How did you feel when you first started sewing? My first taste of sewing was when I was given a sewing kit for my birthday, when I was about seven years old. I started hemming a dolly sheet by hand and found it so boring that I don’t think I ever got it finished. It was shortly after that that I learned how to use Mum’s sewing machine and made all sorts of dolly creations.

Has your response to your craft changed much since then? Sometime in my teens, I discovered that hand sewing wasn’t so boring and even made an English paper pieced cushion. It wasn’t until my 30s that I really started to appreciate the joy of slow stitching by hand.

What is it that keeps you creating? I can’t really help it! Design occupies a huge part of my mind, and I’m always excited about the next thing. My passion of late has grown into helping children rekindle their imaginations through play, and I’m designing patterns for softies and their accessories. This has come from seeing how hard it can be to get my own children away from their devices.

How long can you spend browsing in a patchwork store? I don’t have any large patchwork stores nearby, so even a trip to Spotlight is often a long one. But get me into one of those mega patchwork stores, and I’d be gone for days!

What’s your favourite time of day to sew? I think I’m most alive in the afternoon and evening. I love curling up on the sofa snuggled under a quilt, with whatever project I’m working on.

Do you have any sewing gadgets/notions you never use? There’s quite a few fancy machine feet that I’ve never really seen the use for.