The Sewcial Hour Podcast

Episode 50: Amy Chappell of Ameroonie Designs
What does it take to turn a love of sewing into a thriving creative business?
In Episode 50 of The Sewcial Hour Podcast, Bethany sits down with Amy Chappell, the designer and maker behind Ameroonie Designs, to talk about building a handmade business, designing sewing patterns, and finding joy in creating through every season of life.
Amy shares the journey that led her from sewing for her family to becoming a well-known pattern designer and educator. Together, Bethany and Amy discuss the realities of running a creative business, balancing family life with entrepreneurship, the importance of designing approachable projects, and why sewing continues to be such a meaningful creative outlet.
Whether you're dreaming of selling your own handmade creations, looking for fresh sewing inspiration, or simply love hearing the stories behind your favorite makers, this episode is full of encouragement, practical insights, and plenty of sewing conversation.

In This Episode
Amy's creative journey and the story behind Ameroonie Designs
Growing a handmade business one project at a time
Designing sewing patterns that inspire confidence
Balancing creativity, family, and entrepreneurship
Advice for aspiring pattern designers and creative business owners
Finding joy in making, even during busy seasons

Connect with Amy Chappell
🌐 Website: Ameroonie Designs
📷 Instagram: @amerooniedesigns
📘 Facebook: @AmeroonieDesigns

Stay Connected with The Sewcial Hour Podcast
📷 Instagram: @thesewcialhourpodcast
📘 Facebook: @thesewcialhourpodcast
▶️ Subscribe on YouTube for full video episodes and bonus content.
🧵 Join our private Facebook community, The Sewcial Sewists, to continue the conversation, share your latest projects, and connect with fellow sewists.
If you enjoyed this episode, we'd love your support! Please leave a review on your favorite podcast platform, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Your ratings and reviews help more sewists discover the show.
Thank you for listening to The Sewcial Hour Podcast - A Podcast for Sewists by Sewists, bringing creativity and community together, one stitch at a time.

Laugh Love Law
Real conversations. Real people. Real impact. A podcast about life, law and...
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Episode 49: When Creativity Feels Heavy | with Lina Owens of Quilting with Latinas
Creativity isn't always joyful.
Sometimes life changes everything, and the things that once brought us comfort become the hardest to return to.
In this deeply personal episode of The Sewcial Hour, Bethany is joined by guest co-host Lina Owens of Quilting with Latinas for an honest conversation about what happens when creativity feels heavy. Together, they share their lived experiences navigating job loss, burnout, identity shifts, and the emotional weight that can make creating feel impossible.
They discuss:
How layoffs and major life changes can impact your identity
Why creativity is often the first thing to disappear during difficult seasons
The pressure to keep creating while silently struggling
Losing confidence and comparing yourself to everyone else online
How work-from-home life can change the way your creative spaces feel
Reclaiming a sewing room, studio, or creative space after painful memories
Finding healing through friendship, community, and small steps forward
Giving yourself permission to rest—and rediscover joy on your own timeline
This isn't a conversation about having all the answers. It's about sharing real experiences, offering hope, and reminding you that you're not alone if your creativity feels different than it once did.
Whether you're navigating burnout, grief, a career transition, or simply feeling disconnected from the hobby you love, we hope this episode reminds you that healing isn't measured by productivity—and that it's okay to start small.
You Love to See It: Bethany and Lina share something that brought them joy this week.

Get Lina’s Book: Learn to Quilt - Bilingual Guide (https://amzn.to/4fbC8WU)
Coming Up Next: Bethany welcomes Amy Chappell of Ameroonie Designs for a conversation all about sewing, creativity, and her inspiring journey.
If you enjoyed this episode, we'd love for you to follow The Sewcial Hour, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and share this episode with a friend who might need to hear it.
Stay connected with us on Instagram and Facebook at @thesewcialhourpodcast, subscribe to our YouTube channel for video episodes and bonus content, and join our private Facebook community, The Sewcial Sewists, where sewists from around the world come together to inspire, encourage, and create.

Laugh Love Law
Real conversations. Real people. Real impact. A podcast about life, law and...
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

In Episode 48 of The Sewcial Hour Podcast, Bethany sits down with garment sewing educator, pattern drafting teacher, and content creator Cornelius Quiring for a thoughtful conversation about the fundamentals of sewing, garment construction, fit, and finding confidence through creativity.
When Cornelius was just three years old, a farm accident left his body asymmetrical. Frustrated by clothing that wasn't designed to fit his unique body, he learned how to draft patterns and sew garments for himself, transforming sewing into a powerful tool for self-expression, problem-solving, and empowerment. Today, he shares those skills with thousands of sewists around the world through his educational content, helping others better understand how clothes actually work and why that knowledge can unlock a whole new level of confidence.
Together, Bethany and Cornelius discuss pattern drafting, garment construction, body inclusivity, menswear sewing, personal style, content creation, and why so many sewists are intimidated by the idea of "advanced" sewing. Cornelius also shares his philosophy on making complex concepts approachable, the importance of understanding fit, and how learning to troubleshoot can be more valuable than striving for perfection.

