What the Ellwand beta keeps about you, and why
Last changed 19 October 2026. Ellwand is made by Sam Struthers; write to hello@ellwand.app about anything here.
The short version. Ellwand keeps the little it needs to run a private beta: who asked to test it, which copies are in use, and what testers report. Your patterns, measurements and clients never leave your computer. Nothing is sold, shared or used for advertising, and there are no trackers or cookies on this website. Everything about testers is deleted when the beta is over, by 30 April 2027, and you can ask to see or delete yours at any time.
When you apply
The form on this site asks for your name, your email address, which computer you'd test on (a Mac, a Windows PC, or both) and, if you like, what you'd want to make with Ellwand and how much sewing and drafting you've done. Sam uses these to decide who to take on, to send you your download link, and later to make sense of your feedback (a report about a skirt block reads differently from someone who sews for a shop than from someone just starting out).
You agree to this by ticking the box on the form. If Sam can't take you on, your application is deleted 30 days after that decision. If you're taken on, it's kept until the beta is over.
Your download link
Approved testers get a link of their own, with a long random code in it. It's just for you; the service counts how many times it's used, so Sam can tell when a link has been passed around. If it has, Sam can turn it off and send you a fresh one.
When the app opens
Each time Ellwand opens it tells beta.ellwand.app: a random number made on your computer the first time (so the service can tell one copy from another; it doesn't identify you or your computer), the app's version, your system's version (macOS or Windows), and whether it's the beta or the full edition. That's how Sam sees how many copies are in use and on which versions, and how the app can show you any reply Sam has written to your feedback.
The reply can also tell the app that Sam has stopped that copy (say, one that was passed on). The app then shows a note instead of opening, and your files are untouched.
A copy of the full edition (unlocked with a key from Sam) also fetches Sam's drafting notes for its Claude connection when it opens, sending only that key and the version of the notes it already has, and keeps them as a file in your library folder. The beta sends nothing for this.
On first launch the app asks, optionally, for the email you applied with or the tester code shown on your download page (the random part of your download link). Whichever you give is sent once so your copy can be matched to your application, and isn't stored on your computer or by the service afterwards. If you give neither, Sam may still match a copy to you by hand, going by which tester downloaded the app just before it first opened. You agree to all this when you tick the beta agreement on first launch; it says the same in fewer words.
Not sent: your patterns, blocks, measurements, client sheets, file names, or anything you type into the app.
When you send feedback
Send feedback in the app sends Sam your message; your email if you choose to give one for a reply; and, to help find the problem, the app's version, your system's version (macOS or Windows), the screen and window size, which screen of the app you were on, and the last few errors the app noticed. If you tick Include this pattern, the open pattern's file goes too, so Sam can open the very pattern you were working on; otherwise no pattern is sent.
Sam may reply inside the app (the reply shows on your home screen the next time it opens) or by email if you gave an address.
Where it's kept, and who sees it
- Everything is stored with Cloudflare, in a database and file store in Western Europe, encrypted in transit and at rest. Cloudflare handles it on Sam's behalf and doesn't use it for its own purposes.
- Only Sam can see it, through a dashboard behind a password. There are no other people involved.
- When a new application or feedback arrives, the service emails Sam to say so. That email carries no personal details, just a link to the dashboard.
- To work out fixes, Sam may use AI tools (Anthropic's Claude) on the text and technical details of feedback and on what testers said they'd like to make. Names and email addresses are never passed to them.
- To slow down automated abuse, the service keeps a scrambled form of the internet address each application and sign-in attempt came from, for one day. It can't be turned back into the address.
What's kept, at a glance
| What | Why | Until |
|---|---|---|
| Name, email, which computer you have, what you'd like to make, experience | To run the beta, send the right download and understand feedback | End of the beta; 30 days if declined |
| Your download link and how often it's used | To send you the app, and to spot a link that was passed on | End of the beta |
| Each copy's random number, app and system versions, when it last opened, and whether Sam has stopped it | To see which copies are in use | End of the beta |
| Feedback, its technical details, a pattern file if you included one, and Sam's reply | To fix what's wrong and build what's wanted | End of the beta |
| A scrambled internet address | To slow down abuse | One day |
"End of the beta" means everything about every tester is deleted by 30 April 2027. If the beta is extended, this page will say so and give the new date.
Your rights
You can ask to see everything kept about you (you'll get it as a file), to have it corrected, or to have it deleted, at any time: write to hello@ellwand.app and Sam will do it within a month, usually much sooner. Deleting means your application, your copies and all your feedback go, and your download link stops working. If you're unhappy with how your details are handled, you can also complain to the data-protection authority where you live.
This website
ellwand.app sets no cookies and runs no analytics. Its fonts and images are served from ellwand.app itself, so nothing is fetched from other companies when you read it. The site is hosted by Cloudflare, which, like any host, sees the internet address of each visit for as long as it takes to serve the page.