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Transcript:

Helen: We are recording today on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw peoples, including Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish, Musqueam, and K’ómoks first nations.

Hello and welcome to Love to Sew. I’m Helen, the designer behind Helen’s Closet Patterns.

Caroline: And I’m Caroline, the owner of Blackbird Fabrics.

Helen: We’re two sewing buds who love to sew our own clothes and want to encourage you on your sewing journey, too.

Caroline: Join us for today’s interview with Saremy Duffy from Sew Sew Live.

Helen: Hello, Saremy. Thank you so much for coming on the show today.

Saremy: Thank you for having me.

Helen: We’re so excited to talk to you about everything that you do for the online sewing community. Can you please start us off by introducing yourself to our listeners?

Saremy: Yes. My name is Saremy Duffy, and I’ve been sewing for a really long time.

Helen: You’re not going to tell us how long?

Saremy: Uh, I, I think about 35 years now. No, I am totally open about my age. I’ll be 50 this year.

Helen: Ooh!

Saremy: I’m actually pretty excited about it.

Helen: Congratulations!

Saremy: Yeah.

Helen: Yeah. You get to join the Sewers Over 50 Club.

Saremy: That’s right. I love that group. Exactly.

Helen: Yeah, me too. Um, and where are you from?

Saremy: I’m originally from California, and that’s where I reside now. I’ve pretty much lived all over the state, and I, I really love California. It’s really beautiful, really diverse. I love it.

Helen: That’s awesome. And tell us a bit about your sewing journey: how and when did you learn how to sew?

Saremy: I learned in high school when they used to have home ec classes, I think some schools might still have them, but they’re pretty much disappearing. And I learned very grudgingly. I’ve told the story a lot because people ask me and I’m not really proud of the brat I was when they put me in a sewing class, but I was kind of a brat. I was like, you know, I don’t want to be in this sewing class, you know, but it was really the only elective available to my schedule. And the first time I actually did get out of it, and the second time I couldn’t. And then I really took to it, and it ended up really… the engineering side of it, like, how you put things together, just really blew my mind, and I loved it. And then I stayed in sewing for the rest of my years in high school, so I think three years.

And then I went on to design school because back then they didn’t say to a woman, you know, you might be a good fit for an engineering program. They were completely behind my idea of going into fashion design with a production emphasis on pattern drafting, and that’s what I did. But I really do wish I would have been encouraged to be an engineer because I just love that kind of spatial thinking and how things go together and how they are in relation to each other. It’s something I really enjoy.

Helen: Yeah. I think a lot of our listeners can probably relate to that. It’s one of the most satisfying parts of putting together a garment, seeing that 3D thing come together.

Saremy: Yes!

Helen: Very cool.

Saremy: Yeah.

Helen: So tell us a bit about the work that you ended up doing in the fashion industry. What was that like for you?

Saremy: Um, I really liked it. I didn’t much like the fashion industry itself. I think it looks a lot different on the outside than it really is. It is a really tough industry. And I did this in California, so I went to FIDM, which is the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in LA, and I graduated in design. And the production emphasis thing was my own, kind of, emphasis that I did, but they, you know, they allowed me to really focus on all the pattern drafting, grading, anything in that genre and focus less on sketching and things like that because I was really terrible at it.

And I went to work even while I was studying and worked as a designer or pattern drafter for lots of different companies. And the last time I was employed and not freelance, I worked in the outerwear industry, and that’s, kind of, where I ended my career as far as being employed, but I’ve never stopped working in the industry just in different ways. So, that’s basically always what I did: just design and pattern drafting, and usually both. And I always got the job because I knew how to do the pattern drafting. The designers were really easy to hire and find, and the pattern drafters, not so much.

And they, things weren’t really being exported as far as those skills until, well, I want to say about the 2000s, but I was seeing the export of all of our labor and all of our production, but I did get the privilege to work at places that had factories. And that really shaped me. And anytime I ever got, you know, headhunted for a job or whatever, I always made sure it had a factory cause I really liked that kind of atmosphere, and I only… one of the places I worked, I didn’t have one.

Caroline: Very cool. Once you finished, you said you were working for different companies as a pattern drafter designer, and then did you transition into freelance? Like, what happened after that?

Saremy: Yeah, so then I went into freelance, and I did it for… I’ve specialized in startup companies because I’m not one of those people that feels like you have to know the lingo or have graduated in something in order to do it. You know, I just feel like education hits all of us in different ways. And, you know, funnily, I, I feel like I’m the only one of my friends that actually does what I studied in college. Most of my friends went to school, finished, and by the time they were in their, like, third year, they’d say, you know, this is actually isn’t the field I thought it was. I’m not as interested in this, but I don’t want to start over, I’m just going to graduate in this. And then they go into something else, but they have a degree in this other thing.

And I think, like, having a business where I focused on startup companies, that’s what I saw, you know? I saw people that had these thriving careers in their life, but they really wanted to break into the garment industry or sewn product industry somehow. And what I did for them was the engineering, all the engineering, prototyping, spec sheets, everything they needed so that when they knocked on the door of a factory, they would actually talk with them because if they didn’t have, you know, professionally made patterns that production facility can read, they didn’t want to talk to you. And that I understand because it does, kind of, there’s just a specific style of pattern drafting. It’s not like what you see in a, you know, in a home pattern.

So, um, that’s what I did. I did that, and I had over a hundred clients. I did it for about 10 years, and you name it, I did it. I did everything from, you know, patented things, which is extremely rare. It’s, it’s extremely difficult to patent anything in the sewn products world to motocross gear with 85 pattern pieces.

I specialized in articulated garments, which means, um, cause the going into the outerwear industry really sparked my sense of pattern drafting. I loved it. I loved that there was this technical component of the garment having to function, not just look a certain way, right? So it has to fit the person. You know, if they’re a sea kayaker, it has to fit the person as if they’re in the boat holding their paddle, for it to function the best or any kind of articulation for something like that. If you’re doing a, you know, I did triathlete gear and fitness apparel, but that’s not actually considered the outerwear industry, it’s the fitness, you know, apparel, but in the outerwear world, you really get to focus on those things.

And that’s, I ended up, how I ended up getting the motocross contract because they didn’t want to, um, the place I was working at had them as like an off-season customer, and they said, hey, do you want this customer? Because we don’t, we don’t need them anymore where we’re busy on our off-season, so I took it. And so those are some of my favorite projects, was to do some of the more technical outerwear pieces with lots of pattern pieces: functional hoods and adjustments and self draining pockets and gasketed things and things like that.

But I did things as simple as, you know, a dog coat or children’s wear. I did a lot of children’s wear when I first started out in the garment industry. In fact, I worked for a really iconic brand in the eighties called B.U.M. Equipment. That was a really fun experience. So, and, the there, they did like garment dyed apparel. So, you know, there was shrinkage and all those kinds of things, so I got to learn how to do shrinkage and garment dying. And we didn’t dye on the, on the premises. It’s the only thing we didn’t do, but we got everything ready for it, and we’ve manufactured everything there. So I feel like I got off track with that question, but…

Helen: I was going to say I could listen to you tell these stories for forever. This is so cool. I can’t imagine what it’s like to design motocross gear. Like, that just sounds like so much fun, but I am curious to hear how you got into the home sewing world? Cause I know you don’t do that kind of stuff anymore. And now you’re more focused on home sewists and, you know, how people can make their garments at home. So how did you discover the online sewing world?

