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AUGUST 2016 | Chere Kenyon

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ALAQUA SAUVAGE is a 14 year-old dressmaker who is running her own Sewing Studio in Deloraine, as a home economics school project.

Alaqua’s mum was the inspiration behind opening the shop. “Mum said it would be good if we could start up our own shop to sell off our excess stuff.” But Alaqua added with a laugh, “I didn’t get my sewing skills from my mum.”

Sewing is considered by many to be a lost art. Alaqua’s father passed his sewing skills onto his daughter. “My dad taught me how to look after the sewing machine. His mother was a sewer. He just taught me what she taught him.”

But the rest is completely self-taught. Alaqua gets her inspiration from books, fabric and friends. Her favourite styles include 1900’s and 1920’s clothing.

She started designing clothes and sewing them at the tender age of 9. “When I was about 9 I was doing doll’s clothes. When I was about 10, I got my sewing machine and mannequin and I was making skirts and tops.”

In addition, Alaqua doesn’t generally use patterns for her own designs. “I just take a piece of fabric I like and pin it and sew it”, she added.

In her spare time she also helped to put on a fashion show at Deloraine’s Little Theatre. “I started going to a local youth group. Since a few of the girls were into fashion and I opened the shop, we thought we would put on a fashion parade in the school holidays.”

With help from the youth group and the Dramatic Society they modelled some of Alaqua’s clothing and costumes from the Dramatic Society, for the show, in mid-June.

Alaqua’s Sewing Studio offers alterations and mending, off the rack custom clothing, creations from patterns, costume and gown creation, etc.  Alaqua added, I would like to bring back the older style ball gowns but make them more modern, for the formals and balls that we have in Deloraine.”

“I enjoy helping people and doing things for people that they can’t necessarily do for themselves. If they need something fixed or mended or made then I’d be happy to that for them.”

Please visit Alaqua at her shop on Emu Bay Road or by appointment on 0487 397 362.

[udesign_icon_font name="fa fa-camera" color="#000000"] Mike Moores