Made in Vermont: Anemone

ESSEX JUNCTION, Vt. (WCAX) - This Vermont business makes new clothes you don’t need to feel “quilty” about buying.

“Really my goal is my focus on sustainability,” said Anemone owner Ashley Seville. She sews all of her pieces by hand in Essex Junction. But, there’s a bit of a fun and cozy twist to these clothes.

“I transform quilts and other old vintage and antique textiles into wearable pieces,” she explained.

Seville has long-loved old things, frequenting antique shops and estate sales. She’s come to appreciate the beauty in things with history to them. At the same time, she likes textile arts, too.

“I learned on my grandmother’s machine, my mom taught me,” she said about sewing. “But doing a lot of knitting kind of embroidery things throughout my life.”

This Vermonter, from Bennington, settled in Chittenden County right before the pandemic.

“I had moved back home to Vermont from Seattle in late 2019 and then was trying to be really thoughtful about going back to work here after having my son, thinking about what really inspired me,” she said.

Like many others, Seville decided to take a leap of faith to follow her passions during the pandemic. Anemone started just as coats made of quilts, but her products take all shapes now. Seville is constantly adding new silhouettes in an effort to marry modern style with old textiles.

“I really like using those ones that have lived a full life on a bed or on a couch and so trying to give them a new life instead of sitting in a cabinet or barn somewhere,” said Seville.

She collects quilts from all over the place, curated by friends, family, and her own adventures. New products drop once or twice a month, all of which are available on her website.

As people begin to embrace slow fashion, she says she’s been warmly received by customers.

“For quilts, so many of them were made from old clothing. So it’s a really nice, circular way to use things and just so much history to think about... all the fabrics that were used, and all the clothing that might have been and who wore it and their story,” said Seville.

A new life for the quilts, and new threads for you.

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