Why I Do What I Do
(When I do what I do)
And Why I Love Doing It
Lately I’ve had a lot of opportunities to speak up about why
I love what I do and why I want to do it. Opportunities like this usually come
up as questions regarding the odd lifestyle I’ve chosen to live… I live in a
constant pile-acious mess of fabric, thread, invoices, bills, scissors, pins
and million unsorted things. I work when I feel best which sometimes is at 3
am. My ideal workspace is a big empty room with great lights where I can put
all my toys and take naps under the cutting table. I can put in 60+ hours a
week on my various client work. I don’t
punch a clock or wear a suit; pj’s and Post-it’s are more my speed. My client
products range from leather work to scuba gear.
And I love it. I struggle daily to keep my business going
because I love what I’ve made.
Early on in my business someone told me that I won’t be
without problems, like I assumed that running my own shop would be easy.
Certainly I never expected that I wouldn’t have problems. Having a business is
hard. I don’t like doing paperwork, dealing with hard clients or spending time
writing quotes; anything not sewing feels difficult. I’ve learned that all
those things that I hate doing are worth it when I see what a difference I make
to my clients.
Perhaps for some people it’s hard to understand why I make
the decisions and take the risks I do. I won’t ever be happy working a 9-5,
it’s just not me. That’s not how I work best. One of the strangest things
people see in me is how weird it is that I want to live in my workspace. My
current search for a live/work shop has been full of questions about exactly
why would I want to live like that. It’s hard to not take it personally but I
know what I need for me. I know what I put into my work and for me it is
personal. I have devoted my life to becoming the best at what I do and I am
fortunate enough to be able to operate in a way that allows me to do what I
love every single day. When you find a job that you love that much… doesn’t it
make sense that you’d never really want to leave it? Maybe everyone else hasn’t
found their passion but I’ve found mine and these are just the things I have to
do to make my dreams into a reality.
Calm before the storm... |
My love of sewing goes beyond any hobby. My love of teaching
my craft goes beyond any work book or lesson plan. My joy in creating the built
world goes beyond anything that I have ever felt in my life. In everything I
make, I find consistently that the joy is always there through the discovery of
handling new fabrics, building patterns that work, helping clients reach their
goals.
Sewing is not a dying art to me. I make money with it. I pay
my bills with money that I have made making patterns, cutting fabric, and
sewing together all kinds of products. Sewing is the most flexible industry for
growth and I believe it will be the job that will help turn around the crap-ass
state of affairs in our country. Anyone can sew if they are willing to learn
and I will be the one to teach them. Give me an outlet, a machine and a
willing victim and in no time I’ll give you a line seamstress able to be
employed in a sewing shop.
This is what I was put on this earth to do. I am not getting out easy. I not only expect a
challenge, I welcome it. I belong in a position where I can help others through
my sewing knowledge. My passion for sewing is deep and I won’t quit being weird
to you so love me anyway. Support me as I grow this business. I am going to
change the world, I just know it.
I’ve said it a million times, I just want to work and make
people happy, and so that’s what I’m going to do.
xo Adrienne
Thanks for indulging in my ridiculous titling of this
personal essay ;)
And, yeah, I said "crap-ass." It's the truth and you know it. Forgive the language lol
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