OT I'm LIVID - my first negative feedback

When I was in Indianapolis last November I was fortunate to see a Japanese
quilt exhibition at the museum. Breath taking.
Marisa AU/NZ

"Sarajane Helm" wrote in message
...
Yeah, quilting is pretty universal, though I've been told by reliable
sources that there are only 2 indigenous American arts - Dixieland
Jazz Music, and Patchwork Quilting...

not so...quilting was being done in Japan hundreds of years before in
America. Old pieces were patch-worked in pieces into new screens, etc.
particularly in strips or in appliqued parts using what areas were still
good. Blocks of patched pieces in repeated shapes are more an American
innovation though.

However, you got it for Jazz-----and Tap Dance (not clogging) is from the
USA as are animated cartoons. (thank you Max Fleischer and others)


--
Sarajane's Polyclay Gallery
Beads-Dolls-Wearable Art
www.polyclay.com
see the current auctions at:
http://snipurl.com/aiid
"Marisa Cappetta" wrote in
message
...
Ah yes, JoAnn's. Faceless, inhuman and their stock is awful. Same with
Spotlight here and in AU. Customers come to us to complain about
Spotlight.

I work at Hancock. Everyone there sews. It's required. OTOH, I
interviewed at JoAnn. They asked me what I wanted to do there...I was
enthusiastic about promoting sewing, teaching, etc. I was coldly told
that I was there to cut fabric, and to take money. I was NOT there to
"waste my time" gabbing with customers. I have a friend who was
fired from JoAnn for answering a question about how to use a product
they sold...and she was a manager.

What a shame she's not coming to the South! I'd love to meet her. Maybe
the
next tour?

My mom will be doing a 5 week quilting/teaching tour of Oz/North
Island NZ this winter. I believe she's flying into Canberra and
flying out of Sydney, though I could be wrong. She'll be on
homesteads, staying with families and teaching for 3 or 4 days, then
being flown in bush planes/driven to the next stop. She'll also be
selling her patterns and books and judging several shows. She can't
wait. Next year she'll be teaching in South Africa.
Yeah, quilting is pretty universal, though I've been told by reliable
sources that there are only 2 indigenous American arts - Dixieland
Jazz Music, and Patchwork Quilting...

Feel free to email me if you need help. All the pattern companies have
websites. If you see a pattern you like, send me the link, we go from there.
I know of several fabric stores in the US who send swatches, including Stone
Mountain and Daughter in Berkeley. And Fabric Vision sends swatches to0.
We've sent stuff to the US.
Marisa AU/NZ

Getting help on fabric or construction from store employees is more or
less impossible. Half the time they don't know what you're asking for,
or whether they have it. *sigh*. I wish you were here...

Thanks, Marisa! I'm dabbling in sweing again for the first time in a
long, long time, so I might just come up with a few questions for you.

Marisa Cappetta wrote:
Feel free to email me if you need help. All the pattern companies have
websites. If you see a pattern you like, send me the link, we go from there.
I know of several fabric stores in the US who send swatches, including Stone
Mountain and Daughter in Berkeley. And Fabric Vision sends swatches to0.
We've sent stuff to the US.
Marisa AU/NZ


Getting help on fabric or construction from store employees is more or
less impossible. Half the time they don't know what you're asking for,
or whether they have it. *sigh*. I wish you were here...





--
-Kalera
http://www.beadwife.com

JoAnn's is the worst. I've worked at two different fabric stores (Mill End
and Fabric Depot, both in Portland) and every other worker at both stores
hated the way JoAnn's did business. The fabric is lower quality, too. I
loved working at the fabris stores, though - it's how I got introduced to
beads.

--
Kandice Seeber
www.lampwork.net
"Jeanne Burton" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 27 Jun 2005 19:30:33 +1200, "Marisa Cappetta"
wrote:

Service is one of the reasons people keep coming back to our store. One of
the main hiring conditions is that the potential employee must have a good
knowledge of garment construction.

I work at Hancock. Everyone there sews. It's required. OTOH, I
interviewed at JoAnn. They asked me what I wanted to do there...I was
enthusiastic about promoting sewing, teaching, etc. I was coldly told
that I was there to cut fabric, and to take money. I was NOT there to
"waste my time" gabbing with customers. I have a friend who was
fired from JoAnn for answering a question about how to use a product
they sold...and she was a manager.

