Today I am so happy to welcome Beata Lenarciak, owner and designer of Red Point Tailor, to my series celebrating National Sewing Month.  Beata lives and creates in The Netherlands, and is truly a fantastic couture seamstress. In addition to her beautiful garments, she also makes amazing jewelry and fashion accessories. But let’s hear more about her sewing story!
Why I sew—it is so obvious for me however difficult to explain. Sewing was always around me; it was and still is part of my life. It is my passion (next to sailing)—my retreat.
Let’s start from the beginning though …
My grandfather was a men’s tailor and thanks to him my mother and my aunt (older sister of my mother) were very creative as well. None of them sewed professionally though. My mother was more about knitting then sewing, so my sister and I always had very modern sweaters, gloves, caps, etc. After my mother bought her first sewing machine then my sister and I started to sew for good. My mother taught us small couture techniques she learned from her father, which I am still using. It was fabulous feeling and seeing the pieces of fabric transformed into a wearable top or a skirt. We were so fashionable.
Having this experience I decided to gain more knowledge in this direction. Thus I studied sewing techniques for 5 years—my specialty was knitted fabrics, even though I did not proceed with my career in this direction (as mother as daughter). Still, I did not break with sewing—opposite—I kept making clothing for myself and my family.
Making my own garments—which fit and looked professional—helped me to get my first job. It was amazing! I kept making my own garments with special attention to fit and quality.
When I moved to The Netherlands I stopped sewing for some time. However, as it was not so easy to buy properly fitting garments here—most of the Dutch women are much taller—I started sewing again. And I am very glad I did it. I realized how much I missed it.
Finding sewing community on the web was amazing. I love to share ideas and exchange experience and knowledge on my blog. I get inspired seeing creations of other bloggers. I am glad to see new generations striving to have unique, tailored garments of high quality.
My next challenge is to share my knowledge and experience not only by giving sewing courses, but advising on style and dressing as well.
Coming back to the question of why I sew—being able to create a garment, seeing the final result, having a great feeling wearing it, knowing that it is unique—makes me feel proud. I think we all should stand still and think about these feelings more often.
PS. The story behind the name, Red Point Tailor? Friend of my husband had a friend, who had a white cat with the tail ending in red. So his name was Red Point Tailer. Our one of the first cats was grey with the tail ended in white. Our last cat was red and white… my grandfather was a tailor, so somehow we came up with … the Red Point Tailor. Just a little fun!
Thank you so much for sharing your sewing story, Beata! You should be proud of your beautiful clothes, and I hope we will see more of your lovely creations soon.
Happy sewing!
Maris