Sticking with something unique...

It's that time of year when many of us start scrambling to buy seasonal gifts for friends and family.

The store-bought pincushion

And, as you hustle off to the shops, keep in mind the many artisans who have made lovely and unique items which make much better gifts than store-bought, mass-produced merchandise.

The importance of the lovingly crafted item was brought home to me when I recently tidied my sewing desk. For some time, I had been using a pincushion that came from the store. Like so many other things, it was "Made in China". But it was getting rather ratty and I decided to replace it.

And what better to choose than the lovely pincushion made by my godmother, Aunt Mary? Carefully crafted from colorful scraps of material and filled with lavender she grew in her garden, I had been using it as a "reserve" pincushion but decided to use it as my primary one. For one thing, the workmanship in Aunt Mary's is superior to a store-bought item, for another it connects me to the labor of a fellow human being. I can imagine her sitting and painstakingly stitching her pincushion.

The hand-made pincushion

That's why it's important, at this time of year, to seek out the many craft shows and artisan displays to find one-of-a-kind treasures. You won't find these things at the mall or in the glitzy shops. More likely in community halls and church basements. But the effort will be worth it: not only will you be able to give unusual and unique gifts, you will also be honoring the tradition of "Buy Local", as most of these items will be made close to where you live.

Happy Holidays.

P.S. Harobed Designs will be taking part in two craft shows, on December 11 and December 19 in Toronto, The first is at the Ralph Thornton Community Center, 765 Queen Street East and the second is at The Gladstone Hotel at 1214 Queen Street West. Both are on the 2nd floor and both run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Copyright Deborah C. Sawyer

Unbuttoned...but not undone!

(PHOTOS AT BOTTOM/BLOGGER WON'T LET ME EDIT THEM!)

According to the experts, a blog should be updated daily. However, some of us believe quality is more important than quantity, hence the reason I only post when I think something needs to be said.

This is the time of year when those of us in the North Hemisphere have to start wearing our heavier coats or buy a new one. I recently decided to retire the lined raincoat which I'd been wearing since 1983. (My European roots dictate that I make my clothing last!)

So, I went to a leading department store in my city, and bought what they used to refer to as a "famous maker" raincoat.(Photo #5) According to the hang tag, "Since 1927, X has maintained a heritage of unparalleled dedication to quality, workmanship and timeless style that is evident in everything we make".

In truth, the body of the garment is well made. I particularly like the strap buttoned to the inside of the belt, which passes through a belt loop and ensures the belt cannot fall off and get lost.(Photo #4)

Too bad the same care wasn't taken with the buttons. Just about each and every one was not finished off properly. The threads of the shank, which has to be made with thread, if the shank isn't part of the button, were all loose. (Photo #3) Even worse, the button on the inside of code, which helps hold a double-breasted style evenly, came completely off - this was just two weeks after I bought the coat! (Photo # 2)

I had to over-sew each and very button. (Photo #1)

This leads to two tips: obviously, if you buy a coat - or, for any that matter, any garment - double check the buttons and over-sew them when necessary. A second tip is: always buy a spool of thread the same year you buy the garment. Thread colors are like fashion colors and, five years down the road, you may not be able to get a matching thread.

Copyright Deborah C. Sawyer

2. Dangling threads from lost button

3. Shank unraveling

4. Belt-retaining loop

5. The coat itself

1.Over-sewn button

More observations from the runway

Our "Serene" design on the runway

One of the challenges I face, as a designer, is the disconnect between the sizes of clothing I make and the sizes of the runway models.


Although it's well-known that most women in North America take a size 12 or higher, runway models tend to be size 6 or size 8.  The problem here is the time that has to be spent making styles in smaller sizes when our styles are generally not worn by women in their teens or 20s, but by mature women, decidedly on the plus size of 30 years of age.

Serene on a Size 10

One of the comments I get is that some of my garments, on the runway, don't seem to have a shape, such as a waist line.  In fact, nearly all my jackets have shape, in the form of the cut of the side seam or darts used in the body of the garment, but this just does not show up when the model is so decidedly small compared to the garment.  While there are modeling agencies, which offer what are known as "real women" for modeling purposes, the fashion industry is only now coming around to the idea that women take larger sizes.


It's become quite talked about that, for the first time in living memory, some of the larger New York City stores, such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Bergdorf Goodman, are actually ordering in clothing in size 12 and up.  Historically, the largest size they would order was a size 10.

Our design "Svelte" on the runway

My company, Harobed Designs, has always made clothing in larger sizes.  We regularly have sizes 16 and 18.  Our emphasis is on providing great style and unique options for women in all sizes.  However, it's an uphill battle, and we always appreciate anything our customers or blog followers can do, to get the word out.


So, if you know people who take larger sizes, send them a copy of this post and let them know about our company.

Svelte on a size 10

In the meantime, the photos I am showing show some of our clothes on the runway, on the models who are size 6 to 8, and then on someone who is more appropriately sized around size 10 or 12.  As you can see, the clothes hang better on the person with the larger size.

Our design "Influence" on the runway

Influence on a size 10

Copyright Deborah C. Sawyer

Backstage pass - fall 2010 runway show

Clothes on racks, ready to go!

Most runway shows, especially when featuring a single designer, don't last very long but the outward appearance is deceptive.  What shows up on the runway is really the 'tip of the iceberg' compared to what goes on backstage prior to the event.

Obviously, the first step is the design and manufacture of the garments, which may take several months, culminating in the designer working18 hour days - or longer - leading up to the show.

