TAILOR PROFILE SERIES WITH SARA CHALUPNICEK
Style /
March 2022
This series follows Tailors from around the world - highlighting their craft, passions, love for the brand and the impact they have on bettering the planet through extending the life of your garments. We interviewed Sara Chalupnicek from Calgary, Alberta, a Tailor Ambassador who has been working with Levi’s® for five years. This volume also highlights International Women’s Day and how women celebrate and express themselves through fashion.
MEET SARA
HOW DID YOU FIRST START EXPRESSING YOURSELF THROUGH DESIGN?
Sara: I come from a very creative background, my dad is a painter and landscape architect, my uncle is a painter and architect, my aunt was into pottery, and my grandma was always creating furniture, gardening or redesigning her home, the list goes on. As a child I loved playing with barbies, and at age 5, I started to take sewing classes. I loved to create my own doll clothes from socks and scraps of fabric. This is when I first started to explore design.
HOW DO YOU USE DESIGN TO HELP WOMEN EXPRESS THEMSELVES THROUGH FASHION?
Sara: I love to create and tailor clothing to make women feel confident and beautiful. My design aesthetic is quite feminine and I like to incorporate florals, light texture and tailor garments to compliment a woman’s body.
IN WHAT WAYS HAVE OTHER WOMEN LIFTED YOU UP?
Sara: Being a mother is one of the most challenging jobs in the world. When others share how they are encouraged by my parenting and work ethic, this is something that has brought me joy.
WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE BEST WAY FOR ALL OF US TO CONTINUE TO CELEBRATE AND SUPPORT WOMEN IN YOUR FIELD?
Sara: I think we should continue supporting women individually in this trade and celebrate what makes them unique as artists. The field of tailoring and making art is something to be upheld as the trade is slowly dying. Tailoring has long been a man’s field and celebrating women who can draft, cut and sew garments is celebration worthy.
I LOVE TO CREATE AND TAILOR CLOTHING TO MAKE WOMEN FEEL CONFIDENT AND BEAUTIFUL.
WHAT ARE THE WAYS YOU CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY?
Sara: For me celebrating International Women’s Day is reaching out to the women around me that have had a positive influence in my life. Sometimes a personal note or message goes a long way to make a woman feel appreciated and recognized. I also like to reflect on the women who made an impact in history and learning about who they are and what they did can be so inspiring. I also look to teach my kids more about women in history and the impact they made. Some of my favourites are Maya Angelou, Corrie Ten Boom, Rosa Parks and Marie Currie.
WHO IS AN ARTIST THAT YOU LOOK UP TO, OR THAT HELPS YOU STEP OUTSIDE OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE?
Sara: They are all around me! The couture fashion designers I follow inspire me to find ways I can translate concepts into the denim world. Also, there is an entire network of Levi’s® tailors and various chainstitchers that I follow, seeing what they bring to life encourages me to push the boundaries with design.
WHAT IS A LESSON THAT YOU’VE LEARNT OVER THE YEARS THAT YOU STILL CARRY WITH YOU TODAY?
Sara: Anything is possible if you put your mind to it. And with designing and tailoring, always measure twice and cut once!
