Curated By You: Heather Summers Makes Three Linen Summer Dresses For Her Daughters

Dresses Made With FS LIGHT BLUE, FROTH, MUSHROOM Lightweight Linen

Tell us a bit about yourself and what you do.  

My name is Heather. I’m a wife to my husband Michael and a mother to our three daughters, Lennon (4), Georgie (2.5), and James (16 months). We’ve been living small in New York City since August of last year — my husband is a full-time law student and I am home full-time with our girls.

Why do you sew?

I bought a sewing machine in February of 2020 and ended up having a lot more time to learn than I had anticipated in the following months. I mostly sew dresses for my girls. There’s something so special about seeing them in something I’ve made for them and as they’ve been getting older it’s been fun for them to have input on colors, patterns, buttons, etc.

I sew because it’s a creative outlet with a really special result. It’s such a satisfying feeling seeing something come to be from a big piece of fabric! I love that it feels restful and stimulating all at once – such a peaceful way to spend your time.

Dress Made with FS MUSHROOM Lightweight Linen

What do you like to listen to when you’re working (and why)?

I listen to everything under the sun, really! It depends on my mood. Lately I’ve been listening to Stan Getz and similar artists. I’ve also been listening to Ruth Chou Simons’ The GraceLaced Podcast.

As a child, what was your first encounter and memory of beauty?

I grew up in the country just outside of a really small town in Texas. We lived on a bit of land with horses and a creek behind our house. I have so many memories of playing outside barefoot, rolling down the hill in the grass. I appreciate it all so much more now – definitely my first memory of beauty, and specifically beauty in simplicity.

Dresses Made With FS LIGHT BLUE, FROTH, MUSHROOM Lightweight Linen

Where is home and how does it affect what you do?

Our home is on the Upper West Side in Manhattan, NYC. Living in the city affects everything! It’s such a unique place to live, with unique experiences and constraints and perks. We go about day to day life here totally differently than we have anywhere else. It’s such an adventure!

Name a book that you’ve recently read which inspired you and why?

To be honest, I haven’t had much time or energy for reading lately — I’ve slowly been reading Find Your People: Building Deep Community in a Lonely World by Jennie Allen over the past few weeks which I’ve gleaned a lot from already.

What was the first thing you ever remember making on your own? Tell us about this memory.

I remember making bracelets out of embroidery thread when I was in middle school. I would take orders at school and charge a couple of dollars per bracelet. I vividly remember taping the embroidery thread to our coffee table and weaving the bracelets for hours!

Dress Made With FS LIGHT BLUE Lightweight Linen

Who are your muses and inspiration?

My family, no doubt. I’m so inspired by my daughter’s creativity, their joy, their wonder. My husband is so steady, wise, and grounded. I hope to be more like all of them when I grow up.

Do you have a community of crafters/ makers around you or do you find you are on your own?

I wouldn’t say that I necessarily have a community of crafters around me, however I have friends near and far that all bring so much beauty and thoughtfulness into all that they do – I definitely see this as a form of creativity.

Dresses Made With FS LIGHT BLUE, FROTH, MUSHROOM Lightweight Linen

How important is it to make something with your hands?

Making something with my hands is so important to me. It forces me to disconnect and focus on just one thing for a set amount of time – there’s so much rest in that for me as someone who is constantly multitasking. It’s incredibly grounding.

How do you find the balance between motherhood and creativity?

Is there one? Ha! They’re so integrated for me, and I find that one is always informing the other. From a practical standpoint, mothering three children under four years old doesn’t leave much set aside time for creativity, so I do my best to involve my girls as much as possible. They’ll sit with me while I sew, asking questions about the machine and the thread and the fabric. They’ll paint alongside me and even help me with my own paintings. I think the integration of the two makes them both even more rich. I do enjoy solo creative time once they’re asleep too, though.

FS MUSHROOM Lightweight Linen

IL020 FROTH Lightweight Linen

FS LIGHT BLUE Lightweight Linen

What have you chosen to make out of FS linen and why?

I used my FS LIGHT BLUE, FROTH, MUSHROOM Lightweight linen to make three dresses, one for each of my girls. I used the Bluebell Sundress pattern from Flora Child Co. which is one of my favorite sources for patterns. They love to match, so I wanted to make the same dress for each of them, but in a different color to make them feel special. This dress is also perfect for twirling! Always always a hit with these girls.