Another Tilton Comes to Life - Marcie This Time

FINALLY, I am going to cut into the beautiful wool knit that I bought in Italy last fall.  For the first time I made a muslin (see previous post). So perhaps I was over confident in cutting and not concentrating and did a really stupid thing. 

 First, I completely forgot to cut out the facing pieces since they were not needed in my muslin that was strictly for fitting my shoulders. Then when I cut them I really CUT one in half. AM I BLIND? Place on the fold seems pretty clearly marked.

 There is not enough fabric to recut so it is new machine to the rescue.  Here is the touchscreen showing my stitch choice. I butted the pics together with a bit of added interfacing (a black tricot)

It came out really strong and looks remarkably good especially since it will be on the inside of the jacket.

For the first time I used the buttonholer for this machine. The pattern calls for a 1and 1/8 inch button and the attachment only accommodates a one inch button but I just opened the thing to its fullest and made lots of practice buttonholes. Due to the stretch of the fabric, the button goes through perfectly.

 With it buttoned it looks pretty good BUT....

                               Unbuttoned, not so much. Very wavy. More interfacing?

                 And, the black interfacing shows on the edges even though I did stitch it twice around.

           My reason for choosing this pattern is the interesting seaming on the back and sides.

               
And I think I did a pretty nice job of topstitching using topstitching thread. Why is red  so hard for me to photograph?????

So where is the jacket in its entirety? You'll have to wait until I am able to photograph it in a perfect setting. Stop by in about a week from now for the unveiling.

Here is a hint.

Snake Eyes + A Jacket Muslin

New Embroidery Machine - bad photo

When I bought a new sewing machine about two years ago, I was sure I had all the bells and whistles that I needed. My Janome (did you know Ja No Me means SNAKE EYES!) even has an automatic thread cutter.

However, I have been making all manner of items for my Etsy shop and just this last January fell upon the item to make the shop really begin to pay off. SEE HERE.  Many of these are being purchased as bridesmaid gifts and the brides keep asking if they can be monogrammed and I have to say "NO".

Many of them have still proceeded to purchase them and I have brought in more revenue on these than I did for a whole of 2014. So when I attended the Cleveland Sewing and Quilt Expo a few weeks ago I checked the embroidery machines out. And I brought one home the first day.  The dealer had an offer that I literally could not refuse without feeling stupid.

It is another Janome and besides the offer,  I really like that its controls and accessories are interchangeable and very similar so moving back and forth between machines is effortless and less taxing to my aging brain.

I have have to learn more about acquiring the fonts and some editing software to be able to offer more choices and I will be lettering all over the place.  The cool thing with these machines is that once you have it all set up, it sews on its own. I can step over to my other machine and work on something else while it does its thing.

Other things might include working on that jacket I have been planning since I bought the fabric in Rome.

Here it awaits its transformation draped over Francine, my mannequin.

I am taking on the red wool knit first in Vogue 8982 jacket by Marci Tilton. My last post was about Marcie's sister Katherine's zipper-trimmed shirt.
I have another trip planned and want to be able to
have the jacket, at least.

 For the first time in my life I made a muslin...well, a half-muslin. Since this knit is thicker and pretty stable I felt it was alright to use a woven (old bed sheet) for my trial. Shoulder fit is always the problem for me. So that is all I am concentrating on.





The markings were made while on me. Francine's
shoulders are much wider. I will trim this and adjust
the pattern and I am keeping my fingers crossed
that I have a better fit.


The pattern is very interesting and that is why I chose it but,  due to the sort of wrap-around back/side piece, I will not be able to sew the sleeve before the side seam as I usually do with a knit. A real set-in sleeve is on the agenda. Wish me luck. Should I embroider my initials on the inside?

Oh, and that snake eyes thing! Wikipedia explains:

The name "Janome" (蛇の目) literally means "snake's eye" and was taken from the appearance of the latest bobbin design. At the time of brand establishment in 1935, the round bobbin system was the more advanced technology replacing the traditional long shuttle type. As the new round bobbin looks like a snake's eye, Janome was chosen as the company's name.^[

Sewing for Me with Katherine Tilton and Vogue

 I have a number of fabric purchases that have been awaiting their turn to be transformed into SOMETHING but this project took precedence and got done. I attended the Cleveland Quilting and Sewing EXPO this week and for such occasions you MUST wear something hand made. I did so for one of the two days I spent there and here it is.

The fabric is a reversible knit in dots and stripes AGAIN. I made something with reversible knit previously (see here). 

