HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
Organization: Arizona State University
Date: Friday, 10 Apr 1992 16:04:25 MST
From: <IDRAB@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: Re: HELP with Snaps...PLEASE!


In article <1992Apr6.162516.12996@mailhost.bl.cad.slb.com>,
hackney@luigi.enet.dec.com (Kirsten Werne) says:
>        Last night I was finishing up an outfit I had made for my 9 month
>        old.  I am not a great sewer (more than a beginner, but definitely
>        not an expert).  Anyway, the one piece jumpsuit was all done except
>        for putting in the 9 snaps in the crotch.  I have a Dritz snap
>        applicator...I figured this would be the easy part.  Boy, was I wrong!
>        It took me forever (1 1/2 hours, I would guess) to get all of those
>        *&^% snaps in.  I kept having problems with the snaps not lining up
>        correctly so I would have to take them out, etc.  Each time I would
>        have to remove them, I would end up with more holes in the jumpsuit.
>        I especially had trouble at the bottom and crotch where there were
>        multiple layers (I had my husband finally do it because he had more
>        hand strength).  Anyway, my question is, is there an easier way???
>        What am I doing wrong?  I would like to avoid buying the snaps that
>        are already on a strip of material because I like to be able to
>        adjust where I put the snaps.
>
>        Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!  Thanks,
>
For lining them up, try attaching all of the halves which have the bump (the
part that goes into the other half's socket) to the appropriate edge of the
garment.  Then, put a piece of carbon paper on top of the attached snaps (with
the printing side up), lay the edge of fabric on which you will place the
socket half of the snap (line it up so that it lays the way it will when the
garment is finished), and rub across the little bumps with your finger.  You
will get a small mark on the fabric which lines up exactly with the halves of
the snaps which are already attached.

Hope these instructions aren't too confusing.  This is really very simple, but
it's much easier to demonstrate than to explain.

For attaching snaps, I finally bought one of those gadgets which puts the
little metal rings in belts (the doodads where the prong of the belt buckle
goes).  It has a little adapter which helps you attach snaps.  Works much
better than the little plastic applicators which are sold for attaching
snaps.  If you ever look for one of these tools at the fabric store, just
keep your eye out for something that looks like a large paper punch.
---
Doctor Ruth                            "If you're too busy to laugh,
                                        you're too busy............"
(standard disclaimer)
From: barbara@uf.msc.edu (Barbara Bryan)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: French Hand or Heirloom Sewing
Date: 16 Apr 92 14:03:21 GMT
Article-I.D.: uc.1992Apr16.140321.22990
Reply-To: wes@msc.edu
Organization: AHPCRC


	My mother is interested in doing some Heirloom sewing.  Can
anyone recommend a good place to start?  I think she's looking for a
book that starts from the beginning.  Thanks.
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
From: laura@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Laura M. Edwards)
Subject: Re: Jinny Beyer books
Organization: Vanderbilt University Space Electronics Research Group
Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1992 16:25:02 GMT

Beyer also has a new pamphlet out that shows you some of her ideas
with the Columbus prints.  Called the Adventure series (I think),
it's a one time collection of prints commemorating the 500th anniversary
of columbus' voyage.  Check your local quilt/fabric store.

Laura
From: alanj@endeavor.tek.com (Alan Jeddeloh)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: Hand Smocking questions
Keywords: Embroidery, Hand Smocking
Date: 15 Apr 92 16:58:01 GMT
Distribution: na

In article <1992Apr14.200325.5625@cbnewsk.cb.att.com> shy@cbnewsk.cb.att.com (susan.hallander) writes:
>I am considering attempting to learn to do hand smocking. In case you don't
>know, this is the technique of applying embroidery stiches to small pleats.
>This is used most commonly to decorate little girls dresses. I have a book
>with directions and patterns but I do not know where to order supplies.
>Evidently I need some special tissue paper that has little dots on it
>where the pleats are supposed to go. The dots are transferred onto the
>fabric before pulling the pleats. Does anybody know where to get this
>paper? I have tried two mail-order houses and all the local fabric
>shops. 

My wife has been smocking for about a year now.  She started out getting
her fabric pleated at Daisy Kingdom.  She got into it deeply enough that
she bought her own pleating machine.  I won't try to describe the thing,
other than to say that it pleats the fabric between very long gears and pulls
the pleated fabric through a battery of needles.  The threads from the needles
then hold the pleats while the actual smocking is done.

