Annette Joins

As the group expanded, Allison quickly realized she couldn’t manage the workload alone. She was already putting in long hours digitizing new designs, testing them, and writing up instructions. On top of that, she had a website to develop and manage, all while running a burgeoning small home business.

Early in 2015, Allison’s sister, Annette, suffered a serious accident, breaking her back. Eager to support her sister, Allison asked Annette to help by managing emails and overseeing the Facebook group.

Photo: Allison and Annette

The First Show (of Many)

By mid-year, Allison and Annette were on their
way to the UK for Sweet Pea’s first-ever exhibition at the Festival of Quilts in Birmingham. As complete novices, they arrived with two suitcases filled with samples of Sweet Pea quilts. The setup was quick, and their small booth had a distinctly amateur feel. However, it proved to be a valuable learning experience. Before the year was out, they took Sweet Pea to exhibit in the USA as well.

Photo: Annette and Allison at The Quilt Festival in Houston, USA.

Alyssa Joins

By the end of 2015, Allison had brought on another team member - her niece Alyssa, who would become Sweet Pea’s first design tester (other than Allison of course) and she still today, remains an important member of the testing team - she is also the main contributor of the newsletters that our Sweet Pea fans enjoy twice a week!

Photo: Alyssa packing for one of the overseas shows

Growing Every Day

Sweet Pea continued to operate from Allison’s home in suburban Brisbane, Australia. She cleared space by parking the car on the street and transforming her single-car garage into a dedicated workroom. 

At that time, she had two embroidery machines and a sewing machine.

Photo: Allison in the first Sweet Pea sewing room

Emma Joins

Allison was an incredibly prolific designer, limited only by the number of hours in a day. It wasn’t long before the demand for her designs grew, leading her to hire an additional person to help with sewing and testing the designs she created.

The new team member, Emma, who was a graphic designer, quickly became an invaluable asset. Allison taught Emma how to digitize, making the most of her design skills.

You Can Find Emma's Designs Here

Photo: Alyssa, Holly, Emma and Cassie

Award Winners

Sweet Pea began attending more shows, this time in Brisbane and Melbourne. Allison and Annette had learned a great deal from their experiences at the previous year’s quilt shows. Their booths were looking increasingly professional, and they even won the ‘Best Exhibit’ award at the Melbourne show.

Photo: Allison with the Best Exhibit Award at the Melbourne Show

Expansion

2017 was a whirlwind year for Sweet Pea, marked by growth and exciting new ventures. The single-car garage that once housed their operations could no longer contain their expanding business, so they upgraded to a larger space to accommodate their growing needs.

Photo: Cassie in the earlier Sweet Pea office

Tim Joins

By midyear, the team welcomed a new member, Tim, who initially joined to help with sewing. However, it didn't take long for Allison to recognize Tim's exceptional customer service skills. He soon became the friendly face behind the customer emails, providing first-class support to their growing clientele. Chances are if you've emailed us that you've spoken with Tim!

Photo: Tim

Holly Joins

Another exciting addition to the team was Allison’s daughter, Holly. Bringing essential business administration and marketing expertise, Holly played a crucial role in shaping Swpea’s growth. It’s fitting that the name "Sweetpea" - inspired by Allison’s nickname for Holly -became the very identity of the business.

Since then Holly has moved on with her nursing carrer but has left a tremendous impact on the Sweet Pea we know and love today.

Photo: Allison and Holly

Cruis'n USA

Annette, on the other hand, was tirelessly organizing
events, and 2017 saw Sweet Pea taking their show on the road -literally. They exhibited at even more shows in the USA, embarking on an epic road trip from Houston to Florida. Along the way, they visited quilt stores and conducted live demonstrations, spreading Sweet Pea’s influence far and wide.

Photo: Annette and Allison at the Airport

We Need More Room

2018 was another year of remarkable expansion for Sweet Pea, necessitating yet another move to a larger space. This time, Allison took a bold step and purchased a house. She lived upstairs while Swpea took over all the rooms downstairs, transforming them into a buzzing hub of creativity. One of the rooms was converted into a dedicated filming studio, marking the beginning of more regular YouTube videos, connecting Swpea with a broader audience.

Photo: Sweet Pea's second "office"

The First Showroom

The new space also allowed Swpea to host its first public event, where customers were invited to view the latest design samples in person.

Photo: Allison in Sweet Pea's first showroom

Cassie Joins

The team grew once more with the addition of Cassie, who joined mid-year.

Cassie quickly became an integral part of the team, working closely with Alyssa to sew out and test the design samples. Both Cassie and Alyssa brought a keen eye for color and fabric selection, ensuring that every design was brought to life with care and creativity.

Photo: Cassie

Silvanna Joins

As our designs grew better and the demand increased, Silvanna was hired as another digitizer, added a fresh, playful touch to the designs she created.

You Can Find Silvanna's Designs Here

Photo: Silvanna

G'Day from the UK

The year also saw Sweet Pea embarking on more adventures, with a major trip to the UK where the team exhibited at several quilt exhibitions and stores across the country.

It was a year of new beginnings, creative exploration, and continued growth, with Sweet Pea reaching even greater heights.

Photo: Emma, Allison, Annette and Holly in the UK

Giving Back

In our ongoing effort to support important causes, we released another charity design, this timededicated to Breast Cancer Research. Through the sale of our Sweet Pea Flower of Hope mugrug design, we were able to donate $5,200, raising much-needed awareness and funding in the fight for a cure.

Photo: Flower of Hope Mug Rug

Martyn Joins

The team also welcomed a new member, Martyn, whose
extensive knowledge of machine embroidery and sewing added an invaluable layer of expertise to the growing Sweet Pea family. Martyn quickly became a key player, helping to refine and expand the company’s offerings.

