Send your sewing questions to kathyruddy@earthlink.net

This spring I am teaching a new class called You asked for It. Please blog or e-mail me (kathyruddyearthlink.net) your sewing questions and I will add the most asked questions to this class:

You Asked For It!

Do you have an idea in your head that you want to express with fabric and thread and get it done as quickly as possible? E-mail your idea or questions to kathyruddy@earthlink.net


I will read and pick the most asked questions to answer for you at this class. Did you know that each time you use a pattern or just go for it, the garment looks different and fits different. Did you know that the most comfortable fabrics are the hardest to seam and each fabric and style needs a different seam and hemming technique?

Did you know that there are wonderful notions, presser feet and interfacings "fabric that goes behind your outside fabric and helps to shape and control it so that your project works" to help you be successful.  Thank you in advance for your questions!
Here is my bio to give you some idea of what I know and how I can help you.

I started working in this industry in 1962 at a Singer Store in Seattle, WA, at the tender age of 17 while attending the U of W majoring in Design for Apparel Manufacture. I started sewing at the age of 7 when my 12 year old sister took her first required sewing class. We both inherited sewing genes from a grandmother, a dressmaker to the rich and famous in England who died  before we were born.

My industry jobs scan five decades.

In the 60's my jobs included: Fabric Clerk & Sewing Teacher at a Singer Store; fabric promotion for a fabric wholesaler, Stiltex; opening the first store of what grew to become a 90 store regional fabric chain called Fabricland as teacher, fabric manager and store manager. 

In the 70's I created  and operated the "Quik"-Sew Sewing School in regional chain stores, Value Mart, Fred Meyer, Pacific Fabrics and House of Fabrics. In my biggest year the "Quik"-Sew Sewing School had classes in 24 stores in two cities. 

In the 80's I was a seminar speaker at the 1983 the Sewing Expo, Tacoma, WA. After four years the Sewing Expo moved to Puyallup, WA and is  now the biggest sewing show in America with over 30,000 in attendance this year. At the Expo this year, I taught my Serger 911 Class to just under 800 students.

In 1988 with Clotide’s encouragement I made my first instructional video, The Generic Serger Video and created a new company, Live Guides Inc. Live meaning Video, Guides standing for Sewing Instructions.

In the 90's I made nine more videos, four on serging and five on dressmaking, closed my sewing school and became a full time seminar speaker. I developed twelve booklets, eight on dressmaking and four on serging called Live Guides Originals.

Customers love my streamlined sewing techniques but battled sewing clothes for themselves because their patterns did not fit. So, I started measuring customers at sewing shows for patterns that I would make for them one at a time at my dining room table, between shows. By 1996, I attended 25 to 30 events and Drafted over 1000 patterns for my happy customers.

In November 1996, while teaching and exhibiting at a sewing show in Toronto, ONT, Canada, I met Tanya Shaw Weeks. She created what is now the world's largest custom-made pattern company, Unique Patterns. http://www.uniquepatterns.com I invested and contributed my talents and connections in the Sewing Marketplace.

In the 2000's  Unique Patterns, introduced the  bodyskanner™that captures accurate measurements of your body and Unique Patterns makes clothing patterns that fit you for a complete solution to successful dressmaking patterns for sewing clothes. Her specialty is to show how to sew and serge fast and easy without sacrificing quality, fit or fashion details. Her fresh, fun classes are brimming with surprises and ideas.

I produced 10 Serger and sewing videos and wrote 12 Serger and sewing booklets and now put all of my new ideas  enhanced books on CD called Three ways to Learn CD’s. You can look at pictures of my projects from start to finish, read the words next to the pictures as you listen to me impart my wisdom and experiences with audio to go with each picture. If you like a hard copy you can print off as many pages from the CD as you like.