#skilled work

[mokerjan]

The Topography of Man

Oil on Canvas, 1871

Artist Unknown

[animationconfessions]

This didn't happen to me, but to my friend. They were working as an animator on a difficult show. They kept getting a handful of scenes sent back to them not because they weren't animated well, but because the director/clients kept changing their minds about what they wanted from these specific scenes. In 2 weeks of working full days + OT (including weekends) this person made 30 dollars. They told me if they weren't living with their parents at the time they wouldn't be able to afford this job.

* Submissions edited for anonymity.

[iplaywithstring]

Expectations

Image of two different yarns. Long time readers will recognize the image as being of two yarns spun to the same number of yards per p...

I liked this take on the whole “designers must provide more sizes/yarns/instructions/options” discourse going on.

Personally, I likely just won’t publish patterns that would need sizing. My current patterns (socks, mitts, shawl, and a couple accessories) do have some sizing info in them and a couple of yarn options, but that’s because they were designed for classes where I knew there would be some variables to deal with, and one of the things I was teaching was how to make adjustments.

I think having a vast array of sizing options is good, but I don’t think a designer should be black listed because they don’t. I tend to need to make adjustments because of my height - shortening sleeves, body length, even the yoke of sweaters sometimes - but I don’t expect designers to take that into account when designing. I’ve been a size 16 and now I’m a size 6 (and of course, I spent time at pretty much every size in between) - I don’t think I could size up to a size 14 now and get it right, even though I spent more than a decade at that size, because there’s more to getting the right fit and the right look than just doing the math.

Some designers are able to do it - they’ve got the time, and the pack of 50 test knitters in different sizes to help them tweek and adjust and figure out the patterns. That’s wonderful. Other designers aren’t able to