Episode 52: Quilting with Corey Pearson

What happens when a love of quilting turns into a career that takes you across the country, introduces you to incredible people, and makes you one of the familiar faces in the quilting community?

In Episode 52 of The Sewcial Hour, I’m joined by Corey Pearson, Chief Quilter at Linda’s, for a conversation about quilting, creativity, travel, community, and the journey that brought him to where he is today.

Corey and I talk about how he discovered quilting, his path to becoming Chief Quilter at Linda’s, and what that role really looks like behind the scenes. We dive into his passion for longarm quilting, the artistry behind the process, and why he continues to be excited about quilting after turning his passion into a career.

We also talk about life on the road, quilt shows and industry events, building relationships within the quilting community, and the partnerships that help move the industry forward. And, of course, we get a little personal with some fun quick-fire questions along the way!

Whether you're a longtime quilter, a longarm enthusiast, or simply someone who loves hearing the stories behind the people who make up our creative community, this conversation with Corey is full of insight, laughs, and plenty of quilting inspiration.

Because quilting is about so much more than fabric and thread. It's about creativity, connection, lifelong learning, and the people who make this community so special.

🧵 Sew With Me Retreat — October

I also take a quick break in the middle of this episode to tell you about my upcoming Sew With Me Retreat this October!

If you're looking for a fun weekend filled with sewing, creativity, community, and plenty of time to work on the projects you love, I'd love for you to come sew with me!

👉 Learn more about the October Sew With Me Retreat:
https://www.craftwithbethany.com/sew-with-me-retreat-october

✂️ Shop Linda's

Want to check out the quilting tools and supplies Corey and the team at Linda's love? Shop Linda's and use my affiliate code BETHANY10 to save 10% off your order!

👉 www.lindas.com

As a Linda's affiliate, I may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made using my code.

Follow Corey

Want to keep up with Corey and see more of his quilting adventures?

📸 Instagram: @sew_coco_pearson

https://www.instagram.com/sew_coco_pearson/

🎙️ The Sewcial Hour — A Podcast for Sewists by Sewists

Bringing creativity and community together through conversations about sewing, quilting, creativity, and the people who make this industry so special.

Follow @thesewcialhourpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, subscribe on your favorite podcast platform, and watch video episodes on YouTube. You can also join our private Facebook community, The Sewcial Sewists, to connect with fellow makers!

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:14

Hi everyone and welcome back to the Social Hour Podcast, a podcast for SOAS by SOAS. I'm your host, Bethany, and today I have probably one of my industry besties uh here as a guest. It's honestly if I didn't write an outline, this podcast could be like an eight-part docuseries on Netflix because of how much he and I could talk together. But I'm so grateful that we were finally able to make this happen and carve out some time to chat and share our conversation with you all because I have the amazing Corey Pearson with me today. Hi, Corey.

SPEAKER_00 0:45

Hi, Bethany. How are you?

SPEAKER_02 0:47

I am so excited to hang out with you today because every time we hang out or do anything or chat, it's just like no time has passed. I don't know. I I it there's it's a special thing when you just like click with someone. And we've we kind of came together through the industry and doing some business stuff together and have done sew alongs together, which were so much fun. But I our friendship has carried on outside of that, and I am so grateful for that. And uh and I'm excited for people to get to learn more about who you are, besides being not only the chief quilter, but CEO of Linda's and Formore. Um, so we're gonna talk about all that you do because honestly, there's probably things that you do that I don't even realize that you do. You're very humble about all the things that you do, but you do a lot, and I really don't know how you do it. So if there's a secret, this is the time to spill the tea. But um, in a nutshell, before we dive in, can you just kind of give like the elevator pitch of who Corey is?

SPEAKER_00 1:48

The elevator pitch of who Corey is. Girl, the elevator is gonna be elevated. I have 10 floors. Okay. Uh well, my name is Corey Pearson. I am in from Dallas, Texas, and I've been quilting since I was six. I grew up quilting under uh my grandmother's guidance and uh kind of took it from there. And then when I got into the idea of YouTube, um, that's when I really started to take off within the industry. And that's uh that's my 10 floors, I think.

SPEAKER_02 2:20

And we'll dive into the others here in a minute. But you know, that's a great little like this is how I got here introduction. Now, I always kick off with an icebreaker question just to kind of warm us up. And I would absolutely love for our listeners to also answer this icebreaker question to yourself in the comments on YouTube or over on our social our um the Facebook group, social sewist Facebook group. So the question is gonna be what's the most unexpected place quilting has taken you?

SPEAKER_00 2:50

Oh, the most unexpected place quilting has taken me.

SPEAKER_02 2:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:55

Kangaroo Island in Australia.

SPEAKER_02 2:58

That's really cool.

SPEAKER_00 2:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 3:00

That was Australia's mine too. It took me to Sydney, and I was just like, what is my life right now? And can this always be my life?

SPEAKER_00 3:08

I it was so good. Australia is stunningly beautiful, and it was always one of those things where I was like, I don't think I'm ever gonna be able to get there. And lo and behold, I did. Um and I spent two weeks there um with my husband, and then we went there for work as well. So it was a great time.

SPEAKER_02 3:24

Yeah, I was there for two weeks in Sydney, and I was just and it was my first like international trip, and I flew solo, and it took like 24 hours to get there, you know, and like I my longest flight before that had been like four hours, and then here I am on a 16-hour flight. I'm like, I don't know what's going on. That's me. Yeah, I just went for it. You say, You're gonna send me to Australia and pay me to go and pay for my trip and pay for me to explore, and I get to sew and meet other people that sew and teach.

SPEAKER_00 3:57

Like it's kind of one of those say less things. It's like put me on the rest of my arm.

SPEAKER_02 4:02

Exactly, exactly. So bucket list for sure, and I keep like messaging them like, when's the next summit? When can I come back and teach? Because I had so much fun. And um, the friends that I've made, the people in Australia are some of the nicest people I've ever met. Truly. So yeah, it's amazing how you know this industry can feel really small, but like the opportunities that can come within that, I was not prepared for those types of opportunities. I didn't think that that was uh even it wasn't even on my radar. Yeah. And so to but you travel a lot with sewing and you um go to a lot of shows. We always bump into each other at shows. Um is there this is kind of a second little follow-up question, but is there an industry show that is your favorite to go to that like has the best vibes? You know, just you enjoy the whole thing about it, the way it's done, everything. And it I'm just curious, and it could be a consumer show and a trade show, whatever it is. Just wondering, like, do you have a favorite show that happens every year that you're like, this is the one I get most excited to go to?

SPEAKER_00 5:10

I do. Um, I actually have two. I have one for consumer and then one for B2B. I think everyone knows who the B2B one is, but let's start with consumer. Um my favorite show in the United States to go for for a consumer show is QuilCon. Um I know that's a huge shock. Um, but I just I like the vibe. I love the people, I love the color, I love the energy. Um, it just feels like home when I get there. So it's it's it's always a wonderful time to be there. I know you and I run into each other um occasionally at QuilCon, which is fun. And then from a B2B side, it's H H. You can't have anything better than H H. Especially this pasture Bethany.

SPEAKER_02 5:50

The vibes were 10 out of 10. Yeah. And it went by so fast.

SPEAKER_01 5:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:56

And every I mean, I there wasn't a bad moment or a bad day or anything. And I it's it's it they just do it so well. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like they spread everything out, like uh the aisles are plenty big. It's it's like you're just hanging out with your friends. It's like a reunion every year with your industry friends and getting to meet new people and and supporting new people coming into the industry and just seeing the growth. I mean, what was there, like over 700 booths this year, and last year was like 500, and the year before it was like 300. And I've been the last three years, so it's like yeah, seeing that growth, it's it's a lot. So if you ever get to go to H H and I did a whole like H H recap video on my Craft of Bethany YouTube channel, if you haven't seen it, if you're not sure what this show is that we're talking about, that's a great video to watch, like as an explanation of what it is, who can go, those kind of things. Um, but i if you're ever gonna go, don't be like other trade shows and oh, I can just go for a day or a day and a half. No, you need the whole time.

SPEAKER_00 6:58

Yeah, you've got to be there the whole time.