Saremy: Well, um, my last business was, I manufactured a line of accessories and designed it for knitters and crocheters and people in the fiber world. So, the home sewing world was really starting to kick off and boom, and I wasn’t able to participate because I was so busy with my other business. In fact, I even worked for Heather Ross when she was at Munki Munki. I don’t know if you know that fabric designer, but she and I were friends where we lived and that I feel like, right then, when she was starting to design fabrics and have them printed and, you know, I helped her with her children’s line, that right then, I feel like was that moment where people were starting to design fabrics people actually wanted.

Fabrics at the fabric stores started getting cuter and better, but fashion fabrics were still not really available, you know? Quilting had really taken over the, uh, local small fabric stores, and our only options were big box fabric stores. So finding the fashion fabrics was, kind of, tricky, but if I ever, you know, I like Josephine’s Dry Goods in Portland, Oregon, you know? And when I heard that there was a store dedicated to fashion fabrics, you bet I went there, you know? Because it’s so rare to find, it was back then, you know?

I remember the internet was, as a baby. It wasn’t really what we have today. So that, like the home sewing world, was just, like, exploding. And even my friends were like, oh my gosh, Saremy, have you seen this? Have you heard of this company? And they expected me to be keeping up on all these things. And I just, I just, couldn’t.

The only day I got to sew for myself during that, you know, 11 years having my last business, which was the manufacturing business, was my birthday. I made it a rule early on that I got to sew whatever I wanted for my birthday every year, no matter what. No matter what. And that was one of the biggest gifts I gave myself. But that was the only day of the year that I would kind of enter into the home sewing world.

So then, you know, time passes. I’m just consumed with my business. It was doing so good, uh, which was great, but I was the sewist living in a knitter’s world, and I, you know, I hate to say it, but there’s a little bit of push back from some knitters. They didn’t believe I could make them a bag and know what they needed, uh, because I only sewed, in their opinion, you know? Which for the record, I am a knitter, so, uh, that wasn’t an issue, you know? But it was this really strange thing where I’m this knit- just, you know, this sewist primarily, living in this knitter’s world, watching all this really cool stuff happening in the home sewing world, which is pretty exciting.

And then my friend convinced me to get a PlayStation. I know this doesn’t seem like this is my journey to home sewing, but I promise…

Caroline: It’s all gonna make sense in a minute, right?

Saremy: Yeah, I know. It’s just like, I don’t know. I’m just one of those weirdos. So she convinced me to get a PlayStation, and I tried it out, and I’ve always liked little games on my phone and things like that. And obviously, I like to stay busy. I’m the weirdo that likes to wash dishes. I like my hands to be busy. It’s why knitting was always great.

And I was, kind of, cooling it on the knitting because it’s really hot where I live. I had moved, recently moved to this area, and I just wasn’t even getting to wear all my sweaters that I knit through the winter. It was, just never got cold enough here. And I just didn’t want to keep creating things that I wasn’t even going to get to enjoy.

So when my friend kind of convinced me to the PlayStation thing, I was like, well, this is something I could do in the evenings? And I really got hooked. I started trying. I was terrible at it. Just for the record, I’m really, really bad. Like, they, I, my name people call me the newb, like, it’s, I’m terrible. And so I started looking up how to get better, how to do a game.

And then I learned, oh my gosh, the online gaming community is massive. It’s probably one of the biggest communities in the world. And I discovered livestreaming. And so I just loved that I could ask someone like, wait, how did you do that? Where did you just find that thing? You know, where, how did you access this? And they would reply, you know, they would tell me, and then I’d be like, oh my gosh, great. I’m not stuck in this game anymore.

You know, I just really love this interactive capability with the streamer and over something that we’re both interested in. I liked that it’s anonymous; you can have whatever name you want and just be there. No one knows that I’m almost 50, so, cause there’s a lot of, of course, inherent bias being female and being older. And it was just this really great anonymous space that I could be, yeah, a nerd about a silly game.

And I just kept thinking, like, how could I bring this into the sewing world? It took me a while to kind of wrap my head around it. And that’s really what did it, was thinking of just being able to sew with people and helping them. Because I always posted videos on my business account which was called @chickenbootsusa. And so, you know, if you look back through my @chickenbootsusa Instagram, you’ll see all these little, like, short videos of me sewing at the machine, just whatever, just to have content to put on there, whatever, or using our cutting machine or whatever. And people loved those videos. And I would get people asking me how to do things.

And I just thought, what if I could do that? What if I could sew with people and hang out and they could ask me questions and I could help them through or get unstuck, or maybe share my love of using an industrial machine? I didn’t really know, you know, what would happen. I didn’t know if anyone would even want that. Um, but I just decided to try it on the side and me and my assistant, at the time, helped, she helped me, like, set it up and let me do some trial runs where she would watch me in the next room because no one would know I was live, you know?

And that’s how I did it because how the home sewing world was the place to sew, you know? Like, I, finding the every sewer, you know, the every person to be able to help them. And it had been a while since I’d been in the home sewing world, I don’t even technically know if I’ve ever really been in the home sewing world, except when I was sewing in high school.

Caroline: It’s so cool what you do and so unique, and I think you found this really cool niche, and it makes so much sense. I mean, my partner’s a gamer, and he’s always watching videos on Twitch, and he gets so much out of it, and it makes so much sense to me that sewists would also feel like they’re getting so much out of these livestreams.

Like just that connection with somebody who’s sewing, and you’re learning these little tidbits as you go along. And I think the cool thing about you, Saremy, is that you bring so much knowledge to the table with your industry experience, things that I think a lot of sewists don’t really have the chance to learn because we’re not learning in this, kind of, like, industry fashion design setting or fashion industry setting.

So, I’d love to dive a little bit deeper into that before we move on to talking about your lives. Just talking a little bit about this commercial sewing experience and commercial pattern making experience that you have. And the first question that comes to mind, for me, is just, you know, how has your industry experience affected how you approach your home sewing and, kind of, how does that transfer over for you?

Saremy: Yeah, I feel like I didn’t really notice that I sewed differently from other home sewists until people would ask me questions, which was so great, and I’ve learned so much from my sewing community, the people that come in and hang out in my streams, you know. But one of the things that’s really hard for me to get away from, um, that I’m not really trying necessarily trying to get away from is being quick.

But, and I just want to qualify that by saying, like, I don’t feel like people need to be fast at sewing at all. And there’s certainly enough stuff in the world, right? But at the same time, I think any time your project can, kind of, keep moving along, you’re feeling those micro successes, it makes you feel more motivated to finish, and it makes you feel overall better about your, you know, the process.

And that is one thing that I really like to show is simpler ways to do things. And I think this is where I would probably not get a lot of support from pattern companies because they’re very concerned I might not, I, this is what I think, I don’t know. I never get to have a conversation with them. I’m always just, kind of, trying to figure it out, you know, like, okay. How, w-, what would appeal to them?

I think cause they’re concerned I’m not going to sew it the, maybe the quote “right way” or the way they want it to, intend for it to be sewn, or maybe it won’t have the same result or maybe it might, like, make their pattern look bad, you know, you just never know what the concern is, but the thing is, like, because of the pattern drafting experience and because I’ve worked with production floors and sample makers, which are completely different skill sets, I’ve learned there’s so many ways to get to the same end result. And none of them are right or wrong. They’re just a different path. And I think just like, we all have different learning styles, we all can have different sewing styles.

