I come from a creative family, and it's interesting when you have that creative mind what direction you end up going. I have four sisters, one sister draws and paints, one sister does graphic design, one sister does animation, one sister does interior design, and me as the fifth does sewing and fashion design. It wasn't always that way. Each one of us tried all kinds of things to use that creative mind, not really knowing what to do with it and it really wasn't until we were all past college that we discovered each one of us had it in there.

I definitely became the kind of crafter that accumulates all the stuff. It must be nice to put paper and pens in a drawer at the end of the day and walk away. I see pictures on the internet of these beautiful sewing rooms where everything is neatly stacked and looks like a magazine and my workroom looks like a bomb went off inside. Yep there will be no photos of my workspace until I achieve magazine status. My fabrics aren't neatly stacked, though I will say they are organized in bins by color and are folded within the bins. Everything does have a place, and it is nice that at the end of the day I can at least close the door. But my workshop is not the magical place where you get to see my doll collection. No that would be my living room for the dolls that are on display in all the cases. My workshop area is the place where the doll hospital is run and the design room is pumping so really what you see is a bunch of naked bald and somewhat creepy doll displays. Headless bodies, stacks of arms, buckets of eyes, sewing machines and mounds of fabric waiting to be cut into things. Many pairs of scissors, stacks of half finished dresses, yep this is where the magic is ABOUT to happen. Because once I'm finished, it's off to take photographs and show you what my long hard nights have achieved.

If you are a crafter like me, you know half your mind is thinking about what you need to finish and the other half is thinking about what you need to make next, because none of us are one-trick ponies and there's always something new around the corner for us to do. I love what I do, so it's never boring for me and I very rarely say, no I'm not going to make anything today. We are on the road of constant learning and self improvement as we continue to master our craft and expand our knowledge.

I know the life, and I know the hard work behind it, so as a person and a company I try to support as many handmade businesses as I can. Business sometimes sends the message of Either/Or. Like you can either buy from me or from someone else that sews. But I don't think it actually works that way. I believe in "And". You can buy from me and you can buy from someone else that sews. You don't have to choose one or the other. Our time is limited, and no one can possibly make all the fashion styles, all the historical eras, all the colors, all the accessories and all the other massive directions you turn to in making things for dolls. It's just not possible unless you have some very lucrative unlimited mass of money to blow. So I say, we don't need to battle against each other for customers we need to work together to serve customers. You do custom victorian doll dresses for porcelain dolls and I don't? Great I know who to refer if someone comes my way. You just launched your first doll dress line? Great, I'll help you spread the word. It's called Doll Community for a reason. So welcome crafters and sewers, make yourselves known.