Meet Sarah Peel, Author of Luna Lapin: Stitched With Kindness!
Luna Lapin and her adorable friends are back! Luna Lapin: Stitched With Kindness is finally out, and we couldn't be more excited; to celebrate this wonderful occasion, we sat down with the talented Sarah Peel to chat about the whimsical world that she has created, and how she feels as her fifth book is released to the world.
Tell us a little bit about yourself?
I trained as a pattern cutter and spent most of my career as a fashion buyer, so creating Luna Lapin grew very naturally from a lifelong love of cloth, detail, and good design. I wanted to create a ‘model’ who could wear as many outfits as I could dream up — a character who could carry stories as well as garments. My daughter Grace now looks after the world-building, and I do just about everything else.
CoolCrafting began as a business focused on teaching people to sew, and what started as a small personal project soon became a way to bring together my background in fashion with my passion for making. It’s been a joy to see Luna and her wardrobe find a home with so many stitchers around the world.
People often ask, “Did you ever think Luna would be this big?” The honest answer is yes and no. I believed I could build a successful business, but I could never have predicted the depth of feeling people would have for her, or the kindness and community that would spring up around her.
Tell us about your brand new book!?
After Luna Lapin And Friends: A Year of Making (our fourth book), we honestly didn’t think we would do another, even though we knew Luna’s Little World would continue to grow. When David and Charles asked us, though, it just felt like the right time. By now, we had created enough new friends for Luna that they really represented our creative community so well.
This latest book features some of Luna’s most beloved friends, including Erik, our incredibly gorgeous polar bear, Gracie the frog, and our two lovely beach donkeys. Brand new to the book is Maurice the mole, who is the first of Luna’s friends to be made entirely on the sewing machine and from velvet. Of course, it also includes Luna herself and plenty of new clothes to make and enjoy.
Inventing new projects is getting harder and harder because my goal has always been that anyone who finishes one of my projects walks away having learned a new sewing skill. By now, our community has so many experts, which makes creating even more fun, challenging and rewarding.
Which project from your book would you suggest crafters start with?
I always recommend people start with Luna herself, and if you’re at the very beginning of your sewing journey, it can be lovely to go back to our first book, Making Luna Lapin. All of our projects are designed so that anyone who has sewn using a pattern a couple of times before should be able to tackle them. My advice is simply to read the instructions carefully, and trust me!
The reason so many people fall in love with Luna and her friends is because we want you to succeed. They’re designed so you can make exactly what you see in the pictures. And if you ever get really stuck, our Facebook group, Luna Lapin’s Little World, is full of nearly 20,000 kind and generous people ready to offer tips, encouragement, and support.
Which is your favourite project from the book?
I think Gracie the frog is the design I’m most impressed with — her head construction is really clever. It took more than eight attempts, and the starting point to the finished published result was quite the journey. I do look at quite a lot of the projects and sometimes think, gosh, this is good!
I love designing because I love problem-solving, and the shape of a frog’s head definitely felt like a fun challenge. Figuring out how to make it work just right was incredibly satisfying, and that’s what I hope people feel when they sew her too.
My favourite project is always the newest one though!
What do you think the “Next Big Thing” in your craft will be?
I’m not really sure! I try to avoid looking at similar designers in a similar field because, honestly, it can lead to some anxiety. But I do love admiring the artistry of people like Annie Montgomery or Mr Finch, who create incredible animal artwork from fibres.
There are so many people making interesting, clever projects across the crafting world, and love discovering designers like Cynthia Treen, Kiriki Press, Left Hookery, and Emily Lex with her watercolour books. The buyer in me is always hunting for what’s new, fresh, and innovative, and that’s what keeps me inspired.
Who (dead or alive) would you invite to the perfect Crafting retreat?
I’d love to sit down with Beatrix Potter, Jill Barklem, and Alison Uttley — we could talk about the little worlds we’ve each created for impeccably dressed rabbits and mice. I’m not sure how much crafting we’d actually get done, but perhaps we could go for a walk and enjoy the surroundings.
A younger me would probably invite fashion designers like Dries Van Noten, Isabel Marant, Jil Sander, Alexander McQueen and Giorgio Armani — and maybe I could persuade them to make Luna an outfit in their signature style!
What advice would you give to your beginner self?
I’d tell myself to become an early adopter of TikTok or start a YouTube channel as I went along. Video content can feel really daunting, especially when it seems like everyone else has it all figured out, but getting started sooner would have made a big difference.
In one word, how would you describe your book?
Magical
1 fun fact about yourself that not many people know?
I’m the village’s reigning Welly Wanging champion!
What’s next for you?
Next year might look a little different, as I’m about to become a granny for the first time. Perhaps there will be a little less sewing for rabbits and more for little ones.
Want to take a closer look at these adorable makes? Check out our exclusive look inside the book!
Give the sewing enthusiast in your life the gift of creativity, or buy the book yourself and make these beautiful toys for loved ones! Order Luna Lapin: Stitched With Kindness today at the link here.
