Spinning - fibery goodness stash enhancement

Over the weekend I attended the Snake River Fiber Fair 2012 in Idaho Falls. My main goal was to stock up on fiber for spinning. The fair had vendors from the Intermountain and Pacific Northwest. There were hand dyers and ranchers selling fleeces. I had never been to a fiber fair before so I wasn't entirely sure of what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised, especially with the friendliness of the fiber guild staff and vendors. I am definitely planning on going next year and maybe even take a few classes.

So here is what I bought:

1 oz. of undyed, natural Cormo top from Bennyhill fibers out of Montana. It is amazingly soft. I just wanted to test out a new fiber and I will probably practicing dying it as well. The vendor recommended dying the spun yarn rather than the roving.

8 oz of hand dyed corriedale from The Fiber Addict out of Donnelly, Idaho. The fiber prep on this is amazing and so much better than the fiber I purchased a few months ago. It was so pretty that I had to start spinning it right away. It will take me a long time to spin 8 oz of fiber, but it is such fun to watch the colors blend. I will probably buy from this vendor again.

It was really fun to meet Carolyn Greenwood from Greenwood Fiberworks. She is incredibly nice and enthusiastic about fiber. This braid was definitely the splurge of the day. 4 oz of merino/bamboo/silk. It is gorgeous. I haven't decided how to spin this up yet, but for now it's enough just to feel it's softness.

Finally, I purchased a new spindle from Irish Rose Rabbitry. She has beautiful spindles with stone whirls. I wanted a lighter weight spindle so I could spin finer yarn. The shaft is a beautiful hand carved glossy black. The spindle is a bit fast for me, but I love it. The prices on her spindles were really great. Only $10 for this gem.
The vendor also sales angora fiber.

I was able to test drive the Schacht Lady Bug and Sidekick spinning wheels. I definitely had a preference for the Lady Bug. I really need to try out a single versus a double treadle. One vendor says I picked up the treadling really fast (from all those years of sewing?).  I know that I need a lot more practice. There are many more things you have to pay attention to with a spinning wheel. The transition from spindling to spinning wheel was hard because I had a harder time controlling the spin and winding on at the same time, which are two different actions with spindling. In any event, it was fun to try. Is a wheel in my future? Maybe. But for now, I really do love spindling.

Grading a skirt pattern

I sewed a skirt from a Burda pattern 2 years ago in desperation. I had gained weight and none of my skirts fit me anymore. 6 months later, I dropped all that weight and the skirt was simply too big. I liked the skirt pattern and it fit really well, but I had to grade the skirt pattern down in order to use it again.

In order to grade the skirt, I had to figure out the grade for Burda's patterns. I did this by looking at their measurement charts and comparing the sizes. With a little math I determined that Burda was using a 1.5 inch grade in the waist and hips. After comparing my measurements with the chart, I learned I only needed to go down one size.

So I pulled out my handy Jack Handford grading book and followed the instructions for grading a woman's skirt one size down. There are charts and instructions for a 1, 1.5, and 2 inch grade. It was so much easier to do than I expected. I knocked this out pretty quick. This book is now out of print, but if you can find it, buy it.

And I may be too much of a nerd, but I assigned a style number and created my own cutting spec for future reference. Now all I have to decide is which fabric to use to make up my next skirt.

T-shirt pattern quest pt. 6 : How to correct the fit of the armhole of a fitted t-shirt

I created some drawings to further explain the armhole problem on my t-shirt pattern. Nearly all drafting instructions that I've seen for t-shirts are pretty much the same. First you enlarge the armhole and drop the shoulder. Then the front and back bodice are traced off with identical bodice shaping and armhole shaping. The only difference might be the neck. If you lay the pattern pieces on top of each other, you will get something like this.

This kind of pattern works ok for a boxy, loose fitting t-shirt. If you want a more fitted t-shirt, then it simply won't work. In my case, the symmetrical armholes caused the front of the shirt to be pulled toward the back. The closer the fit, the less symmetry in general. When you look at the human body, you can see there is no symmetry between the front and back so patterns should reflect this. (Most people are not truly symmetrical left to right either). Children generally are more symmetrical than adults and the patterns for them reflect this. But, even there, the more fitted the style, the less symmetry though the differences are smaller. Anyway, the patterns above resulted in a fit that looked like below. The red arrows help emphasize the shape and length differences of the front and back armholes.