And so sometimes one person’s like, oh, I always hand sew that. Whereas for me, if you, if I have to hand sew, sew something I might pitch a fit, you know? Like, I’m such a baby about hand sewing. I’m getting better about it. My streams really made me come around and not be such a baby about it, but you know, other people are just like, oh no, no, no, I always hand sew that. That’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with that. You don’t have to be fast.

But there, you know, knowing that there’s like one method that works for you and one method that doesn’t, you know, I think once you realize, oh my gosh, I don’t have to do it that way, I could go this other route. Great. Now I can sew all these things I’ve always wanted to sew because, you know, I liked the way this person sews cuffs better. And, um, that, kind of, frees them up. You know, it’s just like different learning styles or different sewing styles.

And I, I definitely have people that disagree with how I do something, but not very often. Um, it’s definitely not a Twitch gaming stream, and I was literally just watching a Twitch gaming stream before we went live so I’m right there with your husband, I watch those a lot. And I definitely try to stick to the chats that aren’t too toxic, you know? But I see it in there. I don’t get that.

My community is really nice. Sometimes we’ll get new people and, but occasionally people will say, why do you do it that way? And I love it when people ask that, because it’s not an opportunity for me to say, this is the only way. It’s an opportunity for me to say, well, what, what other way are you thinking about? Because then I can stop maybe, and if I have, if it works, I can even, like, try it their way as well and say, oh yeah, yeah, I can do it that way.

Or maybe I’ll do that one on the left sleeve, and I’ll do this other way on the right sleeve. And we can just check it out, you know? Cause I think, I’m fully willing to throw my garment under the bus of experiment. Like I am fully like, okay, let’s do it, you know? And everyone else is like, oh my God, don’t do it, you know? Like, no, let’s try it. Let’s see what happens. I don’t mind sacrificing my garment. That’s the only way you get better is making mistakes and learning how to fix them. It’s just, like, mistakes are good.

So there’s really few times where I’m like, oh shoot, how am I going to come back from this, you know? So, so I wouldn’t do it if I’m like, eh, that’s not gonna work out, you know? But…

Helen: Yeah, I love that you’re encouraging your viewers, and our listeners, to approach things in different ways. And to just know that there are lots of different ways to get to that end result and that there isn’t a right or wrong because so much of our sewing learning online, it’s often presented that way, that this is the correct way to do something.

And I’m in the same camp as you where I like to experiment. And we actually collaborated on a little sew along, and I had so much fun watching you sew. And I know that you were nervous about maybe doing it a little different than the instructions, but it was so cool to see. And people already have the instructions so you might as well show them a different way.

Saremy: Yeah. Absolutely.

Helen: Yeah.

Saremy: Yeah.

Helen: Are there things that you think about when we’re talking about differences between commercial sewing and home sewing? Are there specific techniques that come up a lot where there’s, like, a, a difference in the way that you would approach something, some examples that you could share with our listeners?

Saremy: Ooh, nothing really comes, specifically comes to mind, but I definitely, like, there’s, half the time I will read it through the instructions of whatever I’m going to sew, and half the time, I don’t. I really try to come to the stream with a raw experience as possible, so we’re all in it together.

There are definitely bigger projects where I need to plan ahead, and I look, and I want to see how they’re going to do it. Or if, I think, like, okay, this is a really high profile garment. I know a lot of people might see this stream, so I probably should look at the instructions and, kind of, stay somewhat close. But, that being said, I am not going to force myself to do it if I just don’t think, I feel, like, that way is a little painful, you know?

And I, kind of, know my stream now, too, and I know what kinds of sewing they do and what they like and what makes them more confident and more nervous. So I can, kind of, pick a method based on that. I know that sounds probably really detailed, but there really are just so many ways to do every step.

So I guess a jeans fly. The way a jeans zipper fly is described in instruction packets is so different every time and I’m always like, I hate it when I’m like, oh, wait a minute. I don’t know what they’re saying here, you know? I don’t ever think that whoever made that pattern is wrong because their method might speak to someone else, you know? It’s just, we, do you put the toilet paper roll over the top or under the bottom, you know? It’s, like, it’s not a big deal. They both work.

Caroline: I beg to differ, Saremy. I think that people who put their toilet paper roll on backwards are just, no, it’s not allowed.

Saremy: Well, there’s only one way in my house, too.

Caroline: That’s such a great example. A jean’s fly is one of those techniques that can be done in a dozen different ways and different patterns have different instructions. And I think that is an area where, as a sewist, you can decide which method works the best for you, for your brain, for how you approach sewing, and then, kind of…

Saremy: The fabric.

Caroline: Exactly! The fabric. And then, kind of, adjust to fit what you want to do and how you want to approach it. And I think that can be applied in a lot of different ways.

Saremy: Yeah, and for something like that, specifically, if I’ve noticed something might be a little like, ooh, you know, there might be a little better way to do this. I hopefully have noticed that by the time we’re cutting it out, which is my first stream on the project. And I can say, you know what, this little piece right here, I’m going to do this one little thing to it. Cause I’m going to set it up to sew it this way, but hopefully, I don’t have to do that at all. I can just use the exact same pieces and sew it a different way which is, nine times out of 10, what you can do.

And then that way I can just say, hey, if you want to follow the instructions, go for it. But at this point, right now, I’m going to be sewing this my way, or, you know, not my way, just this other way, using the same pieces, you know? So I think that that’s just giving people that option, but there’s definitely, I’ll get a comment on an uploaded livestream, you know, you didn’t sew it the way the instructions said, you know, they’re really upset at me. And I can talk for a long time about that, just that kind of interaction. You know, why is that expected of me?

Caroline: Yeah, and I mean, at the end of the day, they’re your livestreams. So I think that what you choose to teach or how you choose to teach is totally up to you. So, you know, those people giving you grief, eh, forget about them.

Saremy: Yeah, exactly. I’ve definitely had some very funny interactions that I’ve posted on Instagram, maybe on a day where I’m feeling a little bit salty about it. Cause it’s like, like famously, I recently had someone comment on my video, uh, an uploaded video, and they said, “Shut up and sew.” That was their comment.

And, you know, sometimes, I actually, I respond to every comment. I will say, I respond to every comment if I haven’t it’s because I somehow weirdly didn’t see it. And for someone to treat me that way, I’m not going to let them treat me that way. A lot of people are just like block and delete. You can’t do that on YouTube. Um, you can delete the comment, but you can’t block someone, um, not in the way that you think. And so they can just create another account. It’s no big deal.

Um, and this person definitely didn’t have a real name. And so I try to look at it like, you know, this is someone really frustrated. They are at this point at this pattern, this particular pattern, and they’re really frustrated, and they just want to get to it. They want it to be solved. They want to be at the end, and they want to be successful. Cause I just try and feel like, what would make say that.

Caroline: Yeah.

Saremy: So then, I just replied to him, and I just said, this is a livestream. And I just really kindly explained it and blah, blah, blah. And he replied. We ended up having, like, a 10 comment back and forth in my YouTube comments.

And this is, like, 8:00 PM on a Sunday night. You know what, people? I don’t really want to be doing that at 8:00 PM on a Sunday night. But at the same time, now he, I’ve seen him in the livestream saying hi now. And so I feel like that was an opportunity to, kind of, say, what do you need, you know? What are you looking for?

