DIY Knockoffs: Cool to Copy?

According to a friend who works in the fashion industry, nobody designs anymore. Nearly everything out there is a knock-off. Or a knock-off of a knock-off. Just ask Forever 21, which is forever in litigation with the designers whose work the company copies and then sells en masse for a million times cheaper. From the New York Times online:

It's not illegal, and some argue it's even good for the industry (listen to Kal Raustiala, co-author of The Knockoff Economy: How Imitation Sparks Innovation on NPR). Pattern companies are likewise on the copycat bandwagon.

For example, remember this dress?

Pippa Middleton

Butterick 5710

 So should I feel bad for ripping off a design and drafting a pattern for my personal use? I don't. But I would if I were to sell it. Call me old-fashioned.

The garment in question is a black silk tunic by Lauren Moffat. I love this detail on the back:

The front view is pretty simple:

So I drafted a flat pattern, using the original as my guide:

Unintentional photobomb by Ryan

It's looking a little tortured here, which is both the result of inadequate ironing and probably not quite the right fabric (this is the silk crepe de chine I had leftover from sewing Simplicity 1872, which I recently gave away):

I carefully ripped out all the top stitching. I decided it just didn't work. Or maybe I am just terrible at it. Either way. It had to go. The back looks even more tortured in this photo, but mostly because the sleeves were still pinned at that point. The fit on me is actually really good, though it looks like it's pulling in numerous places here:

For a simple looking top, it was hard to figure out how to construct this thing. It's like facings upon facings...and then sleeves? It turns out ripping something off can be extremely difficult. Figuring out what to sew first was like a puzzle. 

It's nearly done, after a week of sewing in short fits and starts (My time to sew over the past 7 days was minimal  thanks to Hurricane Sandy, which knocked out power to both my kid's preschool and my husband's office for five days  — and shut down the subway system and just about everything else. So that meant we three were all home for days upon days. Even the playgrounds and parks were all closed due to danger of falling branches. You might think that would mean lots of sewing time. You might, if you've never spent any time around a stir-crazy four-year-old.)

It's just waiting now for the buttons, which I bought on Etsy:

Have you ever knocked something off? Did you feel guilty? Are you knocking off my knock-off at this very moment? If so, how did you set in the sleeve?

This week's Unfinished Project

This unfinished dress is hanging out on my dressform this week while I sew a dozen carriers for my Etsy store. If you didn't already know it, I make cute little carriers for kids to carry around their dolls in. My shop is almost empty because I had put it on the back burner while busy with patternmaking homework this semester. 

Last night my two-year-old helped me assemble the straps. Toddlers are such hard workers. They really like manual labour. (That's my defense when the child labour laws people come calling. Also: I'm not paying her, so it's not really work, is it?)

My sweatshop/sewing table today

As for the dress-in-progress, I'm going to rip off the yoke because I think it looks silly the way the print doesn't match up. Instead I'm going to either make a peachy pink yoke, or navy blue. I may cut both and see what works best. I'm also going to have to cut a lining for this. Then if I'm feeling it, I'll make another dress exactly the same but with the yoke made from the bows print fabric, and the main dress cut in pink. Or navy. Still can't decide. Maybe I'll put it up to a vote. This is America, after all.

Our Etsy Little Christmas

 

At 3:40 a.m. today we awoke to the sound of two guys fighting in the street outside our apartment. Loudly, of course (is there any other kind of streetfight?). It was all in Spanish so we had no idea what the fight was about or if threats were being made, but we called 911 nonetheless, because hearing someone get beat up wasn't how I wanted to come down off my holiday high. And, as usually happens in these types of situations, as soon as we dialed 911 the streetfighters took their bout elsewhere. 

Anyway, with our semi-sick kid in our bed we awoke this morning to play with our new toys, some of which were bought on Etsy. Next year I might try to buy all my gifts there. The wooden sewing machine above was a steal at just $25. I know, it's a little "Just Like Mom" considering what I do all darn day, but there's only so many years in your child's life during which they actually look up to you before they turn to scorn and ridicule. I'll be making the most of that time.