SPEAKER_02 7:00

The whole time. And you know what I have to talk about this real quick because I am amazed at the people who can start early in the day, be on that show floor all day, or teaching, or presenting, or signing books, or whatever. They're everybody's on the go all day, right? Right, you're on your feet the entire time. End of day, we've got dinner plans. So now we're going out, we're still networking. There's not like a pause, and then after that, there's like a par there was like a whole dance party one night, right? Like, and everybody's hanging out and having the best time, and I I couldn't go to it. I one, I didn't have a ticket, but two, like, I I couldn't hang. I've I've but it's amazing at the people that are like running circles around me, and I'm like, I feel like I need to train better for next year. Like, I need to start running or something.

SPEAKER_00 7:54

It's definitely like the Olympics of B2B shows. Like you're there to do your thing. But like you said, going for one day is not possible. I mean, you can't okay, I take it aback. You can go for one day if that's what your schedule permits. But if you have the availability to be there for the whole time, you like you said, you could start at 7.30 in the morning. The show doesn't open until 10, but networking starts about 7.30 in the morning at that Starbucks line out front.

SPEAKER_02 8:18

Yes, it does.

SPEAKER_00 8:19

Um, and then you're going all night, I mean 14, 15 hours of networking, and you still didn't get everything accomplished.

SPEAKER_02 8:27

Yeah, you're on the entire time. And then what's even crazier is like I'm getting all this information from people. I'm taking notes in my phone for things I have to do, and I'm trying to do them like that day, that night. Because if I don't, then it won't happen. And I know that about myself. And so it's like I have to strike while the iron's hot, but I am already in my pajamas, you know, makeup off, hair in a bun, sitting in bed trying to send emails. I mean, I sent you an email that one night um about being on the podcast because I was like, Right. We we talked about it, we put it on our calendars. I immediately sent it to you because if I didn't, I knew I'd forget. Because I knew the next day presented a whole new wave of information that I would need to retain. And it's a lot. It's a lot. And for someone who works from home and stays in this bubble, I I underestimated the energy and the amount of caffeine I would need. Like I didn't get a I didn't get a diet coke midday on my the first day. I strategically packed two in my bag the next day, and then the last day, my friend Gabby went to McDonald's or DoorDash McDonald's giant diet cokes for us for the last day. Like she just knew like we were crashing.

SPEAKER_00 9:39

You gotta have it. I know you like a crisp Diet Coke. Crispy. I know you do, a crispy one. Um, but yeah, no, I think if you haven't been to something like that before, just if you and you're listening to this podcast and you're thinking maybe I want to go prepare yourself.

SPEAKER_02 9:53

Prepare yourself. Um less is more, you don't need to carry around your laptop and all of that. Like just bring a notepad or your phone um and a little bag because it'll get heavy and you're walking a lot. Um just be prepared for that. And it but it's so fun. Like we were walking and doing, and next thing I know, it's three o'clock in the afternoon and I haven't eaten. You know, and I'm like, oh.

SPEAKER_00 10:17

I also think that like H H because they do it so well, and I know this isn't really the whole topic of our podcast, but it's it's good. Is because they do it so well, they're a very digital company. So, like if you don't want to bring anything to carry except for a little bag in your phone, you can scan people's badges and it will put it into your contacts in the app, and you can put in why you talked with them, what you're looking for, you can connect together through it. Like, there's so much you can do. Yeah. And or if you don't want to, if you just want to do the bare minimum, you can do that too. It's completely oh, like whatever you want to do.

SPEAKER_02 10:50

No matter what, just being there, you're gonna get something from it. I mean, it's har it's impossible not to. Just the inspiration, just seeing the new products that are coming. I am in awe at some of these companies that are just dishing out so many new things. I'm like, what how are y'all doing all of this? And I know you're you're in that boat. So let's dive into let's let's take a step back because you and I could talk about this kind of stuff all day, which is I mean, I told you I created an outline for a reason, but there's a very good chance that we'll defer from it a little. Um, but I want to get to know, I want people to know who Corey is outside of what they see online. The face of Linda's the the CEO, the chief quilter, the the live streamer. Like, I want people to know who you are when all the cameras are off and you're not sewing. Like, who is Corey?

SPEAKER_00 11:48

See, Bethany, when you sent me that email about, you know, who is Corey outside of Linda's, it's it's kind of a difficult question. And it's not because I'm I'm meaning it to be, like, I don't want to be difficult. It's I've grown up at Linda's since I was six, and I'm 31 now. So I built a lot of my, I wouldn't say my identity, but like a lot of who I am.

SPEAKER_02 12:16

It's a huge part of it.

SPEAKER_00 12:18

It's like it's massive part of me. Um, so like I get this question from my friends all the time. It's like, what do you do outside of work? And like the thing about it is I don't really feel like what I do is work. I honestly don't. I know people say that. I honestly don't feel like it's work. I am doing what I think I was yeah, I think I was doing what I was put on this earth to do, yeah, which is to give back with the knowledge that I have, make the best possible shopping experience for someone that I can. And then it zooms in on Bethany because she's so beautiful. I did a hand gesture.

SPEAKER_02 12:49

I gotta fix this camera, y'all. If you're watching on YouTube, I'm sorry, you just saw all my pores and up my nose. But like I went to reach for my coffee and it basically just turned started zooming in. Sorry about that.

SPEAKER_00 13:01

It's a technology thing.

SPEAKER_02 13:02

It is, and I don't know how to turn it off.

SPEAKER_00 13:05

But like it's it's it's kind of one of those things because with Linda's, I was, and I'm sure you might get into this, but I'm gonna go, I might talk about it now because you and I veer from outlines all the time.

SPEAKER_01 13:16

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:16

Is I growing up, I had a really rough childhood. Like really rough in terms of like I had a great family support system, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But I had a really rough time at school. Like I was bullied all the time for reasons I didn't realize until I got older. Like, I didn't know. But uh, not that that's okay, but I was in very dark spots in my childhood, like very dark places. And coming into Linda's when my mom got the job there, it was finding that sense of community and that sense of self and that sense of space. Like I was safe.

SPEAKER_02 13:57

Yeah. You went to a safe space, like where you belonged. Like it was uh like a safe haven that felt very different than the other world that you had to be in during the day for school.

SPEAKER_00 14:07

Yeah, exactly. Yeah. So like being immersed in all of this color. That's another reason why I love QuilCon so much, but like being immersed in all of this color and doing kind of whatever you want to do with your craft and finding out that it's okay to be a guy and be creative and be flamboyant and do this and do that and do this, and you don't have to stick to just the way society, some people in society want you to be. And it was at that place I was like, I found my tribe, I found my people, and then I got into teaching, and that really is what like kick-started me and was like, bro, like this is what you're meant to be doing.

SPEAKER_02 14:42

And so you do you find that teaching uh helped you find your confidence in who you are? Because people were not just accepting you for who you are, but also appreciating what you were sharing with them. They were listening to you, they were excited to hear from you, they were eager to learn from you. Did you do you find that a lot of that confidence that you probably were missing as at a younger child from that expuling experience, that you found that through sewing and quilting and maybe even teaching? Because I feel like it can be pretty empowering.

SPEAKER_00 15:20

Yeah, it's not that I oh God, I'm about to get very honest. It's not that I like seek people's approval, but when you are growing up and by everyone in your class, except for your close friends, you're basically told that you're nothing and no one wants to be around you and egg, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. When you get in front of an audience to teach and they're like, they paid their hard-earned money to be there, like they want to see you, they want to hear what you have to say. And when you see that, and I know you know what I'm talking about right now, Bethany, when you see that light bulb go off in their eye, like you can see that spark that, oh my gosh, I can do this too. Like, there is no greater euphoria than that.

SPEAKER_02 16:01

Like it's very validating as a teacher that you're doing something right because we also are just reiterating what we've learned, right? Right. So we just hope that it resonates with just one person in the room and it makes it all worth it. All the prep, all the stress, all the oh my god, the questioning ourselves. Can I really do this? Can I really teach a room of people? It it's and it doesn't I I maybe for you, but I find that no matter how many times I've taught in front of people, whether it's a live stream or in person or a retreat, I still get nervous. I still get nervous um that I'm going to do a good enough job for them.

