[very noticeable side boning]

I bought a few bustiers off of ebay, and although all of them are supposedly the same size, the fit is so varied! one of them fits perfectly: the side boning doesn't stick out, the cups are supportive, etc. the other two are almost perfect.

one bustier has two issues: misshapen cups, and very noticeable side boning. I tried removing them, but the bustier completely lost its shape so I slipped them back in. should re-attach the boning closer/further from the cups?

on another, the cups aren't supportive. it's almost like the front boning curves away from my bust, causing the underwire to not stay in place--basically, it doesn't stay under the bust. all the bustiers are low-back, and they're tight enough that they should support the bust.


these are just the ebay pics from the sellers--if I have time I'll post pics wearing so you get a better idea of the fit. I really don't know anything on the science of bustiers/corsets, but I was wondering if there was any way I could make them wearable. they're exactly what I wanted, but I don't want to wear something that doesn't fit right.

A few years ago when I was on vacation, I bought a small tote bag in Vienna. The image is cute, but I never used it because the handles were awkwardly short. I'm wondering if there's any way to alter the design to make it wearable?

The bag itself sort of looks like this:http://rohdesign.com/storage/images/SXSW-Tote-Bag-Final.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHE VERSION=1291309963543 basically, it's small, flat, and really has no room for expansion. If I just added longer handles, it would still be a bit awkward to use. Any ideas would be great, thanks!

I'm really into bustiers (e.g. paired with high-waisted maxis, fishtails, etc), but can't seem to find any I like that fit right--the only ones that interest me are like expensive and only come in generic sizes. I figure I'd be better off making my own.

BTW, by bustier, I mean pretty much a waist-cropped, structured bra with boning--like this:

(I'd kill to have that collection) or even this:

http://img2.etsystatic.com/000/0/6326307/il_570xN.309309786.jpg

thanks in advance! I'd prefer not to spend over $20 for a pattern, and I definitely need it to be in English.

I'm thinking of making myself a couple t-shirts, or DIY-ing plain shirts into tanks. I want to put my own designs using transfer paper, but I hate how the extra transfer comes off white and visible--it makes everything look so "gee I made this myself!" lol.

Have you had any experience with transfer paper? Any brands I should try or avoid? Thanks in advance! I'd rather have paper that transfers poorly but doesn't have the trim visible, rather than paper that transfers well but has a super obvious trim.

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(even better would be a way to transfer designs without transfer paper--screenprinting wouldn't be an option given the complexity of the designs)

If I make the thread tension tighter, it usually just snaps the the thread--when I make it looser, it's too loose. I usually thread with the tension foot up anyway, but I didn't know it affected the tension disks--I'll keep that in mind, thanks!

I'm just really annoyed because like I said, it seems to happen sporadically without any adjustments. Could thread quality affect it? I buy small spools for $.50, but if higher quality thread really makes a difference I'd definitely upgrade.

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Just another random question: is there any way to steady the foot control or make it less sensitive? Even if I keep my foot in the same place, it gets slower--but when I press lightly it goes too fast.

Thanks so much! I'll check those out ASAP .

Every single time I use my serger, I get sporadic bunches of loose threads like this:



BUT, for whatever reason, it usually evens out towards the end. I hemmed about 2 yards of fabric for a skirt with a rolled 3-stitch hem, and even though I hadn't changed any of the settings or increased/decreased the speed, the last yard or so looked like this:



I have no idea what's causing this, since it happens sporadically, but it looks unprofessional and home-y. Any ideas?

Anyone know any good online resources for patterns? I know all the big brands make their patterns available online, but for some reason they're usually like 4x what I'd pay for a pre-printed pattern.

Other than Burdastyle, are there any other sites that have affordable patterns that I can print directly at home?

thanks for sharing!

I made a paper tape dress form about a month ago, and I love it. I'll add some how-to's on my blog when I get around to it, but I essentially used:

-NARROW paper tape (I used some that was 2" and I had to cut it down to 1" strips because it wouldn't contour to my body)
-stuffing (I bought two cheap pillows from Target)
-a sturdy base (I used a mike stand
-small hanger (provides better support in the shoulders).
-cardboard (to close up the neck/shoulder/waist holes)

Having someone wrap your body was only like 20% of the labor--the rest of the time, I snipped off wedges from the form to contour my body, and continued wrapping in tiny strips to form a shell about 4 layers thick.