Sizing Issue Round-up Part 2

Last Friday I published Part One of this post with links to fascinating articles about size and fit issues in the fashion industry. Almost all of these links came from the fashion blog Wardrobe Oxygen.

The stupid reason that larger clothes fit so badly

Retail's plus-size problem: Designing for larger sizes

The Problem With Plus Size

More Sizes Don’t Always Mean a Good Fit for Plus-Size Shoppers

2016 Was A Good Year For Body Diversity In Fashion—But There's Still Work To Be Done

Sizing Issue Round-up Part 1

One of the many fashion blogs I follow is Wardrobe Oxygen. Last week she published links to various articles on the issues around sizing in the fashion industry. I was surprised to see a source I have linked to in the past mainly because I think of it as a makers resource. I've read a lot of the archives due to my interest in pattern drafting and fit issues. There are so many good articles to link to I've broken the list into two parts. Here's the first part. All these ones are from Fashion-Incubator.

Why existing manufacturers don’t add plus sizes

Grading is not morphing

Why isn’t women’s clothing sized like men’s? pt.1

Why isn’t women’s clothing sized like men’s? pt.2

What is a size break?

 

 

 

Bobbles are Back!

Back in 2012 my husband and I did a video on all of my tips for making bobbles. I taught a session on them at my knitting guilds skills exchange evening. Since most of my readers couldn't be there we did a video presentation on my topic: Knitting bobbles without turning the work. The link is at the bottom of this post. The video includes several techniques for increasing and decreasing the stitches of a bobble. There are two methods for creating bobbles without turning the work, as well as a number of extra tips for successful bobbles.

Then bobbles fell out of favour and I stopped teaching them. I know they are back again because I'm suddenly getting Youtube notifications. The video is up to 31,095 views. So I thought it was time to remind you about the video. Of course for me the fun part is seeing how much I've changed, I'm both significantly greyer and slimmer than I was back then. 

An Interview with...Stephanie Earp

Black Sea (credit Dianna Walla)

Once a week I post interviews with interesting people about their insights on their experience of working in the Knitting industry. I’ve noticed that every one of these individuals makes their living in a slightly different manner bringing their own unique presence to the knitting world.

You can find Stephanie here and here on Ravelry.

Galore (credit Joseph Baron)

Where do you find inspiration?
Often, in my own closet. I’ll look at the store-bought items I love and try to parse what it is about them that I like - is it the shaping, the colour, the fit? I do keep my eye on fashion trends, and I really like to browse street style posts on Instagram and Pinterest. I generally ask myself three things about my designs. Is it fashionable and contemporary? Is it impressive, as in, would a knitter want to brag about having made it? And is it special, something that you couldn’t buy off the rack?

What is your favourite knitting technique?
I’m having a moment with circular shapes in knitting, both in colourwork and lace, so right now I’m very into Estonian lace increases, creating many stitches from one.

Do you look at other designers’ work or are you afraid that you will be influenced by their designs? 
I definitely look at other designers, and I love to knit from other designers’ patterns. I learn a lot when I do, from better ways to phrase instructions in pattern writing, new techniques and even different layout ideas. There are only so many ways to design a sweater, or a shawl, or a pair of socks, and it’s inevitable that some designs will have similarities. I had a moment last year where I had a design almost ready to go, it was in tech editing, when a very successful designer posted a preview picture of an upcoming design that really did look a lot like mine. More than one person sent me a private message about it, so it wasn’t just my imagination. I was worried that if mine came out after hers, people would think I’d stolen the idea, so I rushed mine out and as a result, it had errors in it. And then the other design didn’t come out for another six months. I created a little crisis for myself out of nothing. So now I don’t worry about it and I extend the benefit of the doubt anytime I see similar designs. Sometimes things are just in the ether and more than one designer pursues the same path.

Sweet Vicious (credit Owen Campbell)

How many sample/test knitters do you have working for you or do you do it all yourself?

I knit my own samples 99% of the time, and I do run test knits through a group on Ravelry. Testing is a funny thing - most of the time, the pattern is fine. Maybe a little feedback over layout will come back, or something small like forgetting to include the phrase ‘bind off’ and the end of a cuff. But every now and again, a test saves you from disaster. I had one design that didn’t fit over anyone’s head. I mean, my sample did, but obviously something about my knitting style (very loose!) let me get away with it. If it wasn’t for my testers, I would have released it. I still feel bad thinking of it - all that work for a garment they had to rip! I’m extremely grateful for the time they invested.

Did you do a formal business plan? 
I haven’t yet, though I keep saying I will. I do have goals that I’ve written down, though. Most of them are not really financial goals, more about making connections, getting out to more events, doing more teaching. And now that I’m thinking of it, having those goals clearly established has definitely gotten results, so maybe it’s time to add some hard figures.

Do you have a mentor?

I do have a few mentors. I’m very lucky to have my friend Dianna Walla as a mentor, she’s been incredibly generous about sharing her expertise and experience with me. She’s told me she has a few people who did the same for her when she was getting started as a designer. So it’s cool, I feel like I’m part of a chain of people lifting each other up, and I’d like to do the same for others when I have more expertise to share. I also have a whole gang of amazing knitters to touch base with from working at my LYS, Espace Tricot in Montreal. The wealth of knowledge inside those four walls is crazy. 