That we have several fashion design schools in the city keeps the garment
side of the industry fairly lively. And I'm astonished at the amount of
craft cotton we get through - patch working is a world wide phenomenon.

My mom will be doing a 5 week quilting/teaching tour of Oz/North
Island NZ this winter. I believe she's flying into Canberra and
flying out of Sydney, though I could be wrong. She'll be on
homesteads, staying with families and teaching for 3 or 4 days, then
being flown in bush planes/driven to the next stop. She'll also be
selling her patterns and books and judging several shows. She can't
wait. Next year she'll be teaching in South Africa.
Yeah, quilting is pretty universal, though I've been told by reliable
sources that there are only 2 indigenous American arts - Dixieland
Jazz Music, and Patchwork Quilting...

Ah yes, the size snob. Love 'em. I usually whip that tape measure out
fast
and flip it 'round those hips pretty darn quick. Ole quick draw, they call
me! I tell them to think of me like their doctor - I might know their
secrets but would never tell! In all seriousness, I find we need to take a
lot more hip measurements with the advent of warp stretch. The pattern
companies still don't give the quantities for warp stretch. I keep meaning
to write to them and say they need to start including this.

If I touched a customer without permission, I'd probably get sued
after I got fired. I can't. But most people ask for help when I
mention size disparities...

Jean, what is going on with waistbands? Have you noticed that the pattern
pieces are always too short for the actual skirt or pants?

I really can't answer that only because I haven't used a commercial
pattern in years...I drape my own, and I make next to no modern
garments. Most of the stuff I make dates to, at latest, 1600. In
fact, it's a local store joke that while I don't even balk at working
by hand on "the bodice of 30,000 garnets", which I'm handbeading for
the next 10 years, or at hand-sewing a hem that's 15 feet around, I
have NO idea how to put a zipper in. I haven't done one since I was
about 14. And I really don't plan on learning how...

Jeanne

Try Mill End in Beaverton. I know quite a few people over there who are
expert seamstresses and one guy who's a decorator. Although it has been
awhile since I was there. The Mill End in Portland has employees who are
less knowledgeable, but they are all better than the local JoAnn's.

--
Kandice Seeber
www.lampwork.net

Wow Marisa... there is NOTHING like your store in this city. At ONE of the
local stores, many of the people who work there sew a bit, some more than
others, but we're not talking about people who really understand garment
construction.

Getting help on fabric or construction from store employees is more or
less impossible. Half the time they don't know what you're asking for, or
whether they have it. *sigh*. I wish you were here...

Marisa Cappetta wrote:
Service is one of the reasons people keep coming back to our store. One
of
the main hiring conditions is that the potential employee must have a
good
knowledge of garment construction. Unlike another chain fabric store in
AU/NZ that hires who ever they can get; some of the staff have never held
a
pair of scissors. Most of the junior sales people in our store are
fashion
design students. Not only can they construct, they can design and pattern
draft. The senior members are long time dress makers and sewist who, like
me, have sewn all their lives.

That we have several fashion design schools in the city keeps the garment
side of the industry fairly lively. And I'm astonished at the amount of
craft cotton we get through - patch working is a world wide phenomenon.

Ah yes, the size snob. Love 'em. I usually whip that tape measure out
fast
and flip it 'round those hips pretty darn quick. Ole quick draw, they
call
me! I tell them to think of me like their doctor - I might know their
secrets but would never tell! In all seriousness, I find we need to take
a
lot more hip measurements with the advent of warp stretch. The pattern
companies still don't give the quantities for warp stretch. I keep
meaning
to write to them and say they need to start including this.

Jean, what is going on with waistbands? Have you noticed that the pattern
pieces are always too short for the actual skirt or pants? I haven't used
a
waist band pattern piece in years (I like them a certain width and cut my
own). I still measure them out of interest and they are still making them
too short. The latest was a vintage Vogue I was helping my girlfriend
make.
Still short. Just as well I know about it because the fabric was
expensive.

"Jeanne Burton" wrote in message
...

On Mon, 27 Jun 2005 17:57:20 +1200, "Marisa Cappetta"
wrote:


You have catagories too? That's amazing. We get that too. At the moment
everyone is making jackets and buying fancy buttons. Or changing the

buttons

on existing jackets to make them a bit more stylish. The button counter

is

crowded.

