Beyond the Stitch

How helpful are Catholic influencers when it comes to evangelization? Are we simply shouting into an echo chamber? And are Catholic brands just profiting off of the name of Jesus? At what point does sharing your faith become a marketing tool? And what about Catholic influencer copycats? Join us for a reflective episode on this platform we exist in. 

Oh boy. This is a good one. We have the answers to questions you always wanted to ask a Catholic model! We interviewed the wonderful Colette Lanzon on everything from wearing lingerie, to refusing jobs, having her photo in Times Square, being a plus size role model, and her Catholic identity! Colette is also an author and disabilities advocate. It was truly so inspiring to hear how Colette's deep faith informs her all of decisions and pushes her to do what is good and beautiful.

If you want to go sustainable for your swimsuit this summer but don't know where to start, look no further than Siena and Co. Swimwear! Catherine Huss joins Veronica and Lilly again, this time to talk about her second swimwear collection, what goes into a sustainable swimsuit vs. a fast fashion one, and how she funds her collections! We love having Catherine on- she studied apparel design with an emphasis on construction techniques and social justice within the garment industry, in which she's worked as a fit technician! She's got tons of expertise, and like many women she always had to compromise on the swimwear she's worn, whether it be style, quality, amount of coverage or where and how it was made. She is passionate about reminding women of their worth by creating dignifying jobs for those in the fashion industry, and designing swimsuits women can feel confident in. Siena and Co. now offers sizes up to 3X! You can back the Retro Collection here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/catherinehuss/siena-and-co-swimwear-retro-collection?ref=bpe32q

Fashion week got crazy, and we need to talk about it. *Veronica mentions WWII in connection to St. JPII's life, from 34:00 to about 40:00 should you like to skip* Some people to check out on Instagram this week: @gabriellak_j, @luxurylaw, and @edward_enninful

TW: Discussion of Eating Disorders The very narrow (badum tss) skinny version of femininity from the early 90s is "back in fashion," and we need to talk about it. Veronica and Lillian are joined by Shelby Hirschman of Good Body Nutrition to discuss the trends of "body standards," why diets ain't it, how misinformation about the "obesity epidemic" perpetuates shame and keeps us from being healthy, and how to live free of fixation on how our bodies measure up to what we think they ought to. Find Shelby at https://www.instagram.com/goodbody_nutrition/ or https://www.goodbodynutrition.com/.

Veronica chats with Udochi Ekwerike, a Catholic creative who works in fashion. Together they discuss what it looks like to work in a secular field while still growing in faith. Udochi explains that all beauty leads back to the source and that doing your job well is an act of love. Tune in for a great episode!

Remember when the Victoria's Secret runway shows reigned supreme? Unsurprisingly, the "revolutionary" lingerie brand has a sketchy past -- full of predators, scam artists, and power-hungry industry tycoons. Beyond The Stitch host, Veronica Marrinan, and co-host Lillian Fallon, dive into Hulu's most recent expose, "Victoria's Secret: Angels & Demons." Exploring the troubling history of this infamously iconic brand and it's global impact on women, Veronica and Lilly reflect on how Victoria's Secret formed the world's definition of "sexy" and "beautiful."

Have you ever gone on a date with a guy who didn't dress for the occasion? Was it a turn off? Or did it not matter to you? Do you look to date guys who put lots of effort into how they dresses, or is it better that they don't care? Is it a no-no when guys have style preferences for their girlfriends or vice-versa? Veronica and Lilly dive into all things men's style when it comes to dating! Tune in for a fun episode on the style dynamics between men and women.

This week, we chatted with swimsuit designer and founder of Siena and Co., Catherine Huss! We immediately dove into all the good stuff -- modesty culture and the age old modest swimsuit debacle most Catholic women face every summer. Catherine shares her story as a Catholic fashion designer and how she was inspired to create beautiful swimsuits that put the dignity of the human person first without sacrificing the beauty of the female form. We also dig into what is means to "look like" a Catholic woman and how genuine feminine expression is far from looking stereotypical. Find Catherine's gorgeous suits here, they just dropped this week!

This week, host Veronica Marinnan and co-host Lillian Fallon discuss all things Met Gala! From favorite red-carpet moments to pop-culture ponderings, join them as they dive into this year's theme “Gilded Glamour”, the fashionable rise of the Kardashians, and the history of the gala itself.

Julia Wehner is a poet, Montessori teacher, and avid playlist creator who wrote poems to pair with each garment in the Verdant collection from last spring. She and Veronica discuss creative processes, how the poems were structured, meeting ourselves in small children's wonder, how clothing shapes artistic life, and who different garments in the collection are named after. Follow along with Litany at www.litanynyc.com or on instagram at @litany.nyc Find Julia and her work on instagram at @homegrowndreamer.