Do you have a business model that you have emulated?
I don’t really have a business model I’ve emulated, but I do look at a few ‘personas’ that have inspired me. I think I found my public voice when I started listening to ‘My Favorite Murder’ a popular podcast that combines comedy and true crime. I’m definitely an extrovert and can have a dark sense of humour, and I worried about being myself on social media, in a community sort of renowned for introverts. But letting go of that and just being myself has made the social media aspect of this job so much more fun. In fact, I’d honestly say I love it. 

Do you use a tech editor? 
Oh yes! I need a tech editor, big time. I turn out some pretty terrible first drafts. And sometimes terrible second drafts. It took a few goes to find the right person for me - but I really did. My editor knows me well enough now to question anything and everything. 

Vionnet (credit Dianna Walla)

How do you maintain your life/work balance? 
Honestly, I don’t. I knit all day, and I knit all night, and then I dream about knitting. It’s probably not at all sustainable, but I just passed the one-year mark in doing this, and I figure I’m going to give it everything I’ve got for at least another year and see where that gets me. 

How do you deal with criticism? 
Ha! Poorly at first, and then after a sulk about it, I start to take it in and see how I can use it and grow from it. I try to not respond until I hit that second phase of things, if at all possible. 

How long did it take for you to be able to support yourself? 
I don’t yet, although I’ve had a few months that were pretty great. I need to get to a place where those good months are the rule, not the exception. I’m seeing this time as an investment in building a small business, and like any other business, I think it’s normal that it’s not earning me a living wage in its first year, but the next 12 months will have to change for me to be able to keep going.

What advice would you give someone who wants to pursue a career in knitting?
Work in a busy, modern yarn shop if at all possible. It gives you great insight into what people want to knit, what elements of a pattern they struggle with, and what yarns are out there.

What’s next for you?

I have several designs in the pipeline, in test knitting and tech editing now so they’ll be coming out over the next few months. I’ve been investing more time in submitting designs ideas to magazines, which has been fruitful, so I’m working on those too.

 

Straylight (credit Dianna Walla)

Tips on How to use my Patterns as Stashbusters

 

 

Here's a repeat of an old post to finish up this month's topic of stash busting.

 

I just spoke at a local guild on this topic so I'll share a few of my ideas here. First, why? I've been working on busting my stash since last summer. I donated a lot of yarn which I knew I wouldn't use to a group in a shelter. Another friend was running classes there and they got some of my stash. I've also realized it doesn't matter how old you are you can't escape the lessons your family taught you. In my case my  Grandmother never got over the depression. Being wasteful just seems wrong to me. Finally, I really get a kick out of working on design challenges and this has been a lot of fun! I've got two stash buster patterns, both with super simple knitting, mostly garter which allows me to combine very different yarns together.

 

Here are the tricks of the two designs. First working top down or sideways, while increasing and decreasing means you can knit as long as you have yarn.

 

Both patterns require a minimum of three colours/yarns and you can go crazy depending on how many ends you want to deal with in the second version which is the Ruth Kettering Wrap.

 

My earlier stash buster is the Dolly Bantry Shawl.

 

There are several colour strategies I used for both patterns.

Pick one variegated or multicolored yarn and choose other yarns that look right to your eye when you put them together. The green and mauve wrap on the left of the top photo uses that combination, which is mainly green and mauve.

 
Choose three solids - two neutrals and a colour or two colours and a neutral. In the photo at the top you will see these versions as well. Or you could go monochromatic and choose all one colour or even all one neutral.  

 
What about a rainbow spectrum based on a colour wheel?

 

If you do use a colour wheel and want to use three colours, a harmonious mix could be analogous groupings. Pick three colours in a row. As an example yellow, yellow/orange,and orange.

Remember if you use complimentary colours (across from one another on the wheel), equal proportions don’t work as well, use the Ruth Kettering pattern not Dolly Bantry and shift the complementary proportion to be about a 1/9 ratio.

Keep in mind, colour is very personal so feel free to ignore my suggestions and experiment. What is pleasing to my eye might not be to yours. 

 

One of the reasons I had so many bits of yarn I could combine is that we are often drawn to the same colours. You will probably find the same situation when you dig into your stash.

Mixing yarn weights works in these patterns because you are changing yarns very quickly, so there are no large areas of a single yarn. It's often a good idea to start the edge with the heaviest yarn before switching to lighter yarns.  

The picots were added to my second design as a place to bury the ends and keep everything neat with multiple yarns.

The samples have as many as three to four different weights in them. They vary from lace, fingering, dk, worsted, aran and include a thick and thin handspun.

 
For needle size, I use either the needle recommended for the heaviest yarn or one size up. If you are a tight knitter go up two sizes, you want a drapey fabric for a shawl/wrap.

 

For the Dolly Bantry pattern the smallest one has 154 yards as its shortest yardage for a single yarn. The lower edge is started when about 45% of the yarn is used up.

The Ruth Kettering Wrap has a total of 600 yards (200 each colour of light fingering) in the black, green and yellow version. You can get more details on the pattern and project pages about sizing.