Chris

I'm dusting off some skills from my previous life and writing the job descriptions for the roles that are about to spring into existence at elfkin. And it's exactly as much fun as I remember it being.

Related: running a small business involves a lot of deeply unsexy work.

Closeup of the invisible zip inserted into the center back of a bronze silk blouse. Flanking both sides of the opening are tiny hand stitches in matching thread. The stitching line is marked faintly with red dots. Black basting stitches hold the assembly in place.

That's the invisible zip hand inserted into the back of Lisa's #NeoVictorianBlouse. After 42" (~107cm) of those tiny stitches, my paws aren't sure if they're ready to start immediately in on #sewing the 70" (~178cm) of blanket stitches that come next to finish the c.b. seam. #ElfkinCouture #fashion

It makes a surprising difference. Just make sure to do it between pieces of tissue paper or the like to take up the excess when it melts. You don’t want that lingering in your ironing board.

A bronze silk blouse on a dressform.

Eleni and I are carrying on with Lisa’s #NeoVictorianBlouse. Sleeves are basted on and the gathering at the caps is looking nice and even. #sewing #ElfkinCouture

A well worn and deeply grooved puck of tan beeswax sits atop a piece of edge tissue paper lined in grease marks. Flanking the puck are bundled strands of waxed tan threads.

Both Lisa’s #NeoVictorianBlouse & Nick’s #PinstripeTrousers soon need hand #sewing. Time to wax and iron some thread.

This strengthens, protects from fraying, and stiffens so that it’s not so wiggly. The iron’s heat bonds the wax. Otherwise it would stain the garment when pressed or wash out.

I’ve been relying on Headless Eleni (adjustable dressform) as I finish Lisa’s #NeoVictorianBlouse. What an enlightening experience! Like going from just being able to test code in a debugger to having an actual staging environment. My only regret is that I waited so long to acquire it. #sewing

Back trousers pieces made of bronze pinstripes wool suiting lie flat up on a cutting table next to the corner of a tailor’s textbook. One piece face up and the other down to show the attachment of welting and pocket bag pieces before turning.

Nick’s #PinstripeTrousers are getting love this afternoon. The back pockets are about to be stitched. For a fresh perspective, I’m following Antoine & Cabrera on this make. It’s definitely different from how my mentors taught me when it comes to welted pockets! #sewing #fashion #ElfkinCouture

The starting rate for an elfkin seamstresses will be $22/hour.

As I work up the numbers to grow elfkin into an actual atelier with 4 fulltime staff, I’ve learned something.

Luxury RTW #fashion brands are run by pirates who pay exactly as much to make their $1000 jeans as Levi’s does for a $50 pair. And none of them are paying a seamstress more than 10¢/piece.

A bronze silk chiffon blouse, sleeveless, draped on a dressform.

Lisa’s #NeoVictorianBlouse is back for its final stitch up (for real this time). Replacing the back panels did the trick. Eleni and I are now confirming that the shoulder gathers are the best they can be before going to the #sewing machine. #fashion #ElfkinCouture

Front leg pieces of a pair of bronze pinstripe wool trousers. They lie flat on a gridded table. One piece is face up to show the finished side slant pocket. The other piece is faced down to show the inside of the pocket bag and the super slick French seam finish.

Front pockets, French seams and all, are attached on Nick’s #PinstripeTrousers. The tops of the inner bags will become the waistband lining a little bit down the road. #sewing #ElfkinCouture

My collection of #fountainpen inks is as eclectic my pens, from budget Pelikan 4001 to fancy Pilot Iroshizuku with plenty (Kaweco, Noodler’s, Tom’s, Waterman) in between.

Y'all, I have news. Ink is ink. Expensive isn’t better. Same goes for pens. Just keep your pen clean and use it on the regular.

A top-down illustration of a sea turtle stitched in blue on plain muslin.

Today in the elfkin workroom: Nick's #PinstripeTrousers continue in the pocket phase. And I did a test stitch out of the turtle for the back pocket of Jeff's jeans. #sewing #ElfkinCouture

Closeup of the rotating hook (where the bobbin goes) on a Singer 201. The crescent shaped hook has been removed and lies below the sliding cover over the hook. Two plastic cases are in the background, each containing one of the shiny metal bobbin cases.

