Episode 45: The Confidence Ladder of Making

Episode 45: The Confidence Ladder of Making

This week on The Sewcial Hour Podcast, we’re diving into something every maker experiences, but don’t always have language for: confidence. 🧵✨

When you first start sewing, everything feels intimidating: patterns are confusing, techniques feel overwhelming, and every project feels like a test. But over time, something shifts. You begin to trust your hands, your instincts, and your creative decisions.

In this episode, we’re breaking down what we’re calling The Confidence Ladder of Making: the four stages makers move through as they grow:

• Imitation – following patterns and learning the basics
• Modification – making small changes and creative tweaks
• Ownership – trusting your instincts and solving problems
• Authorship – creating something entirely your own

We’re talking about why imitation is not cheating, why so many makers stay in the modification stage (and why that’s okay), and how confidence is built through repetition, mistakes, and finished projects not talent.

If you’ve ever wondered “am I doing this right?” or felt stuck in your sewing journey, this episode will help you understand where you are and what comes next.

✨ Join the conversation:
If someone handed you a brand new sewing pattern today… would you follow it exactly, tweak it, or completely wing it? 👀
DM us or share in our Facebook group The Sewcial Sewists and tell us the project that first gave you sewing confidence.

🎧 New episodes of The Sewcial Hour Podcast drop every Tuesday on all major platforms. Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with a beginner maker who needs a little encouragement.

Next week: We’re chatting with Kate Hay of Quilt with Miss Kate, you won’t want to miss it! 🧵

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:11

Hi everyone and welcome back to the Social Hour Podcast, a podcast for Sewis by Sewis. I'm your host, Bethany, and today I'm excited to talk to you about the confidence ladder of making. And what that means is we all go through this process of when we first started sewing. Maybe that's very recent for you, or maybe you've been sewing for a really long time, like myself, and we think about that process of how we got started. And some of us who have been doing it a little longer, it's hard for us to remember those beginning stages of feeling really lost, overwhelmed, confused. But then when all of a sudden the light bulbs came on and we started to build that confidence in ourselves, our skills, our abilities, and remove some of the fear factor of starting something new like sewing. You know, am I gonna mess up my machine? Am I gonna miscut this? What's gonna happen? And you start to realize the more you learn, the more confident you become. But there's kind of like steps to this and something that we haven't really ever talked about on this podcast. So I wanted to break it down for you to maybe help it make sense. And maybe if you are someone who's been sewing for a long time and have a lot more confidence in sewing, that you use this as a means to approach those who are still learning to be helpful. Also, for those of us who have, there's people that have been sewing for a very long time, but they've really just stuck with like one or two types of sewing and they're finding it hard to try something new that they haven't tried before. Maybe this will give you the confidence in what you already know to branch out and try something new. So that's what we're gonna talk about today. And there's a couple of stages that go through this confidence ladder, as I'm calling it, that would be imitation, modification, ownership, and authorship. And we're gonna kind of break those down today in this episode, but there's a question I want to ask you today to get us kicked off and started. And that question is if someone handed you a brand new sewing pattern today, how likely are you to follow it exactly to a T per the instructions? I think how we decide how we're gonna approach a pattern also kind of helps us gauge where we really are in our confidence. I think there's a lot of people that say, Oh, I'm such a beginner, but like haven't really taken the time to appreciate all you've learned and you've accomplished to really say, no, you actually have graduated from that quote unquote beginner stage because look at what you're doing. So answer the question: if someone handed you a brand new sewing pattern today, how likely are you to follow it exactly? Now, I will say for me personally, even though I've been sewing for a long time and pretty confident in my sewing skills, I'm not willing, I'm let me rephrase that. I'm not scared to try something new. If anything, I'm the one trying to like push the limits, but that's how I like to approach things. But I've also been doing this for a long time. But for me, when I'm trying a new pattern, I would say that I like to follow it because especially if it's if it's something that I really like it as is. Occasionally I'll make some modifications, but usually not the first time I make something. I try to make it exactly as the designer intended the first time. And then my modifications usually come if I find that I would like it tweaked a little bit for my own personal benefit, especially if it's like a garment. Maybe I bring in a different sleeve that I the style that I like from another pattern instead of the sleeve that came with that pattern or whatever. Or I may omit a pocket or two or change some hardware up on a bag. Just different things or add pockets, you know. If I want more pockets, you can never have