The Value of Handmade and Shopping Second Hand with Multi Crafter Paige Joanna

In this episode of the Sewing Social podcast, host Gemma Daly sits down with sewing and upcycling creator Paige Joanna Watts for an inspiring deep-dive into handmade fashion, creativity, and building a craft-based business. 

Paige shares how she fell in love with sewing, why valuing handmade clothing matters, and what it’s really like working behind the scenes at Friday Pattern Company. 

We chat about her passion for thrifting and creative upcycling, the projects she’s most excited about right now, and the launch of her adorable doll-making pattern brand, Podgekins. 

Paige also offers practical advice for sewists, upcyclers, and aspiring creative entrepreneurs looking to turn their craft into a sustainable business. 

Don’t miss this inspiring conversation packed with sewing insights, upcycling ideas, and handmade business tips.

Key Takeaways:

• Paige's love for sewing began with her grandmother's influence.
• She emphasises the importance of valuing handmade items.
• Working for Friday Pattern Company allows her to combine her passions.
• Thrifting is a treasure hunt that promotes sustainable fashion.
• Upcycling is a creative outlet for Paige, especially with jackets.
• Launching Podgekins was a passion project with the idea born during lockdown.
• She encourages others to share their creative journeys online.
• Paige believes in charging what you're worth as a maker.
• Future projects include more upcycled items and doll patterns.

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Guest Details: 

Instagram: @paigejoannaa

Youtube: @paigejoannaa

Pinterest: @paigejoanna

Email: paige@paigejoanna.co.uk

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to the last show of the year!

01:27 Paige's Sewing Journey

04:35 The Value of Handmade Items

08:09 Working with Friday Pattern Company

13:00 The Importance of Secondhand Shopping

15:36 Thrift Flips and Upcycling Projects

18:15 Exploring Live Shopping Platforms

19:51 Finding Inspiration in Creativity

21:06 Evolving Personal Style

22:32 Launching a Doll Sewing Pattern Business

27:42 Advice for Creative Entrepreneurs

31:04 Upcoming Projects and Market Preparations

32:37 Fun This or That Game

36:00 Outro 

Transcript

Gemma Daly (00:53)

Paige, welcome to the Sewing Social podcast. I'm so happy to have you on today. Would you mind introducing yourself to the listeners?

Paige Watts (01:02)

Yeah, hi

everyone. So my name is Paige Joanna and I'm an online content creator and I mainly specialise in sewing, crafting and a little bit of secondhand content as well. So shopping preloved and upcycling and things like that.

Gemma Daly (01:16)

Amazing and we're going to touch on a lot of those aspects today, I was wondering if you could tell us first of all about your sewing journey and where it all began for you.

Paige Watts (01:27)

Yeah, course, So I've been sewing since I was a little kid, essentially. It came from my nan because she's always loved sewing and she used to make costumes for an amateur dramatic society. So she was always like seeking fabrics and vintage patterns and all of that kind of thing. I just fell in love with that.

as well and she taught me how to do like hand stitching and stuff at first when I was really little, like the typical making things for my dolls stuff. then yeah, I just, fell in love. I did my work experience at a dressmakers when I was 14 and learned a little bit more the skill when it comes to things like alterations and wedding dresses and all that kind of stuff. And it just kind of went from there. I studied fashion and textiles at college.

Gemma Daly (01:58)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (02:16)

and went on to do illustration at uni. So I've always loved making and creating and sewing was a big part of that. And I obviously learned like dressmaking and patterns and stuff at college. I did have a bit of a sewing hiatus for a while and got my sewing machine back out in like 2019 and started dressmaking again.

and I sort of was introduced into the sewing community online and it's the rest is history basically from then but I am one of those people I'm like an avid crafter so I do a mixture of stuff as well as sewing.

Gemma Daly (02:46)

Yeah, well you definitely sound really creative and I think a lot of my listeners will probably know you best from that sort of era in the sewing community. But do you have a particular like favourite pattern or fabric that you love to work with from your dressmaking side of things?

