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.

 

Libby Ashcraft

Fort Worth, TX

libbyashcraft.com

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Libby has been teaching sewing, embroidery and embroidery software for over 20 years. She has specialized in embroidery software, but has recently expanded her expertise to include electronic cutters such as the Silhouette Cameo and Brother Scan 'N Cut. Libby is a Terri Johnson Creates Licensed Instructor and teaches the Silhouette Cameo at workshops and classes around the country. She teaches three software clubs a month in her local area, providing unique and detailed lessons for her students, with many lessons based on student requests. Libby is a presenter the All Things Silhouette Conference, Original Sewing & Quilt Expo events and other events. As a Martha Pullen Licensed teacher, Libby travels the U.S. helping bring the joy of sewing to many students. In addition to her teaching, Libby was a Technical Sewing Editor for Classic Sewing magazine.

 

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.

 

Stephanie Folsom
Cape Coral, FL

Beach Potato Embroidery

beachpotatoembroidery.com

Stephanie is an embroidery instructor and business owner of Beach Potato Embroidery. She has been sewing since she was nine years old and learned about machine embroidery in middle school. She has been a part of the sewing, embroidery, and longarm communities for the past ten years. While she loves making new designs, helping others is her first passion. She is a former 911 dispatcher and mother of two. Now as embroidery designer and instructor she loves sharing new techniques and making unique in the hoop projects. Stephanie and her husband Joe travel the United States teaching machine embroidery as well as vending at large expos and shows. Stephanie is excited to meet you in person for an awesome hands-on event!

 

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.

 

Jessica Kaufman

Asheville, NC

WAXON Batik & Dye Studio

waxonstudio.com

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Jessica Kaufman has her M.A. in Crafts Education, and loves nothing more than creating and leading workshops in a variety of fiber and textile arts. She teaches up and down the East Coast, online, and in her Asheville studio. Before creating WAXON Batik & Dye Studio, she taught all workshops through her NYC-based business, happygocrafty.com, which still hosts over 80 free instructional knitting videos.

 

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

Colorado Springs, CO

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.  

Kathy McMakin
Birmingham, AL

Kathy McMakin is one of America’s foremost authorities in machine embroidery and heirloom sewing. She teaches beginning, intermediate, and advanced sewists worldwide and inspires confidence in her students. Kathy has taught for 40+ years as the President of Martha Pullen Company and Editor-in-Chief of Classic Sewing Magazine. Today, she lives in Birmingham, Alabama, with her husband, and she follows her greatest passion, teaching at events nationwide.  Kathy has been a guest instructor for every major sewing machine manufacturer worldwide. She has authored several smocking, sewing, and serging books and has produced and appeared in numerous machine embroidery, sewing, and serging videos. Her guest appearances on sewing television shows are many.  She and her husband have two grown children and several precious grandchildren.

 

Carol Mitchell

Taylorsville, NC

Barn Quilt Squares by Carol

barnquiltsquares.com

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I am a traveling Barn Quilt square painting teacher located in Taylorsville NC. I have been teaching for 12 years. Barn quilt painting is something I am very pasionate about and really enjoy teaching others how to make a 2 x 2 MDO board come alive for them. My boards are weatherproof and will last outside a very long time. We live on a farm in NC and this is part of my agriculture background but barn quilts are also for houses and garage and can also be mounted inside the house.

 

Ellen Murabito

Woodbridge, VA

The Upcycle Lady

theupcyclelady.com

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Ellen Murabito . . . aka The Upcycle Lady . . . has always enjoyed sewing. Dabbling with upcycle sewing as a teen, it wasn’t until 2019 that she went “all in” and committed to a “no new fabric” mantra. Ellen is proud to say that it has been five years since she has purchased fabric off the bolt! She earned her Sustainable Design Entrepreneur Certificate from FIT New York in 2020, which opened her eyes to just how important the re-use of existing garments and textiles has become. She is leader of the Woodbridge Sewcial Club (based in Woodbridge, VA), a neighborhood group of the Northern Virginia Chapter of the American Sewing Guild, where she teaches thrifting and sustainable fabric sourcing, and upcycle sewing skills, and has been asked by the Director of the ASG to do a presentation to a national ASG sustainability group. Ellen is super-passionate about upcycling and it shows, in everything she teaches and creates, and she is here to encourage and teach YOU how to introduce upcycling to YOUR sewing skill set!

 

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.

 

Rhonda Pierce

Willowbrook, IL

Schmetz Needles
SCHMETZneedles.com

SewMoreStitches.com

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Rhonda Pierce has a dream job. . . teaching sewing enthusiasts about the hardest working 2” piece of steel in the sewing machine – the SCHMETZ needle. She lives in the Chicago area. Whether presenting SCHMETZ virtually or in-person – she averages 100+ presentations annually and happily provides SCHMETZ facts to make your stitching easier. Rhonda created and published 100 issues of the now archived SCHMETZ Inspired to SEW ezine. She publishes the “must read” SCHMETZ needles monthly newsletter. Her quilt, Color Splash, hung at three International Quilt Festivals. Rhonda’s personal website is www.SewMoreStitches.com. With quilt shop, wholesale management experience, and the love of sewing, Rhonda delivers a unique perspective as VP/Marketing Director of Euro-notions, and Spokesperson for SCHMETZneedles.com North America. Sew SCHMETZ!

 

Salty Sews (Sara Robitaille & Debbie Love)

Orlando, FL

Salty Sews

saltysews.com

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Debbie and Sara, the dynamic duo of the sewing world, mix a dash of sass with their sewing expertise. They've spun their love for stitching into a wild ride of teaching and inspiring. Brimming with years of know-how, they're not just about the thread and needle; expect a hearty dose of humor in every class. They're the go-to gals for a good laugh and a sewing skill or two. Known for their sharp wit as much as their sharp needles, their classes are where you stitch up something cool and maybe get roasted a little – all in good fun!

 

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").

 

Tisha Thorne

Lanham, MD

Sew Creative Lounge
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Tisha Thorne is a certified sewing instructor with over two decades of experience teaching locally in the DC area and across the United States. Extremely passionate about sharing her love of sewing and quilting with students of all ages, Tisha has led sewing programs at esteemed organizations such as Sew Creative Lounge, Howard University Hospital, Hancock Fabrics, and Prince George’s County Sports and Learning Complex, among others. Driven by her mission to teach the world to sew, one stitch at a time, Tisha continues to inspire and educate aspiring sewers and quilters nationwide.

 

Michelle Umlauf
Sabillasville, MD
Sewing Machine Artistry
SewingMachineArtistry.com
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Michelle Umlauf has made a career for herself in the sewing industry working as an independent educator. She loves to share her passion with others and enjoys sharing her knowledge. She began taking teacher certification courses with the Martha Pullen Company and Sulky of America. Today she is a Demonstrator for Clover and a National Educator for Baby Lock, Sulky of America, and Pam Damour - the Decorating Diva. She helped found and hosted the Sewing Online with Sulky webinar. Michelle enjoys traveling across the country working for one of these companies in their booths or teaching in a classroom at national expos. She also enjoys bringing classes and lecture/demos to sewing shops, quilt guilds, and online. When she is home, she enjoys spending time with her family at their home in the mountains of Maryland. Her German Shepherds and rescue kitty enjoy taking mom on nice long walks in the woods! To learn more about Michelle, lookup her Facebook page Sewing Machine Artistry and join her for a UFO Friday Live. Become one of her "Sewing Friends" at SewingMachineArtistry.com.

 

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.