Photo: Martyn teaching at an in-person event

James Joins

Education began to take center stage, with Sweet Pea’s YouTube channel gaining momentum. It became a vital platform for sharing knowledge and techniques with a broader audience. Recognizing the importance of this medium, Allison’s son, James, joined the team, bringing a fresh perspective and energy. James took charge of video production, ensuring that each YouTube video was
polished, informative, and engaging. No doubt you would have seen James in many of our videos on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.

Photo: James and Allison

Socially Distant Sewing

2020 was a year like no other, marked by the global pandemic that reshaped daily life in profound and unexpected ways. The world faced unprecedented challenges, and Sweet Pea was no exception.

As restrictions and precautions became the new norm, the team had to adapt quickly to the changing landscape. For much of the year, we worked from home, turning dining rooms and spare bedrooms into makeshift offices and sewing studios. Zoom meetings became our lifeline, connecting us in a socially distant world, and "socially distant sewing" became a phrase we never expected to use.

Photo: Sweet Pea Zoom Meeting

Deanna Joins

Midway through the year, we were joined by Deanna, who took over the role of General Manager. Her leadership and fresh perspective were instrumental as we navigated the complexities of the pandemic. Deanna’s strategic vision and commitment to the team played a pivotal role in ensuring that Swpea not only survived but thrived during these challenging times.

Photo: Deanna at Craft Alive Adelaide

Sweet Pea Essentials

Yet, even in the face of these challenges, 2020 proved to be a year of remarkable growth and transformation for Sweet Pea. Our resilience was tested, and we rose to the occasion. The arrival of our Sweet Pea-branded products marked a significant milestone, and our warehouse buzzed with activity, ensuring that these new products reached our eager customers.

Photo: Sweet Pea Incredi-Threads

Resilience

Throughout it all, our commitment to creating high-quality and unique digital designs remained unwavering. The heart of Sweet Pea continued to beat strongly as we focused on what we do best—producing exquisite machine embroidery designs that inspired and delighted our global community. The pandemic may have changed the way we worked, but it couldn't diminish our passion for creativity and innovation.

2020 was a year of adaptation, resilience, and continued dedication to our craft. It reminded us that even in the most uncertain times, the power of creativity and connection can carry us through.

Photo: James, Deanna (Far back) and Cassie

2021

Sweet Pea's New Home

The momentum of the previous year’s growth set the stage for another exciting chapter in 2021, leading to a significant move that would transform Swpea’s operations.

Recognizing the need for a larger and more versatile space to accommodate our expanding team and product line, we made the leap to a state-of-the-art warehouse facility. This new premises was more than just a workspace - it was a hub of creativity and innovation.

Photo: Unpacking the Sewing Room

2021

The Show (Room) Must Go On

The warehouse offered an expansive workspace that
comfortably housed all our staff, giving each department room to thrive. The space was thoughtfully designed to include everything we needed to continue growing Swpea’s vision. A dedicated showroom allowed us to beautifully display our Sweet Pea-branded products, creating an inviting space for visitors to explore our offerings firsthand.

Photo: Allison with two Sweet Pea fans

Sweet Pea Live Sneak Peek

The new facility also featured a custom-built filming room,
where we could produce high-quality content for our ever-growing online audience. The administration block provided a professional environment for the business side of operations, ensuring that every aspect of Sweet Pea ran smoothly.

Photo: Annette and Allison

We Love Our Home

But perhaps the crown jewel of the new premises was the
light-filled workroom, a dream space where our talented team continued to produce the stunning designs that Sweet Pea is known for. The natural light streaming through the windows created an inspiring atmosphere, perfect for bringing new ideas to life.

Photo: Our Current Sewing Room

JungIn Joins

The year 2022 was an exciting time of growth and innovation for Sweet Pea, as we welcomed a new design tester, JungIn, to our already talented sewing team. JungIn’s expertise and fresh perspective further strengthened our collaborative efforts, ensuring that each of our machine embroidery designs meets the highest standards of quality and creativity.

JungIn is also the mastermind behind our creative Facebook Stories and Instagram Reels so many of you have loved.

Photo: JungIn and Cassie Instagramming it up

High Quality Products

2022 also marked a year where we concentrated on expanding our Sweet Pea-branded sewing products, including Incredi Thread, stabilizers, zippers, and fabrics, among others.

These products were carefully curated and developed to complement our designs, offering our customers a comprehensive range of high-quality materials that make their creative projects even more enjoyable and successful.

Photo: Allison and Annette with Sweet Pea products

More Sweet Peas Join

In 2022, Christine joined to help with our social media. If you're entered any of our competitions in our Sew Along groups you have definitely seen her about!

Erin joined in 2023, with a focus on SEO, digital marketing and growing Sweet Pea's content strategy.

In 2024, Nadia joined as a digitiser to create more fantastic designs, and most recently Kayden joined the marketing team and lead the development of this new website.

Photo: Kayden, Erin, Nadia and Christine

Sweet Pea Studio

We also introduced a significant new feature on our website: Sweet Pea Studio. This educational hub offers comprehensive resources on machine embroidery and
sewing, including detailed guides, videos, and creative inspiration, empowering users to confidently tackle their projects.

Photo: The Sweet Pea Bus, a symbol for our online Studio and commitment to education

Today and the Future

The year 2024 has been a milestone for Swpea, marked by growth, innovation, and new initiatives. While continuing to produce our signature high-quality machine embroidery designs, we also expanded Sweet Pea Studio, our website's educational hub, offering more tutorials and workshops to empower our community.

We're excited to introduce brand-new initiatives on our
website, enhancing the customer experience and broadening our offerings. And with the year far from over, there’s much more on the horizon. 2024 is shaping
up to be one of Swpea’s most dynamic years yet, and we're just getting started.

Photo: Lunch Time Celebration