I noticed that the craftster picture hosting will auto resize everything to fit within 350x350. I had a tutorial that was sized 600x800, to print on a letter size page. So I used my own server instead of craftster's when I posted in a thread. However, craftster still resized them when I made the post, which then crunches all the text and images making it hard to read. In addition, the images are not "live" to allow the user to click and open the original size to read it clearly.

When I clicked Modify on my post I saw that my original images had been sized to 500x666 -- [img width=500 height=666]. Changing that to 600x800 had no effect, it would continually revert to 500x600.

Why does this happen?
Does craftster always resize external photos to max. 500wide?
Since crafster doesn't accept proper html in posts I can't set up the image to link to at least link to the full size version -- is there another "crafster code" way I can do this?

I've been wanting to pick up a t-shirt mod/recon book just for some inspiration. These are the 2 most mentioned and I'm hoping to get some recomendations on which to buy:

Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirt
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0761137858/ref=pd_cp_b_title/102-8305164-6056966

99 Ways to Cut, Sew, Trim, and Tie Your T-Shirt into Somethin
http://www.amazon.com/Ways-Trim-T-Shirt-Something-Special/dp/0307345564/ref=pd_sim_b_2/102-8305164-6056966g Special

I've tried doing a book review search on these and have gotten nowhere. I only found 2 reviews online and they appeared to be by late/middle aged homemakers who were not in any way the target for this book and spent most of the reviews discussing how the book showed too much skin. The whole point of DIY t-shirt design seemed to be lost on them so the reviews were useless. I'd appreciate any input you have.

...addendum: the amazon pages have reviews, but there wasn't anything there that could help me decide on one book over the other. mostly just "cool book!" general statements.

I'm confused about the Craftster Dos and Don'ts regarding items you sell. http://www.craftster.org/craftsterguide.html#anchor9a

I've seen posts where people show items they plan to sell. One of the Featured Projects showcases designs the creator was planning for a craft show. I'm not clear on this area. I just don't want to make an accidental faux pas here at some point, so I'm hoping for some clarification.

What if you make something, post about it for advice, and then at some later point decide you like it enough you want to some to sell? 

I read that we should use the  "Crafty Business Ventures" category if we need opinions on a work in progress for sale. But what if we need advice on the construction for such an item (can't get the stitch balanced, the fabric won't feed, etc.) -- the kind of thing best suited for another category and that you need to show pics to illustrate the problem?

Are those situations considered sly advertising? What's the good practice here?

if this has been asked before can someone point me to the thread -- I tried searching but came up with nothing.

I've looked all over the web and can't find dark brown serger thread. All I can find is a warm medium brown, I need deep cool brown. (having to use black meanwhile).

There are other colors I've been looking for too, as well as wolly nylong colors, but can't find a good match.

anyone know a brand that carries dark brown?
an alternate to Maxilock brand for serger thread?
or a store that sells quality brands?

thanks.

this is my first post on craftster. I'm not sure if I have the right category (sorry if it's misplaced -- I looked through all the sections several times trying to figure out what was appropriate).

anyhoo... I'm working on a hat design and hit a sticking point, hoping someone can offer assistance.  

This is a short fleece hat made of 3 panels: 2 side panels and a center strip.  It's a beanie kind of hat, no rollup cuff, it hits above the ears.

The problem is I'm getting a slight conehead affect at the top. I've already adjusted the  side panel curves, flattening out the  top center (apex?) so it's a broader wider curve. But there's still some coning happening at the top of the crown,  rather than the hat lying nice and flat to the head.

this may just be the result of the pins holding the thick fabric. I'm in design/test mode so I haven't yet sewed it, just working on the pattern and pinning it to test. perhaps when it is serged and pressed it will lie flatter?

any suggestions? perhaps I'm adjusting the pattern in the wrong manner?

thanks in advance for your help.