Podcast · Arts & Books
by Ruth Singer · English · Arts & Books
Making Meaning is a podcast exploring the meaning behind what we make. Artist Ruth Singer talks to creative people about why they make and create. Ruth loves finding out how artists, writers, coaches, researchers and others use challenging and complex stories within their work. She is interested in
26 Sep 2026 · 51 min
In this episode we are talking about what it means to work from the home, to work alongside domestic life and how that worked for women makers in the past. We both share our very different experiences of home / work life and how our domestic environment impacts the creative choices we make. Buy Tangled here Maker Membership: Maker Membership Please join my email list for more: Email
S6 · E67 · 12 Sep 2026 · 44 min
In August I launched my new self-published book Tangled. It's been a long journey from idea in 2018 to finally having the books in my hands in 2026. In this episode I'll read extracts from the book, explain how it came about and respond to some questions asked in my online and in-person book launches about my work, the book and the making of it. Buy Tangled here Maker Membership: Maker Membership Please join my email list for more: Email
S6 · E66 · 22 Aug 2026 · 58 min
This episode is the second of the occasional mini series Material Histories with Deb McGuire . In this one we have a wonderful wide-ranging conversation starting with what we look for in quilt shows but covers far more than that. We talk about the power of connecting through making and about showing and sharing textile works. Maker Membership: Maker Membership Please join my email list for more: Email
S6 · E65 · 1 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
This week I reflect on 21 years working as an artist and writer. (Oops, I realised after I recorded this that I talk about it being episode 64, when in fact it's episode 65!) Tangled is available for pre-order now: Tangled: Textile Stories of Care & Connection Maker Membership: Maker Membership Please join my email list for more: Email
S6 · E64 · 18 Jul 2026 · 37 min
I have been asked about my ideas and where they come from more than anything else in my 21 year career (although "How long did it take to make?" must be a close second). It's really hard for me to define where each idea came from but I've given it a go in this podcast. Tangled is available for pre-order now: Tangled: Textile Stories of Care & Connection Maker Membership Maker Membership Please join my email list for more https://ruthsinger.com/email/
S6 · E63 · 13 Jun 2026 · 48 min
Making Histories is a new mini-series of Making Meaning Podcast with special guest co-host Deb McGuire. Deb is a brilliant historian, specialising in emotional histories of quilting, but she's incredibly knowledgable about all kinds of things. We have so many overlapping interests and things we really want to talk about in the world of textile making, textile histories and human stories. I've been thinking about a podcast co-host for a while, and when I talked to Deb for episodes 48 and 49 , I just wanted to carry on talking! So we've made that a formal arrangement now and I am delighted to…
S6 · E62 · 30 May 2026 · 32 min
A few weeks ago someone told me that she didn't know I had written several books, so I realised I don't talk enough about my writing! The podcast is about the writing of those books; three with traditional publishers and three self-published books about my work. The third self-published book is coming very soon, it is with the designer now and I hope to have it in my hands before the end of the summer. I've also written other exhibition catalogues and project publications and all kinds of things. Find out more about my Textile Book Group and more: https://ruthsinger.podia.com/ Buy…
S6 · E61 · 22 Apr 2026 · 53 min
This week's episode is about the new body of work I made for Mary Linwood; Art, Stitch & Lift exhibition . Alongside researching, curating and writing the first exhibition of Mary Linwood's work in 75 year, I also created seven new artworks reflecting elements of Mary Linwood's life and legacy. These pieces fill in gaps in Mary Linwood's story, explore themes I find fascinating and allow me to express my own thoughts and feelings about Linwood's work and life. Sign up for my course Embroidered Herstories: Rediscovering Mary Linwood Buy the exhibition catalogue, Lost Threads, Mary Linwood's…
S6 · E60 · 8 Apr 2026 · 32 min
Making Meaning is back with a new series. It's almost five years since I started making this podcast and this is series 6. In this episode I'm solo, talking about what I've learned from the Mary Linwood Rediscovered project, from studying Mary Linwood and from sharing her story with the world. Sign up for my course Embroidered Herstories: Rediscovering Mary Linwood Buy the exhibition catalogue, Lost Threads, Mary Linwood's Legacy Find out more about my Maker Membership Join Ruth's email list Visit Ruth's website
S5 · E59 · 9 Nov 2025 · 37 min
In this episode I'm talking to Rachel Whitworth, the curator of Fashion and Textiles at The Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle. Find out about the Mary Linwood project and events programme Find out more about the Stitch Weekend , 22nd - 23rd Nov, Leicester Guildhall Find out more about my Maker Membership Join Ruth's email list Visit Ruth's website
S5 · E58 · 11 Oct 2025 · 1 hr 2 min
I'm so pleased to share this conversation with Emily Jo Gibbs, a fantastic textile maker who I have admired for many years. It won't surprise you that I love Emily's work and we had a really interesting, broad-ranging conversation about the why behind the work. Emily's website and online course Find out about the Mary Linwood project and events programme Find out more about the Stitch Weekend , 22nd - 23rd Nov, Leicester Guildhall Find out more about my Maker Membership Join Ruth's email list Visit Ruth's website
