Susan: Join me for A Brush With Life. I'm your host, Susan Waughtal. We'll be talking to artists and musicians, inventors and farmers, and other fascinating folks. We'll hear their stories of their successes and challenges, dreams and inspirations. Get ready for a close encounter of the creative kind.

Susan: Thank you for listening to this episode of A Brush with Life. You can find photos of today's guests, their work, links to their social media, [00:01:00] and upcoming events on our website, www.abrushwithlife.org. If you enjoyed today's show, please subscribe from our website. You can also leave me a message.

Susan:  Brooke Burch learned how to sew when she was a little girl from her grandmother. She knew from a young age that she wanted to be a fashion designer when she grew up. It wasn't just a passing fancy. She went to college and studied fashion design. Then she moved back to Rochester and opened her own custom sewing business when she was just 25.

Susan: Now she has her own studio. She  does custom sewing, designs clothing, teaches people of all ages how to sew, and even has a vintage clothing store called the Vintage Rack. Not only that, she's building community through sewing. 

Brooke: My name is Brooke Burch, and I grew up here in Rochester. I am a clothing designer and sewing instructor full time. I have a passion for fiber arts and all things related to sewing, and that's really how I created the career that I wanted for myself. 

Susan: Was this a career that you dreamed of as a child? 

Brooke: Yes. Yes, it was. I knew I'd had an interest in sewing since I was about five and I knew I wanted to be a clothing designer since I was in middle school.

Susan: How did you learn to sew? Because I don't think beyond the time I was in high school, they even taught sewing in school. 

Brooke: They did do a little bit in school, but I learned by sewing by hand when I was really little, and then my grandma got me a sewing machine when I was 11. So she taught me a little bit, just the basics. I took a sewing class in middle school and high school that just grazed the surface of my interest. And then after that, I did study fashion design in college.

Susan: Where did you go to school? 

Brooke: I went to the University of Wisconsin Stout. I studied apparel design and development there. So I already knew how to sew before I got there, but I [00:03:00] learned about pattern making and technical design as well as sketching and advanced sewing. So it's really good to work on becoming a full time artist and figure out how to make a career for myself. 

Susan: How old were you when you launched your own business? 

Brooke: I would say it was 2015, I was about 25, 26. I'd been out of college for a few years. And coming out of college, I wasn't sure what direction I wanted to go. I knew I wanted my own business, but I wasn't sure how to get there. I'd been trained to work corporately and join a design team for a large business. But that really wasn't what I wanted to do. I wanted the freedom to use my own creativity. So, figuring out how to create your own business was key. It's difficult.

Susan: Did you take some business classes too?

Brooke: I studied business in college as a minor, but it was more so business management. It wasn't like retail business or anything like that. So I feel like if I had done things differently, I might have double majored or picked up more skills along the way during college.So I didn't have to do so much groundwork after college. So that's my thought process on that. I did have to learn how to build a business from the ground up. 

Susan: Pretty audacious to start your own business at 25. That's, that's fantastic. So tell me a little bit about your clothing design aesthetic and principles.What's important to you? 

Brooke: For my own design, I like smart fashion. I like things that you wouldn't necessarily think to see in fashion, like maybe a creative pocket. or some sort of wonderful collar detail. I especially like clothing construction, so throwing in a lot of details that you don't normally see in fast fashion today.

 I like to recycle existing items, like turning tablecloths and old quilts into clothing, and repurposing those things. That's what I've really taken an interest in lately. I would also say that my aesthetic is very romantic. So everything's going to be very beautiful, whether a man or a woman or anyone else is wearing it.

Susan: Who do you think of as your client or the person that you're designing for? 

Brooke: Oh, pretty much anyone. And I think that comes from my background in alteration work. I've had so many different types of clients. And I appreciate that because you're never designing for just one type of client. And that's, I think, a better way to model your business is to not be so niche.

Susan: Do you still do alterations as part of your income stream? 

Brooke: I do. That's how I started my business. But it's not my predominant business right now. Actually, I teach a lot right now. So, predominantly, I am teaching full time. But everything else I do, it's still there. It just takes different forms as time goes on, so.

I'm still sewing. I prefer custom work more than alterations, but I'm teaching people how to do their own alterations.