Paige Watts (03:04)

Yeah, I'm a little bit biased because I know one of the questions you're going to go on to in a minute is about Friday pattern company, but I work for Friday pattern company and I love their patterns. I just love how Chelsie not only develops the patterns, but creates these patterns that are very modular in design. So you can easily hack them and make them in so many different ways. love them. And I also love that there's video tutorials because even though I obviously make a lot of

Gemma Daly (03:09)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (03:29)

being able to see something visually as like a refresher or something like that is so And I really love Tilly and the Button patterns as well. I've made a lot of Tilly's patterns. I really like Sew Over It. Cinnamon Daisy is another one. It's like an indie designer. I love her willow dress. So yeah, a few different brands, but I'd say they're like the main ones that I sort of gravitate towards.

Gemma Daly (03:50)

And fabric wise do you have any favorites or do like to try a bit of everything?

Paige Watts (03:52)

Mmm.

Yeah, I am one of those people I try bit of everything but at the moment I'd say I'm more into like thrifting fabrics so looking for things like vintage tablecloths and vintage like bedding things like that in charity shops and using that for my garments. I've really got into shopping secondhand fabrics on Vinted recently so that's always really fun. I find some goodies on there but actual types of fabrics are more of like a woven girly.

love things like cotton lawns and viscose that are really good for like blouses and dresses and stuff like that is what I tend to gravitate towards. do also really like a coating fabric. I quite like corduroy and tapestry and stuff.

Gemma Daly (04:33)

Hmm

Yeah, so a little bit of a mixture, but definitely more on the woven side. Yeah. I saw an interesting post that you did sort of recently, and it was about breaking down the cost of handmade items. Do you think a lot of people undervalue things that made by hand?

Paige Watts (04:37)

Yeah. Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

⁓ 100%. Yeah. I've had over the years, many people ask me to make things for them or suggest a kind of price for something. like, would you make this for such and such? And it's usually associated with what people would spend in like the high street, for example. And I just think it's important not only as someone wanting to buy a garment, but also just for

value and to showcase how things are made because I don't think a lot of people like we say handmade but obviously everything's been made by someone's hands at some point so even if it is shop-bought for example like someone's made that and I just think it was an interesting combination of things it was like obviously to showcase the time that's gone into something but also like the experience and just like how much

Gemma Daly (05:27)

Mm-hmm.

Paige Watts (05:42)

happens behind the scenes for one garment, just so people can understand it.

yeah, so I just think it was an important thing to showcase. And in terms of the cost, it's kind of like the materials, the time, the experience, like all of those things combined, which I don't think a lot of people really consider, do they, the combination of things. yeah, it's definitely an interesting topic that I would like to touch on more as well.

But it's doing it in a way that's, I don't want to offend anyone. at the same time, I do think it's an important subject, especially with like fast fashion and, and throw away culture and all of that, just to kind of see the value in these things a little bit more.

Gemma Daly (06:20)

It really is important and it's come up quite a bit on the podcast because obviously I'm talking to people that make things and some of them want to sell them and you've got to get money for all of those things that you've mentioned time, experience and materials so it is a really important topic.

Paige Watts (06:23)

Hmm.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah, I do a lot of, ⁓

just a quick little side note, I do a lot of markets. So I started a little brand called Podgkins and I've sort of got in the market scene a little bit, local markets and the Stitch Festival and things like that. And it's really interesting, a lot of the local markets where there's makers and artisans and they really undervalue their things. And it's sad because you want them to be able to charge what things are worth, but at the same time, like I don't think people...

really want to buy what it's worth because obviously especially like crochet and sewing things like that they they would be a lot more than I think a lot of people would be willing to spend so it's it's an interesting situation especially at like the local fairs and stuff to see people understand the pricing and stuff like that so yeah I'm not

Gemma Daly (07:15)

Yeah.

I'm not sure either and I don't think there is a definitive answer but I had a guest on last week that sort of said it's like a revolution we have to sort of gang together handmade hand makers and say no this is what it's worth if you don't want it that's fine but some people will because you you value what you're doing basically

Paige Watts (07:29)

Mmm

Yeah, so true. love

seeing it like that actually. I didn't think about it like that. But I think, yeah, if enough of us are shouting about it, I just think that's only gonna create awareness, isn't it? So hopefully people will be more understanding. But I know that especially the secondhand movement and ⁓ shopping preloved and that alongside with making is definitely getting more popular.

Gemma Daly (07:59)

Hmm.