S5 · E57 · 27 Sep 2025 · 57 min
In this episode I'm talking to the brilliant creative textile designer Jayne Emerson, known to many of you as the creator of the No Rules Textile Society - a membership group full of inspiration and creative play. Jayne is also a textile designer for fashion and interiors, she's written six craft books and creates courses and workshop both online and in person. We have a lot in common and had a great time exploring our shared and differing approaches and projects. I hope you enjoy this conversation much as we did. Jayne's website and membership Find out about the Mary Linwood project and…
S5 · E56 · 13 Sep 2025 · 1 hr 5 min
Dr Heidi Strobel is my guest in episode 56 about Mary Linwood. Heidi joined me from The University of North Texas, USA where she is is Professor of Art History. She is also the author of Mary Linwood: Embroidery, Installation, and Entrepreneurship in Britain 1787-1845 which has been invaluable for my exhibition research. Heidi and I have been in touch throughout this project and she's been an amazing support in the development of the exhibition and in the general excitement I feel about being able to share Linwood's work. This is a fantastic conversation in lots of depth about Mary Linwood's…
S5 · E55 · 31 Aug 2025 · 1 hr 8 min
This episode is more of the summer of stitch series, this time with the brilliant Dr Isabella Rosner, Royal School of Needlework curator, podcaster and all round historic embroidery enthusiast. She has been part of the Mary Linwood fan club for years and we had a wonderful time talking about all the complexities of Linwood's career and making practice, and reflecting on her legacy and why she's been so ignored in the last hundred and fifty years. Dr Isabella Rosner is the curator of textiles and contextual studies lecturer at the Royal School of Needlework. She is a 2023 BBC/AHRC New…
S5 · E54 · 16 Aug 2025 · 52 min
Today's episode is more in the summer of stitch series, this time with a very different kind of maker. Claire-Louise Hardie is a costumier and sewing teacher, expert in making clothes and understanding how clothes work and how they make us feel. This is a really fun conversation exploring very different things than this podcast usually covers and it was great to talk to Claire-Louise and share this with you. It's a great excuse for me to think about clothing construction, the importance of fabric in telling stories and all the nerdy details of working with museum objects, which I have really…
S5 · E53 · 2 Aug 2025 · 1 hr 8 min
Continuing with the summer of stitch theme, in this podcast episode I am talking to the brilliant maker Jennifer Collier, who makes amazing objects in paper using textile techniques. I've known Jennifer for years and we've worked together and supported each other plenty but still needed to twist her arm to do this podcast, for which I am really grateful. We had a fantastic conversation about making and meaning and exploring the heritage of stitch and creative practice. Jennifer Collier Unit Twelve Gallery Craftspace Made in the Middle touring exhibition Join Ruth's email list Find out more…
S5 · E52 · 19 Jul 2025 · 1 hr 10 min
Wendy Ward - researcher, maker and campaigner around clothes, sustainability and emotional connection to the things we wear. Wendy is a PhD researcher at Sheffield Hallam University investigating product attachment, craft and broken-ness in fashion. Prior to her PhD she taught sewing to adults and wrote five best-selling sewing books. Wendy has long had an interest in sustainability within fashion, she worked at both extremes of the fashion industry: as a designer in fast fashion and for a small sustainable brand, then went on to explore novel ways to recycle textiles for her MA. Wendy and I…
S5 · E51 · 12 Jul 2025 · 17 min
This episode is a reflection on how I chose to create Cultures of Care Gathering and the sessions, talks and workshops it involves. I also explore the idea of project books, my way of collecting inspiration and ideas into sketchbooks. I'll be sharing a number of project books at the Gathering, alongside my finished works. Find out about Cultures of Care Gathering Join Ruth's email list Find out more about Maker Membership ruthsinger.com/membership Full details of the episode , including a transcript
S5 · E50 · 5 Jul 2025 · 10 min
It's episode FIFTY! and the podcast's 4th birthday this week. This is just a mini solo one, sharing some of the story of the Cultures of Care project and how I've brought it all together to create Cultures of Care Gathering 19-20 July. Find out about Cultures of Care Gathering Join Ruth's email list Find out more about Maker Membership ruthsinger.com/membership Full details of the episode , including a transcript
S5 · E49 · 28 Jun 2025 · 58 min
Deb McGuire is back! We recording a long conversation and I've split it into two episodes, of which this is the second. I suggest you start with Episode 48 first, as that's where Deb introduces herself and her work. This is a continuation of our chat which focusses more on Mary Linwood and my forthcoming exhibition about her (opening 13th September at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery). Much like the first episode, this is a fun chat between two people really fascinated by Mary Linwood's life and work. Find out about Cultures of Care Gathering Join Ruth's email list Find out more about Maker…
S5 · E48 · 22 Jun 2025 · 48 min
In this series I'm exploring textile making and the many complex meanings around textile making practice. This episode is the first of a two-parter with quilt maker and historian Deb McGuire, because we had so much to talk about that we made two episodes! There's such a lot of overlap in our interests that its not surprising that we talked for ages! We talk about her work in quilting in a frame, her research and lots about the emotions of sewing and working with others. Find out about Cultures of Care Gathering Join Ruth's email list Find out more about Maker Membership…