I know I’m not fast, but you can hit the screen, double tap the screen and hit, go 20 seconds forward. You can speed this up. You can play back the speed at two times the speed, you know, there’s a lot of things you can do that might get him where he needs to be. You know, so it’s, it bugs me, but I use it as an opportunity, hopefully, you know?

Helen: It sounds like you have a really positive attitude about that, and I’m sure you really turned him around. Maybe he’ll stop leaving rude comments on other people’s channels, too.

Saremy: Right? Yeah. I know. I think, oh, with a name like that, you’re already setting yourself up to do that. I can tell that’s what you do.

Helen: That’s what you’re here for. Oh, yeah.

Saremy: He doesn’t know that I spend my time in Twitch chats with 15 year old boys, and I’m going head to head with them all the time. Like, come at me, bro. I got this.

Caroline: Okay, well, I would love to pivot for a second and talk about the fact that you use an industrial sewing machine because I think that this intimidates a lot of sewists. People are maybe interested in learning more about industrial machines, but they’re so, like, big and heavy and fast and scary. So I would love to get more from you on that topic and just, kind of, hear about what machine you use and why we should not be afraid of industrial sewing machines.

Saremy: I love my industrial. I sew on a Juki 8700-7, and just a full disclaimer, I am not an expert on industrial machines. I know how to use my industrial machine very well. And I’ve been using an industrial machine for a very long time. I want to say, ooh, 25 years at least, but I’ve known how to use one since college. They do teach you how to use it.

Uh, and I think I got one pretty, s-, like, in my college years. Yeah, I did actually. I don’t still have that one. So I’ve actually had an industrial almost consistently for 30 years. The one I have right now has electronics on it. And what that means is that I can do a couple of automated things.

Like, my back tack can be automated, but if you watch me sew, you’ll see that I don’t usually have that enabled. Um, it also has, uh, auto thread snip, and it raises and lowers the presser foot automatically. And those two features, hands down, are some of my favorite things about my machine because it frees my hands up.

You’ll also see, I don’t sew with very many pins. I am not anti-pin at all. I use pins and clips that… You need it, you use it. Like, there’s nothing wrong with that, but because my hands are always available, I can hold my work as it goes under the needle, you know, it’s just so great, you know, I have that capability. And the way I am able to engage those mechanisms with the auto thread snip, the auto back tack, and the raising and lowering is with my feet.

So you’ve probably seen knee lifts and then, and the knee lift can raise and lower a presser foot. Um, mine doesn’t have that. My old one does, and I actually have used an industrial for so much, I got a repetitive motion issue in my hips from using my knee lift.

So I’m not here to say that’ll happen to everybody, but if you are a production sewist, you might consider switching to a heel lift, because it’s a far more ergonomic action. So I just tilt back on my heels. It’ll raise my presser foot. If I push down a little harder, it’ll back tack or thread snip, and I’m oversimplifying that, but yeah, it’s really simple.

And I have a whole video dedicated to showing how this happens, but you’ll see it. And in fact, newcomers to my stream will often say, what’s that sound? And, um, if you’ve ever been a livestream, there’s usually commands that you can type in a chat. Uh, usually you can just write “!commands” and then you’ll find out what all the commands are in that live chat. And we have one exclamation point noise. And so people, like a fellow viewer, can just, if someone asks that, they can just write that command, and it’ll answer the question for them.

Because sometimes I might not see the question cause I’m busy looking down, and I’m sewing, and it’ll explain, oh, you’re hearing her presser foot go up and down cause it does make a noise. And sometimes, um, my machine’s name is Phoenix. So it even says, you know, Phoenix is getting impatient for Saremy to keep sewing because when I pull my work out, the presser foot sitting up and in the up position. But after a while, it’ll, it’ll come down if I don’t keep sewing, like, engage it again. So sometimes you’re hearing that.

That’s a little bit about the things my machine does, and there’s other electronics, uh, configurations, like I can, I can change the distance or the number of stitches in the, the back tack does at the beginning or the end. And there’s other things you can do. Some of the electronics panels, you can, maybe, if you stitch a square label down all the time, you can set it up, and it’ll do it automatically. There’s you know, so there’s some basic things like that.

One of the biggest things I love about my machine is how much pressure it puts on the fabric. So if I’m making a pretty heavy duty project, and I’m, kind of, hoiking on it, it doesn’t pull it out from under the machine, and it stays in there, and I really love that. My machine always stops needle down as well which helps that. It also sits flush in a table which is more ergonomic, and I really like that it doesn’t sit above the table.

And you can adjust the speed. So being nervous about the speed, you will get used to it, like, you, you will. And it’s funny cause if I go back to my old one, it’s a little zippier than this one, and it always catches me off guard, but I immediately, kind of, get used to it. But you can, you can adjust that. So I can talk about this a lot. So I’ll let you ask me what you want to know.

Helen: I think that as a great introduction for our listeners. And I think the only other question that I would like to know is: where does one get an industrial machine if someone’s interested? Is it, like, a Craigslist thing usually? Cause it seems like it’ll often times, they are used or they’re from production facilities, right?

Saremy: Uh, yeah. Um, I did want to say one other thing, your machine can be calibrated to what you sew.

Helen: Oh, cool.

Saremy: Cause I did see, I did want to, like, I wrote some things down like home versus a commercial machine, and I did want to say that, like, if I want to just only sew lingerie on this, I could calibrate it for that. Uh, mine’s calibrated more for middle of the road, you know? So, like, a lot of garment sewing and, and a little bit of heavy duty sewing. And that all has to do with, like, the timing.

So my needle size, I can go up to about a size 18, and I probably shouldn’t go below a size 12. That’s where my, kind of, like, the sweet spot of what my machine likes, because the timing is really the most important thing about this machine. It’s the thing that they, you have to have, uh, calibrated for whatever you’re sewing.

So anyway, as far as buying a machine, I’ve done it many ways. I’ve done it off of Craigslist. I’ve done it from, uh, factories going out of business. I’ve done it directly from a sewing center. That’s where I got this one, and I went and got to try it out. And I’ve also gotten them from Texas. I’m in California, and I ordered, like, two of the machines sitting here I had ordered from a place in Texas, and I said, oh, I want a binding attachment on one of them, and I gave him my specifications, and they sent them fully assembled on a pallet to my office.

Helen: Wow.

Saremy: And then all you do is pour the oil into the pan. And so if you don’t get a machine with electronics, it’s even simpler because the electronics, there are a few extra things you have to plug in. But one of my viewers, I’ve had a few viewers get, um, ind-, industrials, since I’ve been streaming and I’ve tried, I’m not trying to sell industrials, I promise. I feel like you get, you use the machine that works for you, you know? I don’t have a zig zag, I don’t have a stretch stitch, so I am limited, but you’ll see, I do all those things anyway because that’s just, kind of, my style.

But she put like, um, one of my viewers, she was like, I put the whole machine together myself, even though it was electronics, she goes, I was nervous, but it worked. I did it and followed the schematic, and it worked out. I always recommend buying used if you can. They’re so affordable. This one I’m sewing on is my very first brand new industrial I’ve ever had in my 35 years, and it cost me $1,800. And new home sewing machines aren’t cheap, so I feel like it’s pretty affordable. If you wanted to get it without the electronics, $800 brand new. That’s really affordable. It’s just not portable, you know? So…

Caroline: Yeah, and you made a good point that I want to stress again. For anyone out there that doesn’t have experience with industrial machines that, you know, they don’t do a zig zag or a stretch stitch. So when you’re buying an industrial, it’s just a straight stitch, you know, the classic one is just a straight stitch.

