Replic: the blog

Meet Peggy Mead, the heart and soul of globally recognized pattern brand Sew House Seven. After being disillusioned by the fashion industry, Peggy took a chance on starting a new type of business at a time where indie sewing pattern brands were far and few in between. Twelve years later, she offers advice for up-and-coming designers and shares how slowing down is now helping her refocus on what mattered. 

What prompted you to start a business?

It’s a bit of a multi-part answer. I’ve wanted to do this since I was a little girl, but I never really believed it could be a real business. After working in the apparel industry for years, I became pretty disillusioned. By the time I reached my last job, I was really unhappy and I knew I needed a way out. During that time, I started looking into how to launch my own pattern business, but I had no idea where to begin.

I even bought a book about starting a pattern business, but it discouraged me instead of encouraging me. Then one day, on a lunch break, I came across a Seamwork pattern (back when they were Colette) in a bookstore. That was the moment that lit the fire in me. I thought, “Someone else is doing this. Maybe I can too.”

I started working on Sew House Seven while I still had my job—partly because I’d always wanted to, and partly because I was desperate to leave my job. I also knew that the apparel industry doesn’t tend to keep older women in design roles, and I knew I didn’t want to move into marketing or executive positions when I got older.

Sew House Seven became a passion and a way out. I threw myself into it without really expecting it to grow like it has. After about two years, I still wasn’t making a living, but I could see there was a real potential if I just had the time to work on it full time. This was around twelve years ago, when there weren’t many indie pattern designers, and the sewing community was eager for new emerging indie designs.

I was worried about the selling side of things—I’m a terrible sales person and I get really nervous speaking in public. But it turned out I didn’t need to push very hard. People wanted the patterns, and shops were excited to carry them. So I took a leap and quit my job, even though I wasn’t making anywhere near a full-time income. I was incredibly lucky to have a supportive husband who agreed to refinance our house to take out enough money to last us for two years in case the business failed- but luckily it worked out!

Where does the name come from?

I knew I didn’t want my name to be the name of the company. I didn’t want to be attached to the business, in case I decided to sell it. These days, customers want to know the designer behind the brand, and I’ve pivoted toward that. But in the beginning, I wanted to be faceless. I didn’t want my name attached to it.

I was about ready to launch and just couldn’t think of a good name. At the time, we lived in a smaller house, and I had taken over the dining room table as my sewing space. The house was a mess with fabric everywhere, and my husband would always say, “This looks like a sew house.”

And my son was six and about to turn seven. He was really excited about it. So I thought, “Sew House Seven.” I didn’t love it at first, but I still couldn’t think of anything else when it came time to launch, so I just went with it.

What are your favorite and least favorite parts of running your own business?

My favorite part is the creative part, which there’s never enough time for. I have way too many ideas and not enough time to execute them. And once I have a pattern half-way done, what I really want to do is move on to the next design. I just love pattern making and designing.

The part I have a love-hate relationship with is promotion, Instagram especially! I love that I’ve met so many people through Instagram and that I can see the actual product on real customers. When I worked in the industry, we were always guessing who the customer was and what they wanted. Now I can see my customers and communicate with them. And I love that! But I’m terrible at posting and creating content.

The obvious answer for what I least like about my job is the office work and managing stock. I hired employees a few years ago to help with that stuff, thinking it would help with time management. But, it actually took up more of my time. Managing people became a whole other job. I did have great employees though – it wasn’t their fault. I’ve since downsized and gone back to working alone in my home office.

The time management part I struggle with most is the technical side—grading, proofing, walking patterns seams, and checking every size. I wouldn’t say that these things are my least favorite part of the job individually, but the time they take collectively frustrates me. I’ve tried outsourcing to professional graders, but it doesn’t really save time because I still have to proof their work and mistakes still happen. It just seems like it takes the same amount of time so I might as well just do the grading myself. 