I don't know a lot about what is going on in the apparel side of the
store, since I am the "decorator"...I swear the girls over there spend
hours just figuring out where to move the fabric to make me look
stupid when I take a customer over there G

The trouble is that sewing is a dying art. I spend a lot of time

explaining

the basics to people. Which I don't mind, at all, I love to help. I love

to

promote the art, it gives me great pleasure. It's the customer that

won't

listen which can make the day difficult.

I spend a lot of time working with young people. I've seen a GREAT
resurgence in all sorts of crafting, sewing included, in the 12-16
year old group. I have a 10 year old that I set up with a "special
discount" similar to our schoolteacher's card, because she's making
fleece blankets and selling them. She's made enough to buy her own
violin, and now is paying for her lessons. I have a 15 year old with
her own checking account who comes in and buys 50-75 yards of
*expensive* fabrics about once a month. She's a straight-A student
who has a very lucrative business on the side making tote bags and
purses, custom, at school and at home parties. She also consigns in 3
or 4 stores.


What drives me up the wall is when they ask

advice and refuse to listen to it and get stroppy on top of that.

You mean like the girl who needed a VERY fitted equestrian jacket for
a horse show the other day? I looked at her pattern to give her an
opinion on if the fabrics were appropriate, and noticed that the
pattern was a Vogue 6-8 size. This girl was thin, but NOT a 6-8.
(Example. I'm, at the moment, wearing size 8 pants from Express. I
wear a size 14 pattern.) I suggested they measure her and look at the
pattern measurements because it wouldn't fit. Mommy announced that
dear daughter had been a size 7 since she was 13, and would be one
till she was 50, and she didn't care to be insulted by any suggestion
that her daughter was NOT a size 7. Then they stormed out. My
manager was convulsed with laughter next to me, thank heavens, because
they WERE the type to call and complain...


Then there is the customer who made a jacket and isn't happy with the
way

it

turned out. She brings it in and we spend sometime looking at trims and
buttons and a couple of simple re-styling tricks and she walks out
liking
her jacket after all. That's a good day! Or the lady who is getting

married

on a tight budget and we find her a lovely combination of satin and

organza

and I find out she's also a step-mum and we bond and both walk away

feeling

like the day was about more than buying and selling a bit of fabric.

That's

an even better day.

Ohyeah...
I have 6 letters hanging on the bulletin boards in the break room from
customers who have taken the time this month to write to corporate
about me. They're embarrassing...service is dead in this culture
these days...when people get it, they're overwhelmed. It's sad,
really.

Jeanne




--
-Kalera
http://www.beadwife.com

While I do agree with a lot of this - I do have to defend salespeople a
little bit here. Most retail companies are terrible to work for, and
salespeople are required to make a certain amount in sales and are treated
pretty poorly by management and some customers. Plus most don't make much
more than minimum wage. It's a pretty thankless job for a lot of people.
Although if you can maintain a polite, helpful disposition, it does have its
rewards. Helping someone find something they need often gets a genuine
thank you and smile from a few people, and that's always nice.

I love shopping at local small businesses. The employees seem to actually
care about their customers. They seem to like their jobs. The people at my
local Costco are always really friendly as well. But that's because they
are paid at least 50% more than most comparable retail jobs, and the company
is wonderful to work for - so the employees are usually happy.

--
Kandice Seeber
www.lampwork.net
"Dr. Sooz" wrote in message
oups.com...
~A lot of people think sales people are either sophomoric, parasitic or
barracudas (like in real estate, or used cars). It is very honorable
work.
I have worked with sales people like you, Marisa, and they enriched my
life, and often my wardrobe (or other possessions) too.

And they're so rare. I think a lot of people in jobs such as
restaurant work, reception, and *especially* retail sales are waiting
to win the lottery. They're just marking time til their big, huge ship
rolls in. Customers are an annoyance to them -- we interrupt their
cell phone call, or their conversation with another salesperson, or
whatever they're doing (while being paid) that's much more important
than the customer.

Plus most of them don't know a damn thing about where they work these
days. I had a senior salesperson at Long's (drugstore chain) insist
the nightlights were somewhere they weren't yesterday. Man, she was so
annoyed that she had to actually walk over there to show me! What're
they paying you for, you ninny? Gee, I'm sorry I asked. All they had
there were refill bulbs (I *told* her!). Every time I ask anyone for
help in a store, I clench my body and get ready for something I don't
want to hear.....either attitude or "Duh, I don't know."

But not everywhere. I love the local fabric stores, for instance,
because the people there (they have some dudes working there too) know
their stuff up and down and sideways. I go in there feeling relaxed
and satisfied before I even choose to buy anything. It's becoming more
and more rare these days -- not only IRL, but online too.