Paige Watts (08:09)

So we'll see. We'll see where it goes. Yeah.

Gemma Daly (08:09)

Yeah, fingers crossed.

So let's talk about Friday Pattern Company then. Can you explain your job role and what it involves?

Paige Watts (08:20)

Yeah, so I do mainly social media marketing for them. So what that involves is things like content creation. So I'll make graphics, I'll make sewing videos, do like reels, I do sewing hacks on the blog. But I also liaise with like content creators as well as myself. I'll liaise with people to go on the blog and I'll do like competition winners and things like that. do.

the weekly email newsletter. So I'll come up with topics for that week and then I'll put together content, whether that be a graphic or a tutorial or something. And then I schedule it in on all of our different platforms. So yeah, it's mainly the content side of things, a little bit of admin mixed in there as well, I get to do a lot of different things. I get to test the patterns. I get to send out the new patterns that haven't launched yet to testers and liaise with the testers for that.

that side of it as well. So it's really fun. I love it. It's great. And Chelsie, she lives in America and I live in the UK. So it was an interesting dynamic at the start. But when I applied for the role, I was like, we're going to make it work. I want this job, you know, so, but it's good because having us on both time zones is actually really beneficial because there's a massive market in both the UK and the US.

Gemma Daly (09:32)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (09:42)

for sewists it works actually really well. Yeah, I love it. It's fantastic job. Very lucky.

Gemma Daly (09:49)

Aw, it sounds really fun and really How did you sort of gain your social media skills? Are you like, you know, learn as you go along or what happened?

Paige Watts (10:01)

So it kind of started in university. So I studied illustration at uni and part of our final major project was this professional development section and we had to go out and do our own sort of self-development and I just chose to go down the kind of entering competitions and putting my work on social media which all counted as part of this project.

So at the time I was uploading my outfits, some pictures of myself before it was popular, to this website called lookbook.nu. And I remember getting loads of comments on there saying like, you should start a blog. People wanted to see more of my looks and why I made them and all that sort of stuff. So I put together a blog and then at the time there wasn't even Instagram. There was literally blogging and Twitter and that was it. And so I...

Gemma Daly (10:34)

Mm-hmm.

Paige Watts (10:52)

built a bit of an audience, if you like, there. And I was doing things like Cosmopolitan Awards, like the Fashion Blogger Awards and all of that sort of stuff. And that combined with my ⁓ degree in illustration, it kind of just went hand in hand. So when I graduated, worked in retail and I remember getting a PR job through working at Schuh believe it or not. I got a month placement in London in the PR office. So I went and did a bit of PR.

Gemma Daly (11:17)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (11:21)

and they made me do like a little bit of social content when I was there. And it just kind of went from there. always lived in Portsmouth and then I had this dream like I was gonna go work in the fashion industry in London. And yeah, I just went from working in PR, doing a bit of experience here, there and you know, all different things with my own channels. So like my Paige Joanna stuff my blog and...

then Instagram obviously launched. And I think the combination of skills meant that I could get a kind of junior job as a fashion, I think it was called a fashion assistant at the time, which basically meant I did everything for a really low salary. how I got into it because I moved to London in my early 20s and I was a fashion assistant for this indie brand that had, they had their stuff on like ASOS marketplace and all of that sort of stuff. And I was doing her social content and her blog and

Then I worked at Jojo Mom and Baby as a social exec. So I had like various different jobs and I just kind of worked up the ladder a little bit. But I went freelance in 2017 and the rest is history. I've of always done a mixture of working for agencies and I worked for Revolution Beauty as a freelance content creator. So I prefer the content side of the role.

rather than the admin side. I'm not very good at things like ads and scheduling kind of bores me to tears a little bit. But the creative side where I actually get stuck in and I get to physically produce a video or a piece of photography or a graphic or something like that is kind of my main specialty. That's what I love to do. I could do the other stuff, but I prefer the actual like creation, creative side of

Gemma Daly (12:33)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (13:00)

But yeah, I've done all

sorts of jobs as you can probably imagine. Yeah.

Gemma Daly (13:03)

A bit of everything, but that's led you

to where you are today. So that's great. Let's talk about secondhand shopping, as you mentioned earlier, or thrifting as some may call it. What draws you to that and why do you think it's important to shop secondhand?

