Pepper Stitches

Pepper Stitches creates modern handmade toys and home wares using new, repurposed and upcycled materials. Everything is designed and handmade by me, incorporating repurposed textiles, and using sustainable processes, resources and packaging wherever possible. Basically, I design and make cute things out of recycled materials that are lovely, and are eco-friendly too! Sewing has always been special to me. It’s so visceral, you can hold and hug and love handmade toys in a way that is different than drawings or painting (although I love them too). My love of op-shops, vintage fabrics, the challenge of designing and making new things out of old things, and a bit of eco-awareness has all led me to create Pepper Stitches. I love sourcing fabrics that would otherwise be discarded or forgotten and giving them an opportunity to be appreciated again. It’s lovely to be making beautiful things and help the world a bit at the same time. I find inspiration everywhere, the fabrics I find, dusty libraries, forest walks, children’s picture books, friends and family, art. When I get excited about an idea, fabric or new technique, I get totally involved in it and can quietly let my fingers fly all day, without noticing the hours slip by. I have sketchbooks and scraps of paper for new ideas, I’ll draw the basic figure and notes about colours, and embroidery details, then draft a pattern. Often a material will suggest something to me, like the woolen blankets that ended up as giraffes. I love that feeling of accomplishment when an idea and a few notes progresses to a finished piece that you can hold in your hands. I like to make new things all the time, and do most of my toys and home wares as short runs in response to the materials available, and also maybe my short attention span! Products vary in both texture and colour according to the materials available, making each piece unique. People are becoming more interested in where things come from, and the processes used to make them and I like the connectivity of creating something and telling the story of the materials it came from, and then receiving emails or notes from the recipient, of knowing some stories of where my pieces end up. I’m very grateful to be able to do what I love every day, and the wonderful crafty-lovin’ community out there; the support and encouragement has been awesome. I put a lot of myself and my heart into what I make, and I hope that shows.