Flashback to West Virginia, 1980s
to a young me sitting on the floor at my mother’s presserfoot while she alters a pair of bellbottoms into shorts. I take the scraps she drops and fashion them into clothes for my stuffed animals.

Fast forward to Los Angeles, 2005 when 30-year-old me, now a mother myself, launched kokoleo. In 2010 we moved our growing family and my bursting-at-the-seams studio to Seattle.

I’ve always had the urge to make things. Often I don’t even know what I’ll end up with when I embark on a project, all I know is I have an overwhelming urge to sew. I’m hopelessly addicted to fabric and notions and the vroom-vroom of the sewing machine. When I browse boutiques, flea markets or vintage stores, it’s the handmade items that catch my eye. I examine the stitches and embellishments and think of the person, the story, and the love that went into it. In a world fueled by mass-production, a one-of-a-kind is something to cherish.

If you found your way to this website, you probably like handmade things too. Thanks for stopping by.

- KB VanHorn

kb.kokoleo@gmail.com


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