Growing up in a very small town in Minnesota, the nearest fabric store was 30 minutes away. Luckily she was the youngest of 3, and was able to upcycle her old clothes into purses and eventually took the leap into making clothing.

While sewing school at MCTC (now called Minneapolis College), McCoy learned that polyester has the same chemical make-up as PETE 1 water bottles, and it dawned on her how wasteful the industry really is. Many items in stores are not made to last, so we need to go buy them again and again. The industry has adopted the “disposable” mentality. In addition, so many of these garments will take over 200 years to break down in the landfills. In 2008, Kristen stubbornly made a decision: she would make ALL of her designs out of secondhand and deadstock fabrics.

In 2009, Kristen moved to Washington DC and in 2010 opened Ginger Root Design with one of her best friends, Erin Orfanon (then Derge). The local artisan boutique was the home of the duo’s upcycled designs and tailoring business, specializing in revamping/recycling garments.

After an amazing 5 year run, both Erin and Kristen decided to close Ginger Root and began their individual home businesses as they both prepared for expanding their families.  Kristen immediately rebranded as RETHINK Tailoring so she could prioritize her upcycling projects. The projects with the tight deadlines (bridesmaids dresses and suits that were left to the last minute) always took priority over the items with flexible timelines (aka family heirlooms, revamps of old pieces) and before she knew it, the passion projects were only a tiny part of the rack.

After her daughter was born in 2015, Kristen took a pause from tailoring to invent a concept she dreamt about for years: resizable baby clothing. She was shocked it didn’t already exist! After a very fun and challenging process, Kristen invented and started producing a dress that fit from 3 months through 4 years (or longer). Ginger Bean Clothing was officially born. Kristen moved back home to Minnesota with her family in April 2017. She continued work on Ginger Bean, and her youngest child was born in early 2018.

During early summer of 2019 Kristen took a pause from sewing to spend time with the kiddos and think about her next steps. She realized it was time to reboot RETHINK, in Minneapolis, but this time with a storefront where she could teach. Kristen began taking on clients out of her home studio in September of 2019 as she prepared for the buildout of the new studio at 3449 Bloomington Ave in the Powderhorn neighborhood in Minneapolis.

But not everything goes as planned. The grand opening of the RETHINK Sewing Lounge was March 14th, 2020, which had to close the next day due to the pandemic. We held on for 2.5 years, pivot after pivot, get the business closer and closer to the original vision, but the world had just changed too much to sustain a community based sewing lounge with sewing/mending classes most days of the week. In the fall of 2022 the doors closed and the storefront became Kristen’s private studio as she regrouped. 

But as one door closes, others open. Life pushed Kristen back towards her upcycled designs and wearable art. She started participating in fashion shows in Minneapolis again, designed upcycled costumes for a the James Sewell Ballet, upcycled a red carpet gown for one of the founders of James Beard Award winning restaurant, Owamni, and even got to do wardrobe for Diana Ross–all things thing would have been very difficult to do while running the sewing lounge.

It was through creating her upcycled wearable art that Kristen was able to heal from the pandemic. In the Fall of 2024, she found a new home for the studio, where she could prioritize her upcycled designs and private lessons, and take a pause from client tailoring. The new RETHINK studio is in the Mullet Warehouse attached to Audrey Rose Vintage at 3508 Snelling Ave, in the Longfellow Neighborhood in South Minneapolis. The schedule a visit, text 612-876-7978 or email info@rethinktailoring.com.