I need a favor. Would you all mind nominating your top ten (or twenty) favorite posts that have appeared on this blog? Those of you who’ve read from the beginning could be a big help. This request is in response to the many people who’ve asked me to pick out the highlights of what this blog represents. If you like, you can nominate your top posts as per given category. You know, your top three picks for sewing, top three for sales and marketing, top three for lean manufacturing, and top three for this blog’s philosophy. Whatever you like.
I know there are people out there who spend hours a day on this blog, you’d be in a good position to know so I’m counting on your input. Lately, I have one reader that I think has broken all visitor records. He/She logs in from his/her job at ceegeebeegroup (don’t want to get him/her in trouble so I’ve altered the login address), he/she’s spending several hours a day on site with seemingly untold pages read (I wonder if he/she’s bought my book -the sales of which support this site). Anyway, please nominate your favorite or most useful posts. I would really appreciate it. Thanks!
[post amended]
I need a lot more nominations folks, please help out. To make this easier, please refer to this complete listing of all posts in the archives. The posts are listed in decending order, newest ones at the top. I know there’s a lot to wade through with 427 posts in the archive. Thanks!
::aproaches podium and adjusts microphone:: and the nominees are…
February 17, 2005
Thrift store shopping
March 03, 2005
Product Review Style# 12658
April 13, 2005
Passion
April 12, 2005
Me and my blog
April 01, 2005
The legalities of labeling
The Bagging Tutorials
Welt and paper jig
Welt pocket construction!!
July 15, 2005
Hangtags, labels & domain names- competing with your customers?
August 25, 2005
10 signs of a problem designer
August 23, 2005
Ironies of fabric sourcing
August 15, 2005
Interfacing: 10 tips
September 23, 2005
How to hire a pattern grading service
September 13, 2005
Name this tutorial
October 31, 2005
Poka Yoke pattern making
October 21, 2005
Copying processes
November 21, 2005
Saran wrap pattern making method #1
December 27, 2005
If I were to produce a line
December 19, 2005
Which fashion school is best?
December 01, 2005
What is Kaizen?
January 20, 2006
How to make a line sheet
January 11, 2006
Top 10 lies of designer-entrepreneurs
and the Oscar goes to…. ::opens envelope::
Welt and paper jig
Welt pocket construction!!
::aplause:: ; P hehe
My favorite is DRESS KATHLEEN :-)
Also : If I were to design a line.
I love seeing others POV.
I also love the tutorials:
Bagging and the Invisible zipper techniques were both insightful.
All of your blogs are very helpful for DEs and I wish this had existed 30 years ago..
I loved all the tutorials, especially the ones on the welt pocket. (I use that at least once a week!)
A close second was the zipper series and then, of course, the Saran wrap info.
Since my focus is custom work and I’m not doing any manufacturing, my interests are more toward the sewing or pattern making side of your info. Please keep it coming!
“This request is in response to the many people who’ve asked me to pick out the highlights of what this blog represents”
Kathleen, I think your blog is important for many reasons. It has quickly become a very valuable resource center for people within our industry.
You provide a vehicle for anybody seeking assistance or guidance, and this service continues to be free of charge.
Topics you cover are informative and necessary for DE’s to get a better grasp of before making costly and fatal mistakes in the field.
Your approach to topics and issues are thoroughly researched, so only pure accurate information streams through . You speak your mind, using an assertive style that is required at this point to insure our industry survives and hopefully flourishes once again.
Like Bill Clinton, you delegate and give due credit to others in the wings.
Some people may say you started this blog to sell your book, but I do not view it this way at all.
You are passionate about bringing about positive change, and the book is only the first necessary step in the process.
I too wish this resource as available 20 years ago. If it was, I don’t think our industry would be at the “bottom of the valley” as it currently sits.
Your piece on Project Runway was priceless as well. I think it really “put you on the map”.
I also wonder if the Carmelite Sisters knew what Mother Teresa would accomplish when they dispatched her off to Calcutta many years ago ?
Hi Kathleen,
I check into your site every day.
I am a fashion student in Melbourne Australia and in my final year, so,really, there could’t be anything more appropriate or informative for me to be reading!
I have purchased both the book and the dvd and found them to be extremely helpful and insightful.
The tutorials are of particular interest to me. You often have opposing views to my lecturers and present an alternative way of thinking or of doing certain tasks.The sleeve (cap) ease debate was great, my lecturers just couln’t accept that it wasnt neccessary to set in a sleeve without extra ease.It really got them going!! He He!
I am hoping to set up my own enterprise upon completion of school , so have enjoyed also, the articles on Lean, and any information with regards being a DE infact!I drink it all up as this kind of information is not taught in school , which is frankly ironic , as most of us want to set up our own enterprises.
I recomended your book to the school, but dont hold your breath with regards orders, the school library is sadly lacking and students are not permitted to borrow books overnight, but I felt that the school could at least promote it to students.
With regards analysis of your blog my partner who hosts edublogs.org says there are plug ins available to help you analyse your blog.
Top 10 (can show you the 10 (or as many as you like) most popular posts since the plugin was installed: http://weblogtoolscollection.com/archives/2005/03/14/top-10-plugin/
Popularity contest (shows which of your posts are most popular through a %): http://www.alexking.org/index.php?content=software/wordpress/content.php
Another, possibly better, plugin: http://boakes.org/most-wanted
There is a drawback though, you need a wordpress blog to be able to do any of this, sorry, I know you use movable type .My partner informs me its incredibly easy to move a blog form movable type to wordpress (“hassle” I hear you say !)
Easy to import from MT to WP: http://codex.wordpress.org/Importing_Content#Movable_Type
James( my partner ) is happy to do this for you for free, you can find him at blogsavvy.net or at incub.org.
Lorraine
I just found and read the Passion blog. April 2005.
I cried ..it was so beautiful.
It is now on my list.
Okay, separating out the ones liked best wasn’t working, so I tried the ploy of sifting out the ones that weren’t as interesting to me.
That isn’t working either.
The welt and zip tutorials spring to mind often.
#1
Almost everything in the “Lean Manufacturing” category is a true gem, but this is my favorite:
December 06, 2005
Project Kaizen: Tuesday
#2
August 26, 2005
My dirty laundry
Nothing else so eloquently underscored the importance of our industry, and I have this whack-o need to feel like what I do is important.
#3 The Centered Zipper series. I extracted/extrapolated about a dozen useful practices from those posts.
#4
Again, almost everything in the “Sourcing” category is deeply valuable, but the link to Style Source was particularly fabulous, because they have a nicely edited list of valuable links, each of which linked to a host of other valuable sites….
July 13, 2005
Kudos: Style Source
“#2
I said:
August 26, 2005
My dirty laundry
Nothing else so eloquently underscored the importance of our industry, and I have this whack-o need to feel like what I do is important.”
Geez, I talk like I’m already in this industry. Okay, I’m an industry wanna-be, but it’s these posts that make me want to be in the industry.
Kathleen,
Your Dirty Laundry post of Aug 26 th was especially poignant. It portrayed the owner in a very gracious way. I wish I can be as generous and thoughtful to the factory employees as he was.
Maybe that is what is lacking in today’s clothing business. Compassion and respect for one another
at all levels of the supply chain.