The pattern is Vogue 8793 by Katherine Tilton and I chose it for the bit of quirkiness and the zipper detail on the double collar. The knit I chose is probably a bit stretchier than the Moderate Stretch Knit Only which is suggested. The stretchiness might be why the sleeve on the right in this photo is so much longer than the left. A tug would have evened them up but didn't see it until I put it up here.

An advantage of the extra stretch is that the sleeves are a bit tighter than I would like,  but the give makes it tolerable.

Here it is on me. Ooooh, I wish I matched this mannequin. She is a display piece NOT my dress form. 

This collar was the main reason to purchase this pattern (ON SALE) because all Vogue patterns are ridiculously priced (SEE HERE) The printed price on this one is $30. I got it online somewhere for $6, I think.

Again, I ignored instructions and bought a metal zipper, which is definitely what is shown on the pattern picture. 

Adding that double collar was the trickiest because the collar had a wad of layers and they are being sewn onto one rather thin and stretchy shirt layer. I did it on the regular machine with a stretch stitch and then trimmed it up on the serger. A row of top-stitching along that collar seam would have been nice, but I know I would have messed it up. It would have needed an interfacing to handle it and one more layer in that collar seam would have been asking for disaster.

It called for a Lightweight Molded Separating Zipper.  That would be plastic. I wanted this to have the effect of funky jewelry and plastic would just look stupid.  Granted, it would probably work out better in the laundry. This will be hand-washed, dried flat as I can imagine those little metal teeth biting into the soft knit.

Most of the shirt was assembled on the serger. Here I, once more, defy instructions and add the cuff BEFORE sewing up the sleeve seams. The pattern did show sewing the sleeve and side seams after the shoulder seam as in most knits.                                                                                

Again, I wish I was built like this mannequin. But even with Francine's nice straight shoulders you can see a glitch and a bit of stripe misalignment. My remedy for this is to just keep moving and no one will notice. 

Even after adjusting the shoulder width and using tape on the seam, I still get a droop. This pose is also not helping. Hubby was drafted into taking these and he worries way more about the edges of the picture and ignores how to make me look my best.

For your viewing pleasure, here is the left and right sides on Francine. I wish I had mixed it up a bit more on the inner and outer sides of the collars. This pattern would give you a way to mix and match a bunch of leftover knits. I would just make sure to pre-wash and make sure they are equally stretchy.                                                                                                     

Watch for the next installment of ThimbleFingers where I will show you what I acquired at the sewing expo that may change my life!

Even MORE Perplexing Pattern Problems - LEGAL

Many of you reading this know that along with Thimble Fingers Blog, I also have an Etsy shop CherylThimbleFingers. Maybe it was because yesterday was Friday the 13th (even though I am not really superstitious) I had a bit of bad luck.

Offenders awaiting trial

I was accused of breaking the LAW...COPYRIGHT LAW!!

As a former school librarian who was tasked with keeping the teachers in line with copyright, fair use and all of that, I should have known. But, should I really? It seems that the laws when it comes to the pattern and sewing field get very murky and muddled.

I was not reported to the higher ups at Etsy to remove the delinquent items; I just received a message from a fellow Etsian who said that some items in my shop were her design and her pattern which were published in a book with the statement in the fine print stuff up front that we librarians call the verso.

Now, understand this. I am not copying the pattern, instructions or any part of the book. I am following the written and illustrated directions to create a fairly simple purse organizer/wallet/wristlet/whatever that has a zipper. There is no pattern to cut out and use as a template. I must draft my own from the tiny drawing with measurements.

If you look at the bottom of the cover of the book ,it says what you CAN DO but nothing about
what you CAN'T DO.

 I snatched the listings down and then began ruminating on the matter and, as I am prone to do, I started questioning and researching and discussing. These kinds of issues come up all the time on the Etsy Forums with many opinions and none of them with the force of a court.


It seems the biggest problem with these things is that they never reach a court because the so-called infringer is too intimidated to take it on.

WELL, I AM HEAR TO SAY

that I probably won't either in a legal way but
I can QUESTION.

It was determined a number of years ago that dress pattern companies could not restrict what a home sewer did with the item made from the pattern.

The whole point of the first sale doctrine is that once the copyright owner places a copyrighted item in the stream of commerce by selling it, he has exhausted his exclusive statutory right to control its distribution.

Quality King Distributors, Inc. v. Lanza Research Int, 523 U.S. 135 (1998).

