498 - Happy New Year 2026!

Thank you so much for being on this journey with me!   Links and Resources; Episode 113 - Opportunity Thinking Series with Jeanelle Dech - Feedback, Failure, Bankruptcy and Girl Scout Cookies    

What a fun podcast this was to record! Thanks to the Jersey Girls for taking time to chat with me!   Irene Hurley Designs Instagram: @irenehurleydesigns Interior Couture for Cottage and Castle Irene Hurley Designs is a boutique design and sewing studio offering custom window coverings, interior accessories, and artisan quilts.   Sue Berry - Designer and fabricator in business for 13 years Sew Stylish Designs Llc www.sewstylish.org   Diana Nolan Diana Nolan Custom windows LLC Instagram  @dianadnolan Diana is a drapery workroom both retail and to the trade for 25 years in southern New Jersey.   Suzy Daruwala Sew Bella Home www.sewbellahome.com The skilled hands at Sew Bella Home create beautiful, fine window coverings, pillows, custom bedding and accessories using couture methods while keeping your specific requests in mind. Our designs are all about you and the feeling you want your home to evoke.     Kelley Garfield, Owner Kelley's Custom Home Interior's LLC Website:  http://www.kelleyscustomhomeinteriors.com Instagram: @kelleyscustomhomeinteriors Over 20 years in the window treatments and soft furnishings business, adding the "jewelry" as I like to call it, to your spaces one stitch at a time!   Robin Matthews Seams Sew Right - soft furnishings workroom since 1999/2000.  Mostly to the trade Website: seamssewright.com FB: Seams Sew Right Insta: @seamssewright   Kate Winton Kate Winton Designs Designing and fabricating visual delights [email protected] https://www.instagram.com/katewintondesigns/   Cathy Cohane Curtain Cathy is a custom window treatment design, fabrication and installation company, in business over 25 years.  We love making houses homes. Find us @Curtain Cathy on Instagram   Rosemarie Garner, owner of R Garner Custom Designs in Northern NJ, a To The Trade custom workroom, specializing in detailed custom fabrication of Roman shades, draperies and all soft treatments.   The Sew Much More Podcast is sponsored by;     Klimaka Studios   The Workroom Channel   Scarlet Thread Consulting   The WCAA   The Curtains and Soft Furnishings Resource Library   National Upholstery Association   Workroom Tech    

    Links and Resources; Link to Daniel Pink's Video The Twelve Year by Brian Moran and Michael Lennington   (Some of the links I provide, specifically to Amazon and a few others, require me to let you know that if you use those links and make a purchase, I will make some money.  I won't make a million dollars, but I might be able to get a cup of coffee, so thank you!)   If the Sew Much More Podcast has played a role in your journey in any way, I hope you'll consider participating. Here are the three questions: What changed for you after listening to, or being on, the Sew Much More Podcast? That change might have been practical—or it might have been internal. Second: What challenge were you facing at the time, and where are you now? That challenge might still be ongoing, or it might be something you've moved through. And third: What one idea or moment stayed with you longer than you expected? Sometimes it's the smallest insight or someone says things a certain way that makes the biggest difference.   The best way to share your story is by leaving a voicemail using SpeakPipe.   Here is the link to SpeakPipe   A few tips so your message sounds great: Please use your phone, not your computer. Phones tend to produce much better audio quality. Find a quiet space where you won't be interrupted. Aim for 60 to 90 seconds. If you're unsure, err on the shorter side. At the beginning of your message, please share your first name and, if you're comfortable, your location. If you would prefer not to leave a voicemail, please send me an email to [email protected].  

  If the Sew Much More Podcast has played a role in your journey in any way, I hope you'll consider participating. Here are the three questions: What changed for you after listening to, or being on, the Sew Much More Podcast? That change might have been practical—or it might have been internal. Second: What challenge were you facing at the time, and where are you now? That challenge might still be ongoing, or it might be something you've moved through. And third: What one idea or moment stayed with you longer than you expected? Sometimes it's the smallest insight or someone says things a certain way that makes the biggest difference.   The best way to share your story is by leaving a voicemail using SpeakPipe.   Here is the link to SpeakPipe   A few tips so your message sounds great: Please use your phone, not your computer. Phones tend to produce much better audio quality. Find a quiet space where you won't be interrupted. Aim for 60 to 90 seconds. If you're unsure, err on the shorter side. At the beginning of your message, please share your first name and, if you're comfortable, your location. If you would prefer not to leave a voicemail, please send me an email to [email protected].   Kelly and Lee Nanney are a dream team when it comes to fulfilling customers' window-covering needs. Creating custom-designed draperies to compliment the look and feel of each individual home, Kelly and Lee find joy in providing clients with high-quality and timeless curtains, shades, valances and more. With each project, Kelly and Lee pay great attention to all the small details and maintain the highest standards for the outcome of every piece. Kelly's Designer Drapes provides fabric selections, in-home consultations, measuring and installation for your convenience. Window treatments are a necessity for any home, but Kelly's Designer Drapes turns these functional pieces into works of art that complement the furnishings in your home.   Instagram Facebook    The Sew Much More Podcast is sponsored by;     Klimaka Studios   The Workroom Channel   Scarlet Thread Consulting   The WCAA   The Curtains and Soft Furnishings Resource Library   National Upholstery Association   Workroom Tech    

