Let’s talk about the economics of sewing, shall we?

When I was growing up, my Mom sewed to save money. With five girls, and five parochial-school tuitions to be paid on a professor’s salary, there wasn’t much left over for clothing. Mom made all our school and church dresses, which was great for me since I’m the oldest. My younger sisters probably weren’t so thrilled with my hand-me-downs, but we’ll have to ask them about that another day.

Anyway, waaaay back then (it wasn’t all that long ago, I swear), sewing was a great way to save money. Manufactured clothing was expensive, and it was rare that we found something in a store that cost less to purchase than to sew.

These days, due to globalization and the offshoring of fabric manufacturing and garment production, clothing is amazingly inexpensive. You can purchase cute dresses at Target and Old Navy for next to nothing–often for less than what it would cost you to purchase the materials to make a similar garment yourself.

So why do we still sew clothing? And why bother making clothing when you can purchase it for much less? Here’s what I think. And I would love to hear your opinions on this, as well:

1. The pleasure of the process. Personally, I love to make things. I love to sew, and I get great satisfaction from making something with my hands. It’s more than a hobby for me; sewing helps me to calm down, relax, and feel a sense of accomplishment.

2. Creative options. I love to make something that is unlike anything anyone else has. I think the word “unique” is over-used these days. But when you make something by hand and select the pattern, fabric, and trims that are used, it truly is unique. There’s a lot to be said for that, especially in this day of mass-produced products.

3. The inhumanity of the global supply chain. Let’s be honest. If you purchase a dress for $10 at a big retail store, someone somewhere was paid very, very little to make that dress and may have produced it in suboptimal working conditions. This is a dirty secret in the garment industry that the more reputable brands try to address. I’ve worked for companies that employed full-time overseas managers whose sole job was to be a presence in the factories of their suppliers–ensuring humane working conditions for the vendor’s employees. While I applaud these efforts, I still believe that in instances where prices have been pushed so low someone is being treated unjustly. It may be the factory owner who was pressured to reduce prices to a level at which there is no margin profit in order to stay in business, or it might be the line worker. Pricing has become so sensitive and competitive that the big retailers aren’t always playing fair with their suppliers. This is a complicated issue and deserves more consideration than I can give in this venue, but let’s just say that I get a little concerned when I see clothing sold for such low prices. When I sew a garment for my daughter to wear, I know that no one was treated unjustly in the creation of her dress. Unless I poked my finger with a pin or something. Or hollered at the cat when she jumped onto my sewing table while the machine was running….

Those are just three of the reasons why I sew. What about you? I’d love to hear what your motivations are.

(continued from part 1)

There are usually several stages in the development of sizes for an Oliver + S pattern. I always draft the first pattern in a 12-18 month size and fit that garment, or several consecutive garments, to one or two children who wear that size and match our target measurements. Once I’m happy with the fit, we develop a size 3 pattern. Since all our dress forms are a size 3, this is the size we show at trade shows and in trunk shows.

While these two sizes are being tested and fit, I’m writing the sewing instructions and checking to be sure all the notches and details are in place on the patterns. Then once we’ve checked the fit of the size 3 and are happy with both sample sizes, the grading begins.

Most size grading these days is done on a computer using specialized, expensive programs that are specific to pattern making and the industry. Smaller companies (like us) can’t afford the hardware and software to do our own size grading, so we hire other companies to do the grading for us using our grade rules. Size grading itself takes very little time, but the development, testing and fittings that happen around the grading are labor-intensive, time-consuming, and expensive. I want to be sure that the sizes are accurate and fit well, so we test many sizes before a pattern is approved.

Once patterns are graded and we’re satisfied with the fit and details of the pattern, we start formatting the graded sizes for printing. Everything needs to look nice on the pattern page, and the sizes need to be “nested,” or fit inside each other so they’re each legible without taking up too much space on the patter page. After all, the heavier tissue paper needs to fit into the envelopes once they’re printed!

Sometimes the pattern pieces can’t be nested, in which case we lay them each out independent of each other on the tissue paper so they won’t interfere with each other when a size is selected and cut. We also format the lines of the various sizes so they can be distinguished from each other. One dotted line indicates a size 3, and another dotted and dashed line indicates a size 4, etc.

Sound like fun? It’s certainly the most technically challenging part of my job (aside, perhaps, from writing detailed sewing instructions that can be easily followed, which is a fairly challenging task as well), but it’s also the part that I think is the most important. What’s the fun of sewing a pattern if it doesn’t fit?

