About Me
Heya!
My name is Emma Cartmel, and I am an Aussie living in beautiful Munich, Germany, with my husband Ben and our pug Harley. Before moving to Munich, we also spent a few years living in London.
My Story
Creativity has always been a big part of my life. I grew up in a family of talented sewists and spent countless school holidays crafting, draping fabric over my mum’s dressmaking mannequin named Priscilla, and watching shows like Art Attack. My mum introduced me to sewing early on, and I’ll always be so grateful for that.
Studying textiles and design in high school and working in a fabric store during my teens cemented my love for sewing and fashion. I went on to study fashion design at the Whitehouse Institute of Design in Sydney, three of the hardest but most rewarding years of my life.
During that time, I became especially drawn to the technical side of design: pattern drafting, garment construction, and the problem-solving involved in bringing 2D ideas to life. Receiving a scholarship to undertake further study in Gerber patternmaking only reinforced my desire to develop my skills in this area.
But life had other plans and I found myself working in production and buying, while also completing a business degree in marketing and management. However, it was through these experiences that I became increasingly aware of the ethical, environmental, and emotional complexities of the fashion industry.
While deciding to leave the industry was extremely difficult, taking a couple of years off to travel and do further study in psychology helped reshape my perspective and deepen my relationship with clothing and creativity in general.
Now, after all these years, I have found myself back on the path of my original passion: sewing and pattern making. These days, when I’m not working part-time in a school library, you’ll probably find me sewing, drafting patterns, or writing.
This little blog is my corner of the internet where I share with you all things sewing and pattern making, celebrating the handmade wardrobe, and enjoy fashion mindfully!
I would love it if you stayed and perused my site, and hopefully you are left feeling a little more curious or motivated - just like me!
Thank you for visiting xx