Totally rude and unacceptable. I was shocked, hurt, and then angry as hell. How dare she belittle me and steal my photo. I typed up a comment stating it was my photo and asked her to take the post down; which she did – or an admin did, I don’t know. She never apologized and that is the reason I’m still stewing inside over it. It hurt, and it made me question my sewing, and my body.
SO, I decided to do a little experiment. To prove to myself that sewing my own things is something I should continue. I have 4 pairs of pants in a collage below. 3 are ready to wear, store bought. 1 is self sewn. They all have their fit issues; the pants do, not my body. My body just needs the pants to be adjusted. Some look good in some areas, some in others; none are perfect.
A different layout to see the fit differences better
Pair 1: Levi’s Curvy Bootcut; size 14. The waist actually fits pretty nice (shocking since store jeans never fit me in the waist). The jeans are thin and I feel like they look “bumpy” on my body because they are so thin. They are ok, the material is not soft like the rest, but it’s not scratchy either. slightly loose.
Pair 2: Lee No Gap Waistband Curvy Fit Bootcut Jeans; size 16. The waist gaps even though it has a built in elastic part. The elastic waist part makes me feel itchy (allergic to latex and sensory issues). The fabric is nice, thicker, soft. I like how they look in the front and side. I can’t get past the waist. not loose, not tight, I like how they feel in snugness.
Pair 3: Gap Curvy Flare; size 14. They no longer make these, they are my favorite RTW jeans. They feel nice when I wear them, but I constantly have to pull them up. I love the hip hugging and flare, the material is soft. After time they get really baggy in the butt and slightly baggy everywhere.
Pair 4: Ginger Jeans, modified flare; size 12 waist and on the front pant size 14 hip, the back pant 18 hip. These feel the best on me, like they hug me just right. Are their still fit issues? sure. But I don’t really care to be honest. The material on these is so soft. snug and hugging.
The people that I care about, my amazing sewing friends that follow my blog, know I struggle deeply with health issues. I have certain fit issues I just don't care to address - I put my energy into what I feel is important.
So to the lady that put my body on blast without my permission – shame on you.
And to everyone else, the real people that matter, I will continue sewing. I enjoy it even when it hurts, even when it sucks out all my energy. I love the hobby and I love the community. I love seeing all the things my sewing friends make!
I learned quite a bit from this experience. We need to be less critical of our sewing makes. I am horribly critical when I make something; time for that to change. Ready to wear doesn’t fit perfectly either! Our sewing makes will almost always fit us better than anything store bought. And if they don't, well then we learn, change the pattern, and grow from it! It's still a fun experience.
(Also, thank you so much Shirley for being such a great friend to me that day; you were there for me when I most needed a friend).
Onward my sewing friends!
Kristin
This made me so sad. Like, actually sad. I am really sorry Kristin. You’re such a sweetheart and I love your blog so much!
ReplyDeleteAlso, the Gingers look the best! They fit well, your butt looks awesome!!!, and the Gap jeans are runner up.
Good job standing up for yourself. Hopefully someone else will think twice before doing something like this. There are real people on the other end.
Thank you so much Nakisha :) I was really quite upset about it too. I feel like our society has taken to hiding behind a screen and not realizing there are real consequences. Once I realized that it was probably some mean, bitter person who did it I started to feel better about myself. I appreciate your comment :) I def. consider you one of my sewing friends :D
DeleteJust found your blog and read this post. For those who commented on your body, there's this song by Cee-Lo Green called...well, you know the song I'm talking about! Keep on sewing!
ReplyDeleteI DO know that song! And I love that song :D Thank you so much Elizabee :)
DeleteI too am sorry that someone felt they had the right to do such a thing... I don't even like for someone to post a pic of me that I just happen to be in a group.. too many low self esteem issues (obviously, since the profile pic of me here is SEVERAL years ago and several pounds thinner). Your blog is awesome Kristin!
ReplyDeleteThank you T! I appreciate it :D
DeleteThat's awful for someone to do/say what they did. What I love is how you turned it around to a great teaching moment - comparing RTW jeans and their fit to a handmade pair (and how much better your pair fits!) Not sure what other fit issues you see in your Ginger jeans, they look great. It showed me an adjustment I want to try - placing the back pockets slightly higher than RTW - looks much better.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your story!
Awesome! I'm so glad I was able to help you with an adjustment. And Thank you!
DeleteYou are my sewing hero. I have learned so much from you and you have made me a better seamstress. I STILL think about that day and how that woman's comments and actions hurt you so bad...how could they not! It made me ill as a friend and also someone else in the sewing circle community that someone could be so heartless and cruel and judgmental. I'm really glad you posted your comparison like this. It truly shows how better a fit can be achieved by our personal makes than that of RTW. I'm also glad you publicly shared what happened to you here on your blog.
ReplyDeleteAw Shirley. I learn so much from you too! I'm so happy for our friendship. Thank you!