too many pockets. But like I'll do slight things, but typically if I'm I'm working on a pattern, it's because something about that design that the designer created, like that struck a chord with me and made me want to take the time to make it. The time that I have to make things is is limited, so I'm very selective on what I choose to make, and it has to be something that inspires me or is maybe even going to challenge me a little bit. Um, because I still like to feel challenged and I'm still learning too. Answer that question. You can answer it to yourself, you can write it down, you can send us a DM or comment on a reel, or you could leave a message over in our Facebook group, the Social Sewist, because I'd like to know where you feel like you stand. And this is completely personal, like opinion of subjective. But maybe as we go through this episode, you'll kind of figure out maybe, maybe I'm not as new to this as I thought. There's always more to learn. Like I said, I'm still learning as well. So I'm hoping through this conversation, you'll find additional confidence in where you're at and your skills and abilities. So let's jump into stage one, the imitation factor. This is where we're, you know, just beginning to build confidence in as we walk through these stages of like learning and growing. A lot of it just starts with the fear factor, the imitation, even just like reading a pattern and understanding the lingo. It's very new, it's a very foreign, it can sound like a foreign language, especially with you know different types of sewing. I'll give you an example. In garment sewing or even in quilting, typically a based basting stitch is a really long stitch. It's meant to be temporary. A lot of times in garments, it's used to gather. You'll do like one or two basting stitches and then you'll gather the fabric. In bag making, I've learned that not everybody, but some pattern writers will use basting as like sew it together. In my mind, when I first got into bag making, I was going, baste this. So when do I go? So I'm like lengthening my stitch, and I'm like, so when do I go back and really secure this down? And there wasn't that step. And I started to do some research and realized that basting in some types of sewing don't necessarily mean basting and like it does in other types of sewing. And that was a learning curve for me. And it really throws me off because I'm like, basting in my mind is just a temporary hold or uh an avenue together or things like that. But typically in bag making, if they use basting, they mean sew it together, not a long stitch. This is permanently like we're secure, we want to secure these pieces together. So I don't know why we don't just use the word and sew together. But that's just me, because like I was so confused by that. But when I started asking people who do bag making but don't do like garments or quilting, they're like, I had no idea, it was just what we call it. So it's interesting how terminology can kind of cross different areas of sewing. And I share this story because there's additional learning curves, even when we cross between different types of sewing. One thing I want to encourage you, especially if I'm I'm gonna speak to the true beginners here or anybody picking up a new type of sewing or new technique that they haven't tried before. It I encourage you to follow the instructions the first time. Uh, find a pattern that is thoroughly written, that gives you lots of great advice and steps, maybe even a video tutorial to follow along. Those that step-by-step learning process is creating that foundation so that you can take what you've learned, maybe that new technique, and apply it to something else. So let's say, for example, you're a quilter and um you want to get into bag making, but you can quilt your bags, right? You can quilt the material for the bag. So you're mixing the things you know to grab onto that confidence and while introducing some new things with bag making and mixing those two. Let's say you're a bag maker and you want to be able to add some fun applique elements to your bags to really zhuzh them up, add some flair. Um, I love applique, and there's so many different ways to do applique. And so you start looking into different types of applique and you find a tutorial that walks you through that and you practice it with scrap fabrics until you build some confidence, and then you use your confidence you've already gained with bag making to implement that new technique into your bag making. There's so many different things like that. I'm teaching classes where we're taking a garment and making it quilted to have some fun quilted sleeves or a quilt block on it, and so we're mixing garment sewing with quilting, and it all kind of can mix together, but we're pulling our confidence from what we've practiced already. But if you're a true beginner and this is your first time sitting in front of a sewing machine, that's okay. I think honestly, the best way to learn when you truly first start is to not solely focus on a project per se, but just feeding fabric through the machine, getting comfortable with controlling the fabric, but while also using your foot to control the speed while listening to the sounds of the machine. They all sound a little different. And then when you get used to the sound of your machine, when it makes a different sound, it it you know, it perks your ears and you go, Hey, that didn't sound right. Maybe I should stop and figure out what that was. It's gonna teach you what the different elements on the machine do, what to watch for, like that bobbin running out of