Susan: That's fantastic that there's a source for young people to learn how to sew. Since I don't think they do really teach sewing in school very much anymore. A great skill and what a, how wonderful that you're sharing it with others.

Can you describe to me some of the stuff that you've been working on lately and how you go about it? Do you make your own patterns or do you do draping? 

Brooke: It all depends on what the project calls for, but I've been doing a lot of kind of revamp projects right now and usually bridal. So the bride will come in usually with grandma's gown or something and wants to change it into something more modern.

We've got a couple of those projects now. I've got people that come in and want me to modify something from one piece into a two piece. How do you do that? You have to figure out how to put it back together in a way that's functional and that the client understands and appreciates as well. I like those projects because they're like puzzles.

You have to use your creative problem solving through the whole thing. I will get custom projects every now and then, and it's interesting if you're using a pattern that then someone's brought you in a garment that you want to use with the pattern, but it doesn't quite align, so you have to fill in the gaps [00:07:00] to make that pattern work, um, and I drape occasionally, so you probably see One of my drapings over there in the corner.

Susan: Ido, beautiful. 

Brooke: Yeah, it's funny because people are and 

Susan: green floral. 

Brooke: I'm like, that's just that. If it wrapped on the form, maybe one day I can make it for you. But anything pertaining to fabric and putting it together in a way that speaks to people is what I live for. 

Susan: How do you find the fabrics that you work with? It seems like it's really hard to find beautiful fabric these days.

Brooke: It's hard to find quality fabric these days. And a lot of fabric stores are closing small and large. So I think at least amongst my students and people that I, I work with, we're all really getting into sourcing vintage fabric and fabric sharing and things like that and using things that we have in the home already to repurpose.

And I think that's just highlighting how we're feeling about our overall environment and the apparel industry as a whole. People are learning how to sew so that they can. Make their own [00:08:00] things that are of higher quality than what you can find in stores these days. So that's the catalyst I think for where fashion is headed.

Susan: There are probably a lot of people my age, I'm probably a generation older than you, who have huge stashes of fabrics from their projects their whole life that needs to find a home because they probably aren't going to make it into a project. 

Brooke: Exactly. That's what I do. I source every now and then. I recently put a call out for materials and this is actually a donated piece a woman dropped off yesterday. 

Susan: Probably from a quilter that was maybe...

Brooke: Possibly. I don't know exactly. I think she did a little bit of apparel sewing as well. But this is a very special fabric to her that she had been holding onto for a long time. So she said, if you use it, send me pictures. So I think people like bringing things here because they know it's going to be loved. It's going to be cared for and it'll probably be turned into something at some point. 

Susan: That probably means that everything you create is one of a kind because it would be hard to get more of the fabric. 

Brooke: Pretty much. For you, you're limited in the [00:09:00] amount of fabric you have or it's out of print or it's not being produced anymore. I guess that makes it pretty special too. 

Susan: I don't watch very much TV, but I watch Project Runway.  

Brooke: Oh,yeah.

Susan: Do you ever watch that? Did you ever have dreams of being on Project Runway? 

Brooke: Well, when I was younger, I think Project Runway started when I was like 6th or 7th grade. I did used to watch it with my grandma, and I watched it probably through college, but I didn't keep up with it after that. I think they might have gone off the air for a few years. But I did follow it pretty closely. And yes, I've been to Mood Fabrics in New York City.

Susan: Oh, I see the Mood Bank over there. I want to go to Mood someday. 

Brooke: Yeah, so I might go there again this summer.

Brooke: But those things do stick with you, and it definitely was an inspiring show to see designers competing on there and know that you can really make this a career. I think that's really what pushed me. to start my business. I see these people out there trying to make their dreams come true. Why can't I?

Susan: Do you think that it's a true representation of the design process? 

Brooke: I think it is, in that a lot of people failed. Miserably. I think they realized they had to make some changes in order to help the designers be more successful. Also vetting the designers that were on the show, and they could see that throughout the years.

 I remember some of the early seasons. Some of the designers were amazing and they actually had spinoff shows of some of those designers, but then some of the people, they were probably embarrassed. They were not anywhere near those people's level, and they just quit. Like people would just quit the show and be like, what?  How can you even do that when so many people applied to be on the show and you just left. 

