The founder of Kiley Jean
Hi, I am Carlee Ann, a mother, midwife, farmer’s wife, feminist and seamstress. I’ve always been inspired by and drawn to the past. By exploring textiles, art and skills passed through the generations, we can connect with our elders and piece together forgotten stories.
My path to sewing
As an art and craft appreciator and collector, I would fantasize about having the skills to create my own garments. After a challenging chapter of our lives, I was ready to do something for me, actualize my fantasy. I took my first sewing class at our local quilt shop and was captivated immediately.
Since then, I have been honing in on my craft, making pieces for family, friends and my community. After being asked many times where we get our clothes and where folks could buy them, I decided it’s time to launch the tiniest, coziest clothing collection, Kiley Jean.
Love for vintage textiles
If only the fabric could speak about the hands that have worked on them so delicately, so intricately. Quilting and sewing takes time, patience, creativity and craftsmanship. I’ve been lucky to be mentored by some of the best, nimble hands that have been sewing since childhood, that share their skills and their stories while we sew.
Valuing crafts that historically have brought women together in circles to stitch and bitch during hard times to find beauty in creating together is dear to my heart. These pieces are a connection to the past that tell a story about resilience, strength and resourcefulness. Knowledge of these skills of craft and construction is embedded in every stitch.
This brand is named after my grandparents. Carrying on the name and souls of my beloved ancestors is meaningful in the work that I do.
Kiley is my Grandpa’s middle name, it is also one of my son’s middle names. My grandpa is a hardworking, loving, and warm hearted person, with a soft and dry sense of humor and an Irish limerick up his sleeve at any given time. At 5 o’ clock he is seated and ready to enjoy a dirty martini and tell stories of the past.
Jean is my Grandma’s name, and it is also one of my son’s middle names. My grandma was the matriarch, she had a bellowing laughter and a radiant glow. I can remember her warm embrace and the smell of her buttery banana bread coming out of the oven. She raised 8 children and welcomed everyone, the dogs, birds and all her kids and grandkids filled her home for the holidays. She kept everyone warm with her beautifully crocheted blankets she handmade.
To mend is to care
To repair is to be resourceful, to carry forth a tradition. Mending is an ancient human practice and skill, it is not just about utility, it is also about beauty. When I thread my needle to mend, I feel a connection to the fibers, fabric and to the past.
I am not giving up on this worn or torn article, I am helping sustain it for many years to come. Too often, we are ready to discard something with a tear or hole in it, rather than tend to it.
The vintage fabrics I salvage often need mending before they are sewn into Kiley Jean pieces.
Creating beauty through repair
We can find beauty in the broken things and we can fix them. Our beloved items are worth keeping and worth mending.
We can carry forth the skills and traditions of our ancestors and remember to make do and mend, while having a gentler impact on our earth.