thread, or your thread breaking that happens sometimes, what those stitch guides on the plate mean, like, oh, there's a quarter inch, there's a half inch, there's you know, like learning what different seam allowances are, all those different knobs or buttons and the different stitch options. There's a lot of features, even on just a mechanical machine that takes some time to get used to. And then we dive into like the different accessory feed, and that's a whole nother game. And and so for me, whenever I have someone sitting down at a machine for the very first time, I really encourage them to take scrap fabric and just stitch zigzag stitch, straight stitch, try different stitches, play with it, stitch lengths, stitch widths, have fun with it, just feed fabric through. You're gonna try to turn the fabric even. Like it's learning how to maneuver the fabric as you're sewing. Because what's gonna happen is as you start building these projects, you're gonna really have to focus on where your hands go and how you manipulate the fabric as it's feeding through. It's not just like setting it there and zoop, you know, you're really having to do a lot. There's a lot of eye hand coordination, and then we gotta throw a foot in there for your presser foot and the speed control. There's a lot of elements, right? And so, with that being said, like really just play. Just push all the buttons and play, okay? You're you're not gonna break it. Worst case, you're gonna either break a thread, break a needle, or run out of your bobbin and just have to re-thread it. And all of those things are a simple fix, okay? So don't be afraid to play with your machine, to try different feet, to try different stitches, and to feed different types of fabric through it. Put some denim through it or canvas, put some quilting cotton through it, put some whatever you got on hand, some stretchy knits through it. Learn your machine by just playing. Okay, we're not making anything, we're just playing. From there, you're gonna be able to follow along a pattern a little easier. So you're gonna learn from a pattern how to cut fabric correctly, how to sew accurate seams, because now you've started to practice like those different seam guidelines. Understanding the pattern instructions, those terminologies. A lot of pattern writers will include abbreviations for things, but they typically have a glossary at the beginning that will say, like, RST stands for right sides together, you know. So you'll start to learn what those mean. And then you'll walk through finishing a project. I do recommend for first timers to take a pattern, maybe print it out, and then I want you to read through it and I want you to like highlight or circle anything that you're like, I don't know what that word is, and like just kind of do a little Google search or take that sentence and put it into Google and be like, what does this mean? And then maybe you'll find some tutorials that'll pop up. You're also welcome to message me anytime because I love helping people with their sewing questions. So don't forget that there's a lot of amazing people out in the sewing industry that love to help. And that, you know, you can practice and get help from all of you know all sorts of people online. But I think a lot of things that really slow people down from jumping into sewing as a true beginner, is they feel like they're not creative because they're having to follow patterns to a T, because they're imitating the imitation factor of this, of the beginning. Like you're literally having to do exactly what is being told. There's not this creative freedom, which is why I tell you to just play on your machine first to find that creative. But you, when you when you first jump into sewing, you're like, I just want to make all these things, I have all these fun ideas, I want to make all these like crazy cool things, but you gotta start with the foundational knowledge first so you can get there. And that can feel kind of boring sometimes. It can kind of feel like you're just copying what other people are putting out there. And so people love to just not have to think about it, they just get a pattern, go, I like that bag, I'm gonna make that bag, just like that bag, right? And that's great, or I like that quilt, I'm gonna make that quilt just like that quilt. And that's great. But then, like once we've made a few things and you've got this creative itch to express yourself, which is one of the great things about sewing, is how creative we can be. Is you then you can have the opportunity to start doing that. But we've gotta we've got to imitate some patterns in the sense of like you gotta do it just as it says to learn those baseline foundational skills. It is a foundation to a creative skill so that you can express yourself in the future. And that's where confidence truly starts. