as a design director at an ad agency and has won dozens of awards, so I'm very lucky to be one of his 'clients.' He's amazing at what he does and somehow he perfectly interpreted what I wanted the workroom to be into an identity that is classic, feminine and a bit quirky. I give him carte blanche to do what he likes with the graphics and I love seeing the things he comes up with. Even the simplest things like an event flyer or class calendar are always flawless. What is a typical day in the workroom? In the morning I walk to work with my dog, Maisy. It's usually a brisk walk and it takes us a half hour. This gives me time to let my mind wander and to roughly plan my day. When we arrive at the shop, I make a cup of tea and check the phone messages and email. Often there are registrations for classes that need to be taken care of. Jerisse, one of the girls who works with me, will often arrive shortly after and start by tidying up the fabric shelves and sewing stations from the day before. On a really good day, a shipment of fabrics arrive. It still feels like Christmas when the UPS guy walks through the door with boxes. After we open up the boxes (often squealing with delight) and check that everything has arrived that we were expecting, I'll take photographs of each of the bolts to put on Flickr. Fat quarters are also cut of any new fabric that arrives to go into our fat quarter shelf. Shoppers will wander in and out of the shop during the day. Often times people are discovering the workroom for the first time and wondering what exactly the space is all about. Someone may drop in to use the sewing machines by the hour to work on curtains for their apartment or to repair some clothing they have. After a bit of lunch late in the afternoon, I'll start to prepare for the evening class which starts at 6pm. The evening class might be a beginner class that goes until 9pm. I'll close up and end my day the same way it started by walking home with Maisy. What has been the reaction of the local Toronto craft scene? How do you foster a local community of crafters? The response to the workroom has been overwhelming and so wonderful. I feel very gratified that people love and support the workroom they way they do. Creating a sense of community was one of my top priorities with the workroom. I have a few monthly open studio sessions where people are encouraged to drop by to sew, quilt, knit, crochet and just socialize. I also organize small craft fairs with a local group called, "City of Craft". We call them trunk shows, since our vendors display their wares in suitcases. These have become fun events that everyone in the community supports. What are some of your favourite moments from the workroom? My favourite moments from the workroom are when it is filled with people whether it's one of our Stitch n' Bitch 24 / U P P E R C A S E
nights, Quilt Sunday or a trunk show. Witnessing the relationships that have grown within this space make me feel like the workroom is truly a positive part of people's lives. Of course, there is also that very special moment when someone finishes a project in class and they are filled with delight and pride. Helping this spark of creativity grow in people is incredible. As a business owner, you are responsible for many tasks from stocking inventory, customer service and marketing. Do you have assistants? How do you manage your time to allow for personal creativity? When I first opened I worked alone and did (or tried to do) everything myself. That was really hard. One of the best things I've done is to hire help. I've got a wonderful trio of girls who help me immensely in the shop. Having other people around makes the business more productive, the days more enjoyable and helps me remember to stop and have lunch! Some people might imagine that I spend my days crafting away in the shop, but this is not the case. I don't usually allow myself that free time while I'm at the workroom. There is too much work to be done. One of the big reasons I decided to start a blog was to force myself to not neglect my own need to make things. It has really helped me to examine and to share with a wider audience all the things I do that are creative, whether it is cooking a new recipe or learning how to hand quilt. Having an audience motivates me set aside this time for myself and to honour all the things I make, no matter how small. Do you live near your shop? Do you also have a crafting space at home? What do you like to do with your time away from the shop? I live quite close to the shop. Since I knew that I would be spending so much time there, being close to home makes my long days easier. My crafting space is my dining room table. I've never had a permanent spot for my sewing machine at home. I think this is one of the reasons that I felt having an open studio space like the workroom would be so appealing to people. Most people don't have that kind of space and often times your crafting space might be secluded somewhere in your house. I love being in the middle of the house, close to the kitchen and the television. Some of my favourite nights are having the television going late into the night while I work on the sewing machine. I haven't had a lot of free time since I started the business, so I often find myself on my laptop when I get home to try and get more work done. One of my goals for myself this year is to start giving myself more time off. I really love gardening and I didn't spend that much time with my garden last summer. To be honest, as soon as I finish this interview I'm going to jump on my sewing machine and make a new smock top from one of my Japanese craft books.