Meet the Teachers

 

We take the time to search out the best in the industry, introducing you to exceptional designers, best-selling authors, creative thinkers and visionaries. Taking classes at Original Sewing & Quilt Expo adds to a memorable and satisfying experience.

 

Tamara Evans

Williamsburg, VA

Sewing has been a lifelong passion for Tamara. While raising her children, she discovered the limitless creative options of machine embroidery, software, quilting and began a home-based embroidered gift business. Coming back to the corporate arena as a professional in the sewing industry, focusing on new product development, creative project design, embroidery education and quilting with an embroidery focus was full circle. Her joy is education, publishing articles, teaching at trade shows, conventions, and other events. Her goal is to simplify the tedious and frustrating aspects and inspire creativity and confidence. Now, as an impartial independent expert, she will educate and inspire students of all skill levels.

 

Lynn Gerard
Nappanee, IN

The Cork Emporium

thecorkemporium.com

Lynn Gerard is the owner of The Cork Emporium. This unique store is for eco-conscious fashion enthusiasts and creative artisans alike. The Cork Emporium specializes in offering a diverse range of thread, cloth and ornate accessories crafted from an environmentally friendly and versatile material: cork fabric. Derived primarily from the bark of the cork oak tree, this high-quality fabric is sourced from Spain, Portugal and France, regions known for their abundant cork oak forests. One notable aspect of cork fabric is its sustainability.

 

LuAnn Hartley

Lexington, NC

Sanluchell Designs

LuAnn Hartley has been teaching a variety of classes for over 30 years. Her background includes education consultant, sewing machine sales, and a store owner for over 25 years. She has a passion for embellishing, quilting, and creating new ways to use techniques for both sewing and serging. She has taught all over the country and at major quilting shows.

 

Jaymi Horne

Carmel, IN 

Cranky Kangaroo

crankykangaroo.com

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Jaymi Horne has been sewing professionally for over 20 years. She began quilting as a creative outlet, and fell in love with Foundation Paper Piecing. Dubbed the “FPP Queen” by her Instagram followers, she has designed over 50 Foundation Paper Pieced patterns, has been published in Make Modern Magazine and featured in local art shows.

 

Joanne Hubbard

Milan, OH

joanne-everyonedeservesaquilt.blogspot.com/

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Joanne Hubbard swears by the motto "Live, Laugh, Love and Quilt!" She is a wife, mother, and grandmother who loves everything quilt related. Quilting is her passion whether it's creating or teaching and she loves to share that passion with others at quilt shops, guild meetings/workshops, quilt shows, or by providing private lessons. Joanne has ventured into pattern design and writing and especially enjoys seeing what others create using her patterns. Staying true to her “Live, Laugh, Love, and Quilt” motto, classes with Joanne are fun, informative, and productive.

 

MJ Kinman

Louisville, KY

mjkinman.com

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MJ Kinman’s passion is creating quilts inspired by beautiful gems. The key is freezer paper, that wonderful product that adheres to fabric when ironed. MJ’s work has been exhibited at the National Quilt Museum, the International Quilt Museum, the New England Quilt Museum, Quilt Festival (Houston, TX), Quilt Week (Paducah, KY), and Festival of Quilts (Birmingham, UK). Most recently, MJ’s piece “Torch Song” was exhibited at the Art Quilt Elements 2024 Biennial (Wayne, PA), where she received the Cindy Friedman Master Award for Excellence. Her work is included in collections as varied as Maker’s Mark Distillery, the National Quilt Museum, the International Quilt Museum, and private collections. MJ’s Birthstone Series patterns feature traditional birthstone gems, and her Diamond Divas Series offer large, artistic quilts easily customizable by makers. She has two books available: "Gemstone Quilts" and "Crack the Color Code."

 

Angie Lamoree
Weaverville, NC

Once upon a time (2005), Angie took her first quilting class just for the heck of it. After all, when you have five kids, you need to get out every once in a while, and just do something for yourself. She was hooked from the first lesson. It wasn’t long before her husband, DJ was trying his hand at it too, and was actually really good.

 

One day, Angie had the idea that if she was going to be a quilting addict, she might as well make a business of it, and get others hooked. After getting DJ and the kids on board, in April 2017, the little shop on Main Street in Weaverville, NC opened for business. Happily situated in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, the suburb of Asheville is a cultural mecca of handcrafters and artists.

Angie & DJ believe that quilting/sewing/crafting is a way to transform thoughts and emotions into beautiful, one-of-a-kind handmade items. And when helping those pieces make their way into the world, they believe in providing the highest-quality fabrics, tools, and supplies along with friendly, supportive help…and 5 Little Monkeys prides itself on making sure you have that.

