BYUH missionaries and student share how sewing can enrich lives while learning basic skills
Aside from creating clothes, sewing also creates family connections, life lessons and gives satisfaction, said Sister Diane Wilde, a senior missionary from Provo, Utah, who works at BYU–Hawaii’s Sewing Center.
Satisfaction in sewing
Wilde said the satisfaction of creating something is very rewarding. “If you do it right, then it looks good. If you don’t, you could be sloppy and just let it go. But in the end, it is better to take it out and fix it.”
Continuing, she related sewing to repentance. “It’s not fun, but in the end, you get a much better product if you’re careful and [when] you take out the mistakes. … If you solve the problem, then it is rewarding.”
Ualani Mo’o, the Ho’okahua business manager at the Aloha Center, said, “I am not an expert, but I do enjoy it. I like it when I accomplish something.” She explained sewing was a big learning curve for her because she often struggled to get it right.
Mo’o said, “It is fun when you get something done.” She shared how she feels so much satisfaction when she goes through the process of finishing a project. She expressed how happy she feels when she sees the final product of her efforts and she gets to wear it.
Getting started
For a long time, Wilde said her mother and grandmother sewed for their family, and she began sewing during her junior year in high school. “I have sewn for my family but not as much as my mother did. I have been sewing most of my life and it is a wonderful skill even if all I do is mend clothes.”
Wilde explained she prefers making clothes, saying, “Fixing them can get a little tricky. Starting fresh is easier, but on the other side of life, you often need to fix clothes.” She added sometimes some pieces look bad, and it looks like there may be no way of fixing them. But she added, “usually there is [always] something that you can do about it.”
Frank “Frankie” Aga, a junior majoring in political science from Guam and Hawaii, explained why he enrolled in the sewing class. “I want to learn how to make clothes for my family and myself for pleasure.” He shared his plans to start a clothing business. He said, “I want to own a business mainly with aloha shirts or aloha attire that a lot of people can identify with.”
Aga shared his experience about attending the sewing class on campus. “This is my first time. I own a sewing machine. It was a gift, but I never had the chance to use it. It is frustrating to figure it out on my own.” Aga expressed his frustration about his hands and his mind not being made for sewing. He said when he started, he thought it would all be easy. “I thought this was just going to be a breeze, and I will be sewing away like some kind of fashionista making couture clothing.” He continued, “For me I am just trying to learn the basics.”
Finding pleasure in sewing
One of the pieces Wilde said she created was her own wedding dress. “It was not a fancy one, but I made it that way so I can use it as a temple dress.” She explained along with this and its other uses, sewing can enrich one’s life.
Mo’o said her favorite piece she made was the jumpsuit for her daughter when she was young. “I made her a blouse with a collar and that was kind of hard because you have to piece it all together, but it turned out cute,” Mo’o said. She also shared how she created modest prom dresses and little shrugs for her daughter and her friends. She expressed, “I feel happy making it for them. I feel happy when they ask me to do something for them and be able to share that talent with them.”
Wilde said the best thing about serving in the Sewing Center is the connection she creates with the students. She said she hopes students will take advantage of the Sewing Center. “I think it is important the students know the Sewing Center is there, and it is available to them.” She assured students don’t need to know how to do anything when they visit the center because the senior missionaries will be there to assist them.