                                     From Circular 31 by the US Copyright Office (click on link for more)

Copyright protection extends to a description, explanation, or illustration of an idea or system, assuming that the requirements of copyright law are met. Copyright in such a case protects the particular literary or pictorial expression chosen by the author. But it gives the copyright owner no exclusive rights in the idea, method, or system involved.
Suppose, for example, that an author writes a book explaining a new system for food processing. The copyright in the book, which comes into effect at the moment the work is fixed in a tangible form, prevents others from copying or distributing the text and illustrations describing the author’s system. But it will not give the author any right to prevent others from adapting the system itself for commercial or other purposes or from using any procedures, processes, or methods described in the book. 

And there is a whole lot of interesting reading HERE that seems well-documented, but those who want to extend their grasp are known to refute .

 What am I going to do? Probably not a whole lot beyond discussing at this point. I only have 6 of these things I made hanging around and they have been very slow sellers on Etsy and at the few craft shows I have done. AND the are a B%@*H to make!

So, are there any sewing lawyers out there who want to take this on? I don't want a law suit to win damages. I want the United States Supreme Court to free us who sew from the bonds of control over things we make using a pattern that isn't even truly unique.

P.S. If you want to copy anything I have on this blog or in my Etsy shop, I won't do a damn thing about it.

UPDATE: 
While checking out a friend's Pinterest page, I found this:

http://www.liberty.co.uk/blog/12437/guest-blog-kerry-green-sewing-portfolio-organiser/
Scroll down a bit past the interview and behold. FREE instructions on the making of a folding sewing accessory holder, very much what I made,  with wonderfully detailed directions and NO warnings that if you make one you CANNOT SELL it.
But, we are not done yet. Click on the comments link at the bottom and....I dare not spell it out!

A Frozen Month Goes By + Perplexing Pattern Pricing

A whole wintry month has gone by since my last post. I vowed to keep this blog up weekly when I began but like many other bloggers the pace slows over time.
Eventually you have little more to say and the world outside doesn't help.

Bad iPhone pic

This backyard snowman is hard as a rock but he has seen several small thaws and refreezes since the grandkids and Grampa built him. He once had plastic pot headgear as well as a face and a second mitten.

The front yard guy is faring a bit better, but his hat and face departed and this morning he only has one mitten on. It is nearby on the ground.

That yellow one from the backyard may have been dragged off to become a sleeping bag for a mouse.

I really hope these blue ones survive. They are hand knit, but no one ever wears them.



















Sewing is supposed to be the focus of this blog so I will try to get back on topic even though the only thing I have to say right now is incidental.
I mentioned in my month old post that I decided to use my beautiful Italian wool knit to make  Marcy Tilton Vogue #8982. 

On one of my trips to Joann Fabrics I was going to pick it up but changed my mind when I saw the price was $27.50!! And no coupons allowed.

Now I respect Marcy's skill and the fact that Vogue has always been pricey, but no way is nearly $30.00 for a jacket I will make once sensible at my income level. And I am not poor or even uncomfortable, but just SENSIBLE.

When I spoke to the woman at the cutting counter about it
she got out her little handheld computer thing and looked into it and told me if I would come back the NEXT day ALL the patterns would be on sale for $4.00!!!!!

Well, it is a 20 minute drive but hubby was giving blood that day so I drove him to the blood-letting place and scooted on over to Joann's again.

Yup, they were all on sale, however slightly different. The big 3 were, I think, 3 for $4.00 or something like that and the Vogue was $5.00. Now, I was happy, but I still find it strange, perplexing and weird that a pattern price can be cut more than 80%. Does anyone ever pay the full price and if they do are they subsidizing the penny-pinchers like me?
Just asking.

Still Rolling Along + Sewing Hesitation

Been off the blog for a bit and the reason is I have been sewing the same thing over and over and over and....

My last post was about the jewelry roll I created and put in my Etsy shop and how it was taking off. Well, it's still going strong.  I acquired more fabric and seem to have cornered the market on it.  By the time it is all gone I will probably wish it had never been woven.

I've been doing some in another fabric I got on sale from Fabric. com.  I don't think it will have the appeal of the gray dotty stuff but it is pretty classy.

          This, like the gray, is a heavy upholstery weight with machine embroidered swirls all over it.

I may have negated the classiness of this outer fabric with the
inside fabric choices.  COVER YOUR EYES AND SCROLL DOWN.




READY?




SET?








GLARE!

                         The green is still a work in progress. It appears much subdued here.

  And this eye-popping purple is awaiting its completion when I get a second purple zipper. I have 2 fat quarters that somehow got in my stash and this seems a way to use them up.

Do you see how I am coordinating the inner side with the embroidery colors on the outside?  Maybe I will do a nice dull one with a gray since there is also that in the embroidery.   Somehow, I feel these will not have the action of the original gray ones.