SPEAKER_00 16:46

You get nervous because you care. It's because you care about what you're doing. And it's not to like dis and dismantle or whatever if someone doesn't get nervous, but like I study what I'm about to show somebody. Like I want it to be the top-notch personal thing. Because I I go back to what I said a few minutes ago, is especially in this economy that we're in, people saved their hard-earned dollars to come listen to me, or they're joining one of the live streams, or they're doing this, or they're doing that. Like, and I don't like to mess with people's time. I don't. I really don't. I want to I want you to get everything that you need to get out of this. I want to follow a nice schedule because I know they've got things to do. And I think it's just, I don't know. I could I mean I could talk about teaching all day long. It it was it's such a rewarding experience because I didn't know that I was gonna be a teacher. I had no interest.

SPEAKER_02 17:41

We all kind of stumble into it organically. I think I think what it is is like we're doing our thing and we start sharing it because we just are so excited about it, and it just kind of turns into like, well, now people want to learn more from you. Like now they're asking for it, and you're like, oh, well, what else can I share? You know, and it's it gets exciting. It gets exciting. Uh, but I do. I study, I prep, I you know, I I visually put myself in their shoes and go, is this something that I would want to attend? Is this something that I would want to listen to? Is this something that I would find valuable if I had never experienced this before or seen this before or whatever it may be? I try to really envision myself. I close my eyes. I it's like a meditation for me. I close my eyes as I'm planning an event, as I'm planning anything, I qu visually walk through the entire experience from their perspective. Is this the right thing to do? Is this the move? Is this the project we should focus on? Like whatever it may be. And then the rest, I think once I get that vision in place, the rest just kind of creates itself. Um and then it it's just it feels right. But I really I really try to like envision myself in that seat.

SPEAKER_01 18:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 18:56

In that seat of the student. So it's really fun though. It's and like you said, it's very it fills your cup, right? Like a lot of I was literally talking to someone about this yesterday, Corey, and I know that you and I have talked about it before many times, but what we do is very forward-facing uh and presenting ourselves online and all these other ways, but what we do behind the scenes to make all that possible can be very lonely and isolating, and there's a lot of like not fun stuff that goes into it, and and and there's a lot of parts and pieces. And um, so when we do get those opportunities to have those moments of getting to teach in person and seeing those light bulb moments and getting that validation and of our hard work, and that is what keeps filling our cup so that we can go through the process again to get to the next in-person experience. And honestly, if I could do a retreat every month, I would because I just live for that high. It's like it's addicting to be able to be around other people who just love to do what you'd like to do. Yeah, no, I 100% agree.

SPEAKER_00 20:05

Yeah, it's it's a very fulfilling thing. And like I leave next week to go teach for a week in Kansas City and getting everything prepped, all you know all the kits prepped, all the handouts prepped, everything prepped. Like you said, it can be kind of a lonely part because you know, people want to help you. I'm not gonna say my team doesn't want to help me, but you know me, Bethany. I can be a diva. Like I want things done a very specific way, and by the time I explain it, I can just have them working on something else. Yeah. So it's like, I'll just do my thing. But then the other side of that's like, well, it's kind of quiet in here.

SPEAKER_02 20:37

Um yeah. Yeah. Was there a pivotal moment in your process of this is a hobby to this is a career? And then just recently now CEO of two big brands. Like is there a moment that you look back and you go, yeah, this is a like this is the moment that made me go, yeah, this is exactly where I'm supposed to be, or this is this is what I wanna, I do want to make this my career, my focus. Like it's not just a I I a hobby after school or helping out at the store or those kind of things. It's it's I'm committed to this. Or has it always just been an assumption?

SPEAKER_00 21:19

No, it has not always been an assumption by any means. Um my pivotal moment was I was I went to I went to college. Um I got my bachelor's um in business with a focus on organizational behavior and human resource management. And I thought that I was gonna go work for this massive corporation in downtown and go do all these things and have all you know, all that stuff. Climb the ladder. And you what?

SPEAKER_02 21:44

Climb the ladder.

SPEAKER_00 21:45

Oh, yeah, climb that corporate ladder. Yeah, do the things. And um as I was talking through that with all of my friends that were doing kind of that same idea as we were kind of figuring out what we were doing our last year of college. It not you know not to dig on anybody that did it, but it didn't sound happy to me. It didn't. Um but I knew I still wanted to do something in business. I wanted to do something in marketing, something you know, something in teaching, or something in not teaching, that really wasn't what I was going for. But anyway, you know what I mean. But I was um I got invited to teach on a quilting cruise, right, the day after I graduated college. Um so I was send off. I know, right? So I got I had been doing YouTube for a little bit, um, and we can talk about that in a few minutes, but I had been doing YouTube for a little bit, just showing off different techniques because we were selling machines at the time, and I was getting so many questions while I was at college about them, I was like, I'll just make videos about it. Um and so I got invited to teach, let's see, I graduated in May. I got invited to teach December or January before that. So I got all my stuff prepped, and then the day after I graduated, we were in Galveston at the port to take off for the for the for the week. And while I was on that ship teaching those people, it hit me that maybe this is what I should be doing. And I mean, my my mom and my stepdad created a wonderful business out of it. Um they they're you know, doing very well in life. And I was like, you know, I can I can make good money, I can be happy, I can kind of create my own hours, I can do this, I can do that. I said, well, let's go for it, let's give it a shot. So when we got off the ship, um I told my mom, because she was, you know, we were trying to figure out what I was gonna do. And I told her, I said, no, I think this is what I want to do. And lo and behold, I had been working like part-time, full-time-ish, kind of here and there while I was in college. Little did I know what it was really gonna be like working full-time with family in a business. Um and we have very similar personality traits. So my mom and I were constantly butting heads off camera. Um, but it became to be like this great environment where I got to see people do things and I got to travel all over the world. And it's taking me to where I am today, where you know, you mentioned you've mentioned CEO. Thank you very much. I like the title. But I had to suit you. I know it does. I really had no interest in being a CEO. Like I didn't, I just wanted to be kind of doing my thing over here. But I am a little bit of a control freak, and I know that about myself, and I'm self-aware. And it took me to the point when I was offered the position that I was just like, you know, I can be in control of what's going on. I can't, you know, I can't fix every single thing, but I can be in control of where the vision or the future of Linda's is headed. Um, because I I take that very personal and I take that very to heart because Linda's was originally started by Linda V. Taylor in 1995. Um, and so she and she entrusted me and my family with her legacy as we have grown it since she sold the business to my parents in 2012. And I still take that very close to my heart that in every business decision that I make, as many of them that I can, is this how Linda might have wanted it? You know, granted, we have to continue to grow and we have to keep moving and we've got to advance different things, but I always come back to that sense of like integrity and honesty and trying to keep the business as good as I personally can. Now, again, I can't control every single factor of everything. Um but it's, you know, I want to keep that heart and that family-owned people because we still are a family-owned business. My uncle runs it with me now. Um my mom has since retired um and she's out there living her best life.

SPEAKER_02 25:58

And she still comes to shows and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_00 26:01

She still comes and hangs out with me.

SPEAKER_02 26:03

Yeah. Yeah. And goes live with you sometimes. But like, I feel like you you talk about like I didn't ever think I, you know, wasn't trying to get to this point or this title. It wasn't something that you sought after, but I have watched and and kind of admired how you have studied our industry that we're in. Like you really have you you're watching, you're listening, you're collaborating, you're partnering with, you're you're absorbing. I feel like the reason you guys have had such growth and then bringing in a partnership with Fomore and everything, like I feel like it was always gonna end up here hindsight, right? But it's because you just have been immersing yourself personally into building relationships in this industry that have led you to where you are now. And and if that isn't a testament to the power of um collaborations and networking and just you know understanding how this industry works, you've you've studied it.

unknown 27:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:12

No, I I I I 100% agree with that. I always come back to thinking, or I come back to this thought process. And I know I I I I see this in you too, is I am so busy every single day looking down in my work and like hustling and moving and studying and collaborating and building relationships and doing this and making this brand deal and doing this and doing that, that I look up, even today, right now. I'm sitting with you, I look up and I'm like, how did I even get here?

SPEAKER_02 27:40

Someone pinch me.