I think she paid about $100 for the pleater.

Daisy Kingdom also has smocking classes.  I don't know how widespead the
store chain is, though.


--
    Alan Jeddeloh      W:(503) 685-2991  H:(503) 292-9740
    Tektronix, Inc.
    D/S 60-850; PO Box 1000; Wilsonville, OR 97070
    Alan.Jeddeloh@tek.com          Let sleeping dogs^H^H^H^Hbabies lie
Xref: sparky alt.sewing:1253 rec.crafts.textiles:833
From: jshekara@wisconsin.prime.com (Jennifer Shekaran)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing,rec.crafts.textiles
Subject: Stores in Tampa/St. Pete area
Date: 7 Apr 92 17:54:12 GMT
Reply-To: jshekara@wisconsin.prime.com (Jennifer Shekaran)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Prime Computervision, Bedford MA


My husband has a business trip to the Tampa/St. Pete area and I
will be joining him there for a long weekend.  I am going a day
earlier than his business meetings so that I can shop :-)!  I 
would appreciate any leads on places to shop for fabric and
crafts.  My interests include sewing/serging, cross-stitch, 
needlepoint, hardanger, and knitting.  I am always on the lookout
for unusual projects, and have found that in my experience the
really unusual stuff is not in the national chain stores but the
local stores which cater to local interests.

If anyone else is interested, I will summarize to the net.

Thanks in advance!
Jennifer
**************************************************************
Jennifer Shekaran  	     jshekara@cvbnet.Prime.com
Computervision
Bedford, MA  01730
From: barbara@gorgon.forut.no (Barbara Wasson)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing,rec.crafts.textile
Subject: Re: Hand Smocking questions
Keywords: Embroidery, Hand Smocking
Date: 16 Apr 92 11:36:13 GMT
Organization: University of Tromsoe, Norway

In <1992Apr14.200325.5625@cbnewsk.cb.att.com> shy@cbnewsk.cb.att.com (susan.hallander) writes:

>Does anybody know where to get this
>paper? I have tried two mail-order houses and all the local fabric
>shops. 

In Canada some of the hoby shops have smocking supplies. Grace L. Knot
is the name of women who wrote a lot about smocking and you can get
dots and patterns with her name on it. In Toronto, Canada there is
a Grace L. Knot supplier in the phone book that does mail orders
so if you have no luck in the US phone to the operator in Toronto
(area code 416) and ask for the phone number for Grace L. Knot. There
are lots of sources in that area of Canada. I learned to smock from
my mother when it was not so popular about 10 years ago, but now
it is really popular again. All the handicraft shows in Toronto had
lots of smocked items.

"Threads" magazine (Tauton Press) has had some articles on smocking 
in the last couple of years, so if you have access to that there might 
be some leads to US places. Also "Creative Needle" focuses a lot on 
smocking and heritage clothes for children and I know that there are 
many advertisements in that magazine for smocking supplies. I don't
have my copies of these with me in Norway so I cannot find an address
for you. 

>I have some old embroidery floss in very good condition which I would
>like to use. My directions say to use six-strand floss and to use about
>three strands of it. I have two-strand floss, is this the same?

You can experiment with the floss to see the effect on the fabric. If
it is a plain fabric then maybe two strands will be ok, but on printed
fabric you might need it heavier to see the contrast. One strand is
definitely not enough.

>I'm interested in the comments from anybody who has tried hand-smocking.
I just love smocking and friends have always really liked the presents
I have made for their kids. There are some really nice patterns for
nighties for infants and dresses for up to 2 years that are on 
a circular yoke.  I think my favorite is red smocking on a white dress.
The "princess dress" is the name of the dress for older girls that has 
a peterpan color, short sleeves and a smocked yoke that goes straight 
across the front. I have a pleater machine that you can use to make 
the pleats, but it is not necessary.  Picking up the dots is actually 
kind of fun!!

Enjoy!

Barbara
--

  Barbara Wasson               barbara@forit.forut.no   """""""""""
" Norwegian Telecom Research                                      "
" TROMSOE, city of the midnight fun    - from Let's Go Europe     "
From: mlj@vet.vet.purdue.edu (Emily)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: Need help with a Singer Stylist
Date: 10 Apr 92 03:53:59 GMT
Organization: Purdue University SVM


	I am posting for a woman with a 22 year old Singer Stylist.
She has been having a considerable amount of trouble sewing on knits,
especially lightweight ones and has tried some different ballpoint 
needles.  Apparently, it tends to skip stitches.  If anyone has any
experience with this machine, your advice would be appreciated.