DeleteGirl you have a beautiful body & fantastic booty.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely the ginger jean looks like the best fit. Funny that those are custom made vs RTW But they're all wearable if you modify them, better yet just return them to the store, buy more fabric & make a couple more pairs of jeans.
As for the "slug" who posted your pics/blog with out your permission "bless her heart" some peoples kids are just plum nasty & will reap what they sew (sow). It must be so very difficult to maintain perfection in such an imperfect world. So have pity on this person they have such a skewed outlook on life & have no idea what its like to shut the F up & mind their own business.
Thanks Rebecca! I have "blessed" that woman's heart many times in the last few weeks. :D Your words here make me so happy, thank you.
DeleteI am sorry to hear some reused your photo at all let alone in such a disrespectful and hurtful way. I agree that we sometimes forget that there are real people on the other end of the internet. If someone wants to discuss fit issues most of us have plenty of clothes of our own that we could show.
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, i think your Ginger jeans look really good. Personally, I would be ecstatic if I achieved jeans like this. I can’t see any issues that I would bother changing. There are always some wrinkles and you need them to move. (Aside: I personally feel that sometimes the sewing community gets hung up on an ideal of perfection (what that looks like is debated) when for many of us our aim is actual clothes, that fit as we wish them to, made in the time we have available. I have learnt a lot from experienced sewists on the internet but am now trying to make sure I actually make things instead of getting perfection paralysis). Using a larger back piece is something I hadn’t thought of, I might try that too. Make some more!
Tldr: great job, make some more, don’t use people’s photos or diss their work.
Just reread your post again ... posting your photo on FB and inviting negative comment is so totally unacceptable that I am gobsmacked. Somehow when writing my comment I was thinking about people who write blog posts about fitting. I agree that an apology would be a decent minimum respinse. As a species sometimes we suck.
ReplyDeletewe do suck :( I suck sometimes myself. BUT the difference is that if I mess up I at least acknowledge it and try to learn from it. Thank you so much for your comments Lyndle :) I learn so much from our sewing community and I'm so thankful to be a part of it.
DeleteWithout even reading further, I knew the last pair were the Ginger jeans because they fit the best of all.
ReplyDeleteHow dare they pst your photo without your permission AND then proceed to crow on about what they think is wrong with it. Girl, tell those folks to KICK ROCKS. =)
That Ginger pattern is truely amazing. Thank you so much L!
DeleteKristin, I am sorry you were so brazenly mistreated. The theft of your intellectual property & rights coupled with subsequent harsh treatment is shameful. Hooray to you for standing up for yourself! You did a great job employing your exceptional sewing skills to critically analyze and alter a jeans pattern for a customized fit. The fit of ready to wear jeans is particularly problematic for me, too. Until now, I have never been tempted to try making jeans for myself but I am inspired by your success. Thank you for sharing. You Rock!
ReplyDeleteHijacking someone's photos to use in a hurtful way is just wrong. I'm just sad that someone chose to pick you apart because you didn't sew up to "their standards." I looked at your photos and think the Ginger jeans fit the best - better than ready made. Be proud. I still haven't had the courage to sew my own jeans and I've been sewing forever!
ReplyDeleteI just want to say thank you for doing what you do! I know it takes a lot of hard work and courage to make your own clothes and then put the pictures on a blog. Courage that I don't personally have. So I really enjoy the privilege of seeing your work. I'm sorry, there are mean people in this world, but I guess you can be happy you gave them something to do. Your Ginger Jeans look great. Please make more!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you found a way to turn that into a positive! People can be really thoughtless sometimes! Your takeaway though, that we need to be list critical of ourselves and our sewing, is so true. Sometimes you just have to say good enough is good enough! Not every wrinkle needs to be gone (at least in my opinion) and honestly, I get rather weary of those who try to extract every single wrinkle. If it's good enough for RTW, it's probably going to be good enough for me. But...I do love that I can sew and make somethings even better than RTW... Those successes make my day!
ReplyDeleteI love to see all your posts...we have similar body shapes!
I don't do Facebook so didn't see the post. I can't honestly see anything wrong with your Ginger jeans, on the contrary, I think they look great! Good for you for speaking up and thank you for writing the above post. Makes me realize, once again, that I'm not missing anything for not being on Facebook.
ReplyDeleteJoanne in Montreal
What a wicked thing to do, I am so very sorry.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, some people need to wake up.
The fit of these jeans is particularly interesting to me. I would be pleased to have ANY jeans fit me as well as all of these do on you. It makes me want to try the Ginger jeans, as these do fit you the best per the photos. Nice article/analysis.
ReplyDeleteThat story is completely rage-inducing. I am so sorry that happened to you and I hope the person who posted your pictures (and all of the people who commented) are ashamed of themselves. I feel really sad for people who make themselves feel better by tearing others apart. Truly a sad way to live.
ReplyDelete