Frequently Asked Questions
These are the answers to the questions we get asked most frequently. If you have a question that’s not covered, feel free to email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com and we’ll strive to respond within 24 hours.
No. It is illegal to share our patterns, even free ones. They are our intellectual property and are covered by copyright laws. This means you cannot share printed or digital copies of our pattern pieces and/or instructions. It is also illegal to sell our patterns or to use our photos without our permission. Individuals wanting to use our patterns will need to purchase or download the pattern themselves. We put a huge amount of work into producing our patterns and providing ongoing support to customers and we really appreciate the amazing people that purchase our patterns legally and thereby enable us to continue designing.
Yes. To ensure a smooth printing experience for you, the site will automatically send the pattern to you in the paper format used in your country.
If you select a billing address in the USA or Canada, you will receive the "letter paper" version of our pattern, which is for paper sized 8.5″ x 11".
If your billing address is anywhere else in the world, you'll receive your pattern on A4 paper, which is 210mm x 297mm.
Because the paper sizes are slightly different, you can occasionally have problems printing patterns on one size paper if it was designed on the other. When this problem occurs, it’s so minimal that the test square looks ok, but the pattern pieces are very slightly bigger or smaller, causing problems when you’re assembling your bag. To avoid this and to make sure our patterns can be used successfully worldwide, we provide our patterns in both formats. If you want to receive the pattern in a different paper format to the one you've received, please reply to your order confirmation email or contact us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com
If you select a billing address in the USA or Canada, you will receive the "letter paper" version of our pattern, which is for paper sized 8.5″ x 11".
If your billing address is anywhere else in the world, you'll receive your pattern on A4 paper, which is 210mm x 297mm.
Because the paper sizes are slightly different, you can occasionally have problems printing patterns on one size paper if it was designed on the other. When this problem occurs, it’s so minimal that the test square looks ok, but the pattern pieces are very slightly bigger or smaller, causing problems when you’re assembling your bag. To avoid this and to make sure our patterns can be used successfully worldwide, we provide our patterns in both formats. If you want to receive the pattern in a different paper format to the one you've received, please reply to your order confirmation email or contact us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com
See the “HOW TO DOWNLOAD PATTERNS” page for details on how to download your pattern after purchase.
To avoid problems, we recommend downloading and printing your pattern on a desktop computer or laptop. Mobile devices sometimes apply automatic scaling when printing, which can distort the size of your pattern pieces.
To avoid problems, we recommend downloading and printing your pattern on a desktop computer or laptop. Mobile devices sometimes apply automatic scaling when printing, which can distort the size of your pattern pieces.
We recommend using Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader to open and print your PDF files. When printing, select to print at “actual size” or 100% with “no scaling”. Before cutting out your pattern pieces, check that each piece matches the measurement stated on the piece, as well as checking the test square. If you don’t have access to a printer, you can get the files printed at a local print shop or using an online printing service.
If you haven’t received the order confirmation, please check your spam/junk folder. It's usually in there. These emails are sent automatically straight after purchase, though sometimes they may take up to ten minutes to show in your inbox.
If you can't find the order confirmation in your spam folder, please see the “HOW TO DOWNLOAD PATTERNS” page for details on how to download the pattern from your account, or email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com to request that we resend the confirmation email, or we can send it to a different address if your email account won't accept our emails. We strive to respond within 24 hours.
If you can't find the order confirmation in your spam folder, please see the “HOW TO DOWNLOAD PATTERNS” page for details on how to download the pattern from your account, or email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com to request that we resend the confirmation email, or we can send it to a different address if your email account won't accept our emails. We strive to respond within 24 hours.
We use imperial measurements in all our patterns. Some patterns also include metric measurements. Check the individual pattern listing for confirmation.
Yes you can! The only limitation is that you must be making them on a home-based scale, not large scale production. You don’t need to reference Country Cow Designs or give us credit when selling your bags.
If you’re struggling with one of our patterns, feel free to email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com. For general bag making and sewing machine advice, I also recommend checking out the large bag making groups on Facebook, which I’ve found to be a huge support in the past.
We have our own Facebook group called "Sewing with Country Cow Designs" which you may also find helpful.
We have our own Facebook group called "Sewing with Country Cow Designs" which you may also find helpful.
Join our mailing list (there’s a form at the bottom of this page) and you’ll receive an email update for each new pattern release as well as special offers, and bag making tips. Make sure you check your spam/junk folder after signing up, and add us to your safe senders list.
