Learn to design, pattern, and sew from 0 experience from an industry-trained 3rd-generation Patternmaker, Fashion Designer with 15 years of experience.

Find out more about Annie

• 1) When did you start practicing? How did this passion find you?

  I started sewing when I was 15 years old. My sewing journey actually started as a was to recreate my identity. My parents would put me in oversized hand-me-downs from family. Oftentimes too big for my small frame. I was relentlessly bullied all throughout elementary and middle school for looking what kids today would call it "chopped". It was summer and I was going into high school working odd jobs and making as much money as possible to flip my wardrobe and go thrifting. I made enough to buy my first sewing machine and taught myself to sew through YouTube videos and a lot of messing up. It was messy, it was rewarding
  I flipped and created my whole wardrobe going into high-school. From there I created an identity and the moment was absolutely unforgettable and absolutely rewarding.

• 2) Which artists or works affect you the most?

  The artist that inspires my work the most is my grandmother. She is actually my sole inspiration for teaching here. She used to be a tailor in Singapore. She was actually the prime minister of Singapore's personal tailor. She had a sewing Academy and taught hundreds of students how to sew and pattern make and equip them with the ability to make a living. For these women, starting from nothing, my grandmother came to Singapore from China, escaping the communism war. During that time, she was looking for an opportunity to make money and feed her family. She was trying to feed her three kids with no husband, because she was a widow, she put a school together.
  
  She actually started sewing at a she started teaching sewing at a sewing Academy, and eventually opened up her own and from there, she was able to touch so many lives.
  
  I think the practical skill of it all is the most important thing here.
  
  Now when it comes to esthetic, I definitely think that Alexander queen is one the one of my top inspiration when it comes to design, simply because he is able to take something so mundane and turn it into something so Incredible. You look into his works, and it looks like art. It looks like walking masterpieces. The body is the form and fashion is the sculpture.

• 3) What are the qualities and skills required to succeed in this area?

  Discipline, because there are going to be days where you don't feel like getting up to do your craft like anything that you learn to do, sewing, creativity, drawing, it's a muscle.
  
  It's a muscle that we use.
  
  We just have to enter into this right state of mind, whatever the whatever environment you create, create it for your creativity.
  
  The second thing is to play. You can't create if you are in in doubt of yourself, right? You can't play if you're being safe.
  
  You playing requires for you to be cringe. It requires for you to be weird, and that's that's what creative people do. They're not afraid to look weird in front of people. So do that, and you will be absolutely fine.
  
  And number three is to be kind to yourself. You have to think the unthinkable. You have to be incredibly crazy to succeed in fashion, right? You have to have a crazy amount of belief in yourself, simply because of how much competition there is in the industry, how much people are gonna tell you, Oh, you can't do it.
  
  You're gonna have to be the your number one supporter you're going to be happy be number one CHEERLEADER! You have to be absolutely delusional about yourself in order to succeed.

• 4) What is the most valuable advice you can give to help someone stay focused on creative projects?

  #1: Focus and then take breaks. I like to use the Pomodoro METHOD OF 25-5
  
  What that means is, for 25 minutes, you absolutely focus in turn, some music on get relaxed and deep, dive into your project. Deep Dive Into the creativity, and then take a five minute break. Go step outside, touch some grass, drink some water.
  Don't look at your phone.
  Don't look at your phone.
  
  And actually get in touch with yourself and your breath and go back to it.
  
  A lot of times, we hit a creative block because we've been drilling too hard, and we forget to play. We forget to realize our surroundings, and that Inspiration is everywhere we look.

• 5) How would you describe your passion; how does it make you feel?

  My passion from for fashion comes from a place that's rooted in a darker past. It might not be the same for everybody, transmuting past pain and ugly feelings into something beautiful is art in of itself, but the reason why I love what I do, and I love to teach what I do, is that it gives me a chance to spread the the power.
  
  the power of creating yourself,
  the power of loving yourself
  through fashion, through art, through design.
  
  I think once you are able to harness develop and play with that power, everything else falls into place.
  
  I adore and love watching my students grow from not knowing even how to thread their machine to making full on garments for themselves and for their friends and family. It was one of the most rewarding things I can experience.

• 6) What creative achievements are you particularly proud of?

  So when I was in when I was in Singapore, I worked for a production company. I was helping designers develop their portfolio. They were helping, basically, I would help them design a collection and do their sample making and their production so they would come to us for a consultation, and they would basically, hey, I want this idea. Help me make it come to life. Now, a lot of times these babies designers just have a lot of money, and they don't know what really what their ideas and designs are going to look like.
  
  The most rewarding thing about that job is that I was able to guide them from knowing nothing to creating a collection that absolutely sells out, and it begins with having creative depth. Why is this collection important to you? Why is this art important to you? If it's just a pretty dress, there's no story to it. Attaching the story to something is is what makes a difference right now,
  
  my creative achievements is not about winning awards.
  It's not about, you know, winning prizes. It's about how much I was able to change and impact somebody's life

• 7) Have you ever been surprised by a student; by their ability or quick progression?

  I had this one student. He was a 16 year old kid, and I was able Well, I had to basically get him ready for a fashion school that he was trying to, fashion program that he was trying to get into. They required a lot out of him, and he already was sewing and flipping clothes like jeans and working with denim. Denim is not an easy fabric to work with, but that was the only thing that he did. He basically just altered jeans and make them bigger, made them wider, made them longer and add details to it. He's never sewn something by himself. Now, granted, we did have to take we did have to do a boot camp so where he was taking three classes a week at two hours increments. It was very, very strenuous, very boot camp style, okay, however, by the end of the class, he got into the school and he made his own pair of jeans, and he had a ready made portfolio, and he was so excited and ambitious, and I was just so happy to see his progress. And now he's in the fashion school, and he's thinking about going into fashion college, and I have no doubt in my mind that he is going to get in with flying colors.

• 8) Being a Superprof is an art! What is your secret?

  I like to say that I am the Mr Miyagi of fashion. When it comes to teaching, I train my students in a way that mastery comes first. I won't progress you ahead and leave you to drown. I won't progress you ahead if you need work on something, because I want you to master your craft and master the foundations of everything that you are doing. You take pride in your work and you take pride in yourself. Everything is mind first, right? You train the mind. You train the skill. Everything else is play, but it takes dedication. It takes discipline. Is but it also takes fun. My classes are really fun. If you do decide to work with me, I can guarantee you by the time you're done with my session, you're gonna be so excited and motivated to do more.
  
  I can guarantee you'll get the skills your searching for and some life lessons along the way. It's going to take being uncomfortable, dedication and practice but you'll come out the other side so impressed and proud of yourself 💜