 

Susan Luaces

Tampa, FL

susieluaces.com

Susie began sewing at nine, taught by her mother, and honed her skills through high school classes, sewing magazines, and books. She created her own clothes, including tailored suits. Despite college and a career in engineering limiting her sewing time, her passion never waned. After leaving engineering to focus on family, she dedicated more time to sewing. Susie has sewn clothing, Halloween costumes, wedding dresses, home décor items, quilts, toys, and nursery items, with garment sewing being her favorite. She has teaching experience from her engineering career, as a part-time fitness instructor, and as a sewing instructor at Joann Fabrics. Since 2002, Susie found the Original Sewing and Quilting Expo, to be a great source of knowledge. Discovering Lorraine Henry’s fitting classes, she resonated with the Seam Method of pattern alteration. Susie trained with Lorraine and Judith Rasband in 2024 to ensure the method's continued availability and is now ready to share her expertise.

 

Donelle McAdams
Marion, IN
Representing Sew Steady
sewsteady.com
sewbizmarion.com
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Donelle McAdams is the owner of SEW BIZ, Marion, Indiana, now an online quilt resource. Donelle is the designer of Quick Easy Mitered Binding and Border Tools for the Sewing and Quilting industry that are sold internationally and she is also a pattern designer. Previously a Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher, she has been a quilt store owner for 36 years. She has taught a variety of SchoolHouse and Take & Teach classes and Business Management Seminars at International Quilt Market, Husqvarna Viking and Pfaff Sewing Conventions, Vacuum & Sewing Machine Dealers Trade Association Convention and has participated as a Quilt Store Owner/Educator on numerous panels and advisory boards. She writes a column Profitable Promotions - for FabShop News, an industry magazine and also writes for VDTA. As a promoted Educator for Sew Steady/Westalee Design Templates, Donelle teaches classes in Ruler Work Quilting. Her love and enthusiasm for sewing and quilting is infectious. Taking a class with Donelle is guaranteed to be information-packed, inspirational and FUN!

 

Jill McCloy

Toledo, OH

Jill McCloy Designs
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Jill's sewing career started at an early age – she received her first sewing machine for Christmas just after her fourth birthday. In high school, she did custom sewing and taught at fabric and sewing machine shops using original patterns. In 1992 Jill was hired by Viking Sewing Machines, Inc. as a national educator designing projects for the Viking Club and teaching at Viking World Conventions. She then became an independent educator working with many brands of sewing machines. Jill was featured in the Threads magazine design challenge in 2000, wrote for McCall’s and Threads magazines, designed embroideries for Cactus Punch and taught at many Expo events. Her specialties are machine knowledge and creating original designs. She has over 50 patterns and recently had a truly beautiful line of fabric come out with Northcott fabrics.  

 

Linda McGehee

Shreveport, LA

Ghee's

ghees.com

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Designer, Linda McGehee has a diverse sewing background with 50 years experience from garments to handbags, piecing to heirloom, surface manipulation to combining a variety of methods into a sampler of various techniques. Linda has traveled the globe demonstrating and lecturing from her books and patterns. She is much sought after at trade and machine conventions, consumer shows, guilds, shops & television. Her style is easy and fun with a flair for detail.

 

Susan Miller

Doylestown, OH

Susan has been quilting, sewing and embroidering for many years. She has a quilting studio in her home where she provides longarm quilting services to her customers. Over the years, she has taken Martha Pullen’s Teaching classes for sewing and surging, also Quilt in a Day teacher training and event training with Eleanor Burns Master Quilter in Paducah, Kentucky. Susan has taught at a local quilt shop many classes: longarm program, Kids sew, machine usage classes and embroidery programs. Susan also plans event classes for quilt guilds in her local area. Sewing and quilting has been her love and hobby for over 40 years.

 

Pattie Otto
Falling Waters, WV
Great Copy Patterns and Embroidery
greatcopy.com
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Pattie Otto, the creative force behind Great Copy Patterns, brings boundless enthusiasm to the world of sewing. With expertise spanning garment design, machine embroidery, and alterations she not only creates but also imparts that knowledge and shares her inspirations through classes across the country. Beyond her professional endeavors, Pattie finds joy in spending time with her husband, Rick, and their grandsons in Ellicott City, MD. Their travels along the East Coast further enrich their experiences. In her well-stocked home studio, Pattie's passion for sewing shines through as she crafts patterns for beautiful garments and accessories. She has also been busy building her alteration business which encompasses everything from prom and pageant attire to menswear and for everyday. Pattie Otto is not just a sewing enthusiast; she's a creative powerhouse whose love for the craft knows no bounds.

 

Carrie Philpott
Big Rapids, MI

Carrie simply loves to sew! Once she took her first sewing class at age 14, she has never looked back from the textile/fashion/sewing/quilting/embroidery world.  This has led her on an international journey through all phases of the textile/fashion world at the manufacturing, wholesale, retail, and consumer level.

In the 1990’s, Carrie discovered both sewing machine quilting and embroidery.  Since that time, she has created her own digitized embroidery designs, quilting patterns, clothing, and costume lines.