Veronica is joined by a new kind of guest - who wears the same thing constantly. What's it like wearing a religious habit on the NYC subway? What's the inspiration behind the Dominican habit? And, most importantly, is it really as comfy as it looks? Fr. Joseph spills his best thoughts - including why unnecessary beauty is, in fact, a dearly essential part of being human. Bonus: Fr. Joseph and Veronica fangirl over Jane Austen. Follow along with the Litany team on Instagram at @litany.nyc, or www.litanynyc.com.

Mary, Litany's blogger, joins Veronica to talk about how fasting is different from dieting and how we can live outside of the pain-causing approach to food that's so common in the fashion industry. Follow along on Instagram at @litany.nyc or visit the team at www.litanynyc.com.

Welcome back!!! Lillian, Litany's new Customer Experience Manager, and Veronica dig into the role of mental health in the fashion industry, what it looks like now, what they want it to become, and practical tips that have helped them take care of themselves within different work environments. How does stress inhibit our creativity? How can you tell if someone will be healthy to work with? And what does unhealthy an work environment do to our view of ourselves? Follow along over at @litany.nyc on Instagram or over at www.litanynyc.com to see the vision of healthy creativity Lillian and Veronica have for the fashion industry.

Lucy designed the Litany logo and now she's back to share her life as a Catholic visual artist in NY. One of her most recent artwork involves clothing, paint, and St. Michael's breastplate prayer. She and Veronica talk about funerals, Elmo, Parousia, and makeup. Is death the end? How does that question affect our clothing? Find Lucy's work at https://www.lucyrahner.com/ to follow along with her artistic process.

Leah has worked hard to get to where she is now- being a plus sized hijabi model, public speaker, and inclusive content creator takes a lot of assertive energy and self compassion. She and V talk about her experiences in the fashion industry and how she broke out of the mold she used to put herself in. Find her on Instagram @lvernon2000 or at www.leahvernon.com.

Lauren joins Veronica to share her journey in starting a meaningful nail polish company with her family. They talk about navigating the tension between wanting to look beautiful and not wanting to be vain, giving ourselves good things in good ways, and their favorite nail polish colors. Find Lauren and Beecauses at www.beecauses.com or @bee_causes on Instagram!

We're "joined" by our co-founder Sr. Maria Dominique by some of her wisdom from a letter.

Have you ever wondered what happens to all the fabric designers don't use? Fabscrap is a non-profit that finds creative ways to keep that fabric out of landfills and back into the world. Veronica chats with Erin, Fabscrap's NYC Reuse Coordinator, about the behind-the-scenes of this hidden part of the fashion industry. Learn more at: https://fabscrap.org/ and @fab_scrap on Instagram.

Claire, a dancer who modeled in the Verdant photoshoot, joins Veronica to talk about the connection between body and soul and how her craft interacts with her interior life. The girls also try to remember when they became friends, talk joining-the-convent bachelorette parties, and gush about the most exciting costumes Claire's gotten to wear.

What does it look like to have joy without an expiration date? How does our personal journey impact our personal style, and how can we express an authentic life through our personal style in our midlife? Join Veronica while she receives some real truth bombs with Dr. Ellen Albertson about womanhood and strength.

Veronica sits down with Nicole and Kara, founders of Hand Me Up, an eco-friendly provider of capsule clothes for kids. The three dive into textile waste, the behind-the-scenes of clothing donation, and the impact our used clothes can have. Find Hand Me Up at www.handmeupshop.com and at Instagram @handmeup_shop.

Have you ever wanted to know how a concept about something like the Incarnation can become a jacket you can wear? Once a month we'll be sharing the design process behind different garments, and today Veronica gets into the Lavinia Jacket (which is actually 2 jackets and 2 vests in 1!). She also talks about the secret folder of designs that don't make the final cut.

Stories from fashion week's backstage? Theology of the Body meets personal style? Booty shorts?! It's all here. We love Lillian over here at Litany, not only for her attentiveness to the humanity of each person through style but also for her no-punches-pulled approach to talking about big questions. She's a writer dedicated to uniting the interior and exterior of the person through style. This week only her audio saved so it's a bit of a spliced episode- but don't worry, we saved some of the giggles. You can find Lillian on Instagram @lillian_fallon to follow along with all her new articles and musings.

On Beyond the Stitch, we talk the human side of fashion. Today Veronica chats with Re-Fashioning Life aficionado and human being Rebecca Weef Smith, researcher and Instagram fashion icon. Not only is she familiar with the human side of fashion, but she wrote her dissertation on the link between clothing and happiness! Sit back and muse along with us. You can find Rebecca's findings at: https://www.fashionstudiesjournal.org/notes/2017/7/29/wearing-wellbeing-kdd7z or follow along on her Instagram: https://instagram.com/rebeccaweefsmith?utm_medium=copy_link

Why Olivia and Veronica started a clothing line during a pandemic. Getting started in the fashion industry, balancing life and creative work in a cutthroat industry, and also some very emotional thoughts on moms. (Edit: Olivia has recently received her new name with the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne! V referred to her as Olivia in this episode, but her new name is Sister Maria Dominique.)