I have some experience with industrial machines because I used them in college when I studied fashion design. And out of school, I bought one second hand. And in Montreal where I grew up, like there’s, there were a lot of production facilities, way back. And so a lot of places were closing, and I was able to get one really affordably.

Saremy: Yeah, perfect.

Caroline: But they are so heavy, too. And that’s, like, a couple of things that other people might not realize about machines, if you don’t have experience with them, the industrial machines is that they are so heavy. I had an experience where I was living in, in the Plateau in Montreal in, like, a walk-up…

Saremy: This involves stairs, doesn’t it?

Caroline: Oh, yes. I had to carry this industrial machine up, like a spiral outdoor staircase, and then up another staircase inside. And my brother was helping me. And there was a point where, like, I was pinned against the wall with, like, this industrial machine, and I was like, I’m going to die here today. It was so, so intense, but that…

Saremy: Yeah. It is something to keep in mind. And, um, if you don’t get the electronics, you can just remove the head of the machine. It’s really easy to put the belt back on the, uh, hand wheel. I promise. You know, so, but I do want to back up and say, you can get an industrial that has a zig zag.

Caroline: Oh, ok. Yeah.

Saremy: So that’s, yeah, you can get industrials to do, kind of, a pretty amazing amount of things, but some of them may take a while to get here if they’re from Japan. And, um, that’s why I try and go the used route is really great. You can also get lots of attachments. Like I said, the binding attachment I got, $35 and I can do binding, like, price for happiness, you know? So, that’s pretty cheap, but yeah, moving them is, kind of, a bear.

And one time I did have to bring, uh, one of the machine heads to Sacramento which is about an hour and a half from here. And usually my mechanic comes to me, but I had to bring it in this time because he was in the hospital, and I was desperate. And so I had to unhook it all and bring it, and it was fine. We all lived. And it was so much easier because usually, if there’s anything up with, going on with your industrial, it’s the machine itself, not the table where the motor is, and they just plop your machine into a table and do the work.

So it’s, it definitely is, like, if you move a lot, and I have been lately with my office, you might lose a few friends over, if you ask them. I can speak to experience because I also have big tab-, like, heavy tables. And I definitely have had more than one friend, I’ve probably had three say, I’m never moving this with you again, and now I just hire people.

Caroline: Yeah. My brother’s stuck with me.

Helen: It’s like a piano or something.

Saremy: Good thing he’s stuck with you.

Caroline: He has no choice, but he still tells that story to this day. And it was, like, 15 years ago. So, um…

Saremy: You’re like, try living with it, dude. I have to always move it.

Caroline: But yeah, no, that’s, that’s so cool. And it’s so interesting to hear, you know, your experience with an industrial machine and what you love about it. And I totally agree. They are, you know, they have just this power to them that I think is really fun once you get past that intimidation factor, having a machine that can just do a little bit more, and it just obviously it’s industrial, so it’s, it’s designed to take a lot more than our home sewing machines. So definitely try it out, listeners, if you’re interested. You can get one at a good price and, and give it a go.

Saremy: Yeah, I have a whole video about, like, I pit my three machines against each other, a home machine, this industrial, and my industrial without electronics. And at the end, I really stress that if you are going to buy an industrial, or any machine, honestly, bring the fabrics you sew.

Like, I brought on an entire pocket bucket that I, it was a pattern I had in my line at the time, which has stiffener, vinyl, binding, all of it. And I sat there, and I sewed it, you know? I, by the end, I had a little crowd, so I can’t guarantee you might not be left alone, but at the same time, you really should try the machine cause then they can say, oh, that can be calibrated. That can’t be calibrated.

And if you’re like, but I sew too many different things. Just bring a few pieces of fabric from your last few projects and give it a go because that’s really, it’s more than just about if the machine works or not. It’s how you get along with it and how you feel with it. So they should let you do that if you get to buy it in person.

Helen: Yeah. Yeah. That’s really great advice. And it’s so fun watching you sew on your industrial machine in your videos, too. So people can just watch some of your livestreams if they’re interested in seeing what some of the differences are with these machines.

And I do want to talk more about your livestreams, and I’m not even sure if we fully mentioned the name of your streaming, which is Sew Sew Live. Everybody got to go and subscribe because there’s so much great stuff on there. Can you tell our listeners what they will find when they get to your channel?

Saremy: Yes. Yeah. So my s-, my stream on, I livestream on YouTube, primarily. I have tried doing it on Twitch as well, but it’s pretty hard to do stream on both at the same time because of terms of service and things like that. So I primarily am on YouTube, and mostly, you’re going to find that I like to sew a garment from start to finish.

And so I will cut it out on one stream, and then we’ll sew it in one or two streams. So recently, I did a bigger project, and there were five total videos, but I really, um, wanted to take my time with it. And it was a fully lined jacket that I ended up waterproofing. So that one, you know, I had a couple of fitting streams, a cutting stream, and then a bunch of sewing streams. And that’s usually what I do.

And you’ll see on the thumbnail, what I, what I plan on doing. So you can, kind of, see, okay, well, I’m only stuck on this one part of this project. So I’m going to look for the thumbnail that covers that cause usually I’ll write on the thumbnail, oh, this is the one with the zipper fly in the waistband.So you can just watch that one if it’s an uploaded livestream and, um, that’s mainly what I do or, you know, products like bags and floor poufs and dog coats.

We do anything. I’ll do whatever. I don’t care. I, I, sew anything like I, I’m one of those people that just barrels towards a challenge, you know? I want to get it over with sometimes. And if I’m nervous, I just, like, barrel towards it.

So, uh, I do have quick uploaded videos on specific things like how to French seam a set-in sleeve or how to set in a sleeve or how to sew zipper fly, how to do French seam side seam pockets, binding a neckline, drafting a facing, like, like 20 minute long videos. So those are there as well. Binding. I am a huge fan of binding, and I bind a lot. So there’s a few videos dedicated to that as well, but mostly, you’re going to see pretty long videos.

And just as a tip, not all my vid-, videos have timestamps in them yet. But if they’re there and you have your mouse over the time bar of the video, just, kind of, at the bottom of the screen, if you see it in chunks and little titles, it has timestamps, and then you can go directly to the step you’re looking for.

And that goes for anybody’s videos. So if you want to see the timestamps, you just tap the title of the video and the description will open up and below there are, is a list of timestamps, and I’ve been really fortunate that some of my viewers have been giving them to me, as a gift, you know? So they’re, say, hey, I’m going to do the timestamps for the Tamarack jacket, and then they email them to me, and I can put them in which is super nice and helpful. So we’re making our way through it. I’ve done over 500 videos now. So it’s gonna be a while.

Caroline: Wow. 500 videos. That is an accomplishment.

Saremy: Right?

Caroline: That, wow, that’s amazing.

Saremy: I had no idea. I totally missed the milestone and everything.

Caroline: So when do you livestream? Like, how often and how would our listeners join in if they wanted to.

Saremy: So I usually am live Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday and 11:00 AM Pacific. It definitely leaves out a lot of folks at that time. So if you’re someone that would really love to be in a livestream and I’m never live at a time that works for you, please tell me that. I, cause I want to know that. I’m flexible. I finally just settled on that time, and I really like having one time per week so that it’s consistent, but it’s not set in stone.