 And here's my favourite gift: a handmade spool rack, which I sorely needed. I think my husband bought it for me because I had threatened to make my own using a power drill, chopsticks, a 2X4, and wood glue. It was a good idea, though I'm not sure our little apartment could withstand the rigours of woodworking too. Better to leave that up to the experts ...or at least someone in Pennsylvania with a woodshop in their garage.

Etsy Shop Open!

Look. Over there. On the right in that white rectangle. Under the headline "My Etsy Store."

That's right: My newly opened Etsy shop (where you can buy doll carriers for your lovely children this holiday season) has been longer in the making than the 2nd Avenue subway line. Well not quite. I started my Etsy account three years ago, not really knowing what I should sell there, just that people kept telling me I should. It seemed like a natural fit. I like to make stuff. Sometimes people like that stuff and they ask why I don't make a bunch of whatever it is and sell them somewhere. But I just couldn't figure out what my niche should be. I'm still not really sure. But I'm hopeful I got it right. I designed the carrier and drafted my pattern (hooray for my FIT education!) this fall originally as a birthday present for Lucy's best bud. It turned out so well, I made one more for Lucy. I adapted the pattern a bit to make sewing en masse easier and forged on. Now I have a whole bunch. (Again, see that box over there on the right?)

Anyway, I don't need to post any more photos of these carriers, do I? I've done that to death already. But they are cute. And so fun for doll-loving preschoolers to play with. I really am proud of how they have turned out.

In short:shop www.Etsy.com.

Enter, enter, enter, enter!

Only 5 hours left to enter my giveaway for the handmade doll carrier pictured above! If you haven't entered already because you don't have a kid of your own or one the right age, just remember Christmas is coming and you may have a niece, nephew or friend's kid in need of a charming, handmade gift. You'll save money. I promise I'll ship quickly and you'll have it well before the holidays.

If you haven't entered because we're good friends and you're worried it won't be fair if you win, get over it: Fair's fair and I have no qualms about giving this to anyone who enters — even my own mother (not really: she doesn't have the Internet, or a computer, or any idea what a blog is).

If you haven't entered because you can't think of an answer to my skill-testing question, just make one up. Or use one of my helpful suggestions: Jolly Green Giant, Vince Vaughn, Yao Ming, or the Pillsbury Dough Boy.

Proceed: http://mybeaubaby.blogspot.com/2010/11/doll-carrier-giveaway.html

Sometimes, Just When you Need It, Something Great Happens

See that photo at left? So crisp and clear. OK, maybe the photographer shouldn't have amputated the poor girl's right hand like that. But two-year-olds move so darn fast, I can hardly be blamed for crappy composition.

Anyway, the quality of this photo is much better than what I'm accustomed to posting here. That's because I borrowed my friend's Nikon digital SLR — both to get some better pictures of my new doll carriers (pattern coming soon!), and to take it for a testdrive.

Since I'm starting an Etsy store (as soon as humanly possible for a lady who's busy with a toddler all day long), I need a real camera that can take quality photos of the things I make and sell. My five-year-old point-and-shoot just can't cut it.

So I asked my photographer friends to recommend what they'd think is the best entry-level digital SLR I could get for the best price. Well, it turns out entry-level still means upwards of $500, which left me super bummed out.

UNTIL (and I'm serious, this was the very next day) a Law & Order SVU location scout knocked on our door and handed me a bag of gold. Well, it didn't exactly happen like that, but that's pretty much how it feels. They're using our apartment for one day, which will allow me to finally invest in a proper camera. The timing couldn't have been better. If I believed things happen for a reason, this would be the example I would site for the rest of my life. But I don't really. I do, however, believe in luck. And we had it this week. Oh, and it pays to tip your building's super at Christmas (it's a New York thing). He's the one who told the location people our place would work for what they needed.

Doll Carriers Coming Soon!

I've been working oh-so-hard these past few weeks on two things that are 100 % related to this cuteness:

I'll soon be posting a free, downloadable pattern and tutorial for the above doll carrier (pictured above on Lucy who had so much fun running around in it yesterday). AND (this is a first for me!) I'll be opening my own Etsy store soon to sell doll carriers for those too lazy to make their own. Kidding, of course. I friggin' hope you're all too lazy to make your own.

Both (pattern and purchasable carriers) will be available with lots of time before the holidays.