Paige Watts (13:15)

Mm-hmm.

So going back to what I was saying about my history, if you like, is my nan. Because she used to sew costumes for an amateur dramatics society. I grew up going to like car boot sales and charity shops and we were always seeking out things. My nan was always trying to find patterns or bits of costume. And that was our weekend. We grew up going to all these things and it was for me, it's like second nature.

I just see it as treasure hunting and I just have this real love of seeking out treasures and for me that's what pre-loved secondhand thrifting is all about but there's obviously the benefit of getting away from fast fashion and you can find like the most unique incredible things secondhand and it's cheaper than buying new.

Gemma Daly (13:50)

Mm.

Paige Watts (14:10)

it's just something that's in my DNA if I'm honest and I've always loved it. I love seeing it become popular and more and more people are stepping foot into charity shops and going to kilo sales and car boots and I just love that because I think once people discover how awesome it is and how fun it is and how rewarding it is in fact, I just think yeah, the more and more people will get involved and make sort of slightly

more positive choices when it comes to fashion and buying and things. So yeah, I just love it, as you can probably tell.

Gemma Daly (14:44)

so do think there's a few things involved in that? Obviously you get to find treasure, but there's a sort of thrill of the chase as well, isn't there?

Paige Watts (14:53)

100 % I love stepping foot in a charity shop you never know what you're gonna get and when you find something incredible it's like a thrill so ah it's just it's just fabulous today I've got the pleasure of going to a charity warehouse near where I live and it's an amazing charity called Rowan's Hospice and they have a warehouse where they sort through all of the donations

Gemma Daly (15:05)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (15:19)

and I got to go and do some filming for them and stuff, but I also got to seek out the craft supplies and the sewing supplies and I had the best time. And they had a donation in from someone that had like vintage trims and I was like, this is heaven. So yeah, just, you feel like you're finding treasure is brilliant.

Gemma Daly (15:25)

Yay!

Yeah.

Absolutely. You've done a lot of projects that some sort of call thrift flips. Can you explain what that means and do you have any favourite projects that you've flipped?

Paige Watts (15:42)

Mm-hmm.

yeah, I absolutely love upcycling jackets. That's my bread and butter. Is that the saying? I just love, I love going back to jackets and I, for a period of time, used to upcycle and paint jackets and sell them. So I used to make bridal jackets for people and the leather jacket sort of trend was in. I was painting on those and combining my love of illustration and fashion and upcycling.

Gemma Daly (15:57)

Yep.

Paige Watts (16:15)

jackets is like a ⁓ go-to for me and a couple of years ago, if people scroll back through my Instagram, they'll be able to see that I upcycled a jacket and I embroidered a free motion embroidery butterfly on the back and I added all like mirror charms to it and stuff and I created this really whimsical, gorgeous butterfly jacket. So that's one of my favorites that I've done.

then at the moment I'm upcycling handbags and making these kind of like fairy core bags I can show you a couple of actually for people that are watching instead of listening So I've got a couple next to me I I would show you so I'm taking like little bags and then adding to them There's like cute little ones like adding trims and details and stuff and then this one this one's like I've quilted

Gemma Daly (16:44)

Yeah.

Okay.

Paige Watts (17:02)

this fabric and then put it on the front. Yeah, so they're all not finished yet, but it's just a fun process because you can really like pick out colours and I'm like adding sort of beads and trims and things. So it's just creating something new from something old and giving it a new lease of life. And it's also making something unique, you know? So I just, I love that process, but yeah, I like to take a base product and then...

Gemma Daly (17:02)

that's so cute.

absolutely.

Paige Watts (17:26)

add stuff to it a lot of the time.

Gemma Daly (17:29)

And are you planning to sell those bags, Paige? Or what's the plan?

Paige Watts (17:32)

Yeah,

so I've actually got a Christmas market coming up in a couple of weeks. It's in Portsmouth. It's called Love Portsmouth, but I am hoping to sell some there and then anything that I don't sell at the market. ⁓ I've actually started using this ⁓ channel called Whatnot and I do shows on there. So I do a mixture of preloved and vintage like clothing and accessories, which is where I'll sell the bags. But you also do a fabric and craft show once a month.