	Thanks,
	Emily
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
From: dikig@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Diki Gust)
Subject: Sewing machine tension
Summary: How to check for thread tension
Organization: ddsw1.MCS.COM Contributor, Chicago, IL
Distribution: na
Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1992 18:11:00 GMT

While this may have appeared in this news group before, I haven't seen it
since I've started reading, and may be worthwhile for someone.  There is
a very simple test to check whether upper and lower thread tensions are
properly set.  Take a scrap of material, well maybe 6" on a side.  Stitch
a straight line on the bias without stretching it.  Then pull it along
the stitching line.  Give it a steady pull, one hand on each end of that
line till you hear thread snapping.  If the tensions are properly 
adjusted, both top and bottom threads will snap.  If only the top snaps 
ease up on the top tension.  If the bottom snaps, tighten the top or...
my machine also permits me to adjust the bobbin tension, but it's over
40 years old,  I really don't know if the newer ones permit this or not.

Good luck to all,
Diki
From: am2f+@andrew.cmu.edu (Anne Marguerettaz)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: WEDDING GOWN RESTRUCTURING
Date: 11 Apr 92 16:31:43 GMT
Organization: Doctoral student, Chemistry, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA


To cut down on costs for our weddings, my sister and I decided to buy a gown
that we could both use and since she got married in late fall last year,
we picked a gown that had long sleeves. My wedding had to be postponed
from this fall till next summer (93) and I would like to change the sleeves
which would make it more bearable for me to wear and also would give me
a gown different than my sisters. The gown as it is now has a fitted bodice,
long fitted sleeves starting at the top of the shoulders and a deep V neckline
that ends on the shoulders, on top of the sleeves. The bodice ends in a V on 
the skirt and there is lace on it as well as the sleeves. The gown is plain 
satin and has a cathedral train.
I have seen in a bridal magazine a gown that I just love and that I could never
afford but I was wondering if it would be possible to modify the gown that
I already have to make it look like the one I saw. The new gown has very short
puffed sleeves, off the shoulders and a fitted bodice, ending with a
dropped waist. The train is very short, more of a chapel length, which
is good since the extra material that would be needed for the sleeves
can be obtained by shortening the train. In brief I would need to
replace long fitted sleeved by short puffed ones, which probably also
means changing the neckline a little bit and maybe dropping the waist (
I was told that makes people look thinner but shorter, is this true?).
I do not have the time or the skills to undertake this myself so I have
been trying to find a seamstress in the Pittsburgh area who would do it
for me but after speaking to a couple of them,I was told that they just
handled 
alterations such as taking in or out parts of the gown and making bustles but 
nothing as complicated as what I want.
Here are my questions/concerns for all experimented seamstresses out there?

1) Is this really impossible to do? and if not who should I contact?

2) One person told me that she might be able to do it but that it would
cost me as much as ordering a new gown custom made... which is out of
the question as I cannot afford it. How many hours of do you think it
would take?

3) Finally, I could do some of the work myself, such as removing the
sleeves or the lace that would hinder the work. Would a seamstress allow
me to do that
to cut down on the cost or would it be interfering with her work?

All comments/advice/ suggestions welcome.
Thanks.

Anne

P.S. If anyone is from the Pittsburgh area and knows a reasonably priced
seamstress that still does a good job and would like to recommend her,
please, fell free to do so.
From: mlj@vet.vet.purdue.edu (Emily)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: handwheel flies off
Date: 14 Apr 92 03:27:23 GMT
Article-I.D.: mentor.45269
Organization: Purdue University SVM



		Some time ago I think there some articles about
	a machine whose handwheel kept flying off.  If anyone has
	these articles or any tips, I would appreciate them since
	a customer at the fabric store I work at is having the same
	problem with an almost new singer.

	Thanks,
	Emily
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
From: suzanne@sfsuvax1.sfsu.edu (Suzanne McCaffrey)
Subject: quilt repair
Organization: San Francisco State University
Distribution: ca
Date: Mon, 6 Apr 1992 19:00:52 GMT

A friend of mine has an old quilt that need to be repaired.
She is not able to fix it herself.  Any suggestions?