Oh, I agree!! I love eating out in downtown Portland! Even the cheap
places have staff that are wonderful and food that is out of this world.

--
Kandice Seeber
www.lampwork.net
"Kalera Stratton" wrote in message
...
We have some good stores around here, but overall I hate the attitude and
reluctance to *help*. Local stores are the best, overall, and national
chains are the worst.

Restaurants here are another matter... for some mysterious reason,
Portland has a food service culture unlike any other I've seen or heard
of, except perhaps New York. People don't just wait tables as their day
job... they wait tables as a *career*, and the competition is stiff.
Likewise barista positions. People sometimes think they can move to
Portland and wait tables until they "find a better job" but even seasoned
wait staff find it hard to get a foot in around here. And our wait staff
are GOOD... especially in breakfast places. They have to be, because
there's a line of hopefuls with their resumes on file, hoping to replace
them.

Dr. Sooz wrote:
~A lot of people think sales people are either sophomoric, parasitic or
barracudas (like in real estate, or used cars). It is very honorable
work.
I have worked with sales people like you, Marisa, and they enriched my
life, and often my wardrobe (or other possessions) too.

And they're so rare. I think a lot of people in jobs such as
restaurant work, reception, and *especially* retail sales are waiting
to win the lottery. They're just marking time til their big, huge ship
rolls in. Customers are an annoyance to them -- we interrupt their
cell phone call, or their conversation with another salesperson, or
whatever they're doing (while being paid) that's much more important
than the customer.

Plus most of them don't know a damn thing about where they work these
days. I had a senior salesperson at Long's (drugstore chain) insist
the nightlights were somewhere they weren't yesterday. Man, she was so
annoyed that she had to actually walk over there to show me! What're
they paying you for, you ninny? Gee, I'm sorry I asked. All they had
there were refill bulbs (I *told* her!). Every time I ask anyone for
help in a store, I clench my body and get ready for something I don't
want to hear.....either attitude or "Duh, I don't know."

But not everywhere. I love the local fabric stores, for instance,
because the people there (they have some dudes working there too) know
their stuff up and down and sideways. I go in there feeling relaxed
and satisfied before I even choose to buy anything. It's becoming more
and more rare these days -- not only IRL, but online too.


--
-Kalera
http://www.beadwife.com

Cranking the nice-o-meter up in public is good. If the target gets nasty,
she's the one who looks like a raving idiot. If the target responds with
courtesy, you both win. :-)

--

JoAnn Paules
MVP Microsoft [Publisher]



"Marisa Cappetta" wrote in message
...
Well, with my customer I turned the nice-o-meter right up and this seemed
to
annoy her too! LOL How I deal with this sort of thing is to go up to them
at
the supermarket (after a suitable interval of time has passed) and ask
them
how the curtains turned out. This usually breaks the ice. When you take an
interest in their project, it's hard not to be forgiving.
Marisa AU/NZ

"JoAnn Paules [MSFT MVP]" wrote in message
...
Marissa,

I used to sell computers for a major company. I always said that I
treated
my clients well because it was likely that I would run into them at the
grocery store. I could picture them stalking me down the cereal aisle and
up
the pasta section to bitch about something. The nice thing is that I *do*
still see some of my customers two years later and they are still happy.
Thank Heavens!

--

JoAnn Paules
MVP Microsoft [Publisher]



"Marisa Cappetta" wrote in
message
...
The tricky part about ****ing off a customer face to face is running
into
them in the supermarket, like I just did 20 minutes ago. I could see
she
still thinks I'm a blithering idiot This woman admitted to knowing
nothing about sewing and then wouldn't listen to my advice, even though
she
asked for it. Oi. Save me from the stupid people.

At least you don't have to see that! That's one of the great things
about
on
line trading. Relative anonymity may embolden a snotty customer to make
horrid remarks, but at least you never have to look at them again,
that's
a
very good thing, trust me.
Marisa AU/NZ

That explains a lot about the local JoAnn shop. We used to have two stores
and we are now down to one that sells crap. I do *not* shop there unless I'm
desperate and I'm holding out some faint glimmer of hope that buried under
all of the junk they sell, is that item I need. I'm usually wrong.

--

JoAnn Paules
MVP Microsoft [Publisher]



"Jeanne Burton" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 27 Jun 2005 19:30:33 +1200, "Marisa Cappetta"
wrote:

Service is one of the reasons people keep coming back to our store. One of
the main hiring conditions is that the potential employee must have a good
knowledge of garment construction.