SPEAKER_00 27:42

I know it's like what? Because I think the hard part for all of us, and I I think I can speak for quite a few people, especially when we're hustling and moving, especially as small business owners, is we are right now in the present where our past selves have wanted to be. Like we are like we're here, but we're so focused on seeing what future self needs and needs to do that I don't get a chance all the time to really admire and like appreciate all that hard work and my whole entire team behind me. That's how it's not just me. It's all of my people behind me that have helped me get to being able to have the privilege to sit in my chair at home and talk to you on a screen while everyone's at work running my company. Like it's I don't I'm gonna get emotional, but like it's it's incredible the the power of hard, hard work and studying what you really love and focusing on what you really love and giving your all into it because it pays off so well in the long run. It does not just monetarily, it's like this like relationship-wise and like getting to meet you. Like you, we you know, we met at H and H two years ago, and all of the stuff we've done since then, off of our first conversation. I know. Like, I it's the friendships, it's the relationship. Because our our industry is really based on relationships. It really is. Really is. And so when you can make that connection with somebody, you know, you can be friends for life. Yeah, because you both love the same thing, you're both t going towards the same goal. What can we do to help each other get there? And that's when you mentioned the power of collaboration. That's what it is. Totally like it's a good idea.

SPEAKER_02 29:28

Well, and I also think it's important to acknowledge those who have found success in our industry like you have. I have found that all of them, as you were talking about, have a sense of gratitude and appreciation for what they've accomplished. They don't take it for granted. They they will do anything that they've ever done, they'll do it today if they need to. So if you need to go cut fabric for kits, I'm sure you could go help cut fabric for kids, even though you've probably got a team that does right. Like so there's there's a humbling aspect to to those who have found such growth. Um, you know, it's funny that you mention taking a moment to appreciate, and sometimes we get so focused on what's next that we forget to appreciate where we're at and how past me is would dreamt of this moment or dreamt of being where I am today. I actually saw that as a meme this morning when I was scrolling and I thought, oh, that's so powerful. So it's so comical in a sense, or you know, that you even mention it, but it is very true. Uh I I think our culture in the world as a whole is just a rat race of just go, go, go, go, go, go, go. You've got to do more, especially with social media. You gotta post more, you gotta do more. You as soon as you post it, you're already thinking about the next thing and and all that it's just non-stop and it can feel a like a lot and like you're never gonna catch up, that you're never gonna be able to catch your breath. But it's okay to take a pause. It's okay to like spend some time and have a chat with your friend on a podcast. It's okay to like uh talk about and be grateful for uh all that you've done. It's not a selfish thing, it's not a gloating thing, it's a I put in the work. I should be able to toot my horn and say, Yeah, I did that, and look at where it's gotten me and how can I help others? I think that's the follow-up because how can I help others? You and I have you brought up how we met. It was literally speed dating at age and age. And I don't even think I was supposed to be there, but I just brought myself into this room and I end, you know, we're going around and meeting all these brands um at these different tables for a few minutes, and you and I kind of connected. And I was like, okay, like I need to talk to him more. Uh and so after the little speed dating rounds, going through all the tables, we had like a little cocktail hour after to like continue those conversations that you had a good connection with. And I made a beeline for you, and I was like, I don't know if you remember me, but this is who I am. And I feel like we should be friends, and it was just like the rules.

SPEAKER_00 32:05

That's exactly how it happened. I saw you out of the corner of my eye. Bethany, when I tell you, hold on. For the people watching on YouTube, they can get the visual. You've got Charlie and my Grogu cup. These were the people in the Bethany went, move and like beelined to talk to me. And we just have to be able to do that.

SPEAKER_02 32:22

You are like six five or something. Like you're how tall are you?

SPEAKER_00 32:27

I'm six four, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 32:28

Okay, so I was close. Like you, I can spot you across a showroom floor. Um, and I'm like, I gotta find, I gotta find Corey. But I get spot you across the room, and I was like, Well, that was the best conversation I had in that speed dating. So that's who I want to get to know. And the rest is history. Like, we just hit it off. We but you know what? What made me connect with you is that you you met me where I am, making it comfortable for me to have that conversation. You know, sometimes people people get nervous of going up and talking to someone who owns a brand or is a part of a brand and and they want to maybe work with them or do something, they get a little nervous, like, oh, they're so and so, and you know, and I've never been that way. Like I've always just been like they they put their pants on one leg at a time like I do, like they brush their teeth every morning like I do. Like, you know, they're human and so am I. And I, you know, I don't care where their title is, like, I don't care how much money they have in their bank account or how big their house is, like, that doesn't matter. We're here to talk about something that we have in common, and that's all that matters. And some people respond to that approach in a more of like a well, what can you do for me kind of thing? And there's there's always those people in every industry. But those who are like, man, let me hear about you. What are you doing? What do you what do you you know, let me what questions do you have for me? Like, how can I help? Like, like, let's figure this out together. That col that's the kind of collaboration that really blossoms, and that's where those friendships come from. I feel like it's great to be able to work together, but it's also great to say that I can call you a friend and call you text you and go, you won't believe what happened today, you know, kind of thing too. And we can just shoot the shit, right? And have fun. So I know that the Corey that I met that day is the same Corey I'm sitting here and talking with today, and that hasn't changed. And that's something that's very comforting. So, how you have found comfort in people in this industry, how people find comfort in you and how you treat them too. And I think that I just had to tell you that because your friendship has meant a lot over this last year. I've learned so much from you. The opportunities, the support with my retreats and everything else. It's just it's a breath of fresh air. Okay. It's just a breath of fresh air to to have someone in your court no matter what. You know? Um, so I appreciate that.

SPEAKER_00 34:53

Thanks, Bethany. I hate you.

SPEAKER_02 34:55

I don't mean to make you cry, but you need to hear that that all that you do for others, we appreciate it. And you know I would do anything for you. Um but but how you found comfort in this industry through those connections. Now you're po pouring that out because you've healed from that, right? And I think that that is a testament to how sewing and quilting can be very healing.

SPEAKER_00 35:23

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 35:24

Not just the industry, but like the craft itself. And how it's just a bonus that it brings us all together and we get to talk about it and do it together. So truly, some of my favorite sew longs we've done or sew alongs that I've done are the ones I've done with you. And if y'all haven't ever seen those, they're all over the place.

SPEAKER_00 35:44

They're they're something, let me tell you, folks. They're a good time. But I thank you, Bethany. I really appreciate that. I I do um I try to give back as much as I possibly can for you know to anybody. I mean, my friends, life, but like and work, especially, and this isn't to take you down a notch by any means, so don't take it that way. But like when I see a quote unquote smaller brand, not that you're a small brand, but a smaller brand. Or, you know, or an individual or someone that's trying to get started or something like that that wants to do something. I'm like, like you said, I was like, okay, what can we do together? Like, what do you what's up? What do you want to do? And then, you know, we did um, you know, one of your uh events that you were hosting, and it that went well. And then we were messaging, and you're like, Yeah, I'm gonna start working on these sew alongs. I was like, Do you want help? And I don't know if you were shocked or taken back. Well, I was just like, Well, you want to do you just send me the end by the way.

SPEAKER_02 36:38

I think it was more like you have time. Yeah. Like, because I see all that you do, and I'm like, I would be honored, but like, do you have time? But you make time and you you prioritize those things, and it it makes me feel like an equal. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 36:58

Like I it is truly that's literally what we are. I mean, we are equals at the end of the day. Everybody is on the same playing field. Just because, you know, I'm I CEO two brands, that doesn't make me any better than anybody else. I still, like you said, put my pants on one leg at a time. I've tried two legs at one time. That was a disaster. Let's say that. Um, but like I still I'm still just me. Like, I I told my um on my team this the other day. Uh, that we were we were in our uh strategy meeting, and I was like, guys, if you have a problem, come talk to me about it. Let's get it, let's fix it, let's whatever you need to get your work done better. And they were like, but you have so much out, you have so many other things going on, like we don't want to bother you. And I said this in a joking manner, and I was like, You guys get paid for this size of a platter. That's what I want you to deal with. I can buy a bigger platter, and it's that's not a flex, but it's like it's my job to make sure my team and our customers and everybody else is having the best possible experience, time, and whatever at work. And I have to figure that out. That's why I am where I am. And so I can make time for anybody. You know, like I'm doing a I'm doing a sew along right now with the ladies with quilting with Latinas. And oh, I love Lena. She was just texting me last night. I love her. And she was like, Do you really have time to do this with us? For I think it's like a nine-month sew along. And it is scheduled right in between my meetings on that day. And you know, I have a hard stop. Like, guys, I gotta go. But I mean, of course, I would however I can use my platform to help it because if we all grow together, the industry is gonna keep growing.

