The more common problem visitors have in their businesses is that they are unaware that best practices exist or if they suspect they do, they don’t know of them. Many develop myriad practices on the fly (better described as work arounds) that are elevated into SOP conventions (I write a lot about that too). I’m pretty selective of conventions I use and promote. With everyone constantly inventing their own new way to do something, we can’t communicate not having a shared system standard. Best to understand the basis and then tweak it from there. One particular entry I wrote on standard work may interest you (make note in particular of the section: simplicity in work improvement).

Anyway, the source of my confusion was why the pencil marks were offset by 1/8″. With your drill explanation it makes sense though- you would not want to drill right on the edge of an opening. So the idea probably was to just move away from the outside point by something a bit larger than the drill diameter. Thank you Kathleen.

The manner of marking drills is a convention specific to production pattern making. There’s a section on this in my book pp 176-180. And yes, doing it conventionally will prevent holes in the shell/self where you least want them.

Is there a good reason for moving the placement dots inside or is this just some convention ?

Generally, most of your questions would be answered in the course of reading all of the entries in this series as were listed at the close of the article. Some of those links may not work, I’m slowly editing the correct links but you can find the complete list with good links by going to “Tutorials” from the top of the page and looking under that section.

I wrote this entry very early on, in 2005. In those days, based on my limited experience (and in those days it was mostly professionals visiting) I just assumed that everyone would know to use pattern paper to make patterns. I didn’t realize I needed to mention the paper needed specifically because I showed a picture of it (pattern paper). It is difficult for me to write material that is specific to the gamut of possible experience and skill level of site visitors. Other entries in the series mention you should use a manila folder if you do not have pattern paper. This entry on tools and supplies may be helpful. I have recently rewritten the entry to make some points clearer.

The one question about how to attach the pocket pieces inside… I’m fairly certain this is one of the other entries. If not included in this particular one, this is my failing because my thinking was that anyone who is motivated to make a welt pocket is at the level where they see once getting to that stage, that the solution is self explanatory.

The book I wrote is on every single page of this site off to the top right. You can also find it by clicking “products and services” at the top of the page.

There’s a button to click to buy the book near the top right of the page. (Below the scissors in the banner; below the little ad; below “Archives”; below “Categories”… aha! There it is!)

It’s a great book, but it isn’t primarily a sewing book. It’s mostly for entrepreneurs – which is you! – though I’m not an entrepreneur and I bought it anyway. When you buy it, access to the Forum comes with it. Very, very worth it.

The above comment mentions there is a book you wrote, can I purchase a copy, how much and is it mentioned online anywhere?

Thank you so much.

p.s. so excited – can’t wait to get my book in the mail! I made a purchase recommendation at my university library too

On “bend allowance”:
I DID larn about this from some book or the other, except it was called “turn of cloth.” I make sense of it this way (warning: my grasp of geometry is very strong, so this might not make sense to non-math types):

Think of the top and bottom surfaces of fabric as parallel straight lines. When you fold over any fabric, but especially a thick one, you are making it into two concentric half-circles. the radius of the inner bend is less than the radius of the outer bend. So, depending on what it more important to you, the inner dimension or the outer dimension, you have to add or subtract some “bend allowance” to account for it.

The inner jig is made smaller to account for the smaller inner radius, the outer jig is sized for the outer radius.

My question to Kathleen:
Doesn’t the finished folded piece need to fit inside a 1″ window? So why isn’t the inner jig ~7/8″ wide so that the final folded piece will be 1″ instead of ~1 1/8′ the way it turns out with the jigs as you do them??

random, but slightly related rant:
For those of you who have ever worked in a fabric store ( I did)–remember how hard it was to put that damn polar fleece (or subtitute another really fat fabric) stuff on a bolt without the ends becoming totally offset and the fabric becoming skewed? Well, that’s because we foolishly fold the fabric in half first–one half of the fabric needs a much larger radius to go around the bolt, but it’s attached to the other, inner half of the fabric. This sucks for the fabric buyer, because after a while, the fabric gets distorted to compenstae for this discomfort and it’s really hard to get the fabric grained up again. Another reason why buying fabric wholesale is nicer–they keep it on the tubes. (not that it’s always on grain off the tube, either…)