Hi, I’m Jess, the 1 woman team behind Jessica Sews. I have an absolute love for fabric and anything crafty. I’m a bit of a hoarder, but in a good way I say. If something is too pretty or useful to throw out then it gets squirrelled away in a box, to use at some point in the future (much to my husband’s dismay)!
I am Mum to 3 boys so have had to side-line my gorgeous floral materials for now and my stash is now being invaded with Pokémon and The Avengers fabric. I’m slowly learning to love these too but I’m hoping some of those pretty fabrics may come out from hiding through Jessica Sews. I would love to share some happiness from me to you and put a smile on your face. So please do get in touch if there is anything you feel I may be able to help with!
If you want to read on about me and my life, then go make yourself a cup of tea, grab a packet of biscuits and get comfy…
I have had a passion for fabric and sewing since I was a child. I was always rummaging through my mum’s fabric stash and sewing box to find any treasures I could claim as my own. In fact I still have her button tin full to the brim with lots of old buttons! (Shh..!)
I have worked with fabric in some way now for the past few years. It all started with a small craft business in 2014 selling at local markets, whilst trying to make ends meet financially. Any sales were poured straight back into buying more fabric, but I loved every single moment of it. Alongside, I worked part time at C&H Fabrics (now Closs & Hamblin) on the dress and furnishing department where I absorbed as much information as possible. From reading a knitting pattern to calculating curtain fabric quantities, I was your girl!
In 2015, before my first son was born, I became a ‘Maker’ for C&H too, taking small sewing jobs home to do in the evenings, like net curtain alterations or small slot top curtains. These first paid jobs to sew were the kick and the boost I needed to take my skills that little bit further.
Whilst on maternity leave I enrolled on a home learning Professional Soft Furnishings and Curtain Making course through The National Design Academy. I learnt the skills needed to make beautiful, high quality handmade products from curtains and cushions to roman blinds. I passed the course and gained a Level 3 Diploma in Curtain Making. As a child I was one of ‘those’ kids that actually enjoyed school and studying had given me the learning bug again! Through the same scheme I then went on to also completed a Level 3 Diploma in Professional Interior Design.
In 2017 as my second son was born, I found myself back on maternity leave but this time I also had an 18 month old toddler to run around after! No where near as much sewing got done but that didn’t stop my love for fabric. Word got around that a new Dunelm branch was opening just down the road from me.
Well it was too good an opportunity to miss so I quickly applied and secured myself the job as the Made to Measure Consultant, dealing with all M2M orders for curtains, blinds, cushions, fabric etc! 3 weeks training away from home I found myself sat at my very own desk in store, with my name on the business cards and it all seemed very surreal! The job was full on, with high targets and expectations but being able to personally help people design the soft furnishings for their homes felt great!
However towards the end of my first year there I found out I was pregnant (again!) which put in a big spanner in the works for my 40 hr a week full time job! So in 2018 I left just before my son was born to focus on my family and keeping the house running.
If any of you reading this know me well then you may know that I don’t do well doing ‘nothing’. I struggled with being just ‘Mum’ and needed a purpose again. So after my wedding in 2019 I started at Applemoon Interiors, hand making curtains and roman blinds. Well this really did feel like a dream had come true! From back at C&H Fabrics when that sparked was ignited to be paid to sew, I was finally doing just that. I realised how much I had missed working directly with fabric. I’d missed sewing more than I realised.
It felt great to be sewing and making again but I still had this dream niggling at me. I now missed chatting to the client directly, working out the best colour scheme and feeling like I had really made a difference to someone’s day.
As we all know 2020 was a difficult year for us all with Covid-19 and the uncertainty it brought to all of us. But well, because I never do things conventionally, as things started to close down, I decided to start a new adventure.
I launched Jessica Sews and here we are today!
Thank you for reading, right to the end!
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Jessica Sews 