SPEAKER_02 38:34

There's room for everybody.

SPEAKER_00 38:36

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 38:37

You know, we talk about how this the industry can feel small, but it's not small, and how there's room for everybody and we can learn from each other. And, you know, you and I both can quilt, but we both do things differently. And so when we did our collaborative sew-alongs, like I'm sharing my tips, you're sharing your tips, and everybody's learning something new. And it's just, I'm learning something new, like it's just fun. It it should always be fun. Bethany, I didn't teach you how to do applique. I forgot about that.

SPEAKER_00 39:05

I never did, yeah, I never did it. I come from the long arm world. That was my thing. That's what I do. And when Bethany was like, we're gonna do an applique so long, I said, No, we're not. We will not be doing that.

SPEAKER_02 39:15

I said, Yes, you are.

SPEAKER_00 39:17

Yeah, I'm gonna teach you, it's gonna be easy, and then you can show people how you do quilt as you go. And I was like, Okay, and then it turned out phenomenal. But now I've opened your mind.

SPEAKER_02 39:27

Yeah, oh good. I'm so happy. And see, this is again the the fun part of teaching because, like, even though we both teach a lot of stuff, like we can still learn from each other. We no teacher knows everything, and there's always so many different ways to do things. And so uh I love that I could introduce you to Applique, and now it's like a whole new aspect to your quilting. Hi friends, Bethany here with Craft with Bethany, and I'm interrupting the podcast just for a moment to tell you about my October sewing retreat. If you didn't know, I host in-person sewing retreats. I've been doing these for years, and I absolutely love meeting you in person and spending quality time together and deepening our friendship. My upcoming October retreat is my last opportunity of 2026 to get to sew with me in person, and I want to show you what we're gonna be making. This is the quilted sweatshirt. This is just a regular sweatshirt, but we're gonna deconstruct it a little bit and add our own flair by doing beautiful quilted sleeves and adding a fun quilted block to the front. This is such a fun project. It is great to make right before the holidays because once you make one, you're gonna want to make a bunch more as gifts. These are so fun to make. I did make mine in a fun strawberry pattern for the spring. I even have matching quilted shoes to go with it, but I'm excited to make some new ones for fall and Christmas. So if you would like to join me, everything is over at my website, craftoethany.com. Go check it out. There's a link in the description of the podcast. I'd love to have you join me in October for the last in-person sew with me retreat. And I have even more planned for next year, so I hope to see you then as well. And now back to the podcast. You were talking a little bit about your relationship with your colleagues and and your employees and everything and and the team that you've built. And one thing that I think is important is the fact that like you mentioned how this is a personal experience. Like you take everything that you do for your job, your work, but personally, it's also because you're the face of the these brands, right? Like it is it is Corey on the banner on the website, it's Corey doing the lives, it's Corey teaching, it's it's Corey sending the chief quilter emails, it's it's it's your face, your personality. And so it's important that you take it seriously and take that responsibility seriously because it is you. Um, so how has that been kind of like I know that didn't happen overnight, but as you kind of started working more and more with Linda's, you know, after college and make deciding like this is really where I want to focus my time, did that just kind of organically happen as you started teaching more? Or, you know, how did it become more like every time I go check out Linda's, I'm like, there's Corey in your sweet face and your big smile. And like it's just it's fitting, but like that's a that's a big undertaking to take that on as a for a brand to be the face of a brand.

SPEAKER_00 42:34

Yeah, um, I'm not gonna say I'm gonna say part of it at the beginning kind of happened just naturally. Um, it was never my intention nor my goal to be the face of Linda's because I always thought that even though she didn't own it anymore, Linda was still more or less the industry face of Linda's. And so I, you know, again, I just wanted to make sure I was staying true to her legacy and things like that. And as we grew and as we moved into, you know, I was more on camera than you know than she was, and I still go travel to see her as much as I can and film with her. Um, it started taking where brands wanted to do things with Corey. They said they love Linda, they've done things with Linda, they now want to do things with Corey because they're hearing through the grapevine that people want to see Corey. You know? And so thanks. And so it just kind of naturally started stair-stepping. And then in 2024, when my uncle joined me in the business, my uncle comes from he lives in California. Uh he comes from Silicon Valley, and so he's you know he's grown a ton of businesses. Um and he said, No, there's something special about you, not only that you're my nephew, but there's something special about you and what you bring. And I do it, I am the worst job at promoting myself, Bethany. You know that. So I was just like, no, no, it's I'm just me. I'm just here quilting, drinking my water. Like, that's just me. And he was like, No, mm mm. And so he He from 2024 to now has been pushing that Corey is the face, Corey is this, Corey is that, Corey is this. He is putting me in so many different places with people that I never thought I'd be able to meet ever in my life.

SPEAKER_02 44:13

Her travel to her opportunities. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 44:16

Like he has the he has the Bethany personality of we're all the same. I'm going in and talking to somebody.

SPEAKER_02 44:23

Like where Oh, I I feel like I need to meet your uncle. Like he and I would probably have the best time. And then you'd be like, I cannot be in the same room with these two.

SPEAKER_00 44:32

But like, so like he's put me in all of these incredible spots. Like when he first got on, he got me a PR team. So I I've been in these news articles, I've been in news interviews, I've been in magazines, I've been in like things that I never thought I'd be able to do just because I'm little lil me. And he's and he told me, he said, Well, Lil Lil U has a story to tell. And it's my job as your uncle and as you know the chairman to make this grow and help Linda's grow with it.

SPEAKER_02 45:00

Is your uncle open to adoption?

SPEAKER_00 45:03

I mean, possibly kidding.

SPEAKER_02 45:06

I mean, I was adopted once. I'm open to doing it again if necessary. Um, I'm joking, but like he sounds like the biggest cheerleader for you. And um, and not just because he's family, but like he he wouldn't make all that happen. And it wouldn't happen if he if others didn't see what he was seeing, right? It's very validating. So that's really cool. And I love that you have like this family support. And and as you've grown Linda's, now you've grown beyond Linda's. So now you have a new brand partnership that you've done. And and I don't fully understand how this came about or or um what it what it really is. So maybe you kind of explain it to us, but you also are CEO of FOMORE. So tell us what is Femore and then how we got here because it's really cool.

SPEAKER_00 45:56

Yeah, it's it's a it's a very interesting relationship. So Femore, for those um that might not know the name, I'm sure you know the tool, um have the most incredible, iconic, revolutionary ball-bearing rotary cutter. Um comes in three different sizes. And uh that's what really made Femori have like a stamp. Like it really put us on the map. Now, before then, we had a wonderful line of scissors, incredible line of scissors, top-notch quality of different ones. But that rotary cutter really took us to the next step of things. And if we go back to how I know Famore and who you know who worked at Famoray and who still works at Famora, um, Brent, and I know you've met Brent before, Brent Phoenicia. Um, so he um is was the owner of Femore. And uh him and I, gosh, he met me when I was five, six, maybe um at a quilt show. And he'll he loves to tell the story, but I had this little bow tie. And of course you bought a bow tie. I was there with my mom as she was working one of the machine booths, and he came up to me and he said, Who are you? And I said, I'm Diana's son. And ever since you know, ever since then we've had a great relationship. But growing up, he always helped put me in different rooms with people that, like, oh, I never I don't think I'll ever be able to meet them. Again, he was another cheerleader for me. It was like, just come over here, let's talk. Um, and so as his business was growing, he also does a bunch of manufacturing for scissors and a few other things. And so we had a conversation, and I said, you know, I I think you really want to focus more on that manufacturing side of things. That's what you've always told me. I said, Why don't you let us acquire Famora and we can take over the customer-facing side of things and have you focus on what your true passion is, which is the manufacturing. Now, don't get me wrong, he loves being at the quilt show with the folks. You've seen him with all his buttons, he's the scissor man, like he's the thing. Um, but from a everyday business operations, customer service, order shipping, like that's not his true passion. And I can respect that and I can appreciate that. Um, so that's kind of how that happened. And so when we acquired them, my uncle, I said, So who are we gonna get to run this operation? Because I'm already running another operation. He was like, Yeah, I think you'll be good for it. I was like, Okay, I guess I have two titles now.

