Tag: Sewing Ambassador

JUKI Posts

Meet JUKI Ambassador Amanda Gerard

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Today, we’re excited to introduce our newest JUKI Ambassador, Amanda Gerard, the talented founder and owner of SewBestie LLC, located in the heart of Oceanside, California! With over 20 years of sewing experience, Amanda has turned her passion for textile art into a thriving business that serves the San Diego and North County communities. SewBestie LLC offers a variety of classes designed with beginners in mind, making the art of sewing accessible and enjoyable for both children and adults.

Amanda’s journey began at 11 when she first noticed her mother repairing and hemming clothing on her sewing machine. Though her mother was not an expert sewist, Amanda’s curiosity was piqued, and she asked to learn more. With a simple introduction to the basics from her mother —how to turn on the machine and thread it—Amanda’s started learning through trial and error! Her first major project, a Renaissance Noble costume, proved to be both a challenge and a revelation. Despite the difficulties of working with upholstery, satin, boning, and grommets, Amanda finished the costume and discovered her love for textile art.

 “I have been lucky my entire life to have a very vivid imagination, so I can look at a fabric and immediately see in my head where it’s going to go and how it is going to match specific patterns and placement in a design.”

Creativity is at the core of Amanda’s work! She deeply loves bright colors and high-contrast designs, often gravitating toward rainbow palettes that bring her strong imagination to life. When designing custom garments and accessories for clients, Her favorite projects are those where clients give her creative freedom! With a theme and budget, Amanda can explore new techniques and push the boundaries of her craft. In recent years, vinyl has become one of her preferred materials, particularly in bag-making, where she enjoys experimenting with clear and smooth varieties. Collaborating with independent designers has been especially fulfilling for Amanda, as she’s loved helping bring their unique visions to life.

When asked about the fabrics and patterns she enjoys most, Amanda shouted out her love for vinyl! Transitioning from clothing to bag-making was a significant shift in her creative journey, but one that she was excited to embrace. Working with vinyl, particularly in the form of backpacks or makeup bags, has opened up new avenues for her creativity.

To further enhance her skills, Amanda has attended various workshops over the years, with one class elevating her journey to new levels she hadn’t touched before. A few years ago, she attended an industrial machine workshop with Ann Benvenuto of Simple Artful Stuff in Dallas, Texas. This experience introduced her to the world of industrial straight stitch machines, specifically geared towards bag making! The workshop, which focused on crafting leather bags, provided Amanda with invaluable knowledge about working with leather and the tools and machines required for the process. This experience led her to invest in JUKI’s Industrial 1541 and 1341 machines, which have become essential in her leather crafting and larger vinyl projects. Since then, Ann has continued to be a mentor and source of inspiration for Amanda, whose skills and passion for sewing have continued to grow since that pivotal workshop.

Amanda’s love for sewing goes beyond creating, and now she shares her knowledge of the hobby she loves. Opening her first sewing classroom in 2018 was an exciting and nerve-wracking experience for Amanda. In discussing her plans with her husband, she realized there were no similar classes or workshops available in their area of South Carolina. While her husband worried that this indicated a lack of interest, Amanda believed it was because no one had yet filled the gap. And her instincts proved correct!

The community’s response was overwhelmingly positive, with children and adults eager to participate in her classes. Today, SewBestie’s classes boast a roughly even split between kids and adults, reflecting the widespread enthusiasm for sewing that Amanda has helped cultivate. However, some challenges came with tackling this new venture.  

“I didn’t think that I had enough knowledge to share with other people… Once I started sharing my knowledge and walking people through the basics, I realized how much I knew.”

One challenge Amanda faced when she first started SewBestie LLC was imposter syndrome and questioning whether she had enough knowledge to share with others. Amanda pushed forward, even with these doubts, and surprised herself with the knowledge she had accumulated over the years of sewing. She’s gone on to develop foundation projects for her students, designed to build their skills progressively. Each project builds upon the last, allowing students to grow confidently as they learn.

While Amanda’s classes have continued to succeed, she admits that she still contends with imposter syndrome and believes it’s important to remain humble and open to learning every day.

In the long run, teaching others to sew has become one of the most rewarding aspects of Amanda’s career. She thrives when watching her students, particularly adults, overcome their fear of trying something new. Children, she notes, tend to be fearless, while adults are often more cautious. Seeing the moment when a student has a breakthrough—when something finally clicks—it’s that light bulb moment she loves to witness. She consistently encourages her students to trust the process, even if they’re unsure how everything will come together.

