About Me

I love designing and creating. It is really nice to connect with others who love to sew.

I am retired now and have always liked to sew. I started with clothes for myself and then my children as well. Late in life I discovered the pleasures of patchwork and after making a few quilts I started on smaller things like table mats and bags and purses. They provide short term satisfaction while you work on something bigger but I needed more.
I wanted the pleasure of using lots of different apparel fabrics but the convenience of small projects. Making doll clothes was great fun but finding patterns for a hobby project was difficult. I made a gradual move into designing my own patterns with a view to sharing them in various ways.


Why doll clothes?
Sewing and designing are my passions.
I was looking for a way to use beautiful fabrics and make all sorts or designs.
Making and selling doll clothes patterns evolved slowly over a few years. I wanted something fun to make and thought about bags and purses for people but there just isn't enough variety there. That's when I thought making doll clothes and designing my own patterns would be perfect. I can satisfy my passions as well as share my ideas easily.

Why sell them at all?
My passion is designing and sewing. It is not a big step to drawing the patterns and writing the instructions. I see this business spinoff from my hobby as helping to fund more fabric and notions. I wouldn't normally do vector drawings of the pattern pieces or write instructions so I think it is fair to charge for this service.

My philosophy
I like value for money so I thought about what I wanted when I bought a pattern.

I wanted something a bit creative or at least with the potential to be made into a variety of looks - a pyjama shirt and pull on pants is not something I would pay money for.

I wanted a pattern that did more than just make one outfit so I created the pattern range concept where every sleeve or bodice or skirt could be swapped around to make similar designs with whole new looks. I started with Snugfit and Loosefit then realised I needed something bigger for thick fabrics or big coats so I added Largefit. I also decided to make a Knitfit range. These will have to be fine knit and bulky knit.

I wanted the possibility of creating completely new designs by combining pattern elements from different designs in my pattern ranges with no drafting skills needed. My Valspierssews Design System is in the works.
I wanted a price that didn't make too big a dent in the wallet but added lots of new clothes to my doll's wardrobe.

During 2019 and 2020 

I have tried various ideas for promoting my patterns. I started a subscription membership that went really well but it was a lot of work. I have now retired again and spend my time designing doll clothes along with applique designs and mini quilts. 

I am also spending some time refreshing some of my earliest designs. I am much better at drawing the diagrams as well as having better sewing skills and lots more experience.

I still keep up with the newsletter once a month with some general chit chat and quite often a free pattern. I have a bit of a pen pal thing going with some of the lovely ladies who receive my newsletter.

In the Future

I can see myself designing doll clothes as long as I can move my fingers and see OK. It is a very rewarding past time. I am hoping to do more quilt making both full size and mini. I love doing the applique designs for different blocks and also making them small to go on doll clothes.

My sewing zone

My planning zone

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You can find me on:
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Etsy

Happy Doll Dressmaking,

Val