Gemma Daly (17:39)

Thank

Paige Watts (17:58)

so people can come and it's like a destash show, know, so it's like things my own collections and things that I've sourced when I've been like secondhand shopping and stuff. I'll look out for like vintage curtains and like, you know, things like that. And then ⁓ yeah, have a whatnot show where I sell some of the bits, but yeah, it's fun.

Gemma Daly (18:16)

that sounds really cool. And how does what not work then? Do you have to tune in and bid or how does it work?

Paige Watts (18:21)

Hmm.

It's it's imagine if eBay and TikTok had a love child. This is what one would not would be like. It's people ⁓ selling. It's like a live shopping channel. Right. So, know, back in the day, it'd be like, call up and bid on stuff is similar to that. It's like you watch people on your phone or whatnot and they say it's like me in my studio and I'm showcasing things and then I'll set I'll start the bid and

Gemma Daly (18:35)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (18:48)

there's like countdown. So some people do 10 seconds, some people 30 and people swipe at the bottom to bid on the item. So I have things sometimes starting at two pounds or some things will start at 10 pounds. It depends obviously what it is and the bid will start and you the timer goes down and you bid and if you win it, you pay for it and it gets sent to you. So it's really cool. And there's some really great sellers on there selling like vintage and pre love clothing and

Gemma Daly (19:10)

Awesome.

Paige Watts (19:15)

There's Handmakers on there. It's a really fabulous place for that. yeah, I really, really enjoy it. And it's really, it's getting really popular, I think. So yeah, it's cool.

Gemma Daly (19:24)

Awesome. Well, check it out everybody. You might bag some treasures. Yeah.

Paige Watts (19:28)

I know honestly

I've got the ⁓ there's a link if anyone is unfamiliar there's a link in my Instagram bio so they want to go check it out but it's a yeah it's a really cool little platform if they want to sell on it as well it's a really good place to like destash your fabrics and and things so yeah.

Gemma Daly (19:44)

Awesome.

Where do you think you get your inspiration from for both like your sewing and your thrifting projects?

Paige Watts (19:51)

gosh, ⁓ I think predominantly Pinterest is where I would go to the first place. I think a lot of us makers sort of tend to seek out things on there. But really it's a mixture. It's like a combination of Pinterest and what I see on Instagram, maybe things that are trending. I also just have a love of like really quirky, like whimsical things. I've always just loved very kind of costumey things.

I guess so I'm drawn to that. So if I see something, especially the whole fairy core trend at the moment, I'm really drawn to that. I'll see like someone's made wings or something I'll be like, yeah, need to, I need to make wings course. So yeah, it's just a mixture really. Sometimes magazines, sometimes it's what's trending. It really just depends or sometimes I could literally be drawn to a fabric and a project will come.

because I've seen something like a fabric that I've liked. yeah, it really just, it really depends on the day, but I'd say mainly if I'm thinking, oh, I need a new sewing project, I'll probably go onto Pinterest as a first port of call and kind of go from there.

Gemma Daly (20:55)

Now, I've followed you for a few years now and I sort of, you know, you see people evolve, don't you? How would you describe your style and how it's changed over the years?

Paige Watts (20:54)

Yeah.

I love this question. a lot of people associate me with bright colours and pastels and things like that which is very much something, I still love it, but it's very much something that I think I love more, four years ago or so.

I find more in more recent years or months it's more like my alternative style so I really love alternative music so I've just kind of stepped foot into that a little bit more and I've gone a bit more still very much quirky but deeper colours and like jewel tones and

and things like that. yeah, very like Bohemian, whimsy goth, you know that kind of vibe? But as a 30 year old, 30, mid-30s mum. So it's like, okay, this is the extreme. I need to sort of like find a balance of what I like plus what I can wear for school pickup or whatever. Yeah.

Gemma Daly (21:47)

Yeah.

I know, it's hard actually

being a mom and trying to wear what you actually want to wear because it's often not practical.

Paige Watts (22:06)

Yeah,

I think sometimes I'll turn up to Willow's nursery to pick her up and they're probably thinking what she's wearing. But I just think well I've worked from home if I can't wear it any day then when am I gonna wear it? But yeah and then other days I'll just be wearing you know the mum uniform of leggings and a jumper. But love I love my quirky outfits but it's it's being in the right mindset to wear them I think some days.