So usually on a Wednesday, we’ll cut it out. Thursday, we’ll sew part on. And Saturday we’ll sew part two. And then sometimes it’ll spill over into the next week, and that’s generally what I do, and the uploaded videos just happen when I have the time to do it because I don’t, you know, like, editing takes awhile, so they just happen whenever, but that’s generally my schedule.

And when you join the livestream, there’s a couple of interesting things that we’ve all learned as a stream together. If you look, if it’s live, it’ll have, like, a little red icon in the corner that says it’s live, and then you’ll just need to look for the “show chat” or “hide chat,” uh, little, uh, text. It’s small and, or it’ll, maybe it might, I don’t think it says “join chat.” I think it just says “show chat” or “hide chat.” And then you’ll be able to see everyone talking. It’s different than commenting on a video because a comment would just live there below a video, like we’ve all seen.

Um, chat is a little different, then there’s one other little thing at the top of the chat window to the left, it’ll say “top chat” or “live chat.” And we all have learned that you need to enable live chat because otherwise you might miss certain comments, and I do not know why this is. I’ve never figured it out, but I definitely was like, what is everybody responding to? What did this person say? I didn’t see it. And then I realized it’s because of that weird little thing.

I watch the, the stream on YouTube like everyone else does. I do not watch it from the Creator Studio which is, as a streamer, that’s what I have, mainly because of, the font’s too small, and I can’t enlarge it. And cause, because you remember, my machine’s between me and my computer, it’s just too far away. So I see the stream how other people do.

So typically I sometimes might not even know how many viewers are in the stream and someone will say, Saremy, there’s, like, 40 people here. And I’m like, oh great, you know? So it’s kind of funny. I don’t like, I like those, I like statistics, but I, I will also miss, I’ve missed all my subscriber milestones. Someone will told me, Saremy, you got over 6,000. I’m like, I did? So I am just here for the people.

Caroline: That’s so cool though. I’m just imagining, like, if you were teaching this class or doing this in person, you’d have 40 people in front of you watching. Like, that is so cool.

Saremy: Yeah. Yeah. I watch a lot of gaming streams and I know, like I watched a streamer who has 60,000 people watching him play the video game. But the thing is those aren’t really the streams I like to hang out in. I really like hanging out in the small communities, and I watch some really popular streamers making a living doing this, and they have 10 to 20 viewers. They have no clue I have more viewers than they do for sewing which makes me feel good some days, but they’re making more money than me so we can see the priorities, but it is pretty cool.

Caroline: Yeah, it is so cool. I’m also curious, what do you think are some of the benefits of participating in a livestream, watching a livestream versus like, you know, an edited video that you might find on YouTube? What do you think livestream brings to the table?

Saremy: Ah, yes. The edited video. The bane of my livestreaming existence. I’m just teasing. Okay. Full disclosure if I’m, when I would tell someone, like a knitter, like, oh, you know, look up a little tutorial and look for the shortest one. That’s what I would say. So I am pay-, this paybacks for me right now.

So yeah, I, what I like about a livestream is you’re not going to miss anything. You’re going to see me make mistakes. I guarantee it. Um, mistakes with every stream are guaranteed. Um, you’ll see how I fix it. You get to ask me anything. You can challenge me. You can ask me to sew it a specific way. You can derail the stream with your sewing issue, you know? I, sometimes that happens where we’re all like, ooh, I don’t know. What would we do? You know? And we’re all kind of fig-, trying to figure out the pattern someone’s looking for, you know?

I really like that it’s interactive, and you interact with other people, you know? And you’ll start seeing regulars there, and they’re all very friendly group, and it’s open to everybody, and there are people of every persuasion in there. And I love that because it’s just this nice, equal playing ground that way, you know? We’re all there for one reason. And so if you’re, kind of, looking, for that space where…

And there’s lurkers, too, and lurking is definitely a livestream term for someone who just wants to watch, likes the live experience, but maybe just doesn’t want to be involved in chat. You do not have to chat. And if this helps you join a chat, I cannot see who is in my chat, you know? I can’t see who likes my videos or dislikes my videos if that helps you, you know?

That, that kind of an anonymity is there as opposed to Twitch. Twitch, you can see who’s in a chat very easily. I don’t think it’s even possible in YouTube, maybe in that Creator Studio which I don’t look at, but once it’s uploaded, you can’t see it at all. I can’t see who’s liked it, disliked it, or was in the chat unless they said something.

Caroline: Yeah. So, and obviously, I mean, all of these people are excited to watch your videos because they are learning from you, an experienced professional with this industry experience. I think that that is bringing so much value to the table for your audience.

And you mentioned mistakes a minute ago, that you, you do make mistakes, and I’d love to talk a bit more about that. Like, how do you handle that in the moment when you’re live and people are watching and you make a mistake?

Saremy: Well, first I just shut the stream down and crawl under my desk. That’s what I want to do, but I can’t. And you know what, it’s, it’s more that I’m just like, gosh darn it. I was getting hungry. Now, I can’t, I can’t stop. I have to fix this. You know?

So yeah, that one time on Myosotis Dress that I serged through the front of the skirt. Yep. That happened live on camera. I hadn’t serged through the middle of my garment in 25 years, and I did it. And when it happened, I knew before the chat did, and I was like, oh no, you know, so then I could fix it. And I got really lucky with where it was at. So I think the one comment I hear a lot from viewers is how comfortable I am with my seam ripper. I view the seam ripper as a tool. There’s no shame in it. And I find that there’s still a lot of the sewing community does feel some sort of shame using a seam ripper. I feel like that’s this carry over from when I was in home-ec sewing, you know?

When I, the way I like to liken it is I have a few, like, little is euphemism the term, um, or like weird little ways of looking at it is, you know, a hammer comes with both tools on one tool, right? So you have the way to put that nail in and the way to take the nail out. And there’s no shame in using the claw side of a hammer, right? So why is there any kind of shame using a seam ripper?

I have three tools on my sewing machine. Always. I have my seam ripper, my awl, and my scissors. That’s it. I use all three of those constantly through everything I sew all throughout. And I couldn’t sew without it. If I notice I don’t have my seam ripper, I go find it, and I bring it back. So it’s something you need, and I do make mistakes. It’s just how it is.

And, but what I have learned is sometimes I’ll have to go back and watch one of my videos because of a timestamp or whatever reason. I rarely do. It’s hard for me to watch my own video. Uh, but I have to. I will notice that I had a mistake. You couldn’t even see it on the camera, and then I’d spend 20 minutes fixing it. I’m like, shoot, I could have just not said anything, and fixed it later, you know, like maybe the topstitching was a little crooked and I’m like, oh shoot, and then I pull it out. Yeah. Do I want to fix it? Yes. But is it really critical to the process that they’ll watch me fix that? Not in general, you know?

So I’m getting better about going, I’ll just fix that later. They know how to do that. You know what I mean? Like, they, you know, and I, and I don’t, like, hide it. I just say, oh shoot, that’s a little crooked, you know, like I put two of my snaps on my Kelly Anorak on upside down, like, come on.

Caroline: But you know what, I think that’s so relatable. And I think that’s another valuable thing about watching a livestream versus watching an edited video is that you’re actually witnessing these things happen in the moment and seeing somebody who is confident and positive and, kind of, has this go with the flow attitude like you do. People are seeing that in real time.

