People expect Sue McDowell to have an amazing sewing machine.
The assumption is not surprising given her husband, Murray, is an expert in repairing and servicing sewing machines.
So there is a certain irony when Mrs McDowell admits she hates sewing, her own machine was her mother's one bought in 1961 - and that it is her husband who uses it.
Mr McDowell (57) operates the business Sew Right from the couple's Broad Bay home, having been forced into self-employment in 1992.
He served his apprenticeship as an industrial sewing machine mechanic at clothing business Sew Hoy and Sons in Dunedin.
His mother went to school with the boss of the workshop and she got him the job. She was a cutter and designer for Sew Hoy and Sons and later worked for Bridal Boutique.
Sew Hoy and Sons had a big workshop and the company had factories in Balclutha, Kaitangata, Mosgiel and Christchurch, as well as Dunedin.
Mr McDowell enjoyed his time with the company, saying it was a "tough outfit" to work for "but if you did the job right, they looked after you".
The work was varied - "you got to fix everything and do everything" - and the experience gained stood him in good stead when he went into business on his own, as nothing fazed him.
He worked for the company for 20 years and ran the workshop for about the last eight.
He was only the second person to get the New Zealand Trade Certificate in industrial sewing machine mechanics in 1984.
When the company went into receivership, he stayed on for about six months while the business was wrapped up.
Mrs McDowell recalled that with two young children and being a stay-at-home mother, it was an awful time.
Mr McDowell then worked at Undercover Clothing, which had bought the lingerie department from Sew Hoy and Sons, for two years, before going out on his own.
He was fortunate there was another self-employed sewing machine mechanic in the city, Mervyn Adams, who was wondering what to do when he retired. He handed over his customers to Mr McDowell, which made the transition easier.
In those early days of his business, it "really took off".
There were a lot of factories around, he was working long hours and contemplated employing a staff member.
But after the sharemarket crash, he lost some big clients.
Then he started to employ home sewers. He discovered a lot of companies had out-workers who were doing the work from home.
Mr McDowell spent the first four years working from a building in the Roslyn estate, but when times got tough, he could not afford to have a workshop in the city.
Working from home had not proved to be a disadvantage and the view of Otago Harbour from his workshop window was spectacular, he said.
While there had been lean times and work "comes and goes", he was "quite busy".
The past couple of years had been tough since the recession hit, he said, but it had now become a lifestyle for the couple.
In school holidays - Mrs McDowell works as a teacher aide at Tahuna Normal Intermediate School - the couple headed to Central Otago.
They had a caravan in Cromwell.
Mr McDowell arranged work there and Mrs McDowell took her "bike, books, knitting, whatever - it's lovely".
It was amazing the number of people at home - often farmers' wives - who were making something, whether it was farming equipment or women's or children's clothing, Mr McDowell said.
He usually got jobs through word of mouth. His customers had included such diverse clients as the Hilton Hotel in Queenstown and a film company filming at the Snow Farm at Cardrona which required the servicing of the machines used for making costumes.
While there were not the big companies like Sew Hoy and Sons, his biggest clients now were Otago Polytechnic and Ellis Fibre. He also sold parts and needles and thread.
Mr McDowell still enjoyed his work, and particularly the diverse range of people he met.
His wife looked after Sew Right's books and it was a team effort. He said he did not think he could have done it without her.
