An ongoing log of things made by hand — for myself, for my kids, and as gifts — alongside an archive of the lessons I’ve taught.
Sewing is like riding a bike — learn the core skills once, and they stay with you for life.
I spent years teaching others to sew. A glimpse of what they made:
I’m Tess Vigil — I learned to sew in high school on my mom’s sewing machine. I loved making new things and altering or upcycling things found while thrift shopping. I ran a proper dress company for a number of years — read about 50 Dresses here.
Today, I enjoy making things just as much as I did in high school, if not more — it’s fun to have sewing as a superpower. Somewhere along the way I crossed the fabled 10,000-hour mark. I still do a fair amount of altering clothes (I’m 5′3″, so most sleeves and pants can use a crop), but making something from scratch is the most rewarding.
This site is my ongoing log of things made by hand: for myself, for my kids, and the occasional gift. It’s also home to an archive of the years I spent teaching others to sew, in one-on-one lessons and small groups.
Elsewhere, I coach leaders at tessvigil.com and obsess over my favorite things at worth-the-money.com.