Gemma Daly (22:18)

Exactly!

That's it.

Yeah,

I get it. I get it. So you mentioned earlier that you, I think it was last year, wasn't it, that you launched your Podgekins business, which is the most adorable cloth doll sewing pattern business. They're so cute. Where did you get the idea for it? And can you sort of let us in on what's involved in setting up that kind of business?

Paige Watts (22:34)

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah. thank you.

Yeah, my gosh. So the original idea started as a lockdown idea. I think many many an idea did start in lockdown. And it was because my niece at the time was she was like my daughter's age now she's about three, I think. And I just had loads of fabrics and I wanted to make her a little dolly. So I just didn't use a pattern. I just sort of, you know, made of this little doll. I did illustration, one of the projects that we did in

Gemma Daly (23:04)

You

Paige Watts (23:23)

uni was a plush project so we had to make a plushie and then write a children's book alongside it so yeah so it was really fun and um back in the day I used to make I say back in the day I've done all all different things you can think of I've probably done it and I made little cat plushies and I sold them on Etsy this was like 2012 or something crazy I've always loved retro toys and cute things and uh

Gemma Daly (23:30)

wow.

You

Paige Watts (23:49)

in lockdown I made this little dolly for my niece and I decided one random day I'm gonna make an Instagram account and I was like I'm gonna post pictures of all the dolls that I'm gonna make. I made one and I started this page called Podgekins. The reason it's called Podgekins is because my nickname as a kid was Podger Paige and I know but the dolls that I wanted to make

Gemma Daly (23:59)

Yeah.

Paige Watts (24:16)

are podgy because they're Podgy and cute. so I kind of thought well, Podgekins and Kin is like family. So it kind of just came to me and I was like, it's a bit of a random word, but it's cute. So I just started this Instagram account with the idea of just making dolls to post them. It wasn't to sell them at that point. And then a couple of years ago, I was thinking of making dollies and I was like, I don't know. just kind of...

Gemma Daly (24:18)

Yep.

Mm-hmm.

Paige Watts (24:42)

didn't know where I was gonna take it but I knew I wanted to make some and I just suddenly realised why aren't I combining my knowledge of sewing patterns and my love of like cute nostalgic things and put it together and then make doll patterns and it just kind of kind of clicked and went from there so the development is actually like the longest hardest part of of it's not really call it a business it's more of a passion project I'd say at this at this stage but

The pattern development takes so long because it is literally a after bedtime weekend thing, right? So to develop a pattern, it takes so long, but the original Podgkins dolly, my main thing that I wanted its USP to be is it has a squishy bottom and it independently sits because a lot of my daughter's dolls, I just cannot stand that they're just rigid and they flop.

Gemma Daly (25:20)

Mm-hmm.

you

Okay.

Yep.

Paige Watts (25:39)

So

I wanted the Podgekins dolls to have a squishy bum so that you can have tea parties and like they sit independently. So when I was developing the pattern, that was like the priority for me was to make them easy to make still, but have some kind of elements so they can sit down. So yeah, they kind of just went from there really, but I have all these plans, but no time to develop it. I've got animal dolls, I've sketched, I've even made samples, but then...

Gemma Daly (25:44)

Aww.

Mm-hmm.

Paige Watts (26:05)

the time it takes to develop is things I want to do with it, but it's definitely a passion brand. It's never going to be a moneymaker. It's something I just love to do. I just absolutely love creating cute little whimsical things. So yeah, it kind of goes from there. And maybe in the future I'll have kits and I'll have, you know, more...

markets at the Stitch Festival and the know the quilting show and all that stuff but I think for now it's very much like right let's just focus on actually developing the patterns and get that done you know so yeah it's really fun now I love it and they bring me so much joy like when I make them and finish them it's a very rewarding thing to make to see like my vision sort of come to life in a a 3d object

Gemma Daly (26:36)

Yep.

Paige Watts (26:50)

So yeah, it's good fun. And obviously I have a daughter who tests them all out and tells me if she thinks they're good or not. So if she instantly, well, you know what they're like, just might, is she instantly, she'll like, if she plays with it straight away, I know I've done well. You know, if she just goes, if it's like thrown on the floor, I'm like, maybe back to the drawing board on that one. But yeah, it's good fun.