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming and discouraging, and a lot of people drop off at this point. They don't have someone encouraging them to keep going. Maybe they're it this is a very solo sport that we're in with sewing, and so that's why I'm so passionate about communicating with the creative uh sewing space, the community, because there's so many opportunities for us to nurture people who are beginners. I'll give a little quick story. I had a girl, her name was Allie. Hi, Allie. I'm gonna share a fun story about Allie because she came to my retreat last May, so almost a year ago. It was a year ago, actually. And it was she came with her mom, and they had a fun little mother-daughter trip to my retreat. It was so much fun. I loved meeting them, and she made a jelly roll rug, but it was also her first time really sitting down in front of a sewing machine and making like a bigger project, and and even the sewing machine she was using um was new to her, and so there was she was brand new to all of it. And I think my favorite part of that trip and that retreat was at the end when she's I think I have it on video, she's at the pressing station and she is ironing her jelly roll rug. That final piece, she's finished it, it's beautiful, and she's pressing it, and she she's sitting here going, I made this, I never thought I could do this. I can't believe I just made this. This is amazing. Look what you did. You taught me how to make this, and I said, You did that, you did it. And and she learned so much about her machine through the process. I think that project's great for beginners, even though it's a big project. It's it's three steps, and that those each three steps take a minute. So it's the repetition of doing the same thing over and over for a lengthy period of time that creates that confidence. And she got to the end and she was so proud of herself. And I'm telling you right now, I think she had gotten a jelly roll rug from a quilt shop that we went to, and she ended up starting her next jelly roll rug before she ever left the retreat. She finished her first one, was so excited, so proud that she picked up and immediately started on her next one. And that for me as a teacher and as an educator is what we live for. That is that those moments of seeing people have the light bulb moment or finding their confidence or realizing that they are capable of doing some amazing things, and it's not as hard as it looks from the outside looking in, the it those are the winning moments for me. And that gave me more joy than I think she probably even realized. I know she was over the moon, excited, but I'm I still think about those moments. It's I I have such, I'm just so proud of her uh and and what she was able to accomplish and learn. And when people like that are so eager to learn, and then they come to a retreat or they take a class or they watch a YouTube video and they get to finish a project because they found a resource that helps them find their confidence. I think that is why I keep showing up every day and doing content to encourage, inspire, and build confidence in the sewing community. So let's talk about stage two real quick modification. This is where now, like I said, we're starting to get some confidence. Uh, we're thinking about maybe how we can change things a little bit, maybe choosing a different fabric type than what is originally used in the pattern, maybe adjusting the number of pockets or eliminating pockets, or adding some elements like applique or embroidery or things like that that we may already know, right? Or adjusting the strap. Maybe the strap on this was too short and I want to lengthen it, or how to make adjustable straps. There's so many different variables that as you start to build your confidence, that's where we can start to go. Maybe I could tweak this. Maybe, maybe I can adjust the sizing of this. Start combining some different techniques from some of those other projects that I've made. Like I've made a bunch of zipper pouches, but now I want to put a zipper pocket in this bag. And I know how to sew zippers now from making all those zipper pouches, but now I'm gonna make a pocket version of that to be a part of this bag. Like, and and there's so many different ways that we can implement that, right? When people look at quilt patterns, for example, I look at them and I go, huh, that's uh and I'm I'm I'm sharing this. Let me back up. I'm sharing this perspective from someone who has always kind of tweaked things. I now as a pattern designer, and one of the things I kind of realized when I was going through my pattern writing course last year is a lot of patterns include the full size pattern for the bigger size of the quilt, but then they may include like a tabletopper size, a runner size, a twin size. And I just thought it was always really kind of interesting the thought process of doing that because I'm like, well, just give me the biggest size, and then I can just like do the math and just make a runner. Like I can look at the blocks and go, I want these blocks, and I'm gonna make it into a runner. But then I started to realize that not everybody's brains work that way, and that's okay. And as a pattern writer, now I'm having to include all of that information in my patterns, and I and I don't mind doing it, I because I actually like doing the math. So that's a fun nerdy fact about me is I really like doing the math side of figuring out the quilt math, but now I get why they put that in there. I was talking with someone the other day about a new pattern I'm working on. It's a watermelon pattern, and they were like, Oh, I would love uh I like the runner you came up with. I always like to do like a bigger version and then like a runner size, right? This person was like, I'd love it as like a table topper. So now I'm like redesigning it as a tabletop. And do I do the wide borders or do I do a narrow border? And like almost kind of like redesigning another pattern in a sense, and then having to do all of the math for that. I actually kind of like it. So it's it's inspiring to me to do that. I enjoy doing that, but it's also interesting as someone who never realized I liked doing that. I would just look at patterns and just modify it for myself. There's a lot of people who need it exactly, and I love that. So at the end of the day, you can modify things all you want, but