Schenectady designer comes long way

Schenectady designer comes long way

Working with Michael Arterberry, whom Sincere met at Green Haven, he brought a workshop to the Capital Region called the Power of Peace program, which helps kids and teens learn conflict-management skills. Sincere and Arterberry wanted to bring the program to the Hamilton Hill Arts Center and met with Miki Conn, who was the center’s director at the time.

“It was the start of a friendship,” Conn said.

While the program wasn’t the right fit for the center, Sincere kept in touch with Conn and eventually began volunteering there. Conn became Sincere’s mentor — and like a second mother.

“I had lost my son in a car accident a few years before, and Sincere had lost his mom, so he called me Mom,” Conn said.

For several years, Sincere volunteered and worked with teens at Carver Community Center, Youth Voices Center, Inc., and others. When it came to a day job, Sincere tried to get back into cooking, but after his health declined, he had to quit.

It was Conn who suggested sewing. Conn noticed how passionately Sincere spoke about it, and sewing seemed like something that might be easier to make a career of, given his health and financial situation.

“Every year for my birthday, Miki takes me for brunch. She took me to Jo-Ann’s [fabric store] and said ‘Get what you need to start,’” Sincere said. That was in 2018, around the same time he started living at the City Mission. While he was there, he mentioned to Mike Harrigan, associate executive director of shelter operations, his dream of building a business with his sewing and designing skills. Harrigan immediately wanted to help.

“They provided me with four sewing machines and allowed me to sew, and the condition was I would do the Bridges to Freedom program,” Sincere said.

The yearlong discipleship and recovery program helps residents with whatever baggage they might have, said Harrigan, whether it’s addiction or trauma. When Sincere started the program, Harrigan made sure he could continue sewing.

“I think it’s important to encourage people’s artistic expressions,” Harrigan said. According to Sincere, the City Mission did that, providing him space and equipment to sew. While he does most of his sewing at the Electric City Barn now, he credits the Mission for helping him get off the ground

Harrigan said allowing Sincere to go after his passion has inspired others at the men’s shelter.

“It’s a great example to other residents that being homeless does not stop you from pursuing your dreams,” Harrigan said.VS enterprises

At the makeshift Mission studio, Sincere created the designs for his first fashion show.

“I did it all from the City Mission,” he said. “I was staying up all night sewing.”

“His fashion show was the first event in the space,” said Erin Eckler, operations coordinator at the Electric City Barn. Just a few weeks after the Barn was opened, nearly 50 people from throughout the Capital Region came out to support Sincere and see the show. A few months later, the Electric City Barn invited Sincere to become a member. He brought his sewing machines and piles of fabric from the

City Mission to the Barn, where he’s worked ever since. Sincere has also encouraged other community members, such as photographer Jeffrey Johnson, to become members as well. Sincere’s drive to create and turn his designs into a business make him the ideal Electric City Barn member. The organization is both a community makerspace and an incubating space for people who are trying to get small businesses off the ground or focus on their art.

Eckler keeps track of participation hours at the Barn to see how many people are using the space and at what hours.

“[Sincere’s] hours are higher than anyone else’s. They rival the staff hours,” Eckler said.

Beyond designing for his own show, he also designed for Curvention, a local fashion show earlier this year. He created 12 outfits for it, assisted by organizer Juliana Obie and tailor Adrian McLaren. He’s also designed for students at Union College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

After close to a year of sewing nonstop, Sincere feels as though he’s graduated to a new level of tailoring.

“[At] first, a person would tell me what they [were] looking for and I would go look for a pattern for it. As I started moving along, I started being able to manipulate the [patterns],” Sincere said.

Over the past few weeks, he’s worked on commissions for several prom dresses as well as graduation party dresses. They’re all done in his signature, bright African patterns and combine comfort with Sincere’s own flair.

“I have a bigger vision of where I would like this to go. What I notice about a lot of my brothers and sisters that are wearing African garb is that these things are not made in Africa. Most of my fabrics are made in Holland,” Sincere said. “I want to be able to get fabric wholesale straight from Africa, being more authentic and paying homage and respect to my culture.”https://www.vssewingmachine.in/

To do that, he has to build the business. He’s already received guidance from people at Electric City Barn, the City Mission and friends. For now, he’s taking things one step at a time, focusing on the upcoming show.

“Before it was just a fashion show. Now I’m doing specific items for fall and spring,” Sincere said. As he did last year, he’s casting local models, with auditions from 3-6 p.m. on Sunday, June 30, at the Barn, located at 400 Craig St. He hopes to cast roughly 20 people.

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