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My father always encouraged me to dream big, to aim for the maximum in everything I did. “If you're going to do something, get it right.” he would tell me.
He was an ambitious and demanding man. For him there were no half-measures, just as it was not contemplated to leave a problem unsolved, a project half-finished.
In 2013 I was 20 years old, a part-time job, no desire to go to college and the baggage of dreams and uncertainties typical of a multipotential young girl. My father had always urged me toward study, an indispensable pillar for the personal formation of every individual, according to him. There was no future for my person without some kind of academic education.
I had many interests. I had always been passionate about many different activities, more than I could handle, in fact. And as much as, to most, that might seem like a huge advantage, having too many choices had led me to be unable to choose at all. I was stalled. I was working as a waitress only on weekends, oscillating, on the remaining days of the week, between drawing, sports, and theater. I was in love with the possibility of donning the guise of other characters, identifying with their lives and living their stories. I did not feel I was suited for school study, but I felt I wanted to learn something, something more. I sensed the need to conquer a new form of expression, one that could help me find my own way in the world.
I grew up with the sewing machine inside the house. I realize that for many people it might seem like a strange, exotic instrument, far from everyday life. For me, however, who had lived it since childhood, it would have been strange not to find it in its place, in the corner of the study. It was the my mother's sewing machine and my grandmother's before her, a Necchi which we still retain, despite its 50-plus years. I had always used it on the sly, mystically attracted to that strange and fascinating tool with which my mother had always been able to create the most beautiful clothes a little girl could ever wish for. I was so proud to wear what my mother had sewn for me that I grew up with the clear idea of “Wanting, when I grow up, to sew clothes for my children, as mom does for me”.
When I was sixteen I designed an evening dress for a special occasion, and my mother made it for me. When the work was finished, my father complimented us enthusiastically. “Why don't you go into partnership? You design the models and mom makes them, look what a great thing you have done!” He had never been a particularly creative type, and perhaps because of this he had always encouraged all our creativity to the fullest. I took it as a joke, superficially dismissing the idea. But he, as always, had seen right through it.
When I started the modeling course, I knew I would need to buy a sewing machine that was mine. I could not keep messing around with our old Necchi, now limping along. I had set aside the money to buy an inexpensive sewing machine that fit my small budget. I wanted to buy it myself, to conquer that goal on my own strength, without having to burden my parents any more than I felt I was already doing. As with every major decision and purchase, I asked my father for advice. Since he could not accompany me personally, my mother came for him. We went to Fondi, to Marco's store, to which everyone, including the teacher of the course I was taking, had always advised me to go.
I was fascinated by the amount and variety of cars in front of me. I knew I couldn't point to anything that wasn't a basic sewing machine. I explained my needs to Marco, who knew . recommend an extremely simple machine, not overly accessorized. A compact, durable, no-frills machine that could accompany me on my new adventure and last through the years. No further words were needed; by then I had chosen it.
Too bad only about the price. Not excessive for that kind of car, but out of my budget. Faced with my sudden doubts, my mother reassured me: “Don't worry, Dad will give you this one.”.
Eight years have passed.
My father is gone, but the car that gave me that day Is always on my desk.
I changed my mind a thousand times about my future. I graduated from college, but I also achieved that diploma as a seamstress and patternmaker. Sewing I have found to be the perfect form of expression, a huge passion that does not leave me.
Today I'm trying to make a job out of it. I make clothes on commission, replicating historical costumes and TV series outfits for fans.
I also opened a YouTube channel in which I show some stages of historical tailoring, while on social media I have a showcase of the work I make. I continue to design clothes for myself and for those who come to my business, taking care of the entire production phase.
And I try to keep alive the promise made that day, when my father saw me coming home, beaming, with my new car in my arms.
“I'll give you this one. As long as you make it work for you.”.
Francesca Trapani - The Apprentice on Pins