AND THEN:

Wish this mannequin that the fabric is draped over was my size but alas, it is only a display piece.

Now to an entirely different project - sewing for myself.  The fabric stash for that is piling up and making me feel guilty.  This is the wool knit and silk I bought back in October in Italy (see post).

As a retired school librarian spending most of my time sewing or playing around online, I don't have much occasion to wear cool stuff as much as I used to.  I still love the idea of being well-dressed but no reason if you hardly step out of the door and when you do, its in a puffy red down coat.

                                                                       BUT

this spring we have scheduled a trip to London.  This fabric is dying to go with me but doesn't know how it would look best.  Several things need to be considered when choosing the design

1. I am short - very short.
2. I have very narrow shoulders but 38" hips
3. I want to keep it simple- to avoid screwing it up
4. There is not enough of the print for sleeves - too expensive
5. Most likely to be worn with navy pants
6. I want it to be interesting

  Marcy Tilton Vogue #8982 just might fill the bill. I have enough fabric. The pattern is suitable for knits and I like the seams and darts to add interest to a solid fabric. I looked for a raglan sleeve because I dislike sewing set in sleeves and they are easier for me to fit but,  they all were too sweater-like and drapey.   I have a pattern with a draped neckline that will do fine for the blouse.

ANY OPINIONS?

 

On a Roll + A Few New Sewing Hacks

Recently I stumbled across a tiny remnant of fabric in a bin at Joann's. It was missing any kind of price label but I just had to have it.  After a bit of time trying to locate and negotiate a price (the piece also had a dirty spot) I brought it home for $3.00!!

From that little piece I made these:

After making these and putting them up for sale in my Etsy shop (CherylThimbleFingers)they immediately started getting a lot of views and favorites. If you aren't familiar with Etsy, this is a good thing.

So I started looking around to buy more.  The gray color is very classy in my opinion.  After searching the web awhile I identified it as Waves by Waverly. Dots seems more fitting but the dots are in a lovely wavy pattern. Also an advantage of this fabric is the reverse. It is just as nice as the face for this kind of use.

But even better than finding several sources is that this stuff comes in several other colorways.

AND THEN EVEN BETTER, IT WENT ON SALE AT JOANN'S FOR 60% OFF!!!

Now I do try to be savvy about sales. Often, I feel, the item probably never was truly meant to sell at full price.  I saw it on another site at the same price as the sale with no mention of it being a deal. But I bought some from Joann's online because I qualified for free shipping.

The online site also showed me which stores were carrying which colors. Yesterday I picked it up in a lovely cocoa brown and I know there exists an orange and a yellow.

 But let's not get carried away yet.  It may come back to bite me. For the first time, I offered to make these in multiples to buyers and  I immediately had an order for NINE of the jewelry  rolls as bridesmaid gifts and just as I completed that order I sold another. Today I made up one in the aqua and champagne (I didn't know what to call this color), listed them on Etsy and they are getting views and favorites already.

Here are the 9 ready for sending off.


Now for the things I learned while making these.

#1. You don't always have to use a zipper foot to put in a zipper!

Changing feet drives me nuts. The one that came with my machine and snaps on quickly never lets me get close to an edge anyway.
My old one has to be screwed on and off which is a big time eater.

I have found that I can set the left edge of my regular foot against the coil and sewing very nicely down that line on the zipper.  When I get to the slider, I raise the presser foot and zip it closes and continue on.

Even if I sew it from the other side, the foot glides over the coil.  Now I know this will not work at all with a metal zipper.  Also this leaves a fair amount of zipper tape showing , but I like that.

          Here I am sewing the topstitching along the edge . See how nicely the coil guides my needle.

#2. That little metal stopper at the lower end of the zipper CAN be removed.  When sewing on this jewelry roll, that little bit of metal was getting hidden inside and was easily hit with the needle. BANG! Another broken needle!  I used a seam ripper to get in under it and discovered just three tiny teeth on each side are holding it on.

 Remove one side and roll it to the side and the other side pulls out fairly easily. Voila!

      NOW YOU HAVE A CUTE LITTLE METAL BUG KICKING ITS FEET IN THE AIR

 This is the inside of the roll where all the work is.  The great fabric on the outside barely gets handled.

                       

                   Now let's get rolling!  Another color will join these as soon as I find the perfect              fabric for the inside.  I can't find anything in my enormous stash of fabric.

On another note, are any of you gett ing crazy irrelevant comments. I am getting a lot that are like someone has copied and pasted from an encyclopedia!! I keep marking them as spam.  Wish I got REAL comments.