During four consecutive months in 2009, Jessica Kallam set out to increase interest in hand embroidery by hosting a weekly pop culture quiz on Facebook and Twitter called the JKGiveaway. Its winners received embroidered pieces by Jessica relating to the weekly topics, which ranged from Feist's "The Reminder" album cover to those creepy twins in "The Shining." It was a grueling challenge she will neither repeat nor in good conscience recommend. Jess' work has been featured on needlecraft and creativity blogs like Mrxstitch.com, Craftster.com and Feelingstitchy.com. Her embroidery has garnered the praise of Craftzine.com bloggers Jenny Ryan and Rachel Barry Hobson, as well as her personal embroidery deity, Sublime Stitching's own Jenny Hart. Recently Jessica has branched out to other mediums, creating jewelry, plush toys, even lighting fixtures, and she's taught sewing and crafts since 2010. This will be her second MaxFunCon, and she looks forward to teaching one of her newer skills, needlefelting. When not busy crafting, Jessica (secretly a conservatory-trained jazz singer) records stupid love duet parodies with her fiance in their greater-Los Angeles home.

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