To correct this problem, I needed to lengthen the back armhole. I compared the armhole of my blouse pattern, which was not symmetrical, to the t-shirt armhole to determine how much longer it should be. Slash and spread and the pattern should look like something below.

 With a result that looks much improved.

The next thing on my list is to make adjustments for front versus back body width.

T-shirt pattern quest pt. 5 : Evaluating the fit of the armhole

I sewed up two more samples of my t-shirt pattern. I was still not satisfied with the fit. There were wrinkles around the armhole and elsewhere. I spent a bit of time studying the pictures below to try understand the fitting problem and how to solve it.

It finally occurred to me why the armhole was giving me so many problems. The back armhole was too short. You can actually see in the picture that the front of the t-shirt is being pulled toward the back at the shoulder seam and underarm. The fix was rather simple - make the back armhole longer.

What a difference, don't you think? There are some other fit problems. I'm still debating the amount that I scooped out on the front armhole. I think I may need some extra width across the front. And then there is the sleeve that wants to twist. But overall, this is pretty good and those complaints are minor. Will there be a version 5.0? Probably.

More on copyrights - this time on fabric

I've wanted to write a blog entry on the latest state of copyright and intellectual property issues in the fashion and sewn products business for a while. I've been watching the assertions of copyright restrictions by indie pattern designers (sewing and knitting) and the appearance of copyright restriction on fabric selvages. I've struggled with how to approach the topic because it can become quite heated very quickly.

As a fashion designer, I like to use printed cotton fabrics in my girls dresses. Over the last several years, I've been watching the rise and popularity of certain fabric print lines and their designers. I've loved the prints they are producing because they have hit upon a formula which is constantly fresh and inspiring. Long gone are the sweet floral rose buds that were so typical for infant clothing. Now there is an explosion of modern, colorful designs that are mixed and matched like crazy.

In the fashion industry there is an assumption that fabric available for sale can be used to make commercially sold products*. We don't usually take the time to ask for permission from every vendor and copyright holder before we design a season. To do so would bog down the process considerably. And let's not forget the concept of the first sale doctrine, which in the United States says the creator of an object loses control of it once the item has been sold**. Even so, I went so far as to ask permission on one fabric design a few years ago because it was designed by a well known scrapbook paper designer. This designer was known to go after individuals who used her scrapbook products to make new products to sell. But when I asked the fabric vendor, they thought I was crazy - of course I could use the fabric for a commercial product.

Well it appears with the rise of celebrity fabric designers***, that is changing. I've been reading of the recent case involving Kate Spain and C&T Publishing/Emily Cier. I won't rehash the whole thing but you can read a good analysis at The Free Motion Quilting Project. With the resulting chaos and ill will that is now floating around the quilting industry, you can see how quickly creativity can be curtailed.

This one situation throws chaos into more than just quilts. There are many childrens clothing designers, accessory makers, and manufacturers who use fabrics from celebrity fabric designers. What's to be done there? I can assure you that the fashion industry as a whole will not stand for it. There is a cost associated with printing up fabric, but it is not as hard to come up with our own designs and print our own fabric as it has been in the past. Those fabric designers need to be careful that they don't alienate the very customers they seek to serve by limiting what can done with the fabric they create. They may loose the very income they seek to protect.




*Generally speaking, it is suggested that a fashion designer not use a fabric print that contains a licensed character such as Mickey Mouse. Doing so crosses into trademark territory and Disney will come after you. There are some designs which are so distinctive that there can be no doubt that the design refers to another brand. So while the first sale doctrine may apply, why would you want to go there? In addition, it is copyright infringement to copy an existing fabric design and print it yourself. Though that gets into murky water because there are many, many fabric designs which are technically in the public domain, though which is and is not public domain is difficult to determine.

**Those statements printed on fabric selvages that limit usage to personal use are probably not legally binding due to the first sale doctrine. Though I'm certain some individuals may actually try to enforce it with lawsuits and threats anyway. If you see it and you have a concern, then just don't buy it. And as mentioned above, some companies will actually come after you.

***Please don't think that the usage of the terms celebrity fabric designers is disparaging. On the contrary, these fabric designers deserve the recognition that comes with their talent. The term celebrity simply refers to their popularity and the expansion of their brand across multiple product lines. Just as there are celebrity chefs, actors, and what not, there can be celebrity fabric designers.