Her teaching career has spanned 3 continents with certifications from Sue Hausmann, Martha Pullen, Connie Crawford, Nancy Ziemann, and many others. Her quilts have been displayed at numerous major national shows and as part of Michelle Obama’s Quilts of Valor display in the White House.

Not having space for a longarm quilting was thrilled to discover Westalee Design rulers and templates that worked with her Sew Steady Table. The new EmbroideLee collections perfectly compliment her love of machine embroidery.

Classes with Carrie bring a wide variety of quilting, sewing, embroidery and crafting techniques from beginner to advanced level with excitement, humor, and fun.

 

Nancy Sapin

Franklin, NC
Sulky of America  

nancysapin.com

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Nancy Sapin is a Freelance National Educator representing Sulky of America.  Nancy has been working with Sulky for the past 19 years, both as a National Educator, designer, and a sample maker.  She has worked numerous consumer shows for Sulky, lecturing and teaching. Nancy also lectures and teaches workshops at various quilt and sewing guilds across the United States. You can find some of Nancy’s designs in the last 3 Sulky books and see some of her other works on her website, nancysapin.com.

 

Jim Suzio

Pittsburgh, PA
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Jim Suzio is an award winning artist, designer, digitizer and sewing instructor (including embroidery software, heirloom, fashion and serger sewing). A self taught sewer, Jim was inspired to try the craft after watching a neighbor's enthusiasm in the art. A new sales position at a machine dealer found him literally "thrown" on stage at an ASG convention where he was discovered by Sue Hausmann, host of the PBS series "America Sews with Sue Hausmann." Jim soon found himself teaching all over the US, Canada and Australia for Husqvarna Viking and Pfaff Sewing Machine Companies. His work has been featured in numerous books and magazines and several ads for Husqvarna Viking and the launch of Ty Pennington's new fabric line. he has been seen on several television programs here ("America Sews with Sue Hausmann,"and "It's Sew Easy") and in Canada ("the Big Breakfast Show").

 

Jess VanDenburgh

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Hi I'm Jess! I was born and raised in upstate New York where I still live with my husband & 2 dogs. My grandma taught me at a young age how to sew and encouraged my creativity. I stumbled upon bag making in 2005 due to a major obsession with bags and a large fabric stash. I started making bags for friends and family at first and then selling them. From there my company, Sew Many Creations was born. Originally the company focused solely on making custom bags but slowly developed into a pattern company after many requests. In 2012 I expanded my pattern company to also include bag hardware, cork, fabric, kits, zippers and more. In 2020 I finally started my Youtube channel where I chat live every Friday about anything and everything bag making. I also upload tutorials, free patterns and educational videos. Teaching is my absolute favorite and if you watch any of the hundreds of YouTube videos I have on my channel, I think you'll agree!

 

Joe Vecchiarelli
Glendale, CA
French European Dress Forms

frencheuropeaninc.com

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Joe Vecchiarelli, founder and president of French European Inc., has worked in the fashion industry for over 40 years. During his college years, Joe worked in the family business, sharpening scissors for the industry's top designers. He later graduated from USC's business program and began to realize that opportunities in the apparel business were unlimited. Mr. Vecchiarelli's career took another fascinating turn when he made a foray into the entertainment business working in production with shows like Dancing with the Stars and The X Factor. A few years ago he was approached by NBC to help produce the competitive design talent show, Fashion Star. Presently Mr. Vecchiarelli is ever so busy maintaining his business and helping fashion students and enthusiasts grasp their dreams and become successful within the industry.

 

Kris Vierra

Kansas City, MO

Quilter on the Run

quilterontherun.com

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Kris has been sewing or quilting for over 20 years. She loves sharing her passion for quilting and all things related to fabric, believing that quilting should be fun and not stressful. Kris teaches at national shows and guilds across the country, and has won numerous national awards for her machine quilting skills over the years. Most recently Kris was award Best Long Arm Quilting at AQS Paducah 2018, Phoenix, and Des Moines, 2016, and the PFAFF Master Award for Machine Artistry at the International Quilt Festival Houston, 2015. Two of her quilts, Tiger, Tiger and Star of India, are part of the permanent collection at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah. She loves traveling and leads quilt tours all over the world. Kris believes that no matter what language you speak fabric is universal. Check out her Stress Free Quilting™ Series for tons of quilting tips and tricks.

 

Jo Ann Wetzel

Design Your Own Fabric LLC

Seville, OH

Like many of us, Jo Ann learned all about sewing from her mother at a very young age. In fact, she was even named after the famous Jo-Ann Fabrics store because her mother spent way too much time there – hence another sewer was born. At first, Jo Ann created pillows and then moved on to creating garments given her interest in fashion. She learned how to sew, hand embroider, crochet, and knit; and then later, she learned machine embroidery and quilting. She is now using her creative abilities to design unique fabrics utilizing the art of fabric painting and marbling.