Since opening her classes, Amanda’s most memorable teaching moment has been with a student named Ryan, who has been a student at SewBestie for a few years. Ryan, a young student, once brought in a hand-drawn picture of an animal monster and, with Amanda’s guidance, turned it into a stuffed animal within two hours, impressing her with his passion! Because of his passion, Amanda has helped Ryan explore the world of heavier fabrics with the JUKI TL.

As Amanda looks to the future for SewBestie, she is excited about expanding their lessons by including retreats and events and continuing to work on their YouTube channel. With a goal of reaching 10,000 subscribers, Amanda is eager to continue sharing her love for sewing with an even wider audience! You can learn more about SewBestie’s YouTube by visiting here.

For aspiring sewists and entrepreneurs, Amanda’s advice is simple: Don’t stop learning and always keep your passion at the forefront. She says, “When you enjoy your passion, it shows, and the business will come.”

Amanda Gerard’s journey from self-taught sewist to successful entrepreneur and JUKI Ambassador is a testament to the power of passion, perseverance, and creativity. We’re thrilled to have her as part of the JUKI family and can’t wait to see how she continues to inspire and teach others in the years to come!

“Don’t stop! Learning is not something that happens overnight; it’s a process that takes time and practice.”

JUKI Posts, JUKI Spotlight

JUKI Designer Ambassador: Kiki Kitty

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Introducing Kiki Kitty, owner, and designer of K. Milele, as one of our new JUKI Designer Ambassadors! A member of the fashion industry since the ’90s, where she started off with FUBU’s womenswear, Kiki Kitty is a force to be reckoned with.

One of five siblings, Kiki grew up in a home where she and her family would focus on creating everyday items to stay entertained. Creating projects like ragdolls, pillows, and slippers, she was inspired by her mother, who found art in everything. Taught by her mother, Kiki would create using natural pieces like pinecones and other found items to create projects like home décor whenever inspiration struck. Through these small projects that Kiki learned how to build her creative eye, assisting her for years to come when it was time for her to design fashion.

Finding sewing as another art medium, her first lesson was thanks to her mother. A fun activity for her and her siblings, Kiki would complete little projects to train herself on the machine and work her way up on project size and complexity. One of her favorite parts about sewing has been the freedom to explore new techniques and concepts. Through her excitement to learn, she sees each mistake as an opportunity to learn something new.

“I love when a mistake turns into the greatest thing about a garment because it forced me to have to look at it in a new way.”

Kiki’s love for the hobby has grown, leading her into the fashion industry in the ’90s as a designer for FUBU, a women’s streetwear fashion line. Motivated by her need to artistically express herself, she finds the process to be therapeutic. Seeing this as a way to express her thoughts was her first step in learning to express herself. “It took me a very long time to find my voice, to verbally express myself, and to stand up for myself. Expression through art was always my outlet. And even now that I’ve discovered my voice, creating remains to be my most powerful expression.”

While her time at FUBU led to her first brand K.A.Kitties, a venture she’s proud and fond of, her most tremendous success was only recently accomplished in her latest fashion collection K.Milele, “This is My Protest.” Using her JUKI machines, our MO-20000QVP, and HZL-NX7, she states she was finally able to create a collection that is 100% her self-expression. With the opportunity to explore prints, patterns, and textures, she hopes to create beautiful, one-of-a-kind pieces representing her and those she designs for.

Her newest collection has trends like gathering, a favorite of Kiki’s since the ’90s. Loving how the final product looks, she finds it’s a simple technique that elevates the simple styles into sexy numbers, something her line embodies. Loving anything that creates fabric manipulation is her favorite trend in sewing. A must-have tool she keeps on hand for these projects is her tweezers. Allowing her told the fabric in place and keeping her fingers away from the machine after one terrible accident in her time at Pratt University when she first began sewing on industrial machines, she finds this tool to be a finger saver.

From FUBU to her current collection, Kiki’s journey in sewing is far from over. We hope you enjoyed getting to know our ambassador today and that you keep up with her future projects! Kiki’s new collection can be found on her socials here, and we’re so excited to see her projects come to life! Kiki’s final note to you JUKI lovers is this, “When you’re trying it [sewing] out, don’t get frustrated about making mistakes. Often mistakes make way for the opportunity to be creative and discover that there’s more than one way to achieve a great outcome. Even if it’s not the idea, you started with. Be flexible. See the beauty in what’s in front of you.”

JUKI Posts, JUKI Spotlight

JUKI Designer Ambassador: Kovid Kapoor

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Today we’re introducing a new addition to the JUKI team, Kovid Kapoor, one of our new JUKI Designer Ambassadors! Based in Brooklyn, New York, Kapoor is an Indian fashion designer that focuses on the luxury and high-end fashion market. Holding an impressive background in fashion, Kapoor has won the National Textile Corporation’s Young Designer Hunt competition in India, completed his master’s in fashion design from the Academy of Art University, and was a contestant on the 17th season of Project Runway. So it’s no surprise his work has gone on to be featured in well-known fashion titles like Elle USA, Elle India, and Vogue Italia. Follow along as we share more about Kovid and his life in fashion below!