It takes me a long time to release a pattern because of all the details—proofing, writing instructions, testing. I don’t dislike the process, but it’s very time-consuming and involves a lot of sitting – one of my least favorite things. That said, I love my job!

What are your favorite fabric stores?

That’s a hard question – there are so many good ones! I’m a little biased because I live in Portland. Even though I think we don’t have enough fabric stores, we actually have quite a few compared to most places.

I love Josephine’s Dry Goods and Bolt Fabric Boutique. There’s also Mill End Fabrics. They’re not online, but they get designer off-cuts and random things. It used to feel like vintage shopping, like hunting for treasures. It’s changed a bit, but it’s still great.

There are also great stores outside Portland that I shop online from. I love Stonemountain & Daughter and Style Maker Fabrics. Stonemountain & Daughter in Berkeley is wonderful. They have a huge selection. Britex in San Francisco is amazing for luxury fabrics like silks, but it can be overwhelming. You really need to know what you’re looking for. The last time I was there, I only bought buttons because everything felt too precious to buy without a plan. I also like Nick of Time for great denims.

Are there any other pattern designers you admire?

There are so many, for different reasons. I’m a bit old school, and I tend to think of designers who were around when I was starting out. I don’t have much time to scroll Instagram to see all of the new designers who have cropped up. I do buy lots of other designer’s patterns, but I rarely have time to sew them.

I admire Sarai at Seamwork for building such a huge business. I’m honestly in awe. I could never manage something that large. Same with Sew Liberated; she’s built something great with styles I really admire. I’m also impressed with Heather from Closet Core for what she’s built. We started at the same time, but she really grew her business. There are so many more who I can’t think of off-hand. I will say that when I do happen to look at Instagram, I’m impressed with the new generation of pattern designers that are cropping up.

What advice would you give to someone considering opening a pattern brand?

Things have changed a lot since I started. If I were starting now, I’m not sure I’d be as successful—there’s so much more competition, and people are very good at promoting themselves.

When I began, I didn’t even know about the Instagram sewing community. I thought I’d be going shop to shop trying to convince them to sell my patterns. Then I found Instagram, and suddenly there was this whole sewing world I hadn’t known existed.

Even though the Instagram space is more crowded now, my advice is to be patient and stick with it if this is something you really want to do. Building a following takes time. Your first patterns might not take off right away, but sometimes it only takes one or two people with a larger platform to share your work.

It helps to connect with established platforms like The Fold Line for more exposure. Also engaging with the online community—collaborations, challenges, or even just reaching out to another creator you admire for advice can lead to meaningful connections.

And with any business, it’s  important to define your vision or mission statement and stay consistent. Your business can evolve, but constantly changing direction makes it harder to build trust. Customers come back when they know they can come to you for a certain style or quality of service.

For example, my business goal was to design unique, but fairly simple patterns—accessible to beginners, but still appealing to experienced sewists. My patterns do really well with shops because they can run classes using them.  When I stray too far from my mission and make a more complicated pattern, it usually doesn’t sell as well. 

And one final piece of advice, especially for single person businesses. Expect customer questions about fit and pattern adjustments. Even if you hire a professional to create or grade your patterns, mistakes can happen, so it’s important to at least be familiar with pattern grading and fitting so you can catch the mistakes early. You also want to feel confident guiding customers through fit issues or any adjustments they may need to make and that will build customer confidence.

What are you most looking forward to?

I just turned 60, which feels a little surreal. I always thought I’d be retired by now, but I still love what I do—just maybe not at full speed anymore.

Lately I’ve been trying to let go of the pressure to constantly produce and grow. I want to slow down a bit, travel more, and be present with my parents and my son. My mom has Alzheimer’s, so that time together means everything right now.

I’m not going anywhere—I’m just shifting how I work. And interestingly, slowing down hasn’t made me less productive. I actually feel more focused and less overwhelmed.

I’m also excited to try a few ideas just for the fun of it. They might not be for everyone, and that’s okay. I’m learning to enjoy the process again, and that feels really good.