ST. ALBANS — From a young age, Noah Hauf knew he had a unique sense of style.
“I’ve just been really big on my fashion and my clothing,” Hauf, a junior at BFA-St. Albans, said. “I’m really into a different type of style than I believe most of the students in my school.”
Despite his interest in fashion design, Hauf did not know how to sew, so when the opportunity came up to learn from Lise-Anne Cooledge, owner of ReMarket in downtown St. Albans, he jumped at the chance.
“One of my teachers saw it (what I was passionate about) and he thought it was cool,” Hauf said. “He helped me get connected with a program that would get me credit.”
Now, through BFA-St. Albans’ work-based learning program, Hauf spends three hours, three days a week at ReMarket, learning sewing techniques and designing his own clothing.
A pair of jeans made by Noah Hauf using the boro method of Japanese culture. Hauf is “upcycling” to create clothing that fits his own style.
Work-based learning provides students with academic credit, and the opportunity, like an internship, helps them make the connection between classroom lessons and real world applications.
Once Hauf got down the basics of sewing by hand and on a machine, he started on creating his own clothing and taking custom orders. He is also in the midst of making a few items to show at Franklin County Animal Rescue’s “Rescues Rock the Runway” event this Thursday.
Cooledge, who is passionate about upcycling — the process of transforming something old into something new — has passed that interest on to Hauf. His work this year has focused on giving old jeans and hoodies the grunge style he prefers.
“If there’s a look that you want, but you can’t find it in the store, this is what’s so great about upcycling and re-imagining is, if you can picture it in your mind and then have the skills, you can attempt to make a copy,” Cooledge said.
Hauf’s jeans utilize the sashiko and boro sewing techniques of Japanese culture. “Sashiko” is a type of stitch and “boro” means patch on patch. Both were initially invented to help old, worn-out clothing to last longer.
Hauf said he learns better working one-on-one with Cooledge than he sometimes does in a traditional classroom setting. That, plus the opportunity to be hands-on with something he is passionate about, has led to a successful educational experience.
And hearing from Cooledge, who has made herself a fulfilling, creative career, helps Hauf to know it’s possible for him too.
“I love doing this, and now I know I can make money off making my own clothing,” he said.
Catch Hauf and Cooledge at 5 p.m. this Thursday, March 26, at “Rescues Rock the Runway” at St. Albans City Hall, where they will join other downtown business owners in showing off thrifted and handmade fashion to fundraise for Franklin County Animal Rescue.