Dearest Reader;

I started sewing when I was four years old, when I found my mom's sewing kit. She never sewed but somehow I went right to it myself. When I was in my early 20's I wanted to go further with my learning but there was nothing within several hours of where I was living. I scoured the Internet and book stores trying to teach myself.

I spent a lot of money on books that made no sense to me, buying books I knew were used in schools but having no context to use to understand the information. Eventually I went on with my life but the pull never left me. I questioned how I could be pulled so strongly to something I obviously was not capable of doing.

One day a door opened that changed my life and in the last 2 years I have squeezed in almost an entire 4 year program's worth of learning through various educational sources including college, university, private apprenticeship, continuing education classes and self-teaching. Once I got to where I am now, I realized how unfortunate it was that I had been so lost, confused and overwhelmed so many years ago.

I realized how easy it is to learn if the information is presented to you in a structured, guided, logical and accessible format (such is the aim of a scholastic program). I had thought I was chasing a false dream and that I did not have the ability to succeed but when that information was made available to me I consumed it at an enormously speedy rate. I thought: "if only I had known how to learn before...if only there had been some kind of self-teaching aid which could have helped me make sense of all the information which was available to me..."

And thus the initial seeds were planted which grew into Fashion Students Online. It is my goal with this website to enable other people to learn and to make fashion design, textiles, illustration and patternmaking knowledge and education accessible. Not everyone wants, or can afford to go to school and many people want to learn about fashion design, pattern drafting, textile manipulation and sciences for their own self interest. Fashion Students Online is for those people and for any students who want to supplement their school-based knowledge.

I want to extend my deepest thanks to the students and life-long learners who have joined me by volunteering their time in an effort to share their knowledge with others. I hope those that are reading this understand our mission and support us in any way they can.

Sincerely,
- Abegael Annie "AJ" Jackson
Founder, Senior Editor & Webmaster
Fashion Students Online ^{(TM)
http://www.fashionstudentsonline.com}