there's always going to be a group of people who prefer it to be done just as the pattern instructs, and then they get to pick the size that they want to do, and that pattern includes that information. So I just think that's really interesting. But don't be afraid if a pattern doesn't include the information for the size that you want, that you can't do a little bit of math to figure it out. It's really not too bad. And I always err on the side of like a little more fabric than you really need in case you mess up or decide to make a matching pillow to go with it. I don't know. There's all there's nothing wrong with having too much fabric. But at the end of the day, that that modification era of building confidence and that's next step of that confidence ladder is really just creating that muscle memory too. Some of that repetition, but also bringing in the aspect of, okay, well, I've done this a bunch of times. How can I make it different? Or can I try a different process? I mean, there are so many ways to do everything in sewing. You and I could sit down with the exact same pattern, the same end goal, and and then still end up approaching it completely, but with the same result. Um, there's so many different ways to do every type of sewing. And in my opinion, and this is my opinion, but I stand very firmly in it, there isn't no right or wrong way to do uh different types of sewing. I think at the end of the day, as long as we end up with the same results. Result, and that's what you are wanting for to go for, and you're happy with the result, then that's all that matters, right? Now, I think there's definitely right or wrong ways for like holding a rotary cutter safely or cleaning your machine safely. I think there's definitely some foundational things that are important, but I think the creative aspect of putting fabric together and coming up with a result, there's multiple methods, and you got to figure out what makes sense to your brain and what process you enjoy doing the most. And that repetition of doing something is very therapeutic as well. So, for example, back to those jelly roll rugs, I couldn't tell you how many I've made and I've gifted quite a few. I love making them because they don't require my brain to really process or think. I can just zone out for a few hours and end up with a beautiful rug because I've made them so many times. And so when I'm just like, I don't have the creative energy to try something new right now, but I just want to sit and sew and hear the hum of my machine and make something beautiful that I can be proud of. I'm gonna make a jelly roll rug, I'm gonna make a rope basket, maybe some zipper pouches or a tote bag, something simple. I and I don't need patterns for any of those things. That's the best part, is I don't need patterns for them. So I don't have to follow instructions or make sure I'm doing the right step because I've done them so many times. I can just take some scrap fabric and some foam or whatever and just make it into a tote bag or a boxy bag or a quilt as you go, whatever. And that comes from repetition of sewing, that comes from practicing and trying different patterns from different people to learn different ways of doing the same thing. Okay. Stage three of that next step in the confidence ladder is gonna be ownership. This is where you're going, okay, hmm. You're gonna stop asking the question of what does the pattern say? And you're gonna start asking, What do I want this to be? How do I bethanyify this? Or you know what I mean? Like, how do I make this more me? And it can go beyond just fabric choices. It can really get into drafting different elements, combining multiple patterns. And I'm kind of mentioned this earlier. There's there's a there's been several times in my garment sewing era where I would get a new pattern and I'm like, I, you know, I made the shirt, but I don't really like the flouncy sleeve. I like more of like a cap sleeve or a ruffle sleeve. And so I'll pull a different sleeve from a different pattern and kind of Frankenstein it together. And then I end up with a result where it's like, oh, I like the body shape and I like the neckline, but I'm gonna change the sleeve and maybe I lengthen or shorten or add pockets because why would we not have pockets? You know, those kind of things. And I think that that's where we're really starting to own our confidence, own our sewing skills that we've built because now we're mixing and mashing things. You can combine multiple patterns, you're improvising solutions, you're fixing mistakes without panicking, you know, all those kinds of things. I mean, if you're watching the YouTube video, there is a quilt behind me on the wall. It's the sunset version of my frost yourself quilt. And I finished putting this together and I went outside and I took a video, like the little roll-down video, and I'm editing them back inside. I'm editing this video, and I'm looking at it going, something, something's a little off here. And I had gotten two of the rows turned around, and so my ombre from the inside out was off because it was the colors were turned around in two sections of it, and it was pretty obvious to me. A lot of people were when I posted online, they're like, I don't see it, or I see it, but it doesn't bother me because it was the pinks, so from afar it wasn't as noticeable, but up close, it couldn't have been more obvious, and so I was like, you know, I've got to rip all these rows apart, and I had to rip all the rows apart and then re-flip them around and sew them back together. And I was so irritated that I made such a careless