Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Gabbart.
Sarah, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I teach timeless skills to modern people. I love helping people feel empowered through sewing because, in addition to my husband, Ryan, sewing is the love of my life.
I learned to sew from my grandma, Gabby, when I was 11, and have been sewing garments ever since. I love it. There’s something about a handmade wardrobe that makes you feel confident and powerful. I think it’s because sewing patterns approach the human body in the exact opposite way from the fashion industry. Instead of “your body won’t fit in this because your body is wrong,” the pattern tells you right off the bat that you’ll probably have to make adjustments because it’s just a basic shape. Your body is not wrong, the pattern is incomplete without your touch — isn’t that wonderful?
Twenty-six years later and I’m still enamored with sewing, which is why I’m opening marigold sewing studio. I want to help others find the joy, creativity, and peace I’ve found through this timeless skill.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
With life experience comes clarity. The things that are important to you are brought into sharper focus each year you get older. To me, this has meant valuing a slower life, spending more time with my family and friends, and investing in time to be creative. This much-needed clarity was hard-earned through personal and career rough patches, overworking myself to the brink of burnout and losing a parent.
In 2008, I opened a small DIY shop called Sew Crafty. It was one of the first — if not the first — sewing lounge in Texas, and it was an absolute nightmare to manage. I was young, inexperienced and was trying my best, but it was a struggle. I didn’t know how to wrangle myself, much less a bustling business that grew too big for its britches. I met so many great people who I absolutely cherish, but dang it was a rough life for several years. No one tells you that about entrepreneurship.
I closed it down in 2011 and took a very long break from making things. I went corporate. My father passed away, and that experience caused me to reboot a bit. I left corporate life and became a pretty dang good freelance copywriter. I went back into full-time life, collaborating with some of the brightest and most passionate people I’ve ever met while working as a content director for an innovative marketing agency for several years. I burned myself out, and moved to Portland, Oregon, to hike and write. To meet people, I got a part-time job at a sewing machine and fabric store called Modern Domestic, and they let me teach some classes. I fell back in love with making things, and with the community around sewing again. It was inspiring.
So, when we moved back home to Houston the idea of finding community through sewing was fresh on my mind. Then the idea for marigold sewing studio hit me, and I’ve been working ever since to make it a reality. This time around, I’m hyper-clear on what I want this to be, how I’ll manage it and how I’ll make it a joyful experience for both my students and for myself.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the marigold sewing studio story. Tell us more about the business.
The more digital our world becomes, the more important I find the act of making things with your hands. It’s empowering in a way that sending an email or working in a spreadsheet just isn’t. It’s about attention and self-care and taking real time for yourself to produce something tangible — something I believe is missing from our modern lives a lot of the time. That is why marigold sewing studio exists: To bring joy, peace, and community to people through sewing.
I love teaching people to sew because it’s a way for me to really help them gain more than just a cool tote bag or pretty summer dress. Sewing is a valuable set of skills, but it’s also a powerful form of self-care. It’s meditative. You’re applying your attention to something completely and in a way that’s grounded in the physical world, which helps train your brain to focus in a similar way that meditation does.
Having a teacher to guide you helps take the danger out of trying something new. I get to be a sewing sherpa for people who want to make something beautiful for themselves or someone they love. Yet, they get way more than that along the way — they walk away with the good vibes that come with meeting others over a shared experience, the confidence to keep going, and the jolt of “HECK YES!” self-pride that goes along with doing something challenging.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I’m 85% luck. (And 13% tenacity/2% pug photos.) Heck, just to be able to walk around, breathe and live in the world without oppression, violence or discrimination is good luck. I’m proud of the life I’ve built — but I didn’t do it on my own. I’m standing on the shoulders of giants. Women like my grandmother blazed trails that women like me walk down today. I’m truly grateful for those who have worked hard so that I can live the kind of life I do today, and start a small, creative business of my own.
I’m very lucky and seeing the things others have had to endure — or, are still currently enduring — to live their own lives is humbling. I do not take my blessed life for granted and I try to remember that every day.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://marigoldsewingstudio.com
- Email: hello@marigoldtexas.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marigoldsewing
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
