Rectangular desks line up against one another to form three long tables. She sits near the front, by the teacher’s work table, her fingers carefully crafting her most recent piece. The rumbling sounds of sewing machines fill the room as she pulls her last thread. A rush of pride flows through her as she smiles at what she just finished; Junior Ebony Delgado finds peace in her clothing class. 

Delgado signed up for Clothing 1 at the end of her sophomore year. “I thought it would be interesting,” Delgado said. “I ended up liking the class more than I really thought I would.”

In the course, she has learned how to use a sewing machine and different ways to hand sew. She continues to get the most out of her experience. 

Delgado admits to being more reserved than others, but she finds clothing to be a great way to express herself. 

“I like the amount of freedom I get to make different things,” Delgado said. “I don’t have to just make what Ms. Hayes tells me to.” 

Clothing teacher Teresa Hayes agrees, “I think it’s nice because [Ebony] can be creative in her own way,” Hayes said. “And that’s the beautiful thing about the class, because you can pick and choose how you want to express yourself.”

Delgado’s proudest achievement so far in class is her beloved black bag she made as part of an assignment. She was to choose from two unique designs and spent three and a half weeks working on it. She finished it in early March and is pleased with how it ended up.

“Doing each part of the bag separately was pretty easy, but combining all the parts together was a lot harder,” Delgado said. “I like how it turned out and I’m really proud of it.”

Outside of clothing, Delgado enjoys spending time with her friends and black tuxedo cat Felix, who she adores “more than anything.” One of Delgado’s longest friends moved to New Mexico at the end of the 2020-2021 school year. 

Junior Natasya Figueroa now attends a high school in Albuquerque, but makes regular visits to see her friends and family. 

“I think Ebony’s a very loyal and honest friend. She’s real to herself and to others, and she’s really funny and relatable,” Figueroa said on the phone. “I enjoyed her company when we had class together and I always miss her witty comments.”

Figueroa believes that despite the change in distance, she doesn’t see an end to their friendship coming anytime soon. “I could have never asked for a greater friend. She’s truly special,” Figueroa said. 

Delgado’s plans for the future are still to be decided. Personal goals, however, include embracing her newfound craft and Hayes wishes to see the same.

“I hope to see her just continue to grow and develop as a person and as a student.” Hayes said. “In my class, [I want to] see her continue being creative and exploring new projects and see what she can continue to make. She’s very good at what she does and she has good technical skills when it comes to sewing, so it will be fun to see her continue to develop that.” 

Delgado has signed up to take Clothing 2 next year. “I enjoy having the freedom to make what I want and being able to put things I make to use,” Delgado said as she continued to pet a purring Felix. “It’s also very stress relieving, and I look forward to seeing what else I can make.”