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There’s something incredibly special about full-circle moments that turn passions into lasting memories. From an early age, sewing has been a joyful, creative outlet and a meaningful part of my design journey. My entry into the design world began through custom home sewing— what started as a passion quickly became my profession. Whether I was stitching doll clothes, crafting curtains for my bedroom, or piecing together quilts, making something useful and beautiful has always brought me immense satisfaction.
Recently, I’ve been honored to have had the opportunity to share my experience and love for this skill with students from My Brother’s Workshop who is doing more than hosting workshops, they’re changing lives.
Becoming Part of the Change
My Brother’s Workshop is a nonprofit that is doing amazing work in the USVI for at-risk and high-risk young people. The organization started out small and has become what it is today because someone saw a need in the community and decided to do something about it. By offering hope, faith, and purpose in the form of mentoring, counseling, paid job training, education and job placement these students can find their purpose while earning a living.
This program has continued to grow over the years and now offers half-day trade school opportunities for carpentry, marine services, diesel mechanics, baking––and now sewing, taught by yours truly.
It’s been a wonderful experience to share my skills and my story of getting my business off the ground with these young people who are some of the best upholsters I’ve ever seen. By the end of the workshop every student was well versed on how to thread the sewing machine, make a stitch, throw pillows, cording and apply cording to a pillow to make zipper pouches all featuring Starboard Lane Fabrics. As a trade I’ve been able to always fall back on, it was extremely humbling to share this knowledge with the students to continue that wave affect by giving back to them so they can pass it on to someone else one day too.
For Everyday Life
If you’re ever visiting the USVI and looking to bring home something beautiful and meaningful, you can find My Brother’s Workshop x Starboard Lane creations at Paradise Point Boutique. As a mom and business owner it has been overwhelmingly beautiful to see these two facets of my life come together to create experiences that others can enjoy. Situations like these don’t happen all the time, but when they do, it reaffirms that we are exactly where we are supposed to be.
