Dance with your Destiny 

Be confident that you will be learning the features of your Destiny from women who use this same machine to create their own projects.  Together, Judy, Katherine, and Megan have over 50 years of machine embroidery experience. Add in sewing and quilting and you have close to 100 years! Judy has been a Baby Lock dealer for over 20 years, with Megan doing her homework while helping customers for half of those years. Katherine began as Judy’s best customer and then brought all of her computer knowledge to join these two as the resident tech geek. You will love your Destiny even more as you delve into the features of sewing, embroidery, and, of course, the IQ Designer…..and go home with completed projects! For them, laughter plays an important role in your learning process.

Judy and Katherine have been playing and creating together for many years. They created the As You Wish Jacket, a very successful line of jacket patterns which lead to their appearance of the PBS television show Sewing with Nancy. They co-authored Jackets on the Cutting Edge, a book created in conjunction with that guest appearance. Judy and Katherine were featured guest speakers at the Nancy’s Notions Sewing Weekend as well as presenting/teaching together at various sewing guilds and other venues. Needle in a Haystack has been the site of their previous classes for the Ellisimo embroidery machine, and currently for the Dance with Your Destiny classes and Kimberbell Exclusive Events.

In this 3-1/2-day 3-night event, you will create five projects that get you more comfortable with the embroidery process, Embroidery Edit, and IQ Designer. Learn how to create a design in IQ using the scanning bed, using a pre-existing jpeg, and using the drawing stamps and tools to create from scratch!  The sewing features that help you be more efficient will also be presented—or revisited—along with the uses of the camera for both sewing and embroidery projects.

There is an extra benefit for your Dance with Your Destiny event at Needle in a Haystack!  You’ll actually receive a bit more education as Katherine and Judy are available during the hours after dinner and before bedtime. Plenty of machine time for you to complete your projects or practice your new skills. 

Please make sure you are familiar with your machine. If you have not yet... please take your machine out of the box and familiarize yourself the basics;  threading the needle,  winding and inserting a bobbin, along with hooping stabilizer and fabric. If you are not sure with any of these please visit your dealer before attending the workshop. A supply list will be sent via email close to your workshop date! The retreat center also houses a fabric store. So if you need supplies you can purchase them as well. 

Meet the Teachers


Judy Fenton

Judy has been the proud owner/operator of Millcreek Sewing & Fabric for the last 22 years. She also has brought to life Needle in a Haystack—a premiere quilting retreat for 22 enthusiasts—and is the nucleus behind Quilting at the Bayfront, where over 100 quilts are displayed from local guilds, nationally known “sew-lebrities” offer instruction and inspiration, and vendors offer the latest in “must-haves”.

Busy, she is. All of the hats she wears, however, revolve around needle and thread. Judy is a devoted dealer of Baby Lock machines that are used for quilting, sewing, embroidery and serging. She is passionate that her customers know how to use their new machines and offers lifetime lessons to insure they do.

Judy loves to teach. She has presented lectures and classes nationwide for 20 years and has recently teamed up with Karen Taylor to offer quilting and embroidery cruises for the past three years. Whether in a class of 10 or 100, those attending benefit from her vast knowledge of all things sewing.

Judy lives in Findley Lake, New York, with her husband Jeff, and enjoys daily the company of her daughter Megan and her grandchildren. She’s also been known to begin or end her day taking a picture of a glorious sunrise or sunset and encouraging all of us to enjoy this free beauty.

Katherine Artnies

In 2001 Katherine Artines walked into Millcreek Sewing & Fabric in search of a new sewing machine. She walked out with her first embroidery machine and digitizing software. These life-changing tools had her stepping onto a new path that has led her to teach Dance with Your Destiny classes and gave her a long-time friend in Judy Fenton.

Katherine began her love of embroidery software with Palette and all of the Designer’s Gallery line. She has also created over 40 online videos for the Inspired by dime software series. She has contributed articles and projects for over 15 years to Designs in Machine Embroidery magazine and has written two books published by DIME, Welcome, Baby!, and Posh Pincushions, as well as the Stipple! Sassy Cats collection. Too, Katherine has been a guest lecturer for BabyLock Love of Sewing events.  She is a recurring vendor at Quilting on the Bayfront, offering wearable art to fabric and fiber lovers. In her pre-embroidery life, she owned a computer training center for 15 years.

Katherine’s home, studio, and support are in Erie, Pennsylvania, with Paul, her husband of 42 years. Her children and grandchildren are the inspiration for many of her creative endeavors.