SPEAKER_02 48:20

It's all one and the same now, right?

SPEAKER_00 48:23

Yeah. I mean, my goal is to always keep them as separate companies because I think they they touch different markets. Linda's touches a separate market, where Famori touches a separate market.

SPEAKER_01 48:33

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_00 48:33

Um, so I've always wanted to keep them separate entities. They're not really intertwined by any means, and nor do I want them to ever be, because I want them to stand on their own as their own two brands, because that's what they are.

SPEAKER_02 48:44

Well, and that's that's the foundation that they've they've always had too. So it makes it less confusing to the consumer to keep it that way.

SPEAKER_00 48:52

Exactly. And so yes, I uh yes, I CEO both companies, but there's no like resource sharing between the two. They are separate companies. Um, I just sit in different meetings each day. About those.

SPEAKER_02 49:04

Now your meetings have doubled.

SPEAKER_00 49:07

That's me. If I could if I showed you this calendar from here, I know you know a calendar. I don't even know if you should have a few. I do, but there it is.

SPEAKER_02 49:14

That's a lot. That's a lot. And makes me even more grateful that we're hanging out right now and that you reply to my emails and my texts.

SPEAKER_01 49:21

And of course.

SPEAKER_02 49:23

I love it. I love it. Um what are you hoping for for the future of Formora? What now that you all are are you just kind of f still figuring out this transition and and finding its groove, or are you like, oh, you know, we want to come out with something new, or we're working on expanding? Like, what are some of the goals? And I know you probably can't share a whole lot, but like details, but what are some of the goals and hopes that you have for this brand now that you are kind of taken over a lot of it?

SPEAKER_00 49:56

I want to work on product expansion as much as you can. Now, granted, you know, you've got to have you know capital and cash flow and stuff like that to make that happen. Um, but I want to do that in different phases. I want to expand our rotary cutter lineup, which is currently in the works by different sizes and different styles, but continuing to keep that same ball-bearing system. Um I want to expand a little bit more on our left-handed scissor line. I think there are quite a few left-handed quilters in Sewis that I feel like are left out a little bit. Yeah. Um, and so we have a large selection of left-handed ones, but I want to continue expanding that. I would I would love if every right-handed scissor that we had had a left-handed cohort, basically.

SPEAKER_01 50:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 50:39

Um and so that's you know, that's on the lineup. And then um Famori has always been really big into the cosplay industry, um, which is a really new thing for me because I really haven't done you know, dove into that. But continuing to grow that space because cosplay has an incredible uh market. Um, being honest with you.

SPEAKER_01 51:02

Yeah, um, they have a great market share and they need a lot of tools.

SPEAKER_00 51:06

Yeah, yeah. What they create is incredible. But being able to listen to some of their feedback um and it's continuing to grow. Now, I know Famora has always been at a lot of shows. We will be taking a couple of maybe a year or two off of shows to really focus on growth, and then we can return back to the show circuit to show off all of the incredible things. Um, but in order to take all that feedback in and listen and build and grow different tools and different product lineups, I have to put money where money can work. And so if I pull money out of the show circuit, which as you know, shows are expensive to vend at.

SPEAKER_02 51:42

They're so expensive to vend. Yeah. If y'all don't know, it is wildly expensive to vend at shows.

SPEAKER_00 51:51

Wildly expensive, like wildly expensive. It's exposure.

SPEAKER_02 52:00

It's exposure therapy.

SPEAKER_00 52:02

Uh yeah, but to to continue to grow the company and to grow the product lineup, I just had to reallocate things. And I think being able to do that is gonna be great. Now we we work really closely with Checker as like one of our distributors, so that's been fantastic. So I can kind of put more of those wholesale orders onto them so I can focus more on you know some of the other stuff that we're doing. But the big the future for Femori is I would like an expanded product lineup. I would like a left-handed scissor for every right-handed scissor, and just to dive into the other markets that we haven't done yet.

SPEAKER_02 52:34

That's exciting. So talking about the shows again a little bit, just curious your thoughts about the state of the quilting industry right now. Um, what excites you most about quilting right now? What are you seeing that excites you?

SPEAKER_00 52:52

Well, if I'm gonna be if I'm gonna be brutally honest with you, prior to H H, I was I was a little I was a little nervous.

SPEAKER_02 53:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 53:01

Um just because I had been missing that spark. I had the spark at quilt con, it was great, but like from a business side of things, it was, you know, tariffs were are are you know were coming in and still in. Businesses are moving offshore to take into that account for those things. Like all those different things are happening in the industry right now. And so I was a little scared. Going into HH and getting out of HH, I am pumped. I think the industry is headed in the right direction. I think everyone has a different mindset on where we need to head and where we are and what we're gonna do. I think if everyone is also working on efficiency, I know we are as a business becoming a little bit more efficient and saving costs where like we didn't need to spend that money. Not that we're making our product any cheaper by any means, but like we're just like, did we really need to advertise in that one little magazine that you know it just those little tiny things that add up to a lot of money. Um and so I think the industry is headed in a really great direction. I am very, very excited for where it's headed. And I the one thing that really excites me right now, hmm. A lot of because this is a personal thing, a lot of people falling more and more in love with foundation paper piecing.

SPEAKER_01 54:23

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 54:24

You're seeing so many incredible things coming out of FPP now. I mean, these wings behind me. I know Julius was on your podcast. These are his. He was. Um so um, like seeing people fall more and more in love with FPP and the things that are created out of it has also sparked me into thinking of different ways that I can do quilt as you go with FPP. And so teaching new classes, like, yeah, I know, girl. I know. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 54:48

Not to like brainstorm on the spot, but that's how we work. Uh, you know, I've I'm designing quilts now, and my goal when I took the quilting course and wanted to start designing quilts was to eventually do a mix of traditional and FPP in one quilt so it didn't feel so daunting to beginners to do a whole quilt that's FPP and kind of give them opportunities to grow their FPP skills by while also leaning into the comfort of the traditional quilting that they've probably already learned. Uh and so, or if they've done a lot of FPP, but like introduce them to some more traditional methods as well. So it goes both ways, but it's a beginner-friendly that's my approach. And and um I think it would be really cool to maybe like do something together where we kind of introduce some FPP and traditional, but show how quilt is you go can work with both. I want to see like maybe that's one of those like live sew alongs we plan for the near future because I once I got introduced to FPP, I feel like it really opened up a new world of quilting that I didn't know existed just by eliminating the precision cutting of all the millions of pieces before I ever got to start sewing. With FPP, I can just start sewing and don't have to cut any specific size pieces ahead of time. I can just jump in and and that's that was one of my least favorite parts was all the cutting. Um just to but I mean I would spend a day cutting pieces and I never even get to sew anything, I'd be worn out after. And so now it's like, oh, I can but like to be able to balance that between traditional, which I still love, and and FVP, that's the fun part. So I couldn't agree more. Like FVP is really becoming um more prevalent. You're seeing more of it at the quilt shows and the quilts that are being hung and recognized. Um, so that's really cool. I have a question. What opportunities do you think the industry should embrace going forward?

SPEAKER_00 56:48

This is gonna be a controversial one because you know I like controversy.

SPEAKER_02 56:51

I do I look for it.

SPEAKER_01 56:52

It's okay.

SPEAKER_00 56:53

Not from a design perspective. I'm putting that out there right now. That is my big flashing yield symbol. Not from a design perspective, not from a pattern writing perspective, anything like that. I think the industry should lean a little bit more into the use of AI. And I know that this is a controversial one. And I know people are gonna come for me in the comments. I know that. And again, I'm giving it to you not to take away from anyone's creative abilities at all. I'm seeing it as if I want to do, where are they at? These. If I want to do these wings that Julius created that are absolutely beautiful, and I have his permission to take that image and say, let me see it in a different color way.

SPEAKER_02 57:41

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 57:42

So show it to the show.

SPEAKER_02 57:43

So if you need that visual.