We also chat about Cornelius' collaboration with LDH Scissors and his Midnight Edition Gift Set:
https://ldhscissors.com/collections/all-products/products/cornelius-quiring-x-ldh-midnight-edition-gift-set
Whether you're brand new to garment sewing or looking to deepen your understanding of how clothing is made, this episode is packed with encouragement, practical insights, and a reminder that you don't need permission to make ambitious things.
Follow Cornelius:
Website: https://cornelius.ooo/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/corneliusquiring/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CorneliusQuiring
Follow The Sewcial Hour Podcast:
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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesewcialhourpodcast/
Sewcial Sewists Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/663087616152256
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thesewcialhourpodcast
Join our private Facebook community, The Sewcial Sewists, to continue the conversation, share your projects, and connect with fellow sewing friends. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and share it with a fellow sewist!
Laugh Love Law
Real conversations. Real people. Real impact. A podcast about life, law and...
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Who Gets to Decide Your Sewing Level?
What does “advanced sewing” actually mean?
Is it mastering difficult techniques? Sewing with tricky fabrics? Pattern drafting? Perfect topstitching? Or is it simply having the confidence to try something new?
In this episode of The Sewcial Hour Podcast, Bethany dives into the complicated world of sewing skill labels — beginner, intermediate, advanced, confident beginner — and unpacks why those labels are far more subjective than most sewists realize.
Because the truth is: there’s no universal standard for sewing difficulty. One designer’s “easy weekend project” might leave another sewist crying over a seam ripper at 2am. And sometimes the projects we fear most end up teaching us the most.
In this episode, we discuss:
Where sewing skill labels actually come from
Why pattern difficulty is often subjective
What “advanced sewing” really means
Why troubleshooting is one of the most important sewing skills
The forgotten “intermediate beginner” phase
Why sewing skill is NOT linear
Comparison culture and social media perfectionism
Letting go of the idea that you need permission to sew certain projects
Redefining success in sewing beyond perfection
Bethany also shares a more realistic sewing skill progression and reminds listeners that you can be advanced in one sewing niche and a total beginner in another — and that’s completely normal.
Plus, in this week’s “You Love To See It” segment, we’re celebrating beginner wins, imperfect projects, cutting into “the good fabric,” and sewists realizing they already belong in the creative space exactly as they are.
Whether you’re sewing your very first garment or tackling your tenth ambitious project, this episode is a reminder that sewing isn’t about earning a label — it’s about curiosity, creativity, and learning as you go.
Listener Question:

What sewing level do YOU identify with right now?
And what project made you feel more confident as a sewist?
Join the conversation in our Facebook group, The Sewcial Sewists!
Follow The Sewcial Hour Podcast:
Instagram @thesewcialhourpodcast
Facebook - The Sewcial Hour Podcast
Subscribe on YouTube
If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, and share the episode with your sewing friends!

Laugh Love Law
Real conversations. Real people. Real impact. A podcast about life, law and...
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Episode 46 of The Sewcial Hour is all about quilts, community, and building a business that feels like hanging out with your best quilting friends. This week, Bethany and Audra sit down with Kate Hay — the owner of Quilt with Miss Kate — to talk about growing up in the quilt world, working behind the scenes in the fabric industry, and creating an online quilt shop that makes quilters feel truly seen.
Kate shares what it was like growing up in her mom’s quilt shop, Patchwork Plus, before spending years as a sales rep for Moda Fabrics and eventually taking the leap to launch her own modern online quilt shop in 2024. From curating quilt kits and fabric bundles to documenting the entire journey online, Kate gives us an honest look at what really goes into running a quilt business in today’s sewing world.
We also dive into:
🧵 How quilt shops decide what fabric collections to carry
🧵 What quilters never see happening behind the scenes
🧵 Why community matters more than ever in quilting
🧵 The misconceptions people have about owning a quilt shop
🧵 Beginner quilting mistakes and favorite quilting tools
🧵 Trivia championships, escape rooms, and quilt naps
Plus, Kate teaches this week’s Spool School segment all about how quilt shops actually buy fabric — and why supporting your favorite small quilt shop matters more than you think.
And of course, there’s plenty of laughter along the way, including our “absolutely not” fabrics, rapid-fire favorites, and this week’s “You Love to See It” moments.
Follow Kate online:
✨ Quilt with Miss Kate Website
✨ Instagram @quiltwithmisskate
✨ TikTok @quiltwithmisskate
Be sure to follow The Sewcial Hour Podcast on social media for behind-the-scenes content, episode updates, and more sewing community fun:
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🪡 Subscribe on YouTube
Join the conversation in our Facebook group, The Sewcial Sewists, and share your FPP wins with us!
If you’re loving the podcast, don’t forget to leave a review on platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts — reviews help more sewists discover the show and grow our amazing community.
New episodes of The Sewcial Hour Podcast drop every Tuesday on all major podcast platforms, with video episodes available on YouTube. Next week: The Myth of “Advanced” Sewing — let’s talk about sewing labels and who gets to decide what makes someone “advanced.”

Laugh Love Law
Real conversations. Real people. Real impact. A podcast about life, law and...
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify