Trouvaille Stitch Kits
Meet Jennifer, the creative force behind Trouvaille Stitch Kits! She designs beautiful cross-stitch kits inspired by popular landmarks. In-store, you’ll find stunning designs like Spring at Whitby Abbey, Saltburn - Amusements on the Pier, Beach at Bamburgh, Angel of the Night, and Illuminations on the Wall. And if you're looking for more, Jennifer has an even wider selection available online!
"I'm a north east based independent cross stitch designer and from my spare room in Whitley Bay I create beginner-friendly cross stitch kits showcasing some of the UK's most loved (but often lesser known) landmarks in colourful, modern, travel-poster style. I'm passionate about representing places that may not be widely known but are incredibly meaningful to many, and introducing people to the wonderful places we have on our doorstep. 'Trouvaille' is a french word to describe something lovely discovered by chance and I hope to help people discover these lovely places through cross stitch.
I've always been crafty and was taught knitting and cross stitch in childhood by my grandma, nana and great grandma. For many years I only knew of old fashioned cross stitch patterns which I was never a fan of so focussed through my teens and 20s on knitting, primarily as a way to prevent me pulling my hair out (I have a condition called Trichotillomania which is an impulse control disorder causing me to constantly pull my hair out). But then I discovered that modern cross stitch patterns existed and it made me fall in love with cross stitch again, however I couldn't find a pattern of something that meant something to me. So I designed my own. After initially stitching Sunny St Mary's for myself I decided to share it and see if others would like the pattern. To say I was blown away by the interest is an understatement! Talk about opening a can of worms! Since then I've left my job as a physio and taken full time and designed 21 landmark patterns which I'm so pleased to see has allowed people to stitch their own piece of home. Seeing people's TSK collections framed and displayed on their walls is a real joy!
I keep all my patterns and kits beginner friendly with full stitches only, straight stitches where possible instead of back stitch, french knots only on a couple of the patterns, and minimal confetti stitch. All the kits include everything the customer needs including all the materials, instructions and patterns, QR codes to more detailed instructions, and even some information about the place featured. It's important to me to keep the kits beginner friendly as I want to bring the joy and mindfulness of cross stitch to as many people as possible. It's also important to me to ensure that sustainability is at the forefront of what we do. Our kits, therefore, are fully plastic free, made in small batches and use many of the same materials (including colours) to minimise waste. You can check out more about our sustainability efforts on our website sustainability page."
Trudy
Meet Trudy, our fantastic Macramé and Crochet teacher at The Stitching Lady!
Trudy runs relaxed, beginner-friendly macramé and crochet classes, perfect if you've always fancied giving it a go!
You'll also spot her beautiful macramé wall hangings decorating the shop, all handmade and available to buy. Or better yet, come along to a class and create your very own piece to take home!
"I started doing macrame when my husband bought me a macrame kit during lockdown and loved it so much it's became an obsession! I have always loved Crafting, teaching my two daughters, their friends and mine different crafts over the years, including macrame and crochet, polymer clay and printing, and have also worked for nearly 18 years in a primary school teaching crafts to children of all ages, to help them to deal with trauma and upset in their lives. I am enjoying teaching macrame now to those who have maybe always wanted to give it a try and it's so rewarding seeing the hangers and keyrings made in my macrame sessions. Everyone has enjoyed the sessions so why not book and start your obsession with Crafting!"
Kirsty Freeman Design
Meet Kirsty, the creative mind behind Kirsty Freeman Design! She designs modern cross-stitch, embroidery and felt craft kits inspired by animals and flowers.
In-store, you’ll find stunning designs like the bird embroidery kit, bee embroidery kit, heart embroidery kit, sunflower embroidery kit, bouquet embroidery kit, Highland Cow Cross Stitch Kit, Cactus and plant cross stitch kits, sausage dog sewing kit and rabbit sewing kit, among other seasonal kits too!
And if you're looking for more, Kirsty has an even wider selection available online!
"Hello! I’m Kirsty - a craft kit designer/maker, who loves all things creative & stitchy! I create embroidery kits, cross stitch kits and hand sewing kits, inspired by animals, plants and flowers.
I’m a big believer that everyone is creative, however they choose to express it, so it’s really important to me that my kits are accessible to complete beginners, as well as more experienced stitchers.
All of my kits come with very thorough step by step instructions to guide you through the project, but I also love it when you do your own thing and put a personal spin on my design to make it unique!
One of my favourite things about stitching is the peace and calm you find: the methodical repetition, the time to focus on being creative, the steady but rewarding progress. In our busy world, it can be hard to sit down, rest and ‘just be’. Stitching helps me to find that in my life and it’s what inspired me to start making kits - so you could find that in your life too!
I’ve loved being creative since I was a little girl, but back then I struggled to find modern patterns and remember making my own cross stitch patterns using graph paper and felt tip pens! I studied Art Textiles at GCSE and A-Level, before studying Textile Design (Mixed Media) at De Montfort University in Leicester. After graduating, I spent the next couple of years as a slipper, accessories and soft toy designer for high street and supermarket brands. In 2019, I wanted to return to making things with my own two hands instead of designing them on a computer and Kirsty Freeman Design was born!
One of the reasons why I wanted to set up my own business was to break away from the fast-paced consumerist society we live in and instead, contribute what I can to honouring handmade skills and our planet. Part of this is reflected in the materials I use to create your kits - wherever possible I source them from local suppliers. For example: the needles and embroidery hoops are made in the UK, and the instruction booklets and fabric are printed in house at my studio. The packaging has also been designed to be reusable or recyclable. The only plastic you’ll find in my kits is the little bead bags that can be reused again and again!
I’ve had so many wonderful opportunities since starting this business to share my kits with people all over the world and I love nothing more than connecting with my customers to hear your stories. Being able to be a small part in your creative journey means the world to me and I’m always here to chat if you ever want to talk stitching"
The Funky Ribbon Company
Meet Gemma, the creative mind behind the sew in labels you love so much! There might be a bit of swearing but you can’t deny you've felt like at least one of these tags at some point in your crafting!
"Hi, I'm Gemma! As a graphic designer, I’ve always had a passion for creativity and design. After having my children, I decided to take the leap and turn my dream of working for myself into a reality. That's when my business was born.
I specialise in crafting exclusive, fun, and unique sew-in labels that add a personal touch to your handmade items. Whether you're a maker, a crafter, or just looking to add a bit of humour to your creations, my labels are designed with love, a little laughter, and a lot of care.
I absolutely love collaborating with other small businesses to create something truly personalized and meaningful for their products. It’s always exciting to help bring a maker’s vision to life through custom designs that perfectly reflect their brand.
With my background in graphic design, I bring a professional yet playful approach to every product. Each label is made with quality materials and is designed to stand out and bring joy. Thank you for supporting my small business- I can’t wait to help add that perfect finishing touch to your next project!"
Little Wolf Designs
Ashley is a local maker, from York. She creates beautiful sewing themed jewellery, as well as hand embroidery kits, both of which you can find available in the shop.
She started sewing in 2014 at the age of 18, early on she was taught by her Aunt and Grandmother.
She even worked in the wedding dress industry for a year where she learnt the majority of her sewing skills! She now uses these skills to create incredible bespoke high fantasy fashion clothing.
"My name is Ashley. I’m the owner, maker, and designer here at Little Wolf Designs.
I was born and raised in North Yorkshire in England. I have a huge love of the outdoors and everything handmade. Not to mention costumes and textiles.
I started Little Wolf from my bedroom in my family’s flat when I was 18.
Since moving out from home, I worked to branch out from a small shop, to a full Etsy business.
In 2025 Little Wolf Designs has grown to include my love of plants and embroidery, with floral kits based on the flowers, greenery, and wildlife that inspires me so much!"
Sew Sophie Crafts
Sew Sophie Crafts was recommended to me while I was getting the shop up and running, and I’m so glad she was! Her kits are cute, beginner-friendly and include everything you need to get started, they’re perfect for mindful crafting. You've also been loving her tote bags and needle minders in the shop!
"Hello, I'm Sophie, and I make beginner friendly cross stitch kits for happy crafters who want to embrace their creativity through kits that bring joy.
I live in Norfolk with my husband and two young children (both boys) and somewhere in between school runs and nap times I run my creative business, Sew Sophie Crafts. I'd always dreamt of working for myself, so when I was on maternity leave in 2019 I decided it was time to embrace my creative side - and four months later Sew Sophie Crafts released its very first collection of cross stitch kits, and the rest, as they say, is history.
I've always been a craft lover, but cross stitch is the hobby that stuck. I instantly fell in love with the calming, therapeutic nature of slow stitching, and over the years it has had such a positive and profound impact on my mental wellbeing.”
Louise Goult Textiles
Louise is a textile artist with a studio in Saltburn by the Sea. She has a range of kits in the shop, for beginners and experienced hand embroiderers.
"I create research based, textile artwork that narrates hidden stories and memories, protecting and honouring them through stitch. Exploring connection to identity, people, personality and changing personas my work uses deconstruction and reconstruction techniques to tell the quirky, often overlooked stories and facts, re-building pieces much as a story is told and retold. I teach textile and embroidery workshops designed to build creative confidence that enable participants to create their own unique artwork, to learn new embroidery skills and meet like minded people. I really enjoy teaching embroidery workshops, sharing skills and techniques with others and seeing them create something beautiful along the way."