SPEAKER_00 57:44

Yeah. Oh, yeah. No, 100%. So because that's what's gonna help me. And so from and again, letting the designer and the creative person do their incredible work because there's AI will need to ever. Never. And I do not want that to ever happen, nor will it do it. But for me to say, let me see this in 10 different colorways, and it can spit it out to me in like five seconds, well, that can help me create 10 different kits. Pattern has still all been done by the designer. I just wanted to see 10 different colorways that might have taken me a month to figure out.

SPEAKER_02 58:21

Yeah. Or ask the designer who probably doesn't have time, you know, to do all of that. So yeah, like it's a lot of work to recolor even an illustrator one pattern. But yeah, I can kind of see how like, but I think it's hard to say that because the abuse that has happened with AI in the creative space. So I get the the backlash for AI and validating. But I do think that there is opportunities in uh in an appropriate way to utilize these tools, especially from a business perspective, right? Like it's really like creating some efficiencies and and flow streams and things like that that can help you ex, you know, improve processes and procedures, right? Like when you've got a team, how can we expedite some of these processes? How can we get back to our customers faster in their questions? How can we, you know, do those and AI helps with a lot of those things. Um, so it can be a tool that can be helpful, but it can absolutely abuse, be abused in the creative space. And I do believe it doesn't really fit into the creative space. You know, we've seen some uh panels be made, like fabric panels, and you just like zoom in on that image on that panel and you're like, well, that thing's got that's not right, you know, and they're like, that's not that was designed by like that's not okay. But like if we can utilize it like you said in your example, you know, that's that's yeah, like but again, not everybody does that.

SPEAKER_00 59:57

And I think that's yeah, and it's and that one not everyone plays by the rules. Right. Um and so like and I can and I can give my I'll give a little example, and this might not look good, but it is what it is because I'm always honest with the people. We brought on a marketing firm to help us when we first started. Um not when we first started, like a couple years ago. Um and oh, maybe a year ago. And so we brought on this marketing firm to help us because I just didn't have time. I didn't. I had to do other things. And they, which I will not name names, but abused AI and botched a lot of our marketing images and things like that, which I'm still trying to clean that up to this day because the internet lives forever.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:42

Forever.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:42

Um but it it's a very, it's a very tricky topic and a very slippery slope. And it again, I never am going to take away from a designer, and we're never gonna use AI to create things by any means and say, oh, we made a new pattern. I use it for in business to really help me expedite things and to create flows like you talked about and improve processes and work with our employees because at the end of the day, my job is to, like you said, get back to that customer or get back to that person who's in store right now that wants to see something. But if I'm long arming a quilt and I do this, I can take a little picture of one little section. I'm not doing the whole thing, but a little picture of one little section and say, Hey, I would like to see color hex code E10098. It's one of our brand colors. What would that look like stitched out on that picture? Just so I can get a visual and like, oh no, that color is not gonna work the way I thought it was. But it it can help me expedite that process of those things that I'm doing every single dime all the time. Yeah. Um, without taking away from the creative aspect of our industry.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:54

Right. No, I agree. I agree. Um, and I think that's a a great answer to that question of like what the industry should maybe safely and cautiously embrace. A hundred percent, you know, A AI just came in like a wrecking ball right into our world. And so, you know, it it's I think as things as we all kind of understand what AI is and how it can be used and also how it can be abused, we start to not just as a world but as our industry specifically kind of create those standards, rules, expectations. Um guidelines. Guidelines, yes, for utilizing these resources and and also educating the public on how those resources are appropriately being used so that we can recognize when they're not. I will say one of my biggest pet peeves is when I get on Facebook and I'm scrolling and some quilt or bag or whatever shows up and it's this like image, and I instantly know it's AI. I don't even have to zoom in. I instantly know it's AI, and everybody's commenting, what's the pattern? What's this? And I just want to comment and go, you guys, this is AI. How can you guys not see that? Like I feel like people get so scammed by AI in those situations, and it's so disheartening to see um that happening. And uh, and I just want to shout it, I want to comment every time I see it. Like, ladies, ladies, don't be fooled. This is this is a wolf in sheep's clothing here. Like, this is not real. Like it does not this doesn't this does not exist. Please do not click on this link. But I know the moment moment I comment, I'll see it again and again and again. It'll just become my whole Facebook and I already don't like being on Facebook, so like then I'm just gonna delete the app. But like it's really, it's really hard to see that happening. Um, I just feel like we need like a super power, superhero vigilante in our space that goes around and like shines a Batman light on every single one of these quote unquote generic brands that keep popping up and and using AI to sell patterns that aren't real um or just horribly written or not realistic and just fake images and it drives me nuts. So I get the understanding uh and the the uh from that point of view of AI, but I do utilize it for resources when brainstorming. I mean, I went through I had to quote something for some UGC content and it was like a big project. And I'm like, I have never quoted something like this. Like, let's break it down. Like, let's I use it more from like a you know, help me understand. I don't want to shortchange myself, but I don't want to like shoot myself in the foot before I even get started. So, like, let's break it down. This is what I'm gonna be doing. Like, we have I call Chad GPT Chad. He has a name, and we have like little like meetings, like you have a whole team, he's my team, and he and I like have these conversations about um planning um marketing strategies because I love marketing so much, and we kind of work through strategies and like you know, it it's become a very helpful resource when I don't work for an organization anymore with a team that I can go talk to or email about, right? There's no one checking my work, you know, it's just me. So it can be helpful in an appropriate way.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:29

So yeah, no, it's and it's as long as you're as long as you're following you know proper guidelines and you're not abusing it and you're not you know working with copyrighted material and you know, all that kind of stuff. And it I can tell you that like daily in my day at Linda's Infamoray, from a business perspective, I'm using it a lot for me to stay because you always ask me, Corey, how are you doing it all? Yeah, child. If I had to do it without my bestie, I call it my bestie. If I had to do it without my bestie, I wouldn't like I wouldn't be. Able to because I can't proofread every memo that I send out. Could you imagine some of the stuff I type up? Like I have to let it like uh and it's like probably shouldn't say this, or you should maybe lean into this.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:12

Make this sound better. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:14

Make this sound more like sound the way it is in my head, but it's not coming out via my fingers. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:19

Make this make this flow in a more organized way. That's usually what I'm asking it to do because I just, you know, regurgitate everything that's in my head. And then I'm like, make this make sense in a in a way that people will understand the points I'm trying to get across. And then I proofread it, then I still make edits, but it's like it's you know, it is me.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:40

No, there's a ton of edits I still have to make with a butt. So it's not it's not in my voice, and that's not that's great. I don't want it to be in my voice. I'm I'm my voice. But I will literally just put out paragraphs of this is what's in my brain. Okay, now like how would a normal human want to read this?

SPEAKER_02 1:07:00

Yeah, the more polished, you know, version of everything that I just spit out because when we're trying to do a lot, it it's a it's a resource for me to offload things without having to try to remember everything.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:18

Uh, and and that's where things get lost. So it has been a resource is just tracking, like, I'm like, hey, remember all those things we talked about at the beginning of the week that I needed to get done? And you made a checklist, like, and you know what I've accomplished so far? Like, what's left on the list? Like, remind me what what's the most important, what's the most time. Like, I put in, um, okay, here's here's my to-do list. And it's just a nonstop list. Every little thing, every little task. And then I put in like, here's the deadlines, here's this, like, what do I need to prioritize first? Knowing how long these things are gonna take me. Like, and it really helps me like maximize my time.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:57

And because I get asked a lot, like, how do you do all the things that you do? And I feel like I should be doing more. And and the reason I do what I do is because I utilize the tools that help me stay organized. And I to me it's an organizational tool. So couldn't agree more with that perspective. Okay, let's jump into some quick fire rapid questions. These are always really fun. Um, favorite quilting ruler.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:21

Uh for like machine quilting or for like cutting?

SPEAKER_02 1:08:25

You tell me which one is the one that you love to use the most?

SPEAKER_00 1:08:28

Uh quilter select three and one.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:30

Favorite thread?

