There's nothing better than backstory!! I picked up my first sewing machine when I was 18.  It was just on a whim as I had no real sewing experience growing up except for the dresses I made for my Barbies out of old socks.  I selected a moderately difficult pattern for a dress, selected all the notions to go with it including zippers, clasps, and thread.  When I unpacked my machine I immediately dove in to threading it and trying to figure out how to use the bobbin underneath (the spool of thread that is housed underneath the machine to catch the thread from the top).  A couple of hours later I was ready to get sewing.  

After a three-month long exploration of the art of following a pattern, cutting fabric, how to install a zipper, and all the things you can only learn if you get into it, I had a dress.  It was gorgeous! It was a green crushed velvet dress with a long zipper in the back and It fit perfectly! I was hooked after that!

To me, there is nothing more magical than that special transformation that cloth experiences as it morphs into a beautiful item.