Susan: They didn't know what they were getting themselves into. 

Brooke: They didn't know they were getting themselves into, they hadn't had that level of demand, and I think. Depending on your background, maybe people had demanded anything of them at that point.

Susan: Or working under that stressful time constraint.

Brooke: Working under business stress, whether it's your own business or for a corporation. That can give you a lot of experience. Or even going to college for your skills and having those expectations of your professors. Like [00:11:00] a lot of those people were self taught.

And they hadn't been pressured like that. So I think that all comes into play and all of your previous knowledge can hopefully help you get to where you want to go and get the success that you want. When the show first started, and I was so shocked to hear this, a lot of designers didn't like the idea of a show like that.

Because they said, well, you shouldn't just have instant success. But a lot of those people applied and applied and worked so hard to get there that I don't understand why you wouldn't be cheering them on. Anybody trying to better themselves. True. 

Susan: Off track a little bit, but I think that's what most people probably think about --It's what they know about fashion design. 

Brooke: That's true. And I learned a lot going to school for fashion design, because a lot of people couldn't handle it, even on that level. They didn't know how much work it was going to be. I don't know if they thought fashion design was going to be glamorous, and it wasn't a real job.

Brooke: But it's definitely a real job. Very demanding job. 

Susan: So tell me, what are the biggest challenges for youwith your business? 

Brooke: I think for me, probably time management. I think my time management has gotten better since I've been in my studio. Because I don't have to work right at home with me. There's a barrier between my home life and my work life now, which is great.

But it's just, I do spend a lot of time here. I still do a lot of preps. I have to prep for my students each season, weekly. And then I'm constantly straightening and cleaning, organizing. And then When I'm not teaching, I'm sewing. And not to mention the vintage clothing boutique that I have in here as well.

So all of it's run by me. I don't currently have any employees. Never have had employees. That's something I'm considering at least for the retail side of my business in the future. So then at least there's 

Susan: And do you also have to spend a lot of time sourcing fabric, notions, vintage clothing? Or do they come to you?

Brooke: It's a mixture. So with the fabric, it just comes. People just show up and I'm like, oh, yay, I got some more stuff. And I can choose to do with [00:13:00] that what I want to do. If I want to keep it, it'll go on the shelves. If it doesn't fit on the shelves, it goes in the free bin for my students to pick through and look through.

And then I store some of it for special projects and things like that. That gives me some creative leeway where I'm not always looking for fabric and materials. But it also helps me offset the cost of those materials. So I don't have to invest so much in that part. Or I can invest in a special part for my students.

If they've got a special project they're doing, I'm like, cool, I can buy the zippers and the buttons for that because I haven't spent money on all this fabric. When it comes to vintage wrap, I probably source twice a month and I have such a collection, I don't think I need to source constantly, but I make sure to go out and see what the current trends are by doing vintage markets in Minneapolis and seeing what people are collecting.

I try to stay on the pulse of that, but yeah, it's just like my walk in closet. 

Susan: Do you sew most of your own clothing? 

Brooke: I don't, mainly because I don't have time. 

Susan: That's what I would think!

Brooke: But  I like to have themed costume parties, so usually I'll whip something up for those parties that I have, or events that I have, so those are my chances to usually make something for myself, whether it be an accessory or something else.

 It's I think probably within the last year I've been able to explore a lot of my own design in terms of creating collections. This past year I was able to show at Minnesota Fashion Week. Last spring and last fall, I was able to create collections twice last year, which is really great, and it got me thinking more about creating a ready to wear collection and how that could be a real possibility going forward. Yeah. 

Susan: Do you think you'll be doing the Minnesota Fashion Week again? 

Brooke: I don't know. I think they're a little bit in limbo. I don't know if they're gonna be doing shows or how many shows are gonna be doing this spring. 

Susan: Is that something that you have to be invited to or you apply to?

Brooke: Yeah, I'm fine. Apply.

Susan: Submit images of your design.

Brooke: Yeah, they have a whole application process very similar to applying for a grant, actually. So I'm not sure exactly what they're going to do this spring, but it will be the 10th anniversary. So they were really excited to do something. I think they should do at least a couple shows, maybe a weekend fashion week or something.

