firecat

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/jul/04/grindr-the-new-sexual-revolution

If I had an app like Grindr (to find people in my physical proximity who had something in common with me), I would probably not be interested in using it to hook up for sex, but I would probably use it to find other people who were carrying a knitting project with them.

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From:

jae

Ha! I thought exactly the same thing (although not about knitting).

-J

From:

firecat

Yeah, ideally I would want to put a bunch of different interests in it.

From:

jae

I might even want to use it to find queer people, although not for sex. More for the whole "marvelling at the multitudes" aspect.

-J

From:

firecat

"marvelling at the multitudes"

Exactly. We could turn our everyday world into a con where people are wearing stickers! :-P

From:

snippy

I dunno. It's still too random for me. Yes, I knit--but not socks, and a lot of knitters are sock-only, as far as I can tell. Yes, I sew--but mostly plus-size for my body type etc.

Maybe it's just my way to look for differences instead of similarities, that's how I express my fear of rejection.

From:

nitoda

How is your sewing going? I recently restarted sewing, bought a new machine, but my first project was disappointing. I'm not good at judging from a pattern envelope what the finished product will look like ON ME! It doesn't help that the art on pattern envelopes is always longer and thinner than a real person could ever be ... and my choice of pre-printed patterns is limited by my size. Do you have recommendations for communities or books that might help me to design stuff for myself at all?

From:

snippy

My sewing is going well. I've made more of the basic tank top and I'm happy with that pattern. I also tried out a new pattern, for a lightweight unlined jacket to wear over the tanks to make them work-appropriate. I've made two of that jacket now and I like the pattern, it's easy for me to make and suits me.

As for finding patterns, I've tried to pick sewing patterns that are like clothing I already wear successfully. I go into the stores and try on similar things if I don't have it already. And I've read books and websites about how to pick clothing for your body type and to express your personal style. Even then I've made at least 3 things I can think of in the last year that turned out awful--one was a dress I ended up cutting down into a top, and two I just ripped the seams and re-used the fabric for something else.

As for designing your own, do you mean making up your own patterns? There are books that teach pattern-making and draping; that's far more advanced than I'm ready for right now. The furthest I get into design is things like using polka-dot bias tape instead of plain on a pink linen tank top, or inserting trim into a seam to make a vertical decorative accent.

From:

nitoda

Ah, I had formed the opinion that you had designed your tank top yourself ... sorry if I was mistaken. I do have books that teach alterning patterns to fit - the mistake I made with the last dress I made was to go for a pattern that had a yoke above the bustline and gathers falling from that - well, it just looks like a tent. I think I might be able to rescue it with a self belt ... but by being afraid to buy a pattern that didn't fit, I ended up buying a pattern for something that would *never* fit! LOL.

From:

firecat

Maybe it's just my way to look for differences instead of similarities, that's how I express my fear of rejection.

That's really thought-provoking, thanks for sharing it. I have a few friends who feel isolated and when I make suggestions about stuff they could do that would put them in the same room (virtual or meatspace) as other people they might like, they come up with reasons why not. It hadn't occurred to me that this might be due to fear of rejection. My fears of rejection are different from that.

I wouldn't use a "finding other people with my interests" app in the belief that I would easily find other people with the exact same interests as me. And even if someone does knit exactly what I knit, it doesn't mean we would get along as friends. (E.g., I've been to some knitting groups where I really did not like one single person.) With the app, I would be after more of a "We're all over the place, whee!" feeling.