Meet Kaycee Sewchok

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

Hi Kaycee, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?

When I think of resilience, I think of the phrase Advancing Despite Adversity. When I look at many aspects of my life, I feel like it has been a workbook in how to develop this. I firmly believe that the people we surround ourselves with can change the outlook we have on life and the perspective we bring to adversity is what can transform it from a negative into a positive.

I have many health problems which is certainly a challenge. When I was a small child I had to wear lined bifocal glasses and a large cloth patch. This definitely led to a lot of conversation among kids, as kids are often not the kindest of humans as we all know! What I also learned, however, was that my sister, who was super cool, would stand up for me at the drop of a hat to any bully and I could not possibly believe how lucky I was to have her for my sister!

My most notable health problem is a skin disease in which I was the fifth documented diagnosed patient. My skin burns when it comes in contact with water. At times, this has been debilitating and extremely discouraging. In college, I would take a shower and scratch my skin until it bled because it hurt so bad. My family (both biological and chosen) have walked through this with me: helped me to find the right doctors, the diagnosis, battle to make large life adaptations to counteract the implications, etc. It hasn’t been quick or easy to figure out how to handle this and continue to deal with it over time. The support system I have has been immensely helpful in getting me to a place of not only acceptance, but excellence! I now can laugh at myself and joke about this. ‘You know how witches in movies can’t get wet, well…’ I would not be able to do this if the people I spend time with didn’t also laugh with me, while at the same time, having the ability to empathize with me.

When I chose to leave a full time job to start my own business in January of 2020, right before the world shut down with the Covid 19 pandemic, I was able to take the skills I had learned through prior life adversity and apply them to my business. I was able to laugh at the timing of my choices instead of letting them weigh me down. Was it easy to try to build a business at that time? Absolutely not. But that same support system walked alongside me and we talked each other through it. I was not able to make much income, but I was able to volunteer to sew masks for donations to police officers, health clinics and individuals who had genuine needs that I could meet. I knew that this would serve me in a much greater way and my support system backed those choices.

Life is not easy. We can let that be a gift or a burden.

Do I call my closest friends and complain about something almost daily? Definitely. I will almost always be the first to complain, but I will also ALWAYS be the first to listen, because that’s all a part of the process. Sharing our frustrations with those who will empathize but also challenge us is one of the best ways to work through adversity and figure out the path forward. It is how I gain knowledge, create plans and learn resilience.

I am forever grateful for the unique, eclectic and challenging path I have led and for all of my village who walk through it with me.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I run Kay Designs which is a sewing business. I do tailoring and alterations, but what I love most is creating original garments and memory items.

I love when clients bring me unique ideas and let me run wild with them! I’ve been able to make creations from loved ones garments, such as a necktie from a shirt, a robe from a gown, and bears/pillows/blankets from clothes. I have made recreations of favorite items from the past, and created unique original garments such as a floral suit jacket for a groom along with matching ties and pocket squares for the bridal party! I am so thankful when people trust me with their artistic vision!

I make gift items and clothing that I sell locally in Pittsburgh and also through an online store as well. Each item is made with love and some of the items on my site originated from ideas and suggestions of customers!

My undergraduate degree was in musical theatre and I spent 10 years working in performing arts in Chicago prior to moving to Pittsburgh. I love when I get to apply my background with my current job as well – sewing for dancers and creating costumes!

I will also always be singing while I’m working – so just be prepared for that if you come for a fitting!

The fall and winter will be focused on creating some seasonal items and gift items perfect for the holidays. You’ll be able to see those updates on my social media and my website: https://www.kaydesignspitt.com/

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Adaptability
Communication
Resilience

I believe these are the three most important things in any journey!

You must be able to adapt to what gets thrown your way. So many things are out of our control, and you have to roll with those punches!

Communication is crucial in life and in any business! Whether it is communicating with employees and supervisors or clients and customers, being clear and concise and having transparency to ensure that everyone is on the same page is so important! Communicate with timelines, expectations and responsibilities so that there are no surprises!

Resilience is important, because the ability to bounce back when things don’t go the way you planned will benefit you greatly!

What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?

One of my biggest area of improvement has been developing relationships within my field. I strongly believe in community over competition and the sewing community in Pittsburgh is amazing.

Having a network of other sewists that I can communicate struggles with, refer clients to, and discuss business challenges with, has been the most valuable thing that I have gained in the recent past.

I am so grateful to have a support system in those that could be considered my competitors.

We learn from each other, support each other, and we all, in addition to our clients, benefit from this!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kaydesignspitt.com/
• Instagram: @kaydesignspitt
• Facebook: @kaydesignspitt

Image Credits

Cristin Goss (Kaycee headshot)
James Baron (necktie photo)