I work at Hancock. Everyone there sews. It's required. OTOH, I
interviewed at JoAnn. They asked me what I wanted to do there...I was
enthusiastic about promoting sewing, teaching, etc. I was coldly told
that I was there to cut fabric, and to take money. I was NOT there to
"waste my time" gabbing with customers. I have a friend who was
fired from JoAnn for answering a question about how to use a product
they sold...and she was a manager.

That we have several fashion design schools in the city keeps the garment
side of the industry fairly lively. And I'm astonished at the amount of
craft cotton we get through - patch working is a world wide phenomenon.

My mom will be doing a 5 week quilting/teaching tour of Oz/North
Island NZ this winter. I believe she's flying into Canberra and
flying out of Sydney, though I could be wrong. She'll be on
homesteads, staying with families and teaching for 3 or 4 days, then
being flown in bush planes/driven to the next stop. She'll also be
selling her patterns and books and judging several shows. She can't
wait. Next year she'll be teaching in South Africa.
Yeah, quilting is pretty universal, though I've been told by reliable
sources that there are only 2 indigenous American arts - Dixieland
Jazz Music, and Patchwork Quilting...

Ah yes, the size snob. Love 'em. I usually whip that tape measure out
fast
and flip it 'round those hips pretty darn quick. Ole quick draw, they call
me! I tell them to think of me like their doctor - I might know their
secrets but would never tell! In all seriousness, I find we need to take a
lot more hip measurements with the advent of warp stretch. The pattern
companies still don't give the quantities for warp stretch. I keep meaning
to write to them and say they need to start including this.

If I touched a customer without permission, I'd probably get sued
after I got fired. I can't. But most people ask for help when I
mention size disparities...

Jean, what is going on with waistbands? Have you noticed that the pattern
pieces are always too short for the actual skirt or pants?

I really can't answer that only because I haven't used a commercial
pattern in years...I drape my own, and I make next to no modern
garments. Most of the stuff I make dates to, at latest, 1600. In
fact, it's a local store joke that while I don't even balk at working
by hand on "the bodice of 30,000 garnets", which I'm handbeading for
the next 10 years, or at hand-sewing a hem that's 15 feet around, I
have NO idea how to put a zipper in. I haven't done one since I was
about 14. And I really don't plan on learning how...

Jeanne

Dr. Sooz wrote:

Plus most of them don't know a damn thing about where they work these
days. I had a senior salesperson at Long's (drugstore chain) insist
the nightlights were somewhere they weren't yesterday. Man, she was so
annoyed that she had to actually walk over there to show me! What're
they paying you for, you ninny? Gee, I'm sorry I asked. All they had
there were refill bulbs (I *told* her!). Every time I ask anyone for
help in a store, I clench my body and get ready for something I don't
want to hear.....either attitude or "Duh, I don't know."

That happened to me in Michaels the other day. I did a good job of
looking in several places for leather thong before I 'interrupted' a
salesgirl. She told me "On the aisle with beads!". I replied that I had
tried there. She was NOT happy to have to walk over to show me. Guess
what? Not there. She actually shrugged her shoulders and walked off. I
proceeded to walk aisle after aisle and found them where I should have
looked first. As I left the store I interrupted her again to tell her
where they were located. Another shrug!

But not everywhere. I love the local fabric stores, for instance,
because the people there (they have some dudes working there too) know
their stuff up and down and sideways. I go in there feeling relaxed
and satisfied before I even choose to buy anything. It's becoming more
and more rare these days -- not only IRL, but online too.

At our local Hancock I look forward to seeing the same saleswoman that
cut the fabric for my first ever attempt at making a garment by myself,
(same store, pre-Hancock). I was 6... so thats 43 yrs ago and the woman
is still there. I seem to remember hearing that she had retired once...
for a few weeks! She is an amazing, 100% knowledgeable woman and every
time, even after not seeing me sometimes for years, she lights up, calls
me by name and asks about my 'Mama'!

Gotta love it!!!


Oh and do ya ever want to take someone's scissors away and cut it
yourself... sheesh. Nothing worse than getting home and losing 1/4 yard
due to an inept person with scissors!

--
Polly
--
don't spook my groove...
--
Freedom of speech includes...
the freedom to choose not to speak
and the freedom to choose to not to listen.