Photo Credit: Kovid Kapoor

Starting at a very young age, Kovid learned how to hand sew from his grandmother. Finding love for art, he continued to be passionate about the hobby through his teenage years and adult life. During the foundation years of his bachelor’s degree, Kovid started using sewing machines in his work. As Kovid shares, “It was one of the most crucial subjects and essential skills to develop a successful garment.”

Kovid’s brand is a small-scale brand that believes in creating dynamic clothing to find a healthy balance between art and viable commercial product. Inspired by tales and stories that celebrate feminine and LGBTQ stories, he believes fashion should represent an individual’s identity and be used as a form of self-expression. Focusing on contemporized pieces with a traditional twist, his line is relaxed yet helps buyers feel confident in their look. His motivation for creating his pieces is a therapeutic process, “What motivates me to create is to project and express my thoughts and creative aspirations through fashion and clothing. It’s a therapeutic process of self-reflection, and every collection helps me evolve not just in my creative space but also my emotional space.”

Besides his fashion brand, Kovid has accomplished great success in the art world of fashion. His favorite art piece to date was a conceptual art wear garment inspired by the Mask Project Series, in collaboration-with Akshit Bhardwaj. This art piece was an enlarged garment version of a mask, designed with three-dimensional details. Enjoying the organic process of the garment creation and the carefree approach with which they followed, the final pieces reflected their experience in the creative process. Another art piece, one he claims as his greatest success, was for an installation in the Asian Art Museum vault. A 12-foot tall saree dress tent made for art directors Adrienne Pao and Robin Lasser, designed with bright colors and traditional style. Click here to view the art piece!

Photo Credit: Kovid Kapoor

Currently, Kovid is working on his upcoming collection all constructed on his trusted Juki machine. A must-have tool, Kovid shares a good sewing machine is worth the investment because of its importance in elevating the speed and efficiency of his work. Describing the upcoming collection as something new and fresh, he’s beyond thrilled to showcase the new line once completed. With a passion for his work, Kovid’s love for sewing comes from the process of creating. “There is something very rewarding about constructing something yourself. It adds a personal touch to an otherwise store-bought world.”

As we finished getting to know Kovid, he had one final tidbit of advice for new sewers in the community, “The key to success in sewing is consistency and practice. Sewing is a skill that is finessed with practice and time so it’s completely fine if the initial projects don’t work the important thing is to keep practicing.”

We hope you’ve enjoyed getting to know Kovid Kapoor! Follow along as we continue to join Kovid in his fashion journey, and visit us here to learn more about Kovid and our other designers!

JUKI Posts, JUKI Spotlight

JUKI Designer Ambassador: Will Riddle

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Today we’re introducing Will Riddle, our new JUKI Designer Ambassador! Known for his bold risks and designs, Will’s journey in sewing has taken him everywhere, and we are so excited it has brought him to JUKI! Coming up in the fashion industry Will has been a contestant on Amazon Prime’s Season 1 “Making the Cut,” presented a collection at NYFW, and styled celebrities such as Obama’s, Camila Cabello, Megan Markle, and more! Follow along as we get to know Will Riddle and introduce him to the JUKI team.

Will’s story starts not in fashion but painting! While always attracted to the arts, Will’s first medium was oil and acrylic painting. Taking 15 years’ worth of lessons, he decided it was time for something new and broke away from the medium to find a new one, branching out to the fashion world. Graduating from the Fashion School at Kent State University, he received his CFDA+ certification for his work in evening wear and achieved one of his most significant accomplishments.

“A few weeks after I graduated college, I had the opportunity to create a capsule collection that walked the runway at Lincoln Center during New York Fashion Week. To be that age and entering the industry with such an accomplishment under my belt was an amazing feeling.”

Diving into the world of sewing, Will turned to it as a form of comfort. Seeing it as his time to relax and unwind, he placed sole focus on his projects and creating. Will views designing and sewing as a therapeutic activity and finds sewing like a puzzle. He engineers the pattern pieces and designs to come together in a certain way for the perfect finish.

Finding inspiration for his work is exciting as he pulls from his own life experiences. Viewing life experiences as unique to each person and non-replicable, he draws from his past to create beautiful futures. In addition, he finds motivation behind the fact that creating is all he knows how to do. From an early on exposure to art, he’s been able to ensure that he’s constantly surrounded by creativity in his life, from fashion and music to performance and more.