I’m always interested to hear from you about the fit of our patterns. If you follow our measurement chart and have comments or suggestions about the fit of the resulting garment, I encourage you to contact me (liesl@oliverands.com). I think we can always improve our patterns and would love to hear your ideas and experiences with them. And of course I always love to see photos of the clothing, as well. Don’t forget that Flickr group, where you can share your creations with other appreciative seamstresses. I can’t wait to see what you make!

Have you ever wondered how clothing gets made in different sizes? It’s a rather technical process, and I thought it might be interesting to explain some of the steps to you.

Clothing and sewing patterns always start out from one size, which is called the sample size. For children’s clothing, there are often more than one sample size due to changing proportions, diapers vs. underpants, and various rates of growth from one age to another. One sample size simply wouldn’t cover the multitude of changes from one size to another and may result in a poor fit somewhere down the line.

Surprisingly, it’s more difficult to develop sizes for children’s clothing than for adults, which you probably wouldn’t expect since kids’ clothing is generally looser fitting and the silhouette isn’t as specific as it is for adults. But because of the many variables of children’s growth and development, many patternmakers and technical designers steer clear of children’s clothing. It’s considered a more challenging and demanding job than other patternmaking work.

Pattern grading uses a set of mathematical formulas to grow a pattern piece by a specific amount. This is how the various sizes of a pattern or design are developed. Every company has its own set of grade rules, and these are usually guarded closely as a trade secret because they take a lot of time and effort to develop. Once a company has an established set of grade rules, they don’t want to be knocked off by other companies.

Grade rules can also vary from company to company depending on the target customer. For example, a company that makes clothing for young women versus another company who produces a line for a more mature figure will use different measurements for their sizes and, as a result, different grade rules. Some companies prefer a closer-fitting garment, and other companies design clothing drape more loosely on the body. All of these factors come into play in size grading.

Back when I was working for another designer, I often conducted fittings for the activewear line of my employer. Our fit model was a muscular, athletic man who was built like V, with wide shoulders and slim hips. Unfortunately, not all that designer’s customers were built with the same physique, and the bike jersey I fitted on our model looked quite different when worn by my adorable husband; the slim, snug fit looked rather baggy in the shoulders and tight in the waist when worn by a more, shall we say, “average” man?

Developing a larger size from the sample size isn’t simply a matter of enlarging the pattern piece like you would on a photocopy machine. For example, a collar might grow longer to fit around a wider neck on a bigger size, but the height of the collar will probably stay the same or grow only a little bit taller. For this reason, it really does pay, in the end, to sew the correct size of a pattern. Occasionally I hear or read that someone simply eliminated the seam allowances to make a pattern smaller. This always makes me cringe because I know that the pattern pieces probably didn’t fit together properly, and the final garment most likely fits and looks entirely differently than what was intended. Plus, the frustration level on the part of the person sewing the pattern was likely very high when notches didn’t match up, sleeves didn’t fit into armholes, and so on.

(part 2 can be found here)

This isn’t the type of thing I usually talk about here, but I thought it was worth mentioning, briefly.

We’ve always felt that the checkout process on our website wasn’t as quick and easy as it could be. So we recently improved it, and we’re quite pleased with the results. Here are some of the new and improved features you’ll find:

• We now accept PayPal for purchases; choose PayPal when you’re prompted to select a payment method, and you’ll be directed to your PayPal account for quick, easy, and seamless check-out
• We now offer the ability to place an order without creating an account
• We have streamlined the process to create an account; there are fewer screens and fields to complete
• We have implemented a cleaner and more intuitive screen design throughout the checkout process

And, as always, you can be confident that your information is entirely safe when you place your order. We use SSL technology so that all personal information is secure and encrypted at all points during checkout. Happy shopping!

I hope you enjoyed the holidays are are excited about the new year. We certainly enjoyed a little break over here, and I’ve been busy finishing up some personal projects that have been languishing. Now I’m ready to go with some new ideas for the new year.

What are your crafting plans for 2009?

Here is a project you might want to consider. We’ve just received yet another reprint of the A Day in the Park convertible backpack tote pattern. This was the very first pattern we produced, and it’s become a favorite of our customers. Many of you have called and written to tell us that you liked it so much you’ve made them as gifts for friends and family as well. I like it because I can carry the essentials to the playground, grocery store, or wherever I’m going and still have my hands free. We even use one at S’s preschool for the first aid kit when we take the children to the playground and on field trips.

This is a pattern that was written for a second-level sewing class, so you can make it even if you don’t have a lot of experience. It does involve several layers of fabric, and I recommend using a walking foot to prevent the layers from shifting while you’re sewing. The pattern offers lots of room for creative embellishment, like this little house fabric-covered button we added to ours.

Visit the Flickr group for this bag if you’d like to how other people have made and embellished it. And have fun!