In 2012, I became housebound for a number of months, as something to pass the time. I started sewing, one of a kind fabric bags. These were in a variety of shapes and sizes. I also started experimenting with making homemade felt from pure wool, using both needle and wet felting methods. This led on to me designing & making felt brooches & hair clips. After giving many bags and brooches to friends and family for birthdays and holidays, I found myself still overwhelmed by product. An Etsy shop seemed like the next logical step. I’ve always been a cat lover, so Cats Whiskers Designs seemed perfect.

What started out as occasionally making things for friends and family within a year quickly grew into a full time hobby. I found I loved designing bags and working on patterns I already had, and I began to find my personal style. I found I enjoyed altering patterns and putting my own style on to patterns I already had. To ensure that each bag and brooch is unique, I use a different fabric for each pattern. I also use unique embellishments on each bag, ensuring each item is one of a kind and a good fit for its new owner.

When it comes to supplies, I use the most beautiful fabrics I can find, from pure silk to strong cotton. I find the best quality materials for loops, handles and clips, in addition to one of a kind embellishments on my bags. My brooches are made from pure Merino wool that has been handfelted, using either needle felting or wet felting method. Sometimes I cut the handmade felt into flower petals and joined together these create flowers, althernatively the flowers take shape as the wool is felted, as if the flowers grow out of wool.

I put a lot of consideration into choosing fabrics: What will it look like using a particular pattern? Will it be strong enough to be used as a bag? If not, can I attach it to a stronger lining? When it comes to embellishments, I love searching antique and second hand shops for jewelery pieces to attach to the fabrics. I consider color schemes, whether the piece will complement the design and whether a specific item fits the pattern. When it comes to wool, I focus on color, texture, how pure the wool is and how well it will felt.

Everything for sale here is made by myself, I pride myself on my one woman operation. This ensures that each item is unique. I only make items I would cherish and love. Each item is a run of one (making the same item over and over again would be boring, anyway). I may use the same pattern, but I always alter it in some way – changing the closure, changing the finishing touches, using unique embellishments etc. These tenets also apply to the brooches I create, each type of brooch comes out differently, depending on the felting method.

I am mainly inspired by nature. I live in Yorkshire, a beautiful county in the North of England. Yorkshire is a stunning part of England, it has bleak moors, dales and wonderful coastline. Tthere are fantastic shades of green, blue and purple everywhere. The textures of fabrics also inspire me, often dictating what pattern I use for a particular fabric.

Each bag takes time to produce. The starting point can either be a pattern, the fabric or an embellishment. Fabric tends to be the starting point of the creative process for me, simply because it inspires me. Once I find the perfect fabric, then search for embellishments to complement the color and texture. The last piece of the puzzle is choosing a pattern for the material. Sometimes, if the pattern inspires me, I will look for materials that will look good as that bag. I build from there: pattern, fabrics, metal loops and clips and finally embellishments.

When making bags, I take each one slowly. I think of each bag as a one off commission. Each has a starting point: fabric, pattern or embellishment. This detail will dictate how the bag develops. Next, I sit down with a pencil and draw out the bag design, looking to see if I have a pattern for that design. If not, I will make one up. The details of each bag are very important to me. I work hard to make the stitching neat, straight and small, because it’s those tiny details that give my finished products their professional look.

With the brooches, I tend to develop them as I go along. I will have an idea where I’m heading, but this can change as the wool is turned into felt. The texture and flow of the colors in the felt dictate the way the brooch will develop. This is especially true of the felted pictures I make.

Customer service is vitally important to me. Each interaction with the customer is with me. I am happy to email and phone customers if they want. It is always me who replies to emails and it’s me at the end of the phone. Each customer receives a thankyou card and a code for 10% off any future purchaeses. It’s those little touches which earn me repeat customers, and the wonderful reviews that have been left.