We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Johanna Ali. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Johanna below.

Johanna, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

How did you learn to do what you do? I am a self-taught sewist. That means that I didn’t attend a traditional fashion school to learn how to sew. Once I saw that I had an interest in learning how to sew, I watched as many YouTube videos and read as many sewing blogs as I possibly could. Early on, I signed up for a sewing class at Joann Fabric so that I could get a basic understanding of what I was doing. Then in 2016, I signed up for Sew IT Academy which is an online sewing program where you can learn at your own pace. Although I haven’t done every single project from Sew It, I’ve watched every single course.

Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process?
Honestly, I don’t think there was anything I could have done differently aside from having fallen in love with sewing in my younger years. I might have majored in fashion design but even that would not have sped up my learning process. There is so much to learn when it comes to sewing. I’ve been sewing for 8 years now and there is still so much to learn. Sewing is the type of skill that you learn from experience. The more you practice, the more you learn. Experience can’t really be learned from school.

What skills do you think were most essential?
Besides knowing how to actually sew, I think the most essential skill for me, was learning how to read a commercial pattern. Learning sewing terms is like learning an entirely different language! There are many components to a pattern. You first have to know which size pattern to buy. Then have to know what size pattern to cut for the garment you are going to be sewing. Once you have done that, then you need to be familiar with the sewing terms that will be used in the pattern instructions.

Johanna, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Johanna Ali and I’m a sewing and DIY blogger. I live in South Florida and I’m I’ve been married to the love of my life for 14 years and we have a 12-year-old son. When I’m not sewing or blogging, I’m a System Test Engineer for a company that provides communication services to plans and ships.

I’m an Aries and one of our characteristics is that we are supposed to be creative people. When I was younger, I used to sing and was in a few plays. When I became an adult, I felt like I didn’t have a creative outlet and I saw someone making bead bracelets on Instagram and thought, I can do that. So, I purchased all the beads I could get my hands on. I did a few craft shows and would also make little girl necklaces. Then I purchased a Silhouette machine that would let me cut several things including vinyl and heat transfer vinyl. I then got into making T-shirts and personalized mugs that I would sell.

I believe it was sometime in 2013 that I started following Mimi G Style who was a style and DIY blogger. I saw this gorgeous skirt she was wearing and I NEEDED it! I soon found out that she was not selling the skirt, but the pattern to make the skirt. That’s when I said, well I can do that! LOL I purchased my 1st sewing machine in Jan of 2014. I decided that I would start off with a “simple” project and decided I would make this “pencil skirt in 30 minutes”. This skirt took me all day to make and every single mistake I could possibly make, I made. I was so discouraged because I thought that I’d be able to sit at the sewing machine and just sew up all these beautiful things. I put the machine in a corner and didn’t touch it for 3 months. This is when I started to watch all the YouTube videos I could about sewing. I joined a Facebook group that was making pillow case dresses for girls in Haiti and I slowly got my confidence and made a few dresses. Once I felt comfortable enough, I decided to tackle the skirt I originally wanted to make and the rest is history.

When I started my blog, it was originally something for me. I wanted to document my sewing journey and have something to look back at. I then started doing pattern tests for other pattern designers to learn different sewing techniques that I probably wouldn’t have learned unless I was working on that particular project. I share pattern reviews on my blog as well as the different things I learn along the way. I know what it’s like being a new sewist and I wanted to be a resource for these people.

There are several garments that I’m especially proud of and some of those were made for my very close friend Stephanie. She would always send me photos of things she wanted and she would always say, “you can make this, right?” I love sewing for her because she most definitely always took me out of my comfort zone. Sometimes I would say, “No girl, I can’t make that!” She always believed in my skills even when I didn’t and I have some much to thank her for.

One of the things that I will always be the proudest of is being featured in Sewn Magazine. Sewn Magazine was started by Michelle Morris from @thatblackchic on Instagram. This magazine features mainly minority makers and up and coming designers and pattern makers in the sewing community. I’ve been working with Michelle for the last couple of years and I’ve created several sewing tutorials for the magazine. I even got to interview Nathalia from @nathaliajmag who was a contestant on season 15 of Project Runway. Seeing myself in print will never get old.

During the pandemic I was reached out to by a woman named Annette who found me on Instagram. She had this amazing idea for a nonprofit where we would teach women in distress the skill of sewing to possibly help them generate income and help get them out of whatever situation they are in. I was all in. We’ve held one sewing class so far and will be teaming up with a local city to have sewing classes while we get the nonprofit up and running. I’m so excited for the possibilities this will bring.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I started my Instagram before I started my blog. Instagram was where I originally started documenting my sewing journey with my audience by sharing photos of the things I had made. My Instagram then started to morph into a place where I didn’t just share my pretty photos but also shared different sewing tips and tricks I learned along the way.

Currently, I only have about 4500 followers. I really shouldn’t say only, because if you have 1 follower that interacts with your content then you have a following. I learned not to focus on the number of followers but focus on building and nurturing your community. You have to provide some kind of value to your followers. Make sure that you interact with the people that comment on your posts and just be active in your niche. If you engage with your following and provide value, followers will come.

Another tip I will give is to be consistent and post with a purpose. When I started my Instagram account I used to post just to post. That doesn’t really cut it anymore. You have to post for a reason and share something of value with your audience. Now with the rise of reels, video is king. Just remember that everything is content. Record your behind the screens process and share that with your audience. People don’t want to just see pretty photos anymore. They want to see your process.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding thing about being able to sew is just that, you can sew! Sewing to me is like having a super power! When you can sew, you have so much freedom to make whatever you want to make. If you have fit issues with ready to wear clothes, you can make your own. If you always have issues with jeans fitting you properly, you can make your own. If you purchase something and it doesn’t you fit properly, you can make alterations to what you purchased and make it fit like a glove.

Another rewarding aspect of being able to sew is that I can share my world with my audience. I love to inspire other creatives to just go for it and not just watch from the sidelines. If I can do it, then anyone else can do it too.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.soveryjo.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soveryjo
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/soveryjo
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/soveryjo

Image Credits
Some shots by Terrence Brown