My name is Sally, and I live in Adelaide, South Australia. I am an author, textile artist and puzzle maker. My creative business is called Sally Dixon Creations. I have two stores on Madeit under the Sally Dixon Creations umbrella; Sally Dixon Creations and Sally Dixon Author.
I love that Madeit is a true-blue Aussie site. It’s Australian-owned and operated, and all the makers on the platform are Aussie too. A wealth of talent exists in our sunburnt country, and many unique handmade gifts are waiting to be discovered.
My first Madeit store (Sally Dixon Creations) features whimsical pipsqueak-sized felt creations. Life needs a bit of sweetness and fun. Even in pipsqueak amounts! This store features unique miniature animals, tiny play food, brooches, ornaments and more. Everything I sew is hand-cut from pure wool felt and embroidered with intricate hand-stitching.
I also create sewing patterns and have published an international craft book, Pipsqueaks (itsy-bitsy felt creations to stitch & love). My book teaches people how to sew their own pipsqueak-sized creations and is available in my online shop. I plan to create more patterns in the future, which will be available as digital downloads.
My second store (Sally Dixon Author) is relatively new. This store currently features digital puzzle sheets for children, but I also create personalised crossword puzzles for any age. In the future, I plan to add original children’s stories, fairy tales and poems as digital downloads.
As an author, I have published children’s stories in various professional publications; and I have also created poems, puzzles and activity sheets for freelance clients.
“Creativity with imagination” is the motto for my creative business. Imagination is a wondrous thing! Endless ideas seem to pop up from nowhere. However, I am sure that if I were to sit down to analyse my ideas, I would discover they arose from a multitude of sources: childhood memories, observations in everyday life, the input of other people, the wonders of nature and who knows what else…
My days are split between writing, puzzle making, sewing, designing or admin (the latter being my least favourite!). My workspace is constantly changing too. My laptop goes everywhere with me, and because my textile creations are tiny, I can easily pack a small sewing kit to take anywhere.
You might find me working from home in a comfy armchair, at my desk, or (I must admit it) occasionally on my bed. But variety is the spice of life, and so that I don’t develop cabin fever, I sometimes also work from friends’ houses, the local library, or under pergolas on sunny days.
A Sheltie called Maxwell often keeps me company while I work – he belongs to a friend with a busy office job. You wouldn’t find a gentler and kinder ‘workmate’ than Maxwell.
My childhood self was a busy little bee.
I tried my hand at all sorts of creative pursuits. Sometimes my efforts failed, but sometimes they succeeded, and my skills grew in the process. I remember pouring over copies of my mother’s The Australian Women’s Weekly magazines. The pages of that magazine taught me many skills: embroidery, baking, puzzles, and much more!
I became an author because I loved to read.
I have a fondness for classic children’s literature, and my shelves still showcase favourite authors such as A.A. Milne, C.S. Lewis, Roald Dahl and many more. I completed a Master of Creative Writing degree a couple of years ago through Tabor Adelaide, and I honed my skills under the guidance of two wonderful Australian children’s authors.
I envision how my sewing, writing and puzzle-making will come together and complement each other. The characters I create through my writing will one day be featured in my sewing and puzzle-making endeavours.
Whenever I create, whether through sewing, writing or puzzle-making, I try to capture the delight of what fascinated me as a child. My goal is to bring hope, joy and beauty through all my creative projects. The world is often a difficult place, and people (both little and big) need art that makes them smile, fills them with wonder and brings them hope.