Six of my models in pre-show chat mode

As for the area backstage, preparation starts up hours before the actual show.  The garments have to be dropped off, the show has to be organized, the models have to be prepped in makeup and hair styling, and everything has to work with precision.  As the Head Stylist remarked at the show I participated in, the last week in September, it's really amazing how a group of people, who have possibly never worked together before, can come together, put on a show and have it go smoothly.

In the photos with this blogpost, I'm once again taking you behind the scenes, showing where the clothes were prepared for the various segments (this was a multi-designer show) and also the models who wore my particular designs, waiting to go out on the runway.

Five minutes to showtime!

In my next blog post, I'll take you out into the audience and show more photos from that perspective.

One minute to showtime

In the meantime, if you'd like to view all the designs I showed, use this link: http://canadawears.ca/2010/the-clothing-show-fall-2010/photoset-482.php

Not so supportive - the inside scoop about interfacings!

Puckering from interfacing

People tend to forget that, inside every great garment is something known as interfacing.  Interfacings are the unsung heroes of garment construction; without them, most jackets, coats and the like, would not hold their shape; at the same time, if you buy ready-made outfits, you really have no idea interfacing has been used at all, as it is not something you see.

That is, until you've had the garment while.  And, if it's washable, once you have tossed it in the machine a few times,  you'll often begin to see the presence of the interfacing.  And it's not a pretty sight. Bubbles and puckers start to appear on the surface of your garment.  This is because nowadays, most interfacing is what they call "fusible" - that is, the interfacing is ironed on. 

Bubbling at side seam

Once upon a time, there was only what is known as woven interfacing, which had to be stitched into the garment.  A great leap forward - supposedly - was the introduction of  the non-wovens or fusible interfacings as they are known. These are just applied with a hot iron.  Problem is, such fusible interfacings often have their own ideas about how long they will do their job, sight unseen.  And once they start acting up - or perhaps I should say bubbling up to the surface - you may find an item of clothing you really love becomes unseemly and you have to stop wearing it. 

Fabric after ironing

In the photos I'm showing, puckering is what's happened to a white summer vest that I've had for some time.  For most of the time I've owned this, there haven't been any problems.  But, after the last washing, the interfacing began to act up.  As the vest has decorative trim, interfacing has been used extensively to give the vest shape. 

Luckily for me, this problem can be corrected with an iron, but it's not always possible to do that; it depends on the fabric and the heat that the fabric will tolerate.

This suggests that when you're buying a piece of clothing, especially if it's a major investment, you need to investigate how the garment is made to determine how well it will stand up to standard care.  As they say, better to be safe than sorry!

Unravelling unseen

Those of us who live in the northern hemisphere are preparing for the fall. It's after Labor Day and the weather is starting to cool down. Time to get out our sweaters - or woollies, if you prefer - and prepare them for the winter.

Usually, during the summer, I wash all my sweaters that are washable, turn them inside out and stash them away, ready for the cooler weather. This is how I happen to know that one of my sweaters is slowly coming apart.

Usually, when you make a sweater - or any knit garment - from two or more colors, as one color of wool is phased out and the second color is added, the end of the first wool is supposed to be 'knitted out' and the second 'knitted in', so the wool doesn't unravel, ever.

Due to the way garments are now made in factories, this finishing off process doesn't happen. In the sweater I'm showing, knots were tied instead, where the white changes to black and vice versa. The only problem is, when the sweater went through the washing machine cycle, the agitation started to loosen these knots, because they weren't very tightly tied.

Had I not spotted this, my sweater would have started to unravel beyond the point of repair or possibly left me with some embarrassing moments, out in public, as gaps started to appear in the body or sleeves of the sweater.

I purchased this sweater at a very high profile, high-end women's wear chain, which has stores throughout North America. I won't embarrass them by naming them, but caution anyone else buying sweaters that have more than one color of wool in them, to check the inside frequently, so that your lovely turtleneck or cardigan doesn't unravel on you.

You may also want to consider looking for sweaters made by an artisan, by hand, so that the workmanship should stand the test of time!

Needless to say, in any garment made by my company, Harobed Designs, we strive to make sure that these sorts of accidents don't happen.

Smart and cool

As summer starts to draw to a close in the Northern Hemisphere, I'll take one last look at the whole issue of casual dressing. If you consult a dictionary, there are many definitions of the word 'casual', but when it comes to clothing, the applicable one is "designed for informal use".

This was always the real meaning of casual wear, that it was not the same as formal wear - suits, gowns, tuxedos, etc. - but nowhere in the definition of casual do the words 'sloppy' or 'haphazard' appear.

So I'm showing three more shots of how you can be smart and cool and still casual. One is of my friend Judy, when we went out to dinner. Judy has chosen a simple color palette, she has a very neat T-shirt in Cordovan Brown, which matches her sandals, and then beige-toned capris and sweater, along with a brown purse.

Her companion - in this case me - has similarly chosen a simple color palette: pair of black jeans, black sandals, black wrap (one of my own Harobed Designs wraps in Tencel, which are extremely light in weight, but add warmth when the air-conditioning is too strong) and a black bag, paired with a strawberry shirt and matching strawberry earrings. (Another observation: dressing well is not necessarily about having everything purchased in the current year; the earrings are some I bought years ago while the shirt I purchased about two years ago).

Both of us managed to say stay cool and comfortable, in spite of setting off in sunny, hot weather.

These outfits look a lot smarter than some I see on the street, which include pairings of scruffy jeans, T-shirts that are so faded you cannot read the words on them, sandals or shoes, purses and jewelry, in a complete mishmash of colors.

But, to show there is hope for the future, I'm showing this photo of a little girl is about eight years old. Whether it's the case that her pink Crocs were selected to match her dress - or her dress was chosen to match her Crocs - doesn't matter, she looks pulled together! A lot of people much older than eight would do well to follow her example.