MEET AUDEN MUCHER, CLOSELY CRAFTED’S FIRST APPRENTICE
The 24-year-old California transplant is currently being mentored by George Kalajian of Tom’s Sons International Pleating
Auden Mucher
After reading an article featuring Closely Crafted in The New York Times, intrepid upstart Auden Mucher embarked on a design journey to NYC’s Garment District to seek out George Kalajian of the family-run factory Tom’s Sons International Pleating, who had also been mentioned in the story.
Auden was driven to introduce herself to George because she has a deep respect for handicrafts and tradition, a passion that George and his team share. Tom’s Sons, a fabric and textile pleating business that was established 150 years ago by his great-great-grandfather, works with fashion houses, interior designers, and costume designers. After designing dresses for her dolls when she was young, Auden became a costume designer in high school and college, creating costumes for plays such as An Ideal Husband, The Crucible, Fiddler on the Roof, and (her favorite) Seussical, the Musical.
Auden graduated from Whittier College with a double major in graphic design and environmental science. For her senior thesis, she created a how-to book about fabric manipulation and also measured the decomposition rates between different types of natural fibers by burying the fabric in soil. (“Cotton returns to the earth beautifully,” confirms Auden.)
As someone who had always been curious about the construction of garments, specifically in the pleating realm, Auden seized the opportunity to learn more by tracking George down in person, not once but twice! Soon, an apprenticeship was born—and Closely Crafted is happy to support through a grant that supports training wages. It’s been about three months now, and Auden, 24, says she is invigorated by what she’s learning and the skills that she is developing.
How did you find Closely Crafted?
I moved to New York eight months ago, and I was reading a New York Times article about Closely Crafted, and then it mentioned Tom’s Sons. I looked into the apprenticeship, and applications had closed, but I thought it would be cool to at least see the factory. Also, I have some pleated shirts with textured fabric, and I wanted to learn more about them. I was like, I don't know how to pleat this myself, so let me go see this factory and maybe talk to George and see what he has to say. Maybe I'll pitch myself in the process as well.
I wasn't in the area, but I pretended I was. I didn't want it to be too big a deal. I ended up bringing my books with me to show him. Because it's one thing to be like, 'Oh, I love pleating,' but it's another thing to show that I wrote a book about it.
Bold, we like it!
George seemed intrigued, but I didn't hear back, so I returned a few weeks later and talked to him again.
You must come from a family of doers.
I come from a pretty ambitious family. I learned from a young age and found that [being ambitious] can be effective. George responded well when I went in the first time, so I went in a second time. After that, I started working with George part-time. [Auden also works full-time at a sushi restaurant.] I go in on Fridays and Saturdays.
How has it been so far?
It's been incredible. I've learned so much. And now I'm attuned to pleating differently. Now, I can walk down the street and identify the kinds of pleats people wear, like, 'Oh, that's a sunburst accordion; those are box pleats!' I love fantasy pleats, which are really wild. They're underutilized and beautiful.
Pleating Mold - Courtesy of International Pleating
Is there anything else you’re learning that is exciting for you?
Knowing who the clients are and who comes in is interesting from a business standpoint. I like talking about the business with the people that work there. We have smaller designers making a few things and big clients doing rare but very high-end stuff.
How would you like this apprenticeship to develop?
I don't know where I want to go, but as I've started to learn stuff, it's been interesting that it doesn't come naturally to me—I'm struggling with some things more than I thought I would. As I go forward, I must recognize that this is part of the course. I know learning this kind of thing takes years, but I want to improve my skill level. I think part of that is just me putting in the hours, and I also think it’s active feedback from George.
It’s nice that I go in on Saturdays. George is usually busy with business operations on Fridays but can talk much more on Saturdays. Yesterday, we were able to dive deep into a very specific aspect of the pleating, which was quite helpful for me.
Would you recommend apprenticeships to others?
It's so cool! I'm happy. Yes, there should be more encouragement for apprenticeships. We live in such a fast-paced world that it's not valued. For example, why would anyone be an apprentice when you could get close enough to produce much faster and for a lot less labor? The issue is a societal one. When I think about what needs to change for this craft to survive in the long term, it is beyond us in many ways, but we have to hope that some people care about it.
George is doing an excellent job of trying to preserve this craft. He doesn't have kids, so he's the last in this long line of leaders. He's documented everything. When I joined, he said, ‘Here are all of our job training books!’ I commend him for that because he does so much to keep this [trade] alive.
- As told to Sarah Cristobal