Gemma Daly (26:59)

hope she's not too harsh.

Yep.

and like I say, they are super cute, but it is that like time element, isn't it? It's always a time and it sounds like you've got loads of ideas for it, but...

Paige Watts (27:20)

thank you. You can see if... yeah,

there's anyone that's watching on YouTube, you can see a few of them in the background there, like laid out. Just having a sleep.

Gemma Daly (27:35)

So what advice do you think you would give someone looking to turn their like creative hobby into a business?

Paige Watts (27:42)

I think just not being afraid to be new at something. Because a lot of the time, like when I started out, I knew I liked to make dolls, but I didn't know how to turn that into a pattern, for example. And it was quite an uncomfortable journey to be new at something and to make loads and loads of samples that weren't good. I think just being able to...

be in the development stages and be comfortable with learning and failing because then that's how you obviously create something really good. And then in terms of actually getting it out there, it's just, you've got to start somewhere. Just post about it. Post about your development, post about like your ideas. And if there's people out there that relate to what you're making, they will find you and you'll find them.

I started off with the doll making and the account is still really small, but I have some really keen, lovely people that support it and love the ideas and stuff. yeah, I just think unless you're going to put it out there, you're never going to know. So I just think you just have to start somewhere. And if that means starting with sharing your ideas and that process before you've even launched a product, then that's a really great place to start and get that kind of user feedback.

directly from an audience, you know. I remember posting about the development of Podgkins and asking people like, what do you think of this? you think of this face? Or like, you know, and it was really interesting to get that direct feedback from people. So yeah, I just, you have to start somewhere and not being afraid of like putting yourself out there. You've got to be a little bit vulnerable sometimes when starting these sort of ventures. And then going back to what we were saying earlier, charge what you're worth.

the price. You can't really up the price on something. So start off really thinking about the time that goes into a product and not just the time it goes into making the product, but developing the product and the expertise and the years of skill that goes into the said thing that you're making. So yeah, I just think that you can always reduce. can't always up the prices on things a lot of the time.

Gemma Daly (29:27)

Mm-hmm.

Paige Watts (29:49)

Yeah, that would be like my main advice with that.

Gemma Daly (29:52)

That's

really good advice, And I think, you know, the main thing is to be brave, isn't it, a lot of the time? Because it is scary putting yourself out there.

Paige Watts (29:58)

Hmm Yeah,

I still find it a struggle some days like I I have so many ideas and I haven't actually posted on Podgkins for a few weeks just because of time and everything else but always you know, if you get a bit of a blow from something like I did a market in the summer and It wasn't necessarily my fault. The footfall wasn't great, but I took a couple of like

not very good markets to heart. And so it's like getting yourself out of that and not listening to your inner saboteur when it comes to what you're making, because it's very personal, know, something you've made with your hands. It's really hard to not associate not having sales and not getting followers or whatever with like, people don't like it. Yeah, so, you know, it's a constant.

Gemma Daly (30:42)

Absolutely.

Paige Watts (30:47)

again, development of the product, but also development of not taking things to heart and being vulnerable and putting yourself out there and like you said, being brave as well. If you've got something to share, share it. You're gonna find people that love it and relate to it as much as you do as well. yeah, it doesn't hurt to try, does it?

Gemma Daly (31:03)

That's it. That's really good advice. So what's next for you creatively then? Any projects or ideas you're excited about?

Paige Watts (31:05)

Thank

Yeah, so I think the market that I've got coming up is probably the biggest one that is taking up most of my mental and physical time at the moment. So I've been making all sorts of things. So I'm going to have some ready-made Podjic in dollies to sell, which is why there's a load of them there. Yeah, so a lot of the markets I do locally, it's more difficult to sell like the kits and things. I think people are more looking for like the finished.

Gemma Daly (31:28)

Aww.

Okay.

Paige Watts (31:39)

article. So it will be a mixture of those and the upcycled bags. I'm making some gift bags out of scrap fabrics. So instead of people using like wrapping paper for Christmas, they can use these really beautiful drawstring bags that I've made. So I'm really excited about those. And I've made some Christmas stockings. So there's quite a few things I'm making at the moment and not as many garments, but a lot of like lifestyle-y products.

and accessories and upcycling is kind of where I'm at at the got loads of sewing patterns that I want to try but no time to do them. So eventually I want to make like a tapestry jacket and like all these other things but yeah it's just having the time.

