Crafting Confidence, One Sewing Machine at a Time

Tucked into a small basement space in the North Loop neighborhood of Minneapolis is a gem that has been 16 years in the making. The room is filled with brightly colored fabrics — some crafted into one-of-a-kind pieces, others waiting to take shape. Rows of sewing machines line the long central table, waiting to turn potential into actual.

Lovely’s Sewing Collective was founded in 2009 by North Minneapolis fashion designer Keiona Cook. “Sewing saved my life,” she candidly shared. “I wanted to be for kids [the person] I needed when I was a kid.”

Like other long-lasting nonprofits, Lovely’s has adapted to survive, hosting a variety of community and private programs. During the peak of COVID, it was a one-woman mask-making operation; Cook used distinctive African wax print fabrics, which are a signature in her fashion line, Qe’Bella Couture. At the heart of Lovely’s programming, however, are year-round sewing classes for children and adults. At Lovely’s, sewing is just the beginning. Classes also usually include yoga and lunch.

At a festive spring fashion show fundraiser — featuring designs by Lovely’s sewers and a Qe’Bella Couture collection — a parent spoke about the powerful impact Lovely’s had on her child’s confidence and entrepreneurship.

“We’re teaching trade skills, but we’re also teaching so much more,” says Cook. “We help them create. Then we help them sell [what they’ve created] and we teach them about financial literacy and money management.”

Cook believes this holistic approach, integrating broadly applicable life skills into fun and hands-on classes, is one of the most unique and appealing parts of Lovely’s.

 

Sewing tends to be underestimated as a youth activity. That has posed a challenge for Cook in finding financial support. She believes she has been turned away for grants because sewing is considered a hobby. Cook adds with a chuckle, “I don’t know how sewing could be labeled as a hobby, considering the fact that we have to wear clothes every day.”

On a recent trip to Ghana, she was delighted to be immersed in a culture that embraces sewing. “So much life,” she says. “On every other corner there were sewing schools. So many people were wearing one-of-a-kind pieces.”

In the U.S., on the other hand, Cook worries that she is not reaching enough kids to make a real dent. “Right now I teach about a hundred kids a year,” she says. “I feel like I should be teaching 250 to 300 kids minimum.”

Still, Cook is optimistic that with more support she will continue to grow her impact. She wants to offer additional scholarships to students from low-income backgrounds. She offers overnight women’s retreats.

“As women, we’re busy taking care of all the hearts around us,” says Cook. “We forget to take care of our own hearts. [It is meaningful] to create this experience for women to have an overnight retreat, make a dress, with all the expenses paid for.”

Cook has a largely volunteer-based teaching staff, and loyal students. “There is so much value in feeling confident and having someone that believes in you. I think that’s what stands out about my program — the fact that kids have found a home where they can grow and be the best version of themselves.”

Details: lovelyssewing.org