What began as a hobby for Sewing Sistas, Ashley and Breanna Hodgins in 2016 has now turned into a successful recycling and upcycling venture for these busy medical field workers.

“It all began with the two of us enjoying going shopping at craft sales and markets,” said Ashley, “then we thought, ‘hey, we could do this’, and we began to brainstorm to find something that was different and not over-saturating the market.”

The sisters inherited their love of sewing from their grandmother, according to Ashley, so they decided to start making their unique mittens, home decor items, hair scrunchies and makeup remover rounds by sewing recycled and upcycled materials.

“The inspiration comes from Breanna, 100 per cent,” said Ashley.

The process begins with shopping at thrift stores for wool blend and some acrylic and mixed blend sweaters.

“The wool blends are getting more and more rare and harder to find. Most sweaters now are now made from acrylic, rayon and other blends,” Ashley explained.

Once they’ve accumulated their supplies of thrifted wool items, the sisters purchase new fabrics for the lining, “the stuffing of our decorative pumpkins made from the acrylic sweaters is purchased new as well,” said Ashley.

With membership from various fabric stores, the duo is able to take advantage of the perks such as clearance and special discount sales.

The wool sweaters are then washed repeatedly in warm water, which tightens the wool fibers. This procedure, called felting, prevents the sweaters from unravelling, makes them last longer, prevents fraying and also makes them warmer, according to Ashley.

“The only part of the wool sweaters we do not felt are the wrists and bottom band of the sweater. We use those for the cuff of our mittens because we need the stretch,” Ashley said, adding, “we recycle 100 per cent of the garment.”

The sisters then get busy from approximately July to August, cutting out their mittens then they begin sewing. Using a serger-type stitch to sew the mittens together with the outer fleece backing makes them sturdy and durable.

“Sometimes we get together to work, but mostly we each just do it when we can, since we both have full-time jobs,” Ashley told The Equity.

When asked if they take donations, Ashley replied, “We do accept some donations of woolen sweaters, and we do take some custom orders from clients sometimes who might want a special memento made from their mother’s or grandmother’s sweater.”

Though last year there was a downward lull in the market with forced shut-downs and bans on selling non-essential items, things are beginning to pick up again, according to Ashley.

The sisters then amass a substantial stockpile of crafted items to set up in markets and craft sales around the county; they are usually busy until Christmas.

“And then we take a break,” Ashley concluded.

When they’re not touring the craft fair markets in the area, their products can be purchased through their Facebook and Instagram pages. They also have a few items on display at Home Hardware and Café 349 in Shawville which are available for purchase.

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