Six years ago, I came to live in the United States where I could finally pursue this childhood dream I had long buried under my language books.

I've been making clothing as a hobby my whole life. Three years ago I bought a sewing machine and decided to sign up for sewing classes, to improve my sewing vocabulary. The instructor noticed my work and suggested that I work in the tailoring business and begin teaching others the lost art of garment making.

Soon I decided to start my own fine couture custom tailored clothing line. I hope to make people aware of the benefits of custom-made clothing as opposed to mass-produced clothing made for an average person because the average person does not exist! The fashion industry forces us to believe that she does. We are all individuals, with our individual tastes and body shapes, and we all deserve individually tailored clothing that reflects our different personalities and bodies.

Mass produced clothing clones us to look alike and compete and compare ourselves with one another. Instead of looking at ourselves in the mirror, our mirrors are other people wearing the same jeans and the same skirts that we are. I am also convinced that someone who is dresses in a one-of-a-kind outfit feels more comfortable interacting with others, has a higher self-esteem, and therefore tends to be more successful.

My ideal is for each woman to have a personal tailor, much like a hair stylist. Perhaps her tailor will not make every-day-use clothing, but at a few pieces meant for special occasions: The first prom or wedding happens only once and most women would be embarrassed wearing the same dress as someone else on their special day.  

I find it very fulfilling to see the happy, smiling faces of women as they leave my shop, holding the outfit of their dreams, and fantasizing about the time they will wear it and about all the compliments they will receive from friends and strangers.

I also love meeting a great variety of extraordinary people through my work. I meet lonely people looking to be pampered by somebody and talked to. Just as  people go to spas and hair salons, I believe that historically, that these places have been centers of community interaction. I think that tailor shops should once again, become those centers. We need to revive this lost art and place it in the center of our communities, which are slowly losing as well.  We need to slow down the pace of lives as well as the pace of our garment production.