mistake because this is not my first time making this pattern, and it's my pattern, but it's just proof that we all like make mistakes, things can happen. I even had it up on my design wall, so I'm not really sure how I got it turned around, but at the end of the day, it turned out beautiful. I'm really proud of it. And mistakes are always going to happen, no matter where you are in the confidence ladder. Like that's that's just part of sewing. It can be silly things like that where you're just like, I really don't know how we got here, but we did, and it's all fixable, right? Or it's something like, okay, I am tired, it's after midnight, nothing good happens after midnight. I should probably call it a night, knowing when to walk away and take a break. We don't want to push ourselves to the point where we're discouraged by sewing and we don't want to come back to it. It's not meant to be stressful, it's meant to be fun, an outlet, a creative expression. So I think when we get to this step stage three ownership phase of confidence, we're we're definitely we're definitely trying to push some limits here. Mix mashing, playing a little more because we have that confidence. Putting different materials through machines we probably never have before. Maybe trying new techniques, bringing in some new elements. That's that's where it can be fun. Or it can be like, okay, here's another great example for you. At my last retreat in March, Catherine with bringing sewing back had made my sewing organizer. It's like a roll-up travel sewing organizer. It was our bonus project, and everybody was making it. I had them pre-cut um kits for them, and I'm walking them through this project, and it's turning out so cute. Basically, it's a it's a little travel size roll-up that you would typically see for like makeup or jewelry or makeup brushes or things like that. But this one's for all your sewing notions, and it has places little pockets for all your feet, zipper pockets, longer pockets, and it just kind of keeps everything rolled up. And it's a very much a skill building project. I love writing beginner-friendly skill building projects that introduce you to maybe some of the accessories on your machine, like the feet. Um, and we use the rolled ham. I think we use like five different feet on that project. And if you didn't have them all, you didn't have to use them. But it was an opportunity to explore features on your machine and accessories that came with your machine that you probably have never touched. And that's why I like to make those projects. But Catherine, we get to the end, and she was in like a piping era where everything had piping, which I love about her, and she literally showed up with extra piping. She just packed it in her bag just in case, and she had just enough to add piping to this project. So she included it in the outside edge of the finished project, and she took something that we were all making and saw an opportunity based on her confidence that she's and she'd just been learning how to make piping, and she's like, I've built my confidence in piping, and I'm inserting it into everything now because I'm learning how to use it and how it can really give it a really polished, added, finished look. And she added it to the project, and I'm like, why didn't I think of that? That's so cute. And now I'm like, okay, well, maybe I need to get out piping feet and teach people how to make piping for that project as like a little bonus add-on to add piping to it because it turned out so good. And so it's just fun things like that. Like, that's where you know you're you're finding that confidence and you're starting to throw in elements even in the moment when everybody else is making the same thing. You're like, oh, I have piping in my bag. Let me pull that out. And oh, it matches perfectly with this fabric. What are the odds? And then it like works out perfectly, and it's just fun, or maybe I'm gonna add a little bow here, or whatever it is, right? And I I love I love that. And because she did that in a room with a bunch of sewers all with different skill levels, I'm pretty sure the person sitting across from her at that retreat was like brand new to sewing. It it gives everybody else permission to think outside the box by leading by example, right? She's like, oh, we'll see how it goes, you know. It's just a very like can't hurt to try kind of thing. And she did it and it was really cute. And it made hers stand out from everybody else's, but everybody's looked great and everybody built their skills. But sometimes someone leading by example in a room like that can, or leading by example in a platform like this, on a podcast or in a YouTube video tutorial. Um, it can really help those who are still finding their confidence find it even more because they can kind of go, well, she can, she can do that. I can do that one day. Maybe not today, but I I wanna I want to have that kind of confidence. And it's just because she keeps sewing, she keeps trying and she keeps like learning, and that's the whole point of it. Now, this next like stage, um, stage four of is authorship. Um, I would say most people will get up to that ownership level, playing and trying new things and mixing and matching. Some people that intimidates them and they kind of stay down and uh uh a little lower in that confidence level, and that's okay. You have to you have to feel stay where it's you're you feel like you're supposed to be. But if you ever get that itch to try something new, it's okay to do so. And there's a lot of great people like myself who want to support that and help you try new