Tracey Kersten runs ‘Made With Love By Tracey’, a wool and locally handmade children’s clothing store on Station St, Seymour. Here she shares the story of her business.
You can expect to find an array of knitwear, quilting, crochet and hand-sewn items for children from birth to six years old. Recently added to the Made With Love By Tracey repertoire is haberdashery.
All items are one-off, making for unique keepsake clothes that will stand the test of time. The yarns found in the store are Australian wool.
“If you are looking for something really unique, it’s a good way to buy and it’s far better quality than what you would find at mass-produced stores these days,” Ms Kersten said.
Craft is a family business: Ms Kersten’s mother used to own the fabric store just a few shops along.
“I used to make a few clothes for there. It got rather busy and she didn’t have enough space, so when the shop became available I took the chance to open up,” Ms Kersten said.
Ms Kersten has now been in business for two and a half years.
“I enjoy making children’s clothing and we don’t have a lot of children’s clothes in town, so I decided to open a business,” she said.
The business is built on three generations of makers: Ms Kersten, her mother and her grandmother sew clothes for the store.
“Grandma taught me how to knit; I would have been five, so I have been knitting for about 33 years,” Ms Kersten said.
Her mother and grandmother sew for four or five hours a day, creating goods for the store.
“You would be surprised, you don’t get that much done in that time,” Ms Kersten said.
An average dress might take 45 minutes to sew and a baby cardigan can take two days to make.
“It depends on the size of the item, an adult’s jumper can take upwards of a week to make,” Ms Kersten said.
Ms Kersten can also make custom items for special occasions, such as the flower girl dresses she made last year.
Some local women also create goods to be sold.
“There is a lady that knits for me, another that makes the dolls’ clothes, but all the sewing we do ourselves,” Ms Kersten said.