Emily Joyce Designs
My inspiration for opening a stitchy craft shop! Vicky has her own shop on the Isle of Wright - I hope to visit one day! I discovered her Yorkshire cross stitch kits when I started making my embroidery patterns and I've enjoyed completing her 199 steps pattern!
"Hi, I'm Vicky and I am a cross stitch designer based on The Isle of Wight. I was born in Middlesbrough and moved to The Island just before my 10th birthday. I really like to design kits of places that are special to me and my family. I also enjoy creating tiny cross stitch motifs for my Cross Stitch Journal Kits.
I have 4 sons and they keep me pretty busy! I began designing cross stitch kits when I became ill during Lockdown. At the time I was a Registered Nurse and I needed something to keep myself occupied whilst I was poorly. I fell back in love with cross stitch and decided to draw a pattern of The Island. I started with some graph paper and really enjoyed it so I then drew more and more. I now have a shop in Shanklin (Emily Joyce Designs) where I sell my own designs, other needlework kits, needlework supplies and wool.
Family is very important to me and I was always very close to my Nanas, this is why my business and shop are named after them. I really hope to make my sons proud and love being able to design kits and patterns that make people happy."
Felty and Fabulous
Brenda is from York and creates the wonderful needlefelt kits we have in the shop, she also runs workshops so keep an eye out for those!
"York born and bred, I was a career driven primary school headteacher until a few years ago when I escaped to set up my own needlefelting business (Felty and Fabulous). I've always been interested in textiles - particularly dressmaking - and then discovered needlefelting in lockdown as a way of dealing with the stresses of leading a school. I found it mindful, relaxing and addictive! The rest is history!!
Needlefelting is basically prodding a blob of wool lots and lots of times using a very sharp needle (being careful to keep your fingers out of the way). The action causes the strands of wool to tangle together. The longer you spend, the more tightly the fibres tangle together, and that's what creates a 3D shape. I now have a house full of different types of wool, I create my own kits (stocked by the lovely Stitching Lady!) and I lead workshops to help others in their mindful journey. I love leading workshops and it’s great to see people succeed.
I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to reshape my career and now do something creative and relaxing that I love. My philosophy I suppose is to carry on doing that and to pass the skills on through kits and workshops. I use British suppliers and try to buy local where possible, supporting other Yorkshire businesses.
I create pictures, using vintage blankets as a background, with hand embroidered details added too. Poppies seem to have become my signature flower! I also make 3D creatures such as hares, mice and cows. I take commissions and recently created a large landscape piece for a bedroom wall. It was 4ft long and I was a bit daunted by that at first, but by the time I'd finished it I didn't want to let it go as it gave me the opportunity to let my imagination run wild!
When I'm creating a picture, I tend to use a photo I've taken, usually of the Yorkshire countryside, gardens or coast. I occasionally work from other people's photos if it is a commission, but this is always trickier! I use a coloured blanket as a base and let the wool do all the hard work, choosing colours to blend by hand as I go. I like experimenting with different textures such as curls and adding hand embroidered details too. I can't resist a French knot or 10!
I now sell my work in a number of Yorkshire outlets and at art and craft fairs locally. I also regularly take part in exhibitions. I enjoy meeting customers, shop owners, other creatives and generally just talking!! I've gained a greater appreciation of the county I live in and I get to travel around it in term time! Win, win!
I love the fact that you can't really fail at this craft, and that people leave my workshops having created something they are proud of, in just a couple of hours. I led a workshop once where everyone wanted to make dachshunds and part way through, one attendee commented that hers looked more like an otter. Rather than battling against her creation, she went with it and created a beautiful otter. At the end we always do a photo shoot and her otter stood proudly with all the dachshunds!! Great fun and a lesson for us all in allowing creativity to take over once in a while!!"
The Joyful Crafting Company
Emma grew up in Wetherby, near Leeds and has fond memories of holidays in Scarborough with her Grandma. Her range in store includes cross stitch kits, stickers and needle minders, all designed to bring joy!
Background: "I work in the corporate world and nearly 3 years ago now I didn't particularly enjoy my job, so I set up the business all based on JOY! My main idea was the needle minder banners but it quickly expanded. I have cross stitched for years and remember my Grandad checking the back of my work, so I had to make sure I was neat"
Favourite Crafts: "Cross stitch and embroidery are my favourite, but I love having a go at all crafts."
Crafting Philosophy: "Always do things to bring Joy! That's why I set up The Joyful Crafting Company."
Signature Products: "Needle Minder banners and mini cross stitch kits!"
Creative Process: "Anything that brings me joy I stitch or a saying that has helped me in the past. I do love the book Joyful by Ingrid Fetell Lee which inspired my joyful collection."
Fun Fact: "I am a Girlguiding Brownie leader and I Love the fact they now have a crafting badge!"