Susan: Do you sell some of your work online? Do you have an online shop? 

Brooke: I don't. I sell it in person. I'm always a supporter of trying it before you buy it. I encourage people to try clothes on. I don't understand why they wouldn't, or at least whip out a tape measure so you know if it's going to fit you. But I sell a lot of my gowns and pieces in my boutique.

Susan: Of your accomplishments, what are you most proud of? 

Brooke: I'm just really happy I have the shop now, that's amazing. I worked out of my home for over a decade, which is just a small apartment, just me and my child in there, and it really took up pretty much most of my apartment. So moving out of that space, starting group classes, and getting this [00:16:00] spot so I can gather my thoughts and be creative in a larger space.

Brooke: So this is probably my proudest achievement so far. 

Susan: Does your son sew? Does he sew along with you? 

Brooke: He doesn't, but I told him, it's happening. It's gonna happen, because it's, he's here, he's not here all the time, but he's the same age as the students that start. I'm like, this is the perfect time for you to start sewing. So it's gonna happen. He's not against it. He's just not begging me anymore like he did when he was little, so. Yeah, it's gonna get there. 

Susan: That would be fun, I always had visions of my kids working side by side with me. 

Brooke: Yeah, I think once he gets going, he's not gonna be able to stop. So he's a very creative kid in general, so I think sewing can just add to the skills.

Susan: What's next for you? 

Brooke: I don't know what's next other than some things that I'm going to be doing in the studio. I want this to be like a think tank where we experiment with different classes and materials and bringing different people in for things. So this spring I'm creating some different curriculums for people to try in my [00:17:00] regularly scheduled classes.

Because it works for them to be able to pick the class they want and then study what they want to study. So it works that way. I will be doing a textile innovation class. And I don't know what that entails yet. I have a lot of ideas for it and people seem really excited about it. So I've been collecting all types of trims and materials and I collect my small fabric scraps as well.

That we can turn into other fabrics and I think that's just such an interesting thing that people don't Think about or know they have the power to do that can just up their creativity to the next level So we're gonna experiment with textiles and then I'll be doing my mending and hemming segment again Some people when they come in here All they want to do is learn how to mend and hem stuff which makes sense because those are mostly what you do for your home project I create a segment where I teach them about ten mending techniques and then maybe six hemming techniques on various fabrics, so they can keep those samples and refer back to them  later for when they're trying to do projects at home.

So it's like a side segment, and once they're done with those classes, then they can get back to their regular studies. It's very stream of consciousness, uh, my classes are very self paced. So, the students don't feel rushed to get through anything. And if they're gone for a time, they can come back and start from where they left off.

Susan: Is it a group class? I see quite a few sewing machines here. 

Brooke: Yes, yes. I don't do privates anymore. I do for serger lessons. So, you can book a private serger machine lesson. And we can do that because we really got to focus in on that. But for regular machine sewing, I have probably six to eight students in each class.

And they're all working on different things because they're all different levels of sewing. So that's what keeps it interesting. 

Susan: So you're not making a poncho with ball fringe like I did in 7th grade with 30 kids doing the exact same project. 

Brooke: No, but my beginners are doing the same projects. My mid level students are doing the same projects. But my advanced students are most likely all doing different pattern projects. [00:19:00] And they're pretty hands off, so they're just there. And I'm usually helping the beginners more than anyone else. 

Susan: Sure, but you're a resource for them. 

Brooke: Yeah, and it's nice for the beginners to see the advanced students and what they're working on, because they're working towards that. So it's nice to have them all in the room at the same time. And different ages, too. 

Susan: I noticed that you posted about a quilting project with a lot of donated quilt pieces that look beautiful. Yeah. What is that going to be like? 

Brooke: That is my first community sewing project. I've been wanting to do something like that, but just never knew what I should do.Those were donated quilt pieces I got from somebody who donated some fabric as well, probably at least six months ago, because we already used the large pieces she gave us, but she had a box of quilt pieces. That were all mixed up and partially sewn together. And I was like, huh, this just seems like an idea that wasn't quite finished.