SPEAKER_01 1:08:32

Glide.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:33

Favorite quilting motif.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:37

Oh.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:39

I didn't say these would be easy.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:41

Yeah, you didn't. Um, favorite quilting motif. I'm gonna go to the classic. I like a feather motif.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:49

I know you do. And you can do a free motion really well too.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:52

Yeah, I love a feather motif.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:54

I w I love watching your videos of you doing those. I'm like, it's so satisfying. May I one day, one day, I would love to get to that level. Um, most underrated quilting tool.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:05

I'm gonna go with a um a clapper.

unknown 1:09:09

Hmm.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:10

Okay. Yeah. Didn't see that, but it it's all the FPP, right?

SPEAKER_00 1:09:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:14

Yeah, it comes in helpful. All right, coffee or tea?

SPEAKER_00 1:09:19

Coffee.

unknown 1:09:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:20

Early bird or night owl.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:22

Night owl.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:23

Yeah, we're alike in that. You're like, when I was like, oh, when do you want to record? You're like, not too early. And I was like, good.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:29

Don't don't don't ever post anything early.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:32

All right, dream travel destination you've always wanted to go to.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:36

Uh Bora Bora.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:38

Ooh. Uh favorite quilt you've ever made.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:42

Today. My this one right here. My modern cubism quilt, my grandma applicated for me, and then I actually was my first custom quilt I ever did.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:51

Nice.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:52

So that's yeah, that one's my favorite one. And then Julius's wings are right behind it.

SPEAKER_02 1:09:57

Yeah, right. You know that first H H that I met you at, those your wings that you had made were hanging at H, and I took a picture in front of it, and I didn't even know it was you who made it. And um, Julius saw me take that picture and he's like, That's my pattern. I was like, Oh, that's so that's kind of how I met Julie's, right? And then he was like, Oh, and Corey is the one who did that. When I was like, and so that's I was like, Oh, I just met Corey. Like, it's just again, full circle moments. Anyways, um, one quilting technique everyone should learn.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:30

I'm gonna go with the one that I teach the most right now, which I love, is controlled quilting on your sewing machine. So no need to do free motion. Uh, I know you've seen me do this technique before, but it gives you the confidence to finish your quilts on your domestic machine just by making one simple adjustment.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:47

And I've not gotten a lot of different things. No free motion needed.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:49

Yep.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:50

It blew my mind. So uh what we maybe we show that in an upcoming video. We should I don't know. You and I could do lives every day and talk about something different. That's the fun part of it. All right, let's wrap up with our you love to see it. What is something that has just made you smile recently or made you happy or brought you joy that you just want to just take a moment and acknowledge?

SPEAKER_00 1:11:14

Um, my incredible partner in crime, the love of my life, Ray, um, surprised me with a new car this week. Um and so I know I love her very, very much. Um, so that is my uh that's my excitement thing for the it's uh it's kind of one of those things where I see all of my hard work that I've done. It's like boom, there it is. Bethany saw it at H H because Ray had sent it to me while we were there. She saw a picture of it at H H.

SPEAKER_02 1:11:42

It's like bright blue.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:44

It's bright blue.

SPEAKER_02 1:11:46

Which when you showed me that, I was like, well, I'd expect nothing less. Like this is just so fitting for you. And it's a what is it?

SPEAKER_00 1:11:53

It's a it's a sequoia.

SPEAKER_02 1:11:55

Yes, it's a big Toyota Sequoia. It's massive.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:58

Um and so I've had one in the past. I love it, but he's been working with a dealer since my birthday, so it was my birthday present. But then he let me know when I was at H H that, hey, I ordered it, it's on the way, and so then it arrived yesterday.

SPEAKER_02 1:12:11

Oh my gosh. Yeah. So now like you're like cruising around town and everybody's gonna just know, like, well, that's Corey.

SPEAKER_00 1:12:18

Yeah, there goes Corey.

SPEAKER_02 1:12:21

You know, my love to see it is similar because I just upgraded my car and I was so excited after having um my little sedan for 11 years. It was that was my first brand new car, and I was so proud of when I bought that because I, you know, I'd been a single mom and it was all I could afford, but I like knew it would like last me a long time. And it did honestly, I could have kept driving it. I loved it. Um it had like no bells and whistles, as we were talking about before the show, like nothing. Um, but I was I was so proud of that car, and it had been so good to me, but it just wasn't meeting my needs for like retreats and travel, and I didn't have enough room in that car. Even just to go to like my sewing club. I didn't have enough room to put my stuff in there. It just was real tight. And uh so we've kind of been talking about like, yeah, you really need like an SUV. So yeah, we I actually it's a funny story, I'll make it short, but we were at the dealership. Well, my fiance was at the dealership with his truck and getting like a a service thing and then like a warranty repair or something. And he had an appointment at like 9 15 in the morning. He calls me at like 12 and he's like, they still haven't taken my truck back and I have nowhere I can go. And I said, Well, I'll come pick you up and I'll like take you to get lunch. And he started sending me, he's just bored, so he's walking around the lot and he starts sending me pictures of these SUVs, and we hadn't really talked about it in a minute, and I was like, Okay, and so I get there and we never went to lunch, we didn't end up eating until like 7 p.m. We ended up test driving a couple of cars. Next thing I know, I'm like cleaning out my Kia and and buying an SUV, and I left with a different car that day, and I was so excited and so grateful for his help and support to make that happen. And um, and so by the time we had his car had finally finished, we had bought me a new car, and then we finally went to eat and then went home. And we were he was there for like 10 or 11 hours that night at dealership. It's never a quick process, but it was so I'm so so grateful. So my my upcoming retreats are gonna be a lot easier for me to get all the stuff that I bring for my retreaters and the events um there with that car. And um so grateful for that. So it's it's really at the end of the day, I think our you'll love to see it is just the support from our partners who understand what we do, they see what we do, they see our things that we need and they make it happen. And that's every time I talk to someone who's got that supportive partner that maybe they don't sew, maybe they don't get the industry or everything we do, but they see our hard work and they see our growth and and that's their way of helping and supporting, and it means a lot.

SPEAKER_00 1:15:06

So it truly does. And I I know we're I know we're a little at time, but I've got to give him a shout out. It truly it it it really it truly does for me because Ray left his job. He was working for the city and making you know making good money, but the benefits of working in a city, like poof, those government benefits. Right. And he saw like I was taking on all this stuff at work, so he left his job that he had like tenure at basically to come work at my company because he said you deserve to be a star, so I need to do what I need to do to get you there.

SPEAKER_02 1:15:37

And it's like you have just surrounded yourself with some amazing men in your life.

SPEAKER_00 1:15:43

I I try, I guess. I don't know. It everything just happens. Yeah, you're blessed. It doesn't, it doesn't go without you know a ton of hard work and being humble and um just appreciating every opportunity, like being on the social hour with you, just appreciating every opportunity that comes my way and not taking anything for granted because I could blink and it could be gone. So I'm I'm very, very grateful for our incredible customer base, all of the incredible people in the sewing and quilting and crafting industry, and of course grateful for the one and only Bethany.

SPEAKER_02 1:16:14

Oh, thank you. Well, how can people find you online? So lynda's.com, correct?

SPEAKER_00 1:16:21

So yeah, we've got lynda's.com, I've got famcut.com, and then all of our social medias will be Lynda's Electr Quilters or from Morey Cutlery. And then my own personal social media is so S E W Coco Pearson. But I'm sure Bethany will have all of that and also I will link it all below.

SPEAKER_02 1:16:38

Don't worry, don't worry. And um, thank you so much for hanging out with me today and spending some time and reconnecting. And um, I can't wait to see you at the next show that we bump into each other at and give you another big hug. You give the best hugs, by the way. Maybe it's just because you're like a gentle giant, but you give the best hugs and I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 1:16:59

Oh, well, thank you. I appreciate that. And yes, I cannot wait to see you um as well again in person. But we will be seeing each other virtually way before that.

SPEAKER_02 1:17:09

Yeah. We'll we're gonna hit end on this episode so that he and I can start brainstorming the next time you're gonna see us together. But thank you guys so much for listening today. As always, be sure you subscribe to the YouTube channel, follow us on Facebook, join our Facebook group, the Social Sewist, where the conversation continues after the episode, and our Instagram as well. And just thanks for being here, Corey. I appreciate it. Until next time, guys, happy sewing. Bye.

SPEAKER_00 1:17:33

Bye.