Gemma Daly (32:15)

Hahaha

it sounds like that market's gonna be fun and you know, you've made some lovely things ready for Christmas.

Paige Watts (32:26)

Hopefully.

Yeah, yeah, definitely. Thank you.

Gemma Daly (32:30)

I hope it goes well.

Just to tie up the interview page, I like to play a little game of this or that, if that's okay with you. I think we've potentially answered a couple of these already, but we'll go with it anyway. So would you class yourself as a spring summer or autumn winter girl?

Paige Watts (32:35)

Okay, go on. Yeah, I love this.

Yeah.

Probably a spring summer. I don't like wear as many bright colours, I definitely prefer like summer clothing, like cute little dresses and things like that, so yeah.

Gemma Daly (32:59)

Sewing a garment from scratch or thrift flipping?

Paige Watts (33:02)

my gosh, that is a really hard question. my gosh, how do I choose? I think it's more rewarding to sew something from scratch overall. So I'll go with that. That was a hard one.

Gemma Daly (33:04)

Hahaha.

Yep.

to your coffee.

Paige Watts (33:16)

at the moment in this phase of my life, coffee. Because I have a small child. Yeah.

Gemma Daly (33:21)

Yeah, it helps you through.

organised stash or creative chaos. ⁓

Paige Watts (33:27)

would love to have an organised stash, but I think I'm more creative chaos, unfortunately.

Gemma Daly (33:33)

I think most of us are.

A meal out or a takeaway?

Paige Watts (33:37)

meal out. like an I because I work from home I like an excuse to go out.

Gemma Daly (33:42)

Wavons or knits?

Paige Watts (33:43)

yeah, we answered this one didn't we? I like a woven. Yeah, I'm a sucker for a woven fabric.

Gemma Daly (33:45)

Yeah we did.

or a rotary cutter?

Paige Watts (33:51)

scissors. Yeah, I do use a rotary cutter sometimes, but I think I'm... I always just go back to the scissors. It's just... it's just like habit. I feel like I've got more control, even though it's some unfiddly bits, it's like trickier. I just... I don't know, it's just something about using scissors. I just prefer it, I think.

Gemma Daly (33:59)

I prefer scissors as well, it's more satisfying, yeah. Yeah.

One project on the go or multiple.

Paige Watts (34:13)

when it comes to garment sewing, I like to start and finish a before I start another one. Like I'm one of those people, I've tried bulk cutting out and then the thing will stay cut out and remain cut out but not made. So, with the market coming up, I am at the moment in the depths of like multiple things going on.

Gemma Daly (34:25)

Mmm.

Paige Watts (34:34)

But yeah, with garment sewing, I'd say it's like one at a time. I start and finish it and then I can move on to the next one. But yeah, it kind of depends on the projects, but at the moment, it's a multiple. Much to my brain's annoyance.

Gemma Daly (34:49)

Would you say you wear brights or neutrals?

Paige Watts (34:52)

I'm more of a brights. Yeah.

Gemma Daly (34:53)

and prints or solids.

Paige Watts (34:55)

prints 100 % i'm like a print magpie and then i go i've got nothing to wear because none of the prints work together yeah story of my life

Gemma Daly (34:59)

Hahaha ⁓

Yeah, I get

So where can people find you, Paige?

Paige Watts (35:08)

So I'm just Paige Joanna on all platforms so you'll see me, I've got orange hair on most of my pictures. yeah, Paige Joanna, all platforms, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, not Twitter anymore is it, it's X. no, well I don't. But yeah, Instagram, YouTube, they're the main ones that I'm on. So yeah, just Paige Joanna on there.

Gemma Daly (35:15)

You

I know, but no, does anyone call it X?

Awesome and I'll of course link all of that in the show notes so people can click the links. It's been so good to talk to you today Paige so thank you for joining me on the Sewing Social Podcast.

Paige Watts (35:37)

Thank you! Amazing, thank you Gemma. Amazing!

and you thank you for letting me ⁓ thanks for

having me and letting me talk about myself for a million hour yeah i've loved it thank thank you bye

Gemma Daly (35:52)

It's been lovely!

take care!

Bye!