things. And then, hey, PS, you can try new things and not like it and not have to do it again. Okay, you know how many things I've tried once or twice and gone, oh, I bought all the supplies for it, but now I don't ever do it anymore because I really didn't like it. Yeah, it's okay. You don't have to. You don't have to, but at least you tried and you learned something new, and maybe those techniques can come in handy in something else you try in the future. Now, stage four is authorship, and this is really where you're at the top of the ladder. This is where you are creating something that didn't exist before. So maybe you're writing patterns, you're designing fabrics, you're making original combinations, you're creating new approaches and techniques to things, you're really paving the way for new new things in their in our industry. And that's really exciting. So maybe you're designing your own bag or you're drafting a quilt layout or inventing a technique that works for you that you haven't seen anybody else do, and then you're like sharing it and helping others. You know, like I said, there's so many different ways to do things. So just because you are climbing this ladder doesn't mean you can't find yourself here one day. And there are so many people that find themselves here at this top of the confidence ladder with a specific type of sewing, but then they would say, Well, I'm at I'm at this level with quilting, but I'm down here at the very bottom with bag making, or vice versa, or garment sewing, or whatever it is. You can be confident in different types of sewing and be at different points of this confidence ladder for different types of sewing. But as I said before, what we take from our strong suit, uh the the areas that we've practiced the most, we can take some of that knowledge to continue to build our confidence in new areas as well. So, anyways, for me, this is kind of an area that I would say I'm in, especially now that I'm drafting my own quilt patterns. I've been writing other types of sewing patterns for years, but now I'm doing public like quilt patterns, and I love it. I love it so much. It's it's a way for me to kind of reach a new stage of being fulfilled in my sewing journey. It's a new way of me being challenged creatively that I I needed, you know. I mean, after a while, you've tried all the sewing things and you're like, all right, well, what's next? You know, I think that's why I've really loved working in this industry and being a part of brands where I get to help develop new products to help you in your sewing or creative journey because it's again challenging me and in a way for me to share what I know back with the community in ways that many people don't even realize I've done. I it's amazing how many um opportunities I've had over the years to have my hands, my voice, my experience be put into a finished product that has a brand's name on it that nobody knows I ever touched, but I'm like sitting back here going, I helped do that, or I helped make that possible, or I was a big impact on that project, and look what it created. And I have so much joy and pride in those things that most of you guys don't even know about. And and I just love it because I'm like these are products I use all the time that I think are amazing. So I it's even more exciting to see things that I've always dreamt of come to fruition and get to share those with you guys. So yeah, I I think this kind of confidence ladder is a real thing. It can be a slow process, it can feel really slow. Those four steps can feel like they can take a long time to get there. I think some variables that come into play when climbing that ladder and the speed at which you do so is time you have to dedicate it, just like anything. It's like your kids' sport, right? They put so much time into these like travel baseball leagues or um gymnastics or dance, whatever they're doing. You think of all of that time, right? That to get them to build their skills and and grow themselves to be on the team, you know, all those kind of things. Same thing with sewing, kind of think of it that way. The more time you invest in it, the more you're gonna get out of it. It's like when I used to take piano lessons. This, if this doesn't ring true, I I love playing the piano. I loved it so much, but I loathe loathed reading sheet music. It it's like the lines just blurred. Okay. I just could not read sheet music. I could if I sat and really mapped it out, but I couldn't just open up sheet music and read it and play. And that always frustrated me. But then I, as an adult, realized that my brain just does not work that way. But I play by ear and I play by memory and repetition. And so I would painstakingly practice with the sheet music until it became repetition and I'd do little chunks at a time, and then I'd add more. And then I didn't even look at the sheet music because it was all by memory. I was playing solely by memory, and it was a placement of my hands and the sound of the song versus the sheet music, and then it became my own vibe, and that's kind of how I approached sewing and my and my quilting and my my pattern writing and all of those things is like you know, I and same with this confidence ladder. It's like I I did the hard things, the slow process, and now I have found what works for me and how I learn and resources I need to figure out things when I get stuck and build my skills, and then you know, I am off to the races. And so I think it's very relatable that we've all probably experienced this confidence ladder in other areas of our life, not just sewing. And we probably