To teach workshops or lessons using our patterns, you first need our consent. Please email your request to shop@countrycowdesigns.com.
Each member of the class needs to buy the pattern; you can’t use your copy of the pattern to teach an entire class. We’re happy to provide a discount depending on the number of pupils attending the class so please contact us concerning this.
Each member of the class needs to buy the pattern; you can’t use your copy of the pattern to teach an entire class. We’re happy to provide a discount depending on the number of pupils attending the class so please contact us concerning this.
We try to make it very clear that all our patterns are digital PDFs, not paper. As digital items cannot be returned once delivered, we cannot issue refunds.
We write our patterns and guides in good faith. All the recommended components and requirements are provided as a guide. We can’t be held responsible for a shortage of fabric or other supplies, or the quality, size or standard of the finished item.
Pattern purchases will only show in your account if you were logged in when you made the purchase. If you weren't logged in, we will need to manually link the purchase to your account.
If you purchased patterns from us but they're not showing in your account, please email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com with the following information:
If you purchased patterns from us but they're not showing in your account, please email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com with the following information:
- Which pattern(s) you purchased
- Where you purchased them (our website or Etsy shop)
- The email address you used to make the purchase
Once we have these details, we will link your previously purchased patterns to your account. This can take up to 48 hours.
A0/A1 files for pattern pieces are provided for some of our patterns, but not all.
Before purchasing a pattern, open the "after purchasing" section on the web listing for the pattern. This lists all the files you'll receive after purchase.
Before purchasing a pattern, open the "after purchasing" section on the web listing for the pattern. This lists all the files you'll receive after purchase.
If you’re purchasing digital products from within the UK or EU, your purchase price includes VAT at the standard rate for your country. This is in line with EU laws on digital product sales.
Your confirmation email will show the taxes included in your purchase. If you require a full VAT invoice, please reply to the confirmation email requesting one. We will get back to you within 48 hours.
Your confirmation email will show the taxes included in your purchase. If you require a full VAT invoice, please reply to the confirmation email requesting one. We will get back to you within 48 hours.
Please check that you have definitely made two completed purchases. You can check this with your bank or payment provider.
If you’re certain that you’ve purchased the pattern twice, please contact us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com. If your duplicate purchases were made within a 30 day period, we’ll issue an immediate refund. If your purchases were more than 30 days apart, we’ll provide a credit on your account to offset against a future purchase.
If you have created an account with us and are logged in when making purchases, your downloads will be unlimited.
If you don't have an account with us then each file will have a limit of 10 downloads. This is standard practice to restrict sharing and ensure that bots can’t endlessly share download links.
If you’ve reached your download limit, please email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com and we will reset it for you for free.
If you don't have an account with us then each file will have a limit of 10 downloads. This is standard practice to restrict sharing and ensure that bots can’t endlessly share download links.
If you’ve reached your download limit, please email us at shop@countrycowdesigns.com and we will reset it for you for free.
We recommend saving the download to your computer after purchase so you always have a copy.
We live in Cornwall in the UK but we sell our patterns to customers all over the world. Our address is 1 Chi Teyredelen, Stret Dor Wartha, Nansledan, Cornwall, TR8 4RT, although our shop isn't open to visitors just yet. We hope to open it to visitors from June/July 2024.
Due to VAT laws in the EU, we’re required to register for VAT in 27 countries in order to sell physical products to our EU non-business customers. For digital sales, we can complete one VAT return for all 27 countries by means of the OSS scheme but this is not currently possible for physical sales.
For orders to the EU, we sell through our Etsy shop. This way, the EU VAT is taken care of by Etsy. Unfortunately, Etsy charges high fees and this is reflected in the difference between prices on our website and those in our Etsy shop.
For orders to the EU, we sell through our Etsy shop. This way, the EU VAT is taken care of by Etsy. Unfortunately, Etsy charges high fees and this is reflected in the difference between prices on our website and those in our Etsy shop.
Accounts that haven't been used since 2021 have not been transferred to our new website. We contacted all customers to ask if they would like to have their account transferred or not. If you didn’t receive an email at the time, it’s likely it went to your spam/junk folder.
If your account was not transferred then you’ll need to set up a new account. Alternatively, you can contact us by email at shop@countrycowdesigns.com and request that we transfer your account and previous purchases. We will usually do this within 48 hours of receiving a request.
Digital patterns are always delivered free of charge.
For physical orders, free express shipping is available as follows:
- UK purchases: £50 and over
- USA purchases: £75 (approx $95 USD) and over
