Sewing is an exercise in patience, creativity, and being okay with mistakes.
Welcome to Grove House Sewing Studio.
Rachael, Owner and Lead Teacher
Hi, I’m Rachael! My love of sewing began as an 11 year old when I bought my first sewing machine at the Los Angeles County Fair with my savings from collecting and recycling aluminum cans. No one in my family sewed, so my early years of sewing were all trials, mistakes, and more or less workable. I did quite love adding fabric triangles to jeans as a teenager to make extra wide-leg pants for the L.A. rave scene.
Finally, working in my college theater costume shop taught me precision and technique in both machine and hand sewing, which I have honed over the past 25 years. My adventures now range from garments of all kinds for my children and myself to home goods and accessories like improvisational quilts, pillows, bags, mending (lots of mending), curtains and more.
Like with cooking, gardening, and really most pursuits in life, sewing is an exercise in patience, creativity, being okay with mistakes, experimentation, problem-solving, and joy. I love teaching and supporting people as they build foundational skills, grow their confidence with the craft and start taking risks and creating beautiful objects. I work to understand each sewer’s learning style and organize my teaching and coaching to meet their needs. I am dedicated to creating a supportive and inclusive learning environment.
The Studio is named after a beloved spot in my home town of Claremont, CA - the Grove House at Pitzer College. The Grove House is surrounded by sweet-smelling citrus trees, brilliantly colored and wildly shaped succulents, a farm, and chickens, and it is the place where I fell in love with my husband. And then, many years later it was kneeling in the dirt of that special spot where he proposed marriage.
In honor of that place of growth, beauty, and so much FUN comes the Grove House Sewing Studio.
Welcome!
Hi, I’m Tilly! I have over 10 years experience teaching pattern drafting and building costumes for theater. I am currently the Assistant Costume Director at Smith College and I’ve previously worked with Bard College Summerscape Opera, Shakespeare & Company, and Pioneer Valley Ballet. I first fell in love with costumes watching Kate Winslet step out of her car in the opening scenes of the film Titanic.
From there I was inspired (with much help from my mom) to start making my own clothes. It wasn't until I was in college that I realized that my hobby could be my profession. I pursued my MFA in Costume Technology where I learned the techniques of flat patterning and draping and became more skilled with a sewing machine. I don’t just love making clothes, I love making clothes fit.
Tilly, Guest Teacher