Swapping out the lightweight bobbin case for the medium weight on my Singer 201. You know he's going to be laying down some beautiful silk topstitches on Nick's #PinstripeTrousers.

Vintage Sewing Machines FTW — elfk.in It almost goes without saying that is that vintage machines are an excellent value. More powerful and stable than their modern counterparts, they produce superior quality stitches and offer a fully mo...

I did another blog! If you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you know the topic of vintage #sewing machines is dear to my heart. www.elfk.in/blog/vintage...

Life’s too short to spend time reading books that you don’t like, IMO. I felt the same about “Blind Assassin,” forced myself to the end, and cursed Atwood for a week for wasting my time.

I gotta be honest, “Oryx and Crake” is depressing as shit, and you’re gonna be pressed to care about either Jimmy or Glenn. But the next two books put it in context and give you an actual sense of hope.

Blouse made of bronze figured silk chiffon down lying flat on a table. Its seams are basted from the top with black thread.

Same bronze silk chiffon as a fabric remnant pinned to a cardboard mat. A pattern piece for the back of the blouse lies atop the fabric.

I managed to get Lisa’s #NeoVictorianBlouse all fixed up and basted together this past Friday. Ultimately *both* back panels were on the wonk and were thus recut and replaced. I took zero chances with the recut and pinned that shit to the board! #sewing #fashion #ElfkinCouture

Closeup of a rose flower with its outer petals opened but its center still furled. The petals are an ombré of orange at the base to pink at the tips.

My Voodoo rose has decided that today is a good day to bloom. It smells like a classic tea rose combined with cherry Jolly Rancher. Total olfactory bliss. #BloomScrolling #gardening

Oh, geez! Thank you!!!

Front and back leg pieces of a pair of men’s trousers made of bronze/tan pinstripe wool. They lie flat on a table, one face up the other face down, to show the pocket pieces batted to the sides with black thread.

Moving along with Nick’s #PinstripeTrousers, slant pockets are going on the front legs. #sewing #fashion #ElfkinCouture

A sheaf of A0 paper printed with various pattern blocks.

A key to elfkin’s growth in 2026 is the introduction of limited edition ready-to-wear #fashion in standard sizes XS to XXL. Which explains this sheaf of commercial blocks that I picked up at the print shop yesterday. #elfkinRTW

Two weeks of rains over the holiday followed by two weeks of warm daytime sun has the garden bursting with fragrant delights. Lemons, jasmine, and Chinese perfume tree are all in bloom. Plus a few cosmos they’ve held over from autumn. #BloomScrolling #flowers

Made in America : Planet Money What people might picture when they think of "Made in America" ... might not look like the "Made in America" we have today.The U.S. does have a domestic manufacturing industry, including a garment man...

It took 2 years to work out a scalable production model for elfkin that won’t leave me unpicking buttonholes in hell for all eternity. And this Planet Money episode about the garment industry in my home town explains why.
www.npr.org/2025/07/11/1...

Related: I traced and test draped a new back panel for Lisa’s #NeoVictorianBlouse this morning to fix the wonky one. Need to do some more testing and faffing before I commit to the new cut, though.

Bronze silk pinned to a gridded white mat.

It’s a little too rinkydink to be a thing I would want to use on the regular, but this gridded cardboard mat that I picked up at Mood yesterday did make keeping this silk on the square much easier. #sewing #fashion #ElfkinCouture

I just finished my re-read of Margaret Atwood’s MaddAddam trilogy and am now casting my version of the movies in my head. Joe Manganiello is definitely playing Zeb, Rita Moreno is Pilar, and Aubrey Plaza is Toby. I could also see Hunter Doohan as either Crake or Adam. #books

And now for double extra fun, I'm finishing up the year end bookkeeping. Just need to reconcile November and December against account statements.

See also: so many parts of running a small biz are sooooo unsexy.

A swath of abstract floral print in blues, purples, and blacks on white ground. On top of it lie three denim swatches marked A (dark indigo, thin rib), B (medium blue, thin rib), and C (dark charcoal, medium rib).

Went to Mood this afternoon for Jeff's shirting (a super summery cotton voile) and some stretch denim options for matching jeans. #sewing #fashion #ElfkinCollection

Though the situation looks increasingly dire, the people of Iran are giving me hope this morning. May we all be reminded of the power of protest.