-canvas-artwork// Contact Wendy Moore at [email protected] Jackie Du Plessis Start/Stop threads technique is demonstrated at the 12-min. mark