Sewing Tips
Make it better, faster, easier
Why Ease should be Proportionate to Size
I just read a message from a very popular pdf pattern company, announcing updates to an existing pattern, and one of the revisions is: “Even grading for exact ease in all sizes”. This is an improvement for sure, because their…
What is “good” pattern drafting?
I saw this question online: “What exactly is good drafting? How do I know if a pattern is any good? What should I be looking for?” Good drafting refers to proficiency in understanding the shape and proportions of the human…
Charity Sewing: Dresses for Haiti
It’s always an honor to share one’s talents and abilities with those less fortunate, and the art of sewing gives many of us a way to give back. There are many opportunities to sew for people who need help: children and babies, the…
Whose pattern is it anyway?
I’d like to comment on a legal issue currently stirring online in the independent pattern design world, and that is: “When a pattern designer is employed by a business, or is an independent contractor hired for a business, who owns the patterns…
How to Upcycle a Wedding Gown into a Christening Gown
Up-cycling is one of my favorite sewing challenges: It’s good for our environment to use existing materials, instead of producing more landfill Working within limitations can boost your creativity (as Tim Gunn says on Project Runway, whenever the designers have no…
Why are Indie Patterns Tested in Every Size?
Anyone who reads this column regularly knows that my pet peeve is inconsistent pattern grading. I’m annoyed by it, confused by it, and continue to ask “HOW does that happen? It’s not even possible to have inconsistent shapes and angles…
Bloomers versus Diaper Covers: What’s the Difference?
Bloomers have been “having a fashion moment” as they say in the apparel business, reincarnated as “bubble shorts” or “puckers” in kids clothing, and often the bottom half of rompers. It’s interesting to me that bloomers have something of a sweet…
The reason behind “jumpy” pattern grading
September 2017: Re-Posting this because today I just read a simple comment in a FB group that explained so well, why patterns are sometimes graded so “jumpy”. The question was “Can someone teach me about proper pattern grading. I hear some people…
Pattern Review: Ikatee “Sakura”
Ikatee is a new-to-me French pattern line, designed by Stéphanie Godefroy. I stumbled upon her business when I saw this Bohemian style that reminded me of the most comfortable dress I owned in the ‘seventies: I wasn’t familiar with the designer….turns out…
Are we Sewing Too Many of the Wrong Clothes?
When you sew all day, your mind has a chance to wander and wonder. Things that make me stop and THINK include the morning newspaper, stuff I read online, movies, music, videos….usually 2 or 3 different ideas combine to create…