Xref: sparky alt.sewing:1283 rec.crafts.textiles:848
From: mnj@cbnewsk.cb.att.com (madhuri.jarwala)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing,rec.crafts.textiles
Subject: Quilt/Fabric stores in Denver - Summary and a Question
Keywords: quilt, fabric, Denver
Date: 14 Apr 92 14:23:58 GMT
Followup-To: alt.sewing
Distribution: na
Organization: AT&T

Two weeks ago I had asked in alt.sewing if somebody could suggest fabric
stores to visit in Denver area. Thank you to all those who sent me email.
Actually only one person who sent email was from Denver area and she 
recommended a store named "Denver Fabrics" located at Federal Blvd and Evans.

The other emails suggested visiting "Quilts and Other Comforts", which is home 
to QUILTER'S NEWSLETTER MAGAZINE and QUILTMAKER. I finally got a hold of 
Quilts and Other Comforts catalog and called them this morning and was told
that it is only a mail-order operation and doesn't have a store! That is quite
disappointing. I guess, everybody just assumed there would be a store because
no one had actually visited it.

So are there any other stores worth visiting? I will be going there this 
weekend. 

--Madhuri Jarwala
AT&T Bell Laboratories
Princeton, NJ
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
From: libu@jane.uh.edu (Martin, Elizabeth R.)
Subject: Re: quilt repair
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41    
Organization: University of Houston
Distribution: ca
Date: Tue, 7 Apr 1992 15:55:00 GMT

In article <1992Apr6.190052.161@csus.edu>, suzanne@sfsuvax1.sfsu.edu (Suzanne McCaffrey) writes...
>A friend of mine has an old quilt that need to be repaired.
>She is not able to fix it herself.  Any suggestions?
> 

Suzanne,

If your friend will do some checking in her area I am sure that she can find a
quilting group that have regular meetings.  If she will contact someone from 
the organization they should be able to get her in contact with some one who
will be glad to assist her in the repair of the quilt.  If it is dificult to 
find such a group tell her to check with craft stores in your area.  Since 
most craft supply stores also have craft classes, and the employees participate
in crafting, they should be able to connect her to someone who can direct in
the approiate direction.

I understand your friends quest to have the quilt repaired, today old quilts in
good condition are bringing top dollar and depending on the design can be worth
between $350 to $1,500 or more.  I myself have several quilts that were made 
by my great grandmother and my grandmother and will never part with them. 
Extreme care must be taken while choosing a quilter to repair the quilt.  Tell
your friend that she should talk to several before making a final choice.  
Each quilter talked to should want to see the quilt before making an estimate
of charges for repair.  Make sure that your friend discusses with each quilter
how they are going to do the repair work and how it will look after repair.
She will of course want the work to be as inconspicous as possible and look as
original as possible.  Your friend may also want to get a price of repairs with
and without the quilter suppling the material for repairs. 

I know that my grandmother would be more that glad to repair the quilt for your
friend but I don't think your friend would want to come to Texas.  I hope that 
this information will help your friend.

Elizabeth E. Martin
libu@jetson.uh.edu 
From: selina@hpscit.sc.hp.com (Selina Fong)
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1992 21:15:16 GMT
Subject: Re: A Question About Where to Find Japanese Cotton in SF
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Santa Clara, CA
Newsgroups: alt.sewing

Hi Sue, 
Here are some stores I can recommend in the Bay Area that carry fabries 
you don't see everywhere.
In SF, there are Britex, on Gary St, 1/2 block from Union Square.  Down
the street from that is Edward Fabrics.  Both of these stores specialize
in designer fabrics.  For Japanese cotton, there is 'The Quilting Bee'
in Los Altos, ~30 miles south of SF, off of Highway 280 on Main St in
downtown Los Altos.  For orient silks, there is a store a few blocks
from 'The Quilting Bee' call 'Thai Silks'.  They are direct importers
of silks from the orient.  In SF, There are some shops in Japantown but 
I don't remember the names of stores that carries Japanize cotton.   

>The Cotton Patch in Lafayette, CA was recommended *but* I don't know
>where that is in relation to the Bay area - tho I would be a quick

Well, Lafayette is in the East Bay, but it is out of the way for me,
I live in Sunnyvale, 40 miles south of SF.

I hope you have fun in the Bay Area, the weather is just beautiful
right now.