If the Sew Much More Podcast has played a role in your journey in any way, I hope you'll consider participating. Here are the three questions: What changed for you after listening to, or being on, the Sew Much More Podcast? That change might have been practical—or it might have been internal. Second: What challenge were you facing at the time, and where are you now? That challenge might still be ongoing, or it might be something you've moved through. And third: What one idea or moment stayed with you longer than you expected? Sometimes it's the smallest insight or someone says things a certain way that makes the biggest difference.   The best way to share your story is by leaving a voicemail using SpeakPipe.   Here is the link to SpeakPipe   A few tips so your message sounds great: Please use your phone, not your computer. Phones tend to produce much better audio quality. Find a quiet space where you won't be interrupted. Aim for 60 to 90 seconds. If you're unsure, err on the shorter side. At the beginning of your message, please share your first name and, if you're comfortable, your location. If you would prefer not to leave a voicemail, please send me an email to [email protected].

Mandy Szigethy discovered upholstery while completing her Theater Technology degree at Indiana University and decided to forsake the stage in favor of the workshop.  She has had the unique opportunity to work in both furniture manufacturing at Beachley Furniture and now custom upholstery as the owner of Rose City Upholstery in Portland.  She has received training in both modern materials and traditional methods through Upholstery Education and is now able to apply time tested techniques to all of her projects.  Her love of learning lead to her to co-ownership of Upholstery Education in 2025 where she hopes to foster the same enthusiasm in others.   Her passion for revitalizing and repurposing home furnishings has led to an in depth--if unintentional--study of older and newer furniture, and the potential of any antique store or curbside find.

  Jonathan Bennet, owner of Unsprung Upholstery is originally from Martinsville, VA.  He caught the sewing bug from his great grandmother at a young age. He moved to Richmond, VA on a whim in August of 1989 and earned a BFA in Fashion Design from Virginia Commonwealth University. Directly after graduation, Jonathan taught in the Fashion Design department as an adjunct professor for 13 years. He started his first workroom job in 1997, learned how to make various types of window treatments, cushions, pillows, and more;  since then, he has done freelance workroom client projects in his home for over 25 years. Jonathan opened Unsprung Upholstery LLC in August 2019 and will continue this beautiful journey for the rest of his life!   Website:  UnsprungUpholstery.com IG:  UnsprungUpholstery FB:  Unsprung Upholstery Company Links and Resources; Real Workroom Tours Video with Jonathan, Jeanelle Dech and Kelly McCrory The Drapery & Design Digital Digest November/December 2025     The Sew Much More Podcast is sponsored by;     Klimaka Studios   The Workroom Channel   Scarlet Thread Consulting   The WCAA   The Curtains and Soft Furnishings Resource Library   National Upholstery Association   Workroom Tech    

Marta Powers is the owner of MartaPOW LLC, a custom workroom in Richmond, Virginia, offering upholstery and soft goods services nationally To The Trade.  Her past career as a project manager for architecture and design firms has informed her business processes and broadened her network of professionals across the hospitality and interior design sectors.  Marta's early training in tailoring, pattern drafting, clothing design, and fabrication skills led to her creation of a business serving designers, helping them to achieve their and their clients' vision.     A co-owner of Upholstery Education LLC, Marta and her partners bring educators from the UK and France to the U.S., offering courses in traditional upholstery methods, materials, and related interior furnishing trades.     Marta has served on the boards of the National Upholstery Association and the Virginia chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers (as an Industry Partner).  She is also a member of IFDA Richmond, the SeatWeavers Guild, and the NUA's Education Committee.   Instagram @Martapowva   LInks and Resources;   You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero Profit First by Mike Michalowicz  

This past week, we lost our friend, Kevin Kise.  I wanted to find a way to honor him and remember him, so Jonathan Bennett and I recalled our favorite memories of Kevin and I hope you will share yours on the Sew Much More Facebook page.