Louisville children's clothing company run from unlikely place

LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - Within the walls of the Salvation Army a woman is running a handmade children's clothing business.
 
April Hickman said she grew up in the foster care system after a tough life at home.

"My mom, of course was an addict so it made life kind of hard," Hickman said.

After a series of difficulties, Hickman soon found herself pregnant and homeless.

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"I have no money, I have nowhere to stay I'm out of control and I'm having this baby. What am I going to do?" Hickman said. "I was offered the abortion pill but I didn't take it right away."

But a sewing lesson from a friend, planted the seed that would turn her life around.
 
In February, Hickman moved into the Salvation Army where her interested in sewing was encouraged and she was given the resources to pursue her passion for creating children's clothing.  
 
"Sewing has been, oh my gosh an amazing, amazing feeling for me," Hickman said.
 
Hickman did not stop once she mastered the machine. She took Etsy's entrepreneurial class and a microbusiness class in downtown Louisville where she's successfully created a Limited Liability Company called Wonderfulee Marlee, named after her daughter Marlee.
 
The child she almost didn't have is now the namesake of the skill that saved her.

Now Hickman is growing her business, saving for a house - and it all started with some needle and thread.

"It's a piece of me that I've created in the world. No one else done that. I did that," Hickman said.

To learn more about Wonderfulee Marlee, click here. 

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