Credit: Melina Barris

Join WSPN reporter Elyssa Grillo as she interviews WHS French teacher Sara Langelier about her love for sewing and fashion. Langelier makes a lot of her own clothes and shops at thrift stores to form her ideal style sustainably.

Join WSPN’s Elyssa Grillo as she interviews the June Fashionista of the Month: French teacher Sara Langelier.

Where do you get inspiration for the clothes that you make?
“I get a lot of inspiration from Instagram actually because there are a lot of people who sew on Instagram of all ages. I follow a lot of people who sew and it’s actually a great resource because there are a lot of popular patterns. If I’m about to sew [something], I can see other people who’ve made it [before] and get an idea of the fit or what fabrics look good in it.”

Is there a designer who you admire the most?
“Not specifically one designer, but yeah, there are a few people whose style I really like online. When I first started sewing, maybe like eight years ago, there were a lot of people who did blogs, so I would read and look at these blogs all the time.”

What is your ideal outfit for teaching?
“Probably pants, preferably linen in the warmer weather. I really like linen because it’s cool, so my favorite teaching outfit is linen pants and a button down top.”

Besides the clothes that you create yourself, where are your favorite places to shop?
“I love TJ Maxx, but honestly sewing has kind of gotten me away from buying as many clothes because a lot of times I look at things and I figure that I could make it myself. So I don’t buy as many clothes anymore, except maybe TJ Maxx and I do like to thrift. I go to Savers sometimes for things like T-shirts. I really only buy shoes when I go shopping at DSW.”

Do you have a fashion icon?
“Not necessarily a celebrity, but I do get inspired by TV show characters. I really like “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” If I had to pick my favorite era in fashion, it would be the 1960s. Recently, I’ve actually gotten into making some 60s style dresses. They used to put out patterns in the 60s that were called Jiffy dresses, which meant that you could sew them in a jiffy because they didn’t have a lot of pattern pieces. That’s just a style I really like, so I loved watching “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “Queen’s Gambit” and “Mad Men” for the fashion. I just love watching the style. Another fashion icon would be Diane Lane who was an actress from the 80s. Her style was kind of masculine. I gravitate towards the 60s which is more feminine, but I also really gravitate towards menswear style things, like Oxford shoes, that Diane Lane would wear. A little bit tomboy-ish. The 60s can be like that too actually, because many silhouettes were straight and boy-ish. If you look at Twiggy, a model in that era who had cropped hair, was always wearing a black turtleneck, slim Cigarette pants and flats. Jane Birkin inspired that style back in the 60’s, too.”

What started your interest in fashion and sewing?
“My mom was an interior designer and always had great style, and my sister also is an interior designer. I’ve been influenced by that, but I also just have always liked the arts and I love doing creative things. So, I just started sewing in my 20’s while I was living in New York, working a corporate job, and I just wanted to do something creative. There were so many great fabric stores, so I got really into it, but I’ve just always sort of liked the creative aspect of fashion, clothes and design. Then, I started getting back into sewing like eight years ago, and I really started to up my game in terms of skills.”

What is your favorite season or weather to dress for?
“Probably spring and summer. In terms of making clothes, I think I’m more inspired in the spring and summer. I get to make things out of linen, and it’s just easier to dress in the spring and summer since it’s fewer things to put on. However, I really do love making jackets even if they are a bit more complicated. I made a blazer that was very hard and another jacket with a patchwork fabric. I didn’t make the patchwork, though. I really like making light jackets and styling them for spring.”

What is your favorite fashion trend of all time or of recent?
“I really like wide leg pants, like this pattern I have made a lot and I’m making it again right now in bright pink cotton. I really like high waisted wide leg pants which are actually sort of retro because they’ve been worn by women since the 40’s.”

What is your favorite piece of clothing or accessory?
“I love scarves. I mean I am a French teacher, but yeah, I really love scarves because I don’t do a ton of big jewelry, only a simple necklace. And, I have so many scarves from my mother.”

How long does it take you to design and sew a piece?
“I’m not designing the clothes myself, only sometimes I’ll change up a pattern. So, [the timing] really varies because, these pants for example, I started a pair this weekend, and I’ll probably finish tomorrow. It could just take me over a few days, but when I made that blazer, it took me three months because there was so much cutting and steps involved. It took me a long time and it was really challenging, so I had to follow a video class.”

How would you sum up your style in one word?
“I’d say ‘classic with a twist.’ Or maybe ‘tailored’ because I gravitate towards more tailored clothing. I don’t really like bohemian types of styles with a lot of ruffles. I like things that are a little more tailored.”

What is your advice to anyone who is interested in starting to make their own clothes?
“For anyone interested in making their own clothes I would say just just go for it because there’s so many tutorials online. Start with something like pajama pants when the fit doesn’t really matter, and just start to slowly move your way up. Learn the techniques, practice on scrap fabric, get fabric from thrift stores, you can get sheets or an old duvet cover at thrift stores, and use that to start off. A lot of what I learned was really just teaching myself, practicing, trial and error, making mistakes and then getting it right the next time.”

How would you describe what fashion means to you?
“I really think it’s a real expression of creativity. Wearing clothing, especially things that I’ve made, shows my creativity and I take a lot of pride in it. I feel like putting things together to express my creativity.”