02/05/25 - VIRTUAL THREAD Talk - Samantha Hoyt - 8-9pm

Join Club Gotham for a presentation by Samantha Hoyt - Topic TBD. This virtual talk will take place in the Gotham Quilts Community. Once you register, you will receive an email with instructions for logging in. All Talks are in Eastern (NYC) time. Talk will not be recorded. 

Slow Fashion Fabrics for the Wardrobe of Your Dreams - When do you sew with linen over rayon, or poplin over voile, what is double gauze? Samantha will talk through simple guidelines for picking the right fabric for your clothing project. You've learned the techniques of constructing garments, now you need to know which fabrics will bring your vision to life. With some basic knowledge under your belt, you can make clothes you want to wear! 

Meet Samantha

I am Samantha Hoyt, and A Gathering of Stitches is my haven of analog hand crafts in a digital age. I create experiential learning experiences, celebrating the expansive and inspiring world of stitching in rustic locations around the grand state of Maine. This venture began with a huge studio and a community of Makers in Portland, Maine. It has since become a traveling show, creating oases of opportunity for Makers of all stripes, drawing on the rustic beauty of Maine for inspiration.....

I am from Brooklyn, but Brooklyn before it was hip. I grew up sewing and knitting and crocheting. A Maker from an early age. A Danish Au Pair taught me to knit, so I knit Continental. This meant it was hard for my Mother, who knits English, to help me when I was a kid.   She did teach me to sew, on her tiny Elna Lotus, and I have clear memories of a drawstring skirt from a Vogue pattern that I made many times.  It was a favorite outfit, complimented by dyed longjohns bought at Canal Jeans and my LL Bean boots. I love clothes, always have. Probably connected to my earliest days of a dancing career. The swish of fabric was entrancing. A class at FIT in the 80’s showed me that I should stick to home sewing machines.  Most hand-crafts took a back seat for college and careers as a wedding photographer and then a photo editor at various magazines including Forbes, New York Magazine, LIFE, and People. A stressful run of years led me to seek more tactile experiences in the late 90’s and my sewing machine was unearthed. From there it was a long and windy path to a huge stash of both yarn and fabric, a wardrobe of handmade clothes, a bout with Tennis (Knitter’s) elbow and a yearning to create community.  I left the office life in the early 00's to pursue a (short-lived) career in pastry, which mostly served as a way to leave New York City with a marketable skill. Not long after moving to Maine in 2005 my ex-husband Don and I created Rabelais, a specialized cookbook store.  This brought me into the world of modern food where I became concerned with all things local, sustainable, and DIY. Themes that I believe translate well to the modern world of Making. A Gathering of Stitches is my attempt to resolve, and combine, all these interests.

Find out more about Samantha at her website, https://www.agatheringofstitches.com