And I think it makes the whole sewing process less intimidating when you can watch someone make a mistake and work through it and, kind of, feel like you’re, you know, having maybe those similar experiences in your sewing practice and learning that, you know what, it’s okay. And you can still move on and, and be easygoing and positive and have a good sewing experience even when those mistakes happen. So I think you set a great example in that way.

Saremy: Thank you. Yeah, I mean, one of the things I used to say was, you know, you know, we, you don’t know how to make a grilled cheese perfectly the first time you do, you know, 10 of them before you figure out the heat and how much butter and cheese and how much time and whatever, right?

We don’t get that opportunity with a garment. You’re usually only sewing one. So to expect this, kind of, level of ready to wear, minimum ready to wear perfection, um, which we all know ready to wear is not even perfect at all. Now that we’ve all been looking at our clothes and knowing, oh gosh, I bought this, and it has these crazy things on it and these threads flying off and seams coming out like I, you know?

So why do we put that kind of pressure if you don’t get to sew 10 of them first, you know? Even, uh, even doing a toile or a prototype or a muslin, you, you know, that’s not enough, you know, because usually you’re just working through a fit issue. You’re not actually sewing the garment the way it will be sewn with your real fabric. So expecting that, putting that kind of expectation on yourself is just completely it’s, it sucks the fun out of it, you know? It really puts a lot of pressure on yourself.

I have sewn production style for my own business, so I know, you know, what it takes to get to that point where it’s mindless, and it does come out exactly how I intended it to come out. And I think that, kind of, um, thinking about it that way, like, you know, like, for me, I’m learning, trying to learn how to sketch right now. And what is in my head is not coming out, you know, through the darn iPad pencil thing, you know, so, and I think that’s the thing.

And like, to get to that point in sewing where, what you planned, what you intended and how it ends up is all the same. It takes a long time, you know? So, you know, and then on top of it, maybe you did sew that garment twice before, but each time you did it in rayon, and the third time you’re doing it in double gauze, and now you just want to throw it in the trash, you know, because that double gauze has a mind of its own or whatever. So it’s, and it feels like a completely different garment.

So I dunno, be-, being kind, we, we like to say in my stream, be kind to your future self you know? Do things to kind of be kind to your future self. Set yourself up for success. And the other thing I like to say is, you know, let it know who’s boss. You really like, I really firmly believe in that. In fact, I feel like that I know the day I got better at sewing, and it was when I decided that no, I’m the boss of this, you know? And I just, I, I just didn’t accept anything different than what I wanted for whatever I was stitching in that moment, you know? And it, and it took me stopping and starting and stopping and starting, stopping and starting to where me and the machine finally understood what I wanted and how to do it.

Caroline: Yeah, it’s so true. You do have to be kind to yourself and also, kind of, take control of the situation with sewing sometimes and be like, I can do this. And one of the things that we love about you is that you are so willing to, kind of, tackle anything. You even said earlier, “I’ll sew anything.” And I love that about you. And I think it’s such a great example to set as well. And I wonder if you have any words of encouragement for our listeners out there who maybe feel like they have trouble tackling those, those challenging projects or just getting started. Like, as beginners, I think sometimes sewing can feel so intimidating and, and, like, there’s so much that you have to learn, but you just take on everything. So I’d love a little pep talk about that.

Saremy: Well, I think one thing to remember is that when you talk about sewing, it sounds like sewing is one thing, but it’s not, right? It’s so many different types of things and made in so many different types of fabrics.

So if you were going to specialize in, um, sails for boats, you’re probably not, even though you’re sewing 12 hours a day on, you know, sails for boats or parachutes, which I’ve actually known a factory that did that, you’re not probably going to entrust them to fix your fly zipper or your bra hook that fell off, right? You know? Like, that person, maybe, never have sewn those types of things.

So because there’s so, a greater versatility in home sewing, like we can sew whatever we want. You’re also trying to be a mini expert in all these different genres, you know? So I know that when I start sewing, uh, lightweight fabrics, I, kind of, got to get my sewing legs under me again, you know? I gotta remember, oh yeah, I need to, kind of, do this and do that and get these pins out. And it, kind of, usually is fits and starts before I, kind of, remember the things I really need to, to ensure success on that project.

So if you’re new to sewing, you probably haven’t figured out where your skills are at yet. As far as like, you may want to sew bras, but you might find out you’re really good at sewing knits. It’s just something your fingers really handle the fabric really well. You understand how the fabrics shift amongst them, you know, like when their, their being sewn, um, how the stretch works, how the finishing is.

And even though you really wanted to learn how to make your own bra, you’re learning that, oh, shoot, knits are actually the way to go as far as sportswear goes, you know? So becoming a mini expert in all these different genres, you know, don’t expect that of yourself. Just, just go with the flow and see what you like.

And then you may find that what you like to sew and what you’re good at may be two different things. Um, so, and I just laugh because that’s how I feel with sketching right now. Because I’m a ner-, a novice, and I am definitely like, oh gosh, I’m really good at this, but I want to sketch this, you know, so yeah.

Helen: I’m sure there’s a livestream for sketching out there.

Saremy: There is! Yeah, I did not, and, and incidentally, I did not invent livestreaming sewing. There’s plenty of amazing cosplayers out there, uh, on Twitch. If you want to look at sewing on Twitch, they have a category called, uh, makers and crafting. That’s where you’re going to find them.

You’re also going to find a lot of other really interesting crafts on there, so… and even how to change your oil in a car. Like I’ve seen all kinds of cool stuff on there.

Caroline: Very cool.

Helen: Very cool.

Saremy: It’s a lot harder to find on YouTube. YouTube’s, kind of, a mess as far as navigation goes.

Helen: So, um, I have a tangent question before we wrap things up here, and it’s relating to something you said earlier about your three tools that you keep next to your machine: your seam ripper, your scissors and your awl. And I want to know what’s the awl for, Saremy?

Saremy: Boy. I feel like that’s the one sponsorship I should probably go after. But I never ask for anything, so I guess you don’t get anything unless you ask for it, right? But I think I’ve converted 25% of the awl users in the world.

I’m really into my tapered tailor’s awl. And I use it as, like, a pointy finger. The-, one of the reasons I don’t need a lot of pins sometimes is because my awl, I can hold it in place with the awl while I’m sewing, and I can get very close to the needle, right? Cause it’s not my finger, especially with binding. I use it a lot in binding, and that’s where I, kind of, perfected using it.

I’ve had an awl for a really long time. I never used it for sewing until I started learning how to bind, and I was binding bags. So, yeah, that’s why I use it. It doesn’t work for everybody. Um, I tried a seam ripper, and that’s just not the same because there’s a blade on the, on the seam ripper. And there are stilettos, and they’re not the same. Um, but if it works for you great.

For me, I like this tapered tailor’s awl. Mine’s even yellowed. It’s so old. I lost my first one. I actually think someone took it, funnily. It was a blue handled one I got issued in college. So they even issued me one. But yeah, that’s what I use. I use it as, like, a pointy finger.

I, I think when you were saying how people really like how I don’t mind making mistakes, that’s not quite true. They definitely get nervous when I’m doing certain things, and it’s, kind of, cracks me up. They’re like, oh my God, you’re making me nervous. Like, with certain things I’ll be trying to sew, you know?

And the awl sometimes makes people nervous how close I get, but because an awl is rounded, the needle, even if it hits it, is going to graze off of it. It’s not like hitting a pin that’s static or other items. And so I’ve never had an issue with the needle and the awl. I feel like it’s, uh, better, you know, and, but I change my needle a lot as well, a lot more than most people, too. So, so yeah.