Will’s present finds him most excited about developing custom prints and artwork featured in future collections! Using his favorite tool, a JUKI industrial sewing machine, he’s able to create fashion pieces he’s proud of. “I was spoiled in college by learning how to professionally sew on a fleet of new JUKI machines, and as soon as I started building my atelier, made the investment to have one of my own!” His work is bold and different, and his current favorite trend is domestic embroidery machines! Using his JUKI quilting machine DX-3000QVP and MO-2000QVP, he’s able to create personalized artworks with embellishments and accessories. This tool comes in handy when he designs his second favorite kind of outfit, campy Halloween costumes! His first favorite is the evening gowns he’s known for. 

Will’s experience in sewing has been exciting! Still coming up in the fashion industry Will has had a whole career he feels, “from managing the atelier at 3.1 Phillip Lim and Oscar de la Renta, to managing NYC factory relationships for sample creation, working with overseas factories, teaching newcomers how to sew and everything in between!” One word he would use for his projects? “Complex.” Created with the idea of bringing out bold styles and looks, it’s no wonder he’s gotten this far!

Will’s future in sewing is exciting and filled with opportunities, JUKI Lovers! His advice to new sewers joining is to complete projects at your skill level. We know how fun it can be to start large, but like

Will states, “feeling of accomplishment you get from successfully completing a project that you find slightly challenging, but not impossible, is incredibly rewarding and helps to encourage more difficult projects as you sharpen your skills.”

We hope you loved learning about Will as much as we did! So follow along as we continue introducing new JUKI Designers these coming weekends! Which Will Riddle design did you love best? Let us know down below!

JUKI Posts, JUKI Spotlight

JUKI Designer Ambassador: Samantha Rei

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Joining us in our JUKI Designer Ambassador Program is Samantha Rei! Samantha is the owner and founder of the clothing line “Samantha Rei,” a style that embodies sweetness, femininity, and attention to detail that Samantha is known for. You can see her inspiration in her work; she finds designs in everyday life and turns to music and stories when creating. Her recent collections have embodied themes from Vanitas painting and celestial-themed prints. Creating comes as second nature to Samantha, stating that creating is in her.

“It’s a primal thing. I don’t know why, but I’m driven to create. Even when it’s hard, I try to make myself because I know I’ll be happier on the other side, having made something beautiful.”

Samantha’s journey started not in sewing but comic book art! After pursuing her degree in illustrating and painting, she moved her art into a new medium and attended Minneapolis Community and Technical College for Apparel Technologies. After graduating, she created her first fashion label, “Blasphemina’s Closet” one of the first Lolita lines in the US, in 2000. Since starting her new brand, “Samantha Rei,” in 2013, she’s been featured in  Huffington Post, Shojo Beat, the American Gothic and Lolita Bible, Gothic Beauty, Glamour UK, and Vogue UK. Samantha’s love for sewing over her 20+ years as a professional designer has come from the challenges and new skills she’s continued to gain. As she states, “I am constantly trying to learn new techniques. I love gaining new knowledge.”

In 2015, Samantha authored and illustrated a how-to-book on style for Steampunk and Cosplay fashion! Her favorite projects to create are those where she can fully be dramatic. It’s no secret why cosplay would be a fun hobby in fashion to her! Recently, while creating fashion designs for weddings, she’s found herself placing dramatic capes on the gowns, creating a look that is eye-catching and special on its own. Her most tremendous recent success has been designing and creating fashion looks for Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan for her inauguration and wedding.

Samantha’s experience in sewing has been one of growth. Her drive to learn has led Samantha to where she is now, and she continues to acknowledge that she doesn’t know everything and neither do others. Because of this, she strives to do better with each project and enjoys sharing her knowledge with others. What once felt like a world of gatekeeping trade fashion secrets has turned into a world where knowledge is more openly shared. Social media has allowed newcomers to feel invited. Her best advice for new sewers, and one she shares with her interns, “Ask as many questions as possible and watch tutorials. And a weirdly specific tip, the Readers Digest Guide to Sewing, is the book I recommend to everyone from new sewers to my interns. Easy to follow with tons of info.”

Samantha’s next venture is exciting JUKI Lovers! You’ll be able to join Samantha soon, and in her favorite hobby, on her new YouTube series where she critiques costumes in science fiction media.

“I’m a huge geek, always have been, and I love analyzing story and world-building through what the people in the stories are wearing. I started the channel at the beginning of the pandemic, and it’s been so much fun!”

We’re so excited to have Samantha on board and can’t wait for the next project! Follow along with her sewing journey and more on our JUKI Ambassador site today here!