Selina Fong
Xref: sparky alt.sewing:1269 rec.crafts.textiles:839
From: ctopp@cup.portal.com (Carol F Topp)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing,rec.crafts.textiles
Subject: Re: HELP with Snaps...PLEASE!
Date: 10 Apr 92 03:17:22 GMT
Organization: The Portal System (TM)

A couple of days ago  hackney@luigi.enet.dec.com (Kirsten Werne) wrote
about the problems of putting snaps onto the crotch of a jumper for
her 9 month old child and was looking for any suggestions or help.

She had used the dritz snap applicator. My experience has been poor.
I made a shirt with shoulder snaps for my nephew. I used the snaps that
you use an eraser to work the prongs through the fabric and then use a
wooden spool on top of the snap sandwhich and hit it with a hammer. 

The results were mixed. some snaps work fine, others barely hold together.
If they were for the inside legs of one of my son's outfits, they would
not be satisfactory.

I bought an outfit that uses snap tape and find it difficult to open
and snap. My son is now 1 year old and I find it's easy enough to change
him by pulling coveralls down from the top that I decided to punt on
this problem until I have another baby that needs changing 15 times a day :-)

Any help out there? I had thought that my problem was that I wasn't
using the applicator that Kirsten used. 

Carol
From: astels@fsd.cpsc.ucalgary.ca (astels)
Subject: sewing t-shirts
Organization: University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Date: 3 Apr 92 22:35:13

I've been making some t-shirts for myself lately but I'm having a problem.
When I hem the cuffs and bottom of the shirt I use a straight stich, but
after wearing it a few times the thread breaks because the material stretches
but the stiching doesn't.  If I stretch the material while sewing it makes
puckers in it.  I could use a zigzag stitch but this would look messy as
topstiching.  I tried using a double needle but I found this also broke.
I know I need a serger for this, but I don't have the money.  Does anyone
have any suggestions?

Thanks.

- Kate

--
astels@cpsc.ucalgary.ca    (Dave Astels)
2401 3500 Varsity Dr. NW |
Calgary, Alberta, Canada | "Why are we here?... Because we're here"
T2L 1Y3                  |       - RUSH: Roll the Bones
From: Marina.Salume@Corp.Sun.COM (Marina Salume)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: Re: serger article in Threads magazine
Date: 9 Apr 92 17:03:34 GMT
Article-I.D.: marny.9204091703.AA04202

I am willing to make copies of the recent Threads article
comparing sergers (April/May 1992 issue) for those who
are unable to find a copy of the magazine. It is 6 pages
long, so send me your snail mail address and I will mail
it to you. The comparison is between four and five thread
sergers with differential feed,... "because those are the 
state of the art these days", according to the article.

(The article makes no recommendations on which machine to buy.)

--marina
From: bell@pooh.cs.unc.edu (Andrew Bell)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: Sergers
Summary: sergers v. sewing machines
Keywords: sergers
Date: 8 Apr 92 21:10:42 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

I know this has been discussed before, but could someone
please email me as to whether they found a serger a good
addition to their sewing machine.  Also, what brand of
serger, how many threads, etc.  I have a sewing machine
and since I make some of my clothes, my mother was considering
buying me a serger if she could find one at a decent price.
She has a 3 threader and hasn't felt the lack of a 4 threader.

Thanks,
Leslie Bell
bell@cs.unc.edu

Oh, one last thing -- are there any discount stores selling
sergers at competitive prices?
 
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
From: usr@pi.rice.edu (Usha Rajagopalan)
Subject: Re: About Snaps
Organization: Rice University, Houston, Texas
Date: Thu, 9 Apr 1992 12:17:01 GMT

I tried to send mail to Kristen Werne but it bounced back.
My question is about the snap applicator she was talking 
about. Where can I get one; How much does it cost;
Does everyone find it as frustrating to use as she did;
Can I get the snaps for the applicator easily.
Thanks
-Usha
From: Marina.Salume@Corp.Sun.COM (Marina Salume)
Newsgroups: alt.sewing
Subject: Re: smocking
Date: 16 Apr 92 18:27:48 GMT

> Also "Creative Needle" focuses a lot on 
>smocking and heritage clothes for children and I know that there are 
>many advertisements in that magazine for smocking supplies. 

Creative Needle
Box 99
Lookout Mountain, TN 37350
1-800-443-3127

A few mail order suppliers from ads in the magazine:

Denham Designs
1-800-451-7143

Sweet material Things
1-301-987-5087

The Heirloom Shop
1-800-451-4172

The Smocking Bird
1-205-879-7662

I have not ordered anything from these suppliers so can't give a
personal recommendation, but they are regular advertisers in the
magazine.--marina