just haven't put two to two together. Um, so think about it. Every finished project is another little step up on that ladder. The only way to keep going up that ladder is to keep making. Okay. And it doesn't have to be big, impressive things. It could be the same zipper pouch ten times in a row. But guess what? By the tenth time, that zipper is gonna be chef's kiss. Okay. It's the repetition of doing things that makes it easier and easier. And then the next time you sit down to do a zipper, maybe three months from then, you're not gonna have to go, wait, how do I do a zipper again? You're gonna, I know exactly how to do zipper because I practiced it and practiced it and practiced it. Okay, so for my stitch and chair this week, I want to share what I'm working on, and I did kind of mention it already, is my sunset quilt. By the time this comes out, it will have been long-armed, and I'm taking it um to Madison, Indiana, because uh have a retreat, and then in the summer, we're doing another retreat there with this pattern, and I'm so excited, so excited, to be making my this was my first ever quilt pattern I released in January. I now have three. My third one's about to come out, the with the watermelons, hopefully very soon. So keep an eye out for that. I did one over Valentine's as well, so I feel like three patterns already under my belt in just a the first few months of the year as a new quilt designer is pretty, pretty good. I'm pretty proud of myself. And I really love the process of designing quilts. But the the frost yourself quilt that's behind me originally started in shades of blue and white for winter, and now it's a sunset version, and it you can do this in any color way you want. Fun ombres, it's so much fun. I know it's a lot of points. I just want to point out, haha, pun, that these points are not matched, they are made in the seam. These are not matched points, they are created as you sew it together. They are created in your quarter inch deep seam allowance. They are not lined up perfectly and hope they stay in on in no, we're not matching points in this project at all. It looks like it. That's what's so cool about it. It looks like it. That's why I say it's very beginner-friendly. Because all these points are created through your seam allowance, which is so cool. So some people look at this and go, that looks intimidating. I'm like, yeah, it looks impressive, right? It looks really cool. It's really not that hard. And if you want a project that's gonna build some confidence, that's rip repeating the same step. It is literally the same step over and over, this entire project. And it comes together so quickly, and you can chain piece it really quickly, and it's a lot of fun. So, anyways, that's my stitch and share. And I encourage you to go grab this pattern off my website, craftbethany.com, if you want to get it and make it. And I want to see what colorway you choose. Like you couldn't have some a lot of fun with this, like, so cute. You love to see it this week. Uh, well, I am, as I'm recording this, literally about to leave for my first retreat in Madison, Indiana at the Little Golden Fox. I know you've heard me talk about it before. I'm gonna be making jelly roll rugs with everybody, which I'm super excited about. And seeing some friends that came to my March retreat are coming to that one as well. And then also, when this is coming out the very next week, I'm gonna be heading up to Chicago for HH. So if you're gonna be at H next week, um, I'm not going this week for the fabric and flow, the new consumer-facing show that HH is doing this year. I will not be there for that part, but I will be there next week for the industry show, the B2B show. I'd love to say hi. I'd love to see you. You can probably find me in the Genome booth. I'm gonna be doing some fun things over there. They're releasing. If you haven't seen it online yet, um, the long arm that I have, the Genome QMP20, they came out with a bright red version. It is so pretty, and I cannot wait to see it in person. I've got some fun videos that I'm gonna make with that. You'll probably see me pop into the Aliso booth a few times with Michelle, and I'll just be hanging out. So please come say hi. I'd love to see you. It's really, it's honestly, it's my first time going to H H and not representing another brand. So the last this is my third show to go to. The last two years, I worked for other companies and was there representing those companies and not myself. And so this time I'm like, I don't know what to do with myself, but I I love the show so much that I was like, I have to go. So I'm going truly as craft with Bethany and a quilt pattern writer and a creator and a podcast host, and I'm super excited about that. Be sure to come say hi to me and follow me on Instagram, it's probably where I put in Facebook where I post most of the content I'll be sharing on my journey there. I'm super excited. I love industry shows. This is literally one of my favorite things. So that's my you love to see it this week. All right, so coming up next week on the podcast, I'll be back with Audra and we have a guest. Her name is Miss Kate or Quilt with Miss Kate, and it is a fun, fun interview. I cannot wait for you to hear it. So be sure to come back in just a couple weeks for her episode. And then we have some fun new things planned for this summer. So be stay stay tuned for those announcements as they come out. And yeah, I hope you guys have a great one and find your confidence. It all lies within you. You are more than capable, and if you need help, I'm here to help. All right, happy sewing. Bye.