How old were you when you started sewing?

How old were you when you started sewing?  I should be specific and ask how old were you when you operated your first sewing machine?

I can't remember my exact age but I was probably around 7 or 8 years old.  I remember it well, I had to convince my grandmother that my mom wouldn't find out.  I just had to do it.  I had ideas for Barbie's wardrobe that were just flowing too fast to hand sew.  Those of you who know me well can probably  picture me saying this with a doubt.  LOL.

I immediately fell in love with sewing. I'm not sure if it was running of the machine behind mom's back, the satisfaction of just operating a "machine" with a foot pedal, truly making those Barbie clothes, or just being allow to explore that vehicle of my creativity.

I pretty much stuck with Barbie clothes for some time.  In high school it grew to altering clothes for myself, and I'm really not talking about hemming, more like creating Madonna "cool" outfits!

In college, I subsidized my job by making custom drapes...  it was good money and I got to pick out fabric on someone else's dime.

A few days ago, my mom made a comment that she didn't remember me "not sewing".  After sharing the story of begging grandmom to use her machine while mom was at night school, we both enjoyed a few good laughs. 

I thought it was a good topic for the blog, especially since I haven't seen my sewing machine for a week or so....

Share your story.