Helen: That’s really cool. Thank you for sharing that. I’m going to get my awl out now because I have only ever used it to poke holes in jeans, so…

Saremy: Oh yeah, exactly. Yeah. I’ve done that, too. Yeah. It is handy. Give it a try. I mean, you might find it’s nice in just, I especially like, you know, doing a collar stand, holding, like, a folded edge down or a cuff or anything like that. It’s perfect. Hems. Anything I’m folding the fabric. I fold it. I don’t ever use pins. I just fold it and hold it with the awl.

Caroline: Very cool.

Helen: Awesome. Okay. I have another question that I think you’ll find a bit awkward, but how can our listeners support you? I know you’re providing the stream as a real service for the community. And you’re just there for the people. And you just want to give back, but I also know that you are making a living from this. So how can our listeners support you in your livestreaming if they want to join in?

Saremy: Well, you know, I appreciate you asking me that because I’m trying to get better about being more transparent. Um, not that I’m hiding anything, but I do need to be a little more proactive on getting support because I am doing this for sewists. I am almost 50. I’ve had a really great career. Uh, financially we’re very stable, and this is my way of being able to give back and also be a part of a social community that I want to be in.

Um, I’m not a big fan of social media. I’m not even on Facebook, you know, so I’d much rather hang out and talk with people about sewing. But I am not making a living doing this and I just posted a whole transparency thing on my Patreon. So I do have Patreon, but my goal someday is that I don’t have to have Patreon, that maybe fabric stores or pattern companies will say, hey, can you sew this?

And right now I already do accept sponsorships. Whereas, they can send me the pattern, send me all the materials. We sew the project. I send it all back. So they get to have the project back. Cause I don’t need 52 new garments a year. And if I stream every week, I’d have 52 new items a year. That’s just too many things.

And so, I think in a perfect world, I’m looking for that kind of sponsorship, and maybe they’ll say, hey, can we pay you a $100 or $200 and do this, you know? And then, and then we promote it, you know? Partnering for this robe, that was such a really great example of seeing what difference it can make for viewers and, and being able to reach more people and help more people because you supported the stream so well with, um, social media and other things like that. And I think that’s what I’m looking for, you know?

I can see what my most viewed videos are, and I can see who is liking themposts on Instagram and who isn’t, you know, and I think that that would be really nice to get some more support from companies to help. Cause right now, financially I have Patreon which will maybe cover my rent.

And then the other things I get income from: I get some passive income from Spoonflower because of the fabric I designed and, um, that can fluctuate wildly. And up until COVID, that was maybe $30 a month. And then after COVID, you know, sewing has, kind of, exploded, so I’m getting a little bit more, more reliably. Do I think that’ll be forever? Um, and then lastly, um, I do sell patterns. I design and sell patterns.

I’ve been turning in a lot of the designs I had at my last business Chicken Boots into sewing patterns as, kind of, a way to, kind of, transition out of it, kind of, help me close the door on that. I wasn’t ready to shut that business down. It was doing really good and just some circumstances, kind of, forced my hand. So it was, kind of, a way for me to give back to my customers and say, you know, I’m going to have these as sewing patterns and you know, some of the folks were all, but I don’t sew. I’m like, yeah, but you can join me, and I’ll teach you.

Helen: Come on the journey.

Saremy: Yes, exactly. So I do have, you know, and I have a lot of free patterns as well, so I’m hoping, it’s hard, like, oh, and I get ad revenue. I should say I do get ad revenue, but that is about $100 a month. It is nothing. So ad revenue for YouTube is not something you can really rely on. I know, and I think that’s why I also don’t get a lot of sponsorships because people think that, oh, I’m just making money off of the project, but I’m not because we all know how much it costs to do a project, you know?

So, like, I have a fabric store that sponsors me regularly, and it’s really awesome. And then they hang the project up in their fabric store. So that’s great.

Caroline: That’s awesome.

Helen: You know, if there’s any other designers out there listening, or fabric store owners or whatever, it was such a pleasure collaborating with you. So I would recommend it.

Saremy: Ditto. I really enjoyed it, and it was really a positive experience for me, too. So thank you. And I think, like, that kind of experience really helps validate what I’m doing, you know? And it helps because I’m doing this for the people, you know?

Helen: Yeah.

Saremy: It’s like, what do you guys want? And I do get a lot of requests, you know, like, can you, so this, and I’m like, I would love to, so that, do you know someone who can send us the project? I’m trying to be better about saying that, like, do you have a local fabric store? Do you think they would give you the project to give to me? And they would get it back. They can hang it up in their store, you know? So yeah, it doesn’t have to be my size. I don’t always do my size. So yeah. Yeah.

Helen: Amazing. Well, thank you for sharing that little behind the scenes with us. I’m sure our listeners find that very interesting. And, and I hope everyone does go and subscribe and participate in some of your livestreams.

And I want to reiterate, too, that the videos all go up afterwards as well. So if you can’t make the livestream, you can watch it at any time at your leisure. And there’s tons of content on there for you to consume. If you’re trying to tackle a project, do a sewing pattern, maybe just go and check it out. Maybe Saremy’s already sewed it, and you can watch the sew along.

Sarmey: And I should probably mention, I have a website, and you can go on the website, and I have each project on there. So I understand how difficult YouTube is to navigate, at least for me, in my opinion, it is. So what I do is I have every project on YouTube. So if you go to my website or on my, on my website and my website is sewsew.live.

So if you go there and you search “robe,” you’ll find the project. And in that it’s a very bare bones, little type of post. It just says what size I made, what fabric. I, it was in, what modifications I did, and then it has links to every video.

Helen: Perfect.

Saremy: So you can find everything you need for that project in a really small, concise, tidy format. And it has my notes underneath, like if I say, hey, be careful, this pattern piece out of all the pattern pieces says, cut face down, you know? If you just search on my website, you’ll find the link to every project and uploaded videos.

Helen: Perfect.

Caroline: Very cool. And we’ll definitely have links for everything in the show notes, your YouTube, your website, your Patreon, um, so our listeners can go and check you out. Thank you so much, Saremy, for chatting with us today. It was such a pleasure.

Saremy: Oh, h-, I was so delighted to hear from you guys. Thank you. I really appreciate it. Thanks for what you’re doing for the sewing community, too. I’ve definitely listened to a lot of episodes and even cried to a few.

Helen: Aw, Saremy, I love it.

Caroline: Aw, thanks, Saremy.

Helen: We need a group hug.

Caroline: Alright, take care.

Saremy: Thanks.

Caroline: Bye.

Helen: Buh-bye.

Helen: That’s it for today’s episode of Love to Sew. You can find me Helen at helensclosetpatterns.com and Caroline at blackbirdfabrics.com.

Caroline: We’re recording today in beautiful British Columbia, Canada, and you can get in touch with us and get links for everything we talked about in this episode at lovetosewpodcast.com.

Helen: If you’re enjoying the show and you want to help us out, you can support us on Patreon. Contribute $5 or more a month, and you get access to our bonus episode feed. Contribute $10 or more a month, and you get a 15% discount code for both of our shops, which basically pays for itself if you buy fabric from Caroline. And you get a bonus mini episode, so go to patreon.com/lovetosew for more info.

Caroline: And thank you to our amazing podcast team. And thank you all so much for listening. We’ll talk to you next week.

Helen: Buh-bye.

Caroline: Bye.