Summer shorts and boardies time

Well it's soon gonna be *that* time of year... you know the one... where the big orange orb in the sky is in full bloom for hours and hours a day, the water is warm, and the jandals get a good airing.  Time for the chilly bin to be dusted off and the BBQ to be fired up.  It's SHORTS TIME!

I love summer, not just for wearing shorts and t shirts and sandals and suncream, but also for being able to make shorts and skirts for MooAndFlo. So today I whipped up the first few pairs, and here's a sneaky peeky...

Crafts v. Sweat shops

When people find out I make clothes and sell them, I get one of two responses:

"Ooh good on you, what do you make?" and then lots of enthusing about craft fairs and small businesses selling quirky and wonderful things...

OR

"You could get those made overseas at a fraction of the cost and then sell them here - you'd be rich in no time" and a lecture about how me working for below minimum wage is madness...

So here's the deal:  I sew because it's therapeutic.  I sew because it is a wonderful feeling when someone buys something you made.  I sew because the thank you emails and photos really do make my day.  I sew because creating something is just so much fun.  I sew because it's a good way to keep learning something new.  I sew for more reasons than money. 

As for hiring some poorly paid sweat shop workers, often children, almost always female, to whip some stuff up to make line my pockets, well the thought appalls me.  I'm no saint, but seriously, are people really just focused that much on the dollar sign?

So, next time you are torn between buying something handmade by a local crafter and buying something mass made, just ponder who made the garment you are looking at and why.

If Confucius could sew...

... he would have had a whole new list of sayings:

Confucius says

• no matter what fabric you buy, your customers will want the one that's run out
• you will run out of cotton half way through a fancy stitch
• the busier you are, the more likely it is that your overlocker will jam
• never underestimate the importance of ironing before you sew
• despite having ten different coloured pins, you will always drop the one that matches the carpet

10 step programme

My name is Flo and I'm a fabri-holic.

I like to think I can stop at one print, but once I've started it just seems to start a domino effect and before I know it my trolley has 15 bolts in it, some of it the hard stuff like quilters' cotton.  And I tell myself, okay, well I'll just get one metre of each, that's not so bad... then I see the 50% off sign and soon I am sneaking 2- and 3- metre cuts into my unmarked brown shopping bag and hoping no-one will notice. 

So I'm asking you, as my friends, please don't offer me offcuts.  Don't ply me with remnants or fat quarters.  Keep your bolt ends locked in a cuboard out of reach.

Please help me to help myself.

My name is Flo and I'm a fabri-holic.

Cyborg Sewing and Robot Ragtrade

It's safe to say, despite my modest achievements, I'm not the best seamstress in the world.  The tailors on Saville Row, the masters of cloth like Vera Wang and Louis Vitton have one over on me there.  But one thing's for sure, my old eyes and wrinkled hands are not half bad at lining up fabrics accurately, can spot a slight pucker here or a missed stitch there, and can hem a frock capably in no time.  But it seems (seams?) that soon I will have even more competition, this time in the shape of a one-armed blind robot tailor!  Oh my battered pride!

The Leapfrog Project is trying to build an automated sewing 'robot' that will be able to create made-to-measure clothes at a fraction of the cost of conventional bespoke tailors.  They clearly think there's money in it, as they've invested 23 million Euros in the project and even companies like Hugo Boss are involved.  You can watch the robot in action here:
Robot Tailor created by the Leapfrog project

But there is hope... the robot tailor's achievements are so far fairly modest.  It can align and join two pieces of fabric with a seam, but can't yet insert sleeves or attach a cuff or collar, let alone add on a jaunty pocket...   And I very much doubt that even when it's finished and operational, it can compete with the handmade love, care and customer service we are lucky to enjoy here in little old New Zealand from our wonderful crafting community... so maybe my wee MooAndFlo empire is safe for a wee while yet.

Competition time over at MooAndFlo

So, I'm feeling generous right now and thought I'd run a little competition, so if anyone would like to enter, just click here!

Entry is FREE

The prize is one garment of your choice from my albums, made to order, up to size 6.

Project Runway?

Maybe I've been watching too much TV (again), but after getting more and more frustrated with the trouser patterns I have (too wide, too baggy, random sizing, etc) it suddenly occurred to me that I should get a little bit Project Runway and make my own patterns.  I've only ever made stuff from pre-made patterns and not ventured down this crazy route before, so it was a wee bit of a leap, but hey ho, I'm nothing if not up for a challenge.  So I designed and made a pair of jeans for my 2 year old...

Now, they were not too bad, and the back was fabulous if I say so myself, but there was something about the front that reminded one of an old man wearing a catheter and bag.  It wasn't the look I'd been aiming for.  I could imagine Tim Gunn eyeing them up, tilting his head, putting on the frown and saying "Dianne, I'm worried.  Make it work!"

So I took them off my poor wee model, unpicked my front seam, and trimmed where I thought trimming was needed, then I got Doris The Overlocker back on the job and went for take 2.  And you know what, it worked!  On the second try!  And they looked good.  No, great!  I quickly altered the pattern I'd made, and got it ready to go into proper production for MooAndFlo 

This is the wee fella in said trousers - back view because he's not even slightly co-operative when modeling my wares.  He'd not stand a chance in Top Model (yes I watch that, too)

It may not sound like much - but to see children in clothes I make is exciting enough, but to see them in trousers I have also designed is Very Exciting Indeed :)

Now I've got to do the patten in other sizes and see how I go, but you know what, I'm inspired, I'm giddy, and can't wait to give it a go!