Sewing is a creative outlet that not many high school students pick up. However, senior Jessica Barber has grown fond of the activity ever since she started when she was just a child. As a near adult now, she still has many projects she is working on.
“I’ve been sewing since I was five years old, my grandma was the one who started forcing me to do hand sewing worksheets where I would sew through the paper and learn different stitches and stuff,” Barber said.
According to Barber, to get good sewing skills it depends on how early you start and how much equipment you have.
“I think it depends on when you learn and how many resources you have, for me it didn’t take long because I started when I was little when it was really easy to absorb the information, but if you’re starting now a lot of the concepts and visualizing probably takes a while to understand,” Barber said.
Later in life, when Barber developed her own personal style, she realized her aesthetic wasn’t available in stores. She decided to get creative with her clothing decisions.
“What got me interested in sewing again, I started getting a bunch of ideas of different stuff and drew out different clothes that I wanted, I have a very unique style so a lot of the stuff that I wanted to wear wasn’t in stores, so I just went out and bought fabric and was like ‘Grandma tell me how to make this!’,” Barber said.
Barber didn’t take any sewing classes, she taught herself on her own with the help of observing others online.
“It’s kind of hard to be self taught in sewing, there’s like so much that goes into it you kind of have to look stuff up and gain knowledge from other people,” Barber said.
Barber has a busy schedule and can’t always dedicate her time to sewing. And for her, making a dress isn’t a fast process, it can take a sizable amount of time, especially with her senior ball dress she plans on sewing herself.
“A single dress probably takes about three months to make, but that’s because I don’t work on it everyday, I can only work on it on the weekends when I have free time,” Barber said. “Currently my senior ball dress is just fabric. I do have some inspo pics saved up, and I’m working on the pattern right now.”
Barber has grown to love sewing because it is a great hobby to pick up if you have your own unique style. It is a hobby that is easily accessible to anyone who wishes to try it.
“I think if there’s clothes you want that aren’t in stores, you should definitely grab a sewing machine, your grandma probably has one,” Barber said.