ringin' the school bell orr here.

so, it's been quite awhile since i've offered any garment based classes, or any classes really at all.

i'll tell you why.

some things about my last classes weren't quite working for me...

there were too many students, or too much chaos. the timing was hard with my kids and family life. i was feeling drained, rather than fed. so i took a break from teaching.

but it seems as though i've had enough time to reflect on what wasn't working for me. i've been able to mentally tackle how to flip these issues around so as to be able to confidently invite students back into my studio again.

here's my plan.

i'm limiting class size to 4 students, max. i'm also only offering a class if 4 students are interested.

the first is to keep things intimate and manageable. machine sewing classes are often a lot of trouble shooting. more than 4 machines all going at once can turn into me just running from machine to machine un-jamming bobbins, finding replacement needles, etc. the second is personal and financial. in order to make it feel worth it to turn over my shop to a student lab one day a week, it takes a fair amount of prep and clean up. i've realized that it needs to feel worth all my extra time that this takes or else i end up feeling rushed and frazzled.

i'm offering a longer-term class, for older students. and determining ahead of time what we'll be working on.

the first is because i'm interested in really working with students that have a deeper interest in the minutia of garment making. sometimes the disposable-ness feeling of shorter term craft projects can leave me feeling hollow. both as a maker and a teacher. sometimes those projects are perfect! but to base a curriculum around them, for me, wasn't filling me up. the second is because as much as i'm eager to let the students let their creativity run wild- i'm more eager to be able to transmit some solid foundational knowledge of garment construction. so, to everything, turn turn turn. there will be a time for playing with materials autonomously, but there will also be a time for working together as a class on the same things, at the same times.

the class is for 12-18 yr olds, and is offered from 9:30 till 12:30.

so yes, this is a class for home schoolers, un-schoolers and alternative schoolers. as much as i'd love to be able to offer this class to a wider variety of school aged kids, right now i'm realizing that as a mother of two who is more often than not single parenting, offering after-school hours classes creates some significant disharmony in the home. so that's that.

okay! that's that. so here's the scoop!!!


intermediate garment sewing intensive for 12-18 yr olds

taught by kathie sever, ramonsterwear.com
taught at kathie’s home studio, near barton springs pool in south austin

sept 5- dec 12
mondays 9:30am till 12:30pm*

*i’m willing to move the class to a different day if i can find 4 students who need that.

class dates:
sept 5,12,19,26
oct 3,10,17,24 (skipping halloween)
nov 7, 14, 21, 28
dec 5, 12,

sept/oct/nov $160 per month
dec $80

semester tuition: $560**

*this does not include materials. i’ll let you know what you need, you’ll need to get it on your own and be able to bring it to class on appointed class days.

min/max 4 students

what we’ll cover:

*working with commercial patterns
*tailoring patterns to fit
*fabric manipulations (block printing, freezer paper stencils, dying, embroidery, trims)
*working with both woven and knit fabrics
*up-cycling and repurposing used materials

i will be encouraging students to place an emphasis on creatively and mindfully sourcing materials. we’ll talk about the use of gently used fabrics versus when it’s more appropriate to find well made, sustainable materials.

the class will be working from a set of commercial patterns that i will be choosing, in order to try keep everyone on basically the same page in terms of what methods and skills we’ll be covering, and when. the patterns will be chosen in order to cover a wide base of garment making skills, but all will be open to the students interpretation and manipulation.

this class will be taught as a semester-long series, so i ask that you keep this in mind when signing up an interested student. i will refund tuition within the first two weeks as long as we have a replacement student willing to start late.

payment options: i can accept payment either monthly, or with a 10% discount if tuition is paid in full by our first class meeting.

i ask that interested students have a basic understanding of machine sewing.

please email me at ramonsterwear@gmail.com if you're interested.