Lissa Ziranek, owner and founder of Moving Thread
Lissa grew up in South Africa. Her mother was an artist and her father, an engineer. Her artsy mom was endlessly painting portraits and creating landscape tapestries and her dad was always fixing something. Lissa was always creative, but around age 12 when she got into sewing, she really found her niche. Learning to sew came from a place of necessity - she wanted more clothes but her mother couldn't afford to buy them for her. Some simple instructions got her going and before long she was being commissioned by friends and selling product to boutiques, her first official clothing label that continued for many years.
After school, she studied Fashion Design, and won an entrepreneurial award which boosted her label into stores across the country. Her designs were featured in South African editions of Elle, Marie Claire, Fairlady and many more.
Love got in the mix and took her to Los Angeles where she explored the fashion world in a different light, working for denim and t-shirt labels, and making custom clothing and wedding dresses.
She developed her second clothing label, Zita Roma, but after starting a family and raising tow young girls she was craving a more meanings career. In 2019 she settled on a small sewing school that started in her design space back-house. Word got out and soon she was teaching a steady flow of new students.
In 2022, a huge leap was taken when she opened her current studio on Washington Blvd, alongside These Hands Collective run by a close friend. The studio has been buzzing ever since, and the introduction of new instructors has been a real highlight.
Lissa teaches Intro to Sewing 4 Week Workshop, Alterations Workshop, Pant Making, Dress Making, Kimono Workshop, Intro to Pattern Making, T-Shirt Workshop, Private Workshops and co-hosts Kid and Teen Fashion Series and Fashion Camp with Rob Younkers.
Rob Younkers
Rob Younkers is a fashion designer, educator, media personality, and former Professor at Parsons School of Design.
He has designed and consulted for Dolce & Gabbana, Valentino, Patricia Field, Mattel, Vogue Magazine, Elie Tahari, Elle Magazine, and Threadymade. In 2007 he began designing a custom women’s tailored collection under his own label. Rob has been instructing up and coming designers for over fifteen years. He has taught internationally at Istituto Marangoni in Milan and for over 15 years at Parsons, his alma mater, where he began teaching three years after graduation, having been scouted by Tim Gunn. His involvement with a younger generation of designers began in 2006 when he mentored a 14-year-old designer on MTV’s “MADE”. Afterwards, Rob created fashion camps for several art studios in and around New York City. These ventures were the initial spark for what would become STITCHED Fashion Camp, started in 2013.
Rob teaches STITCHED Fashion Camp, Kids Fashion Series, Teen Fashion Series, Open Studio and is available for Private Workshops.
Rosie Ponizil
Rose Ponizil is a Los Angeles based designer and educator with a focus on slow fashion. She learned to sew around age 5 and has been in love ever since! Rose spent 10+ years creating custom swimwear and bras and now teaching others how to make their own. In addition, her work is focused on the afterlife of our textiles and finding ways to transform them into art. This can be seen in her personal practice through her slow fashion brand, Rosie Barker as well as in the classes she teaches. Rose believes that sustainability is much more than just the textiles we use, it’s about intentional consumption. This translates to sharing sewing techniques, pdf patterns and education. She believes that when you create something from scratch, that fits your body just right, you are less likely to throw it away.
Rosie teaches Bikini or Bra Set Workshop and Intro to Patchwork.
Michelle Kim
Michelle Kim is a fashion designer and lifestyle artist known for her maximalist aesthetic. Her work features striking combinations of new and found materials, colors, patterns, and themes. Michelle started designing and taught her self how to sew from a very young age. She followed her passion for the arts and fashion to Carnegie Mellon University, Parsons School of Design in New York City and received her Master of Fine Arts degree from the London College of Fashion. Afterwards, she worked for some notable companies (such as Anna Sui, Rebecca Taylor, Foundrae, Goop, and Cravings by Chrissy Teigen) while balancing her own work. In March 2022, Michelle launched her outdoor tabletop collaboration with Williams Sonoma, where her decoupage work meets a new dimension with printing on melamine and textiles.
Michelle lives in Los Angeles with her partner Bryan and rescue dogs, Pom Pom, Tilda, and Burt. Michelle enjoys teaching the next generation how to sew and stay creative, remembering how important this exposure to the arts was to her and her trajectory.
Michelle teaches Hand Sewing, Mending and Embellishments and Intro to Sashiko.
Dona McKenzie
A skiing accident in 2007 left Dona McKenzie with a broken leg and a passion for quilting. She has received numerous national awards for her work from quilt shows, including the Vermont Quilt Festival and MQX. As a recovering graphic designer, Ms. McKenzie spent 35 years as the Managing Director of a creative services firm in New York and Connecticut. Now her energy is dedicated to quilt design and creation. In 2019, she decided that she had had enough of snow, and moved to Los Angeles from the East Coast, happily settling in Venice with her husband, Nick Hubbell. In 2022, she became a certified instructor for Studio 180 Design, focusing on precision piecing and teaching.
Ms. McKenzie holds an undergraduate degree in Art and English from Occidental College, and an MA in Graphic Communications Management and Technology from NYU. She is currently on the board of the Los Angeles Modern Quilt Guild.
Dona teaches Improv Mini Quilt and Quilters Choice.