S5 · E47 · 25 May 2025 · 1 hr
It's been a while, but Making Meaning is back! This series will be full of conversations about textile making and meaning. This episode is with Jayne Childs. We talk about lace and heritage and the passion to innovate and create as well as the history of materials and methods. We talk about creating artwork and wearable pieces, about the stories that old cloth can tell, about telling new stories through contemporary practice and about collecting and reusing lace. You can find Jayne's work at: https://jcmiddlebrook.co.uk/ Join Ruth's email list Find out more about Maker Membership…
S5 · E46 · 2 Feb 2025 · 50 min
Series Five of Making Meaning is here. A lot of this series will be focussing on textiles, although there will be some other stories, conversations and solo episodes coming up too. This week I am starting by sharing two of my talks from the Cultures of Care Group from the end of 2024. Cultures of Care Group is a free online discussion group about care in creative practice. Each month I share a talk about my reflections on an aspect of care in my creative work. In October and November 2024 the group discussed textiles, and I've combined these two talks into this one episode to launch this new…
S4 · E45 · 24 Nov 2024 · 10 min
This short episode is a brief introduction to my research project about 18th century embroidery artist Mary Linwood. The episode includes a very short history about her, and then details of the community projects I'm running over the next few months, that you can take part in too. You can find out about them below, as well as a bit more about Mary Linwood here . Stitching Emotions: Collaborative project for the Mary Linwood exhibition Connected Threads: A community textiles project Find full details about the episode, including a transcript: https://ruthsinger.com/2024/11/22/…
S4 · E44 · 13 Oct 2024 · 1 hr 21 min
This podcast is again from my Cultures of Care Group and in a change to the usual, it includes the group discussion as well as my talk, which is my reflections on productivity as an artist and what that means to me now as a research-based artist more than a maker of things. I talk about making and doing what you want to do is a self-care practice and that my creativity is more than my productivity in a traditional sense. We talk at the end about the importance of textile making as a community activity, which actually leads perfectly into the next Cultures of Care Group sessions in October…
S4 · E43 · 20 Sep 2024 · 27 min
My Cultures of Care project wasn't intentionally all about nature and landscape connection, yet that is what a lot of it has turned out to be. This podcast episode is my exploration of how nature, outdoors and landscape in its widest sense have influenced my work. I talk about projects on landscape history and community projects making in nature and with nature. This was part of my Cultures of Care Group session for August. The next sessions are in September, October and November and are open for bookings now , and I would love it if you could join me then. The sessions are free. Find out…
S4 · E42 · 10 Jun 2024 · 21 min
In my nearly 20 years of creative work, I've developed a real passion for creating artwork with the input of others, either in group making or through contributions of stories. This podcast explores what I mean by co-creation and what benefits it brings to me and those who contribute. Find out more and read the transcript at https://ruthsinger.com/2024/06/11/co-creation-making-meaning-podcast-episode-42/ The gallery of co-created projects is here https://ruthsinger.com/co-creation-projects/ These talks are part of my Cultures of Care Group sessions which are free online discussion groups,…
S4 · E41 · 23 May 2024 · 20 min
I find being reflective in my creative work incredibly useful and have done for many years. In this essay / podcast I share how I came to reflective writing or journalling and some of the other ways I am reflective about my work with others. This was part of my Cultures of Care Group in May 2024. Find out more: https://ruthsinger.com/2024/05/16/reflective-practice-making-meaning-podcast-episode-41/
S4 · E40 · 27 Apr 2024 · 24 min
This new podcast episode, the first in a series of four, is a recording of my first Cultures of Care Group talks. For these sessions I write an essay to share on an aspect of care in creative practice. In this first session, April 2024, I chose to talk about research as a creative care practice. Find out more: https://ruthsinger.com/2024/04/23/ research-as-a-care-practice /
S3 · E39 · 18 Feb 2024 · 1 hr
Artist Support Recipes is a group of artists interested in artist support and development. In this podcast we reflect on our learning during a year of research and discussion about what artists need to thrive. The group members are Ruth Singer, Sharon Adams, Gillian McFarland, Collette Rayner and Liz Nilsson. Find out more https://ruthsinger.com/2024/02/17/ making-meaning-podcast-episode-39-artist-support-recipes / and at artistsupportrecipes.wordpress.com
Making Meaning is a podcast exploring the meaning behind what we make. Artist Ruth Singer talks to creative people about why they make and create. Ruth loves finding out how artists, writers, coaches, researchers and others use challenging and complex stories within their work. She is interested in
Making Meaning is a English arts & books podcast from Ruth Singer. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.
The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.