 And we can finish it however we want. It's a very low stakes thing that's really hard to mess up. So I washed  the pieces and I bagged them up by 50 pieces per bag. And I posted who's interested in helping and had a group of ladies want to help. So each of them came to pick up a bag. Some have already returned their pieces, which is really nice.

So we're just going to work to get that quilt face done and then hopefully make a quilt to donate. So that's what I want to do is do more things in the community this year and beyond that people can assist with and have that little bit of creativity. If they don't have time to take a class or do something else, they can at least have fun doing that.

Susan: That woman who donated all those quilt pieces will be so overjoyed to see the final project completed. 

Brooke: I think, I'm pretty sure we're friends on Facebook and she's watching it. So yeah, I'm gonna seek her out so she can see what we're doing. I bet she didn't even expect us to do that. He donated them, but she probably had no idea what I would do with it.

Susan: And you probably didn't know at first. 

Brooke: And I want to do more of those. I'd like to have multiple projects going at once. It should be really fun. 

Susan: That's brilliant. I love it. 

Brooke: Also, with those classes I'll be teaching, I will be doing planned events. So we're going to have Sewing Machine Party 4. The name is not original whatsoever.It just keeps track of which one we're on. So Sewing Machine Party 4, and that is, it's almost like a swap meet for sewing machines. So you can come in, you can have your machine cleaned and serviced for free. And you can purchase lower cost machines, so we'll have used machines for sale. We'll probably have a couple surges, but mainly we have Regular sewing machines we sell for 25 or 30.So it's just to have one or a backup one or something like that. 

Susan: So almost anyone can get into sewing. 

Brooke: Yeah, that's what it is making it more accessible. And then you can also watch the people clean your machine. So you can get an idea of how to do that. We will be doing some machine cleaning workshops this spring as well with Rich from Sew It Goes. And he's going to come in and impart his skills on people. On a more intimate setting. We will have [00:22:00] supplies available for you to clean your machine and we'll be able to walk around and show you how to do that. So that'll be really fun.

Susan: That's wonderful. So to participate in that, people should just follow you on your Facebook page?

Brooke: Yeah. Yeah. I let my students know about these things, but then I post them on my Facebook page as well. So I've got my website, which is brookBurch. com. Okay. But you can go find Brooke Burch on Facebook. You'll find me right away. You can either message my profile or my business page on there. We'll also be doing a mending clinic.

This will be the first time I've ever tried to do this. And I'm still organizing it right now, but it's going to be a mending and hemming clinic, where people can bring in garments that they would normally bring to me as a seamstress to fix for them. And we will teach them how to fix them on the spot, regardless of the project.

And, um, you'll pay $10 per item that you bring in. We could replace a zipper on a pair of jeans, or something that you might not feel so confident in doing on your own. But coming in and getting that knowledge, [00:23:00] as well as getting the work done at the same time, I think there's a benefit to that. So I think that will be really fun.

Susan: Is there anything else you want to talk about? 

Brooke: This is a very community-supported business, in that people love being here. I've been asked if they can just hang out here because they feel safe in the space. We've got people of all ages that come in here. So you can be taking class next to an 8-year-old, but you're 60.

Brooke: And that's such a refreshing thing because you're not stuck with your own peer group the whole time. You can see, like, what are the kids doing or what are the teenagers doing now? People that wouldn't otherwise be together come together in this space. 

Susan: It's so wonderful that you're building community through sewing. What are the hours of your store? When can people come and shop the vintage rack? 

Brooke: I typically let people in whenever they pop in, if I'm here. But on Friday and Saturday, I'm usually open 11 p. m. on Friday and Saturday. But I'm here throughout the week for everything else. 

Susan: Thanks so much, Brooke. It's so exciting to see what you're doing.

Brooke: Thank you. Thanks for coming. 

Susan: Thank you for listening to this episode of A Brush With Life. You can find photos of today's guests, their work, links to their social media and upcoming events on our website, www. abrushwithlife. org. If you enjoyed today's show, please subscribe from our website. You can also leave me a message.

I would love to hear from you. Thank you to Squash Blossom Farm for ongoing support, and especially to Roger Nelson for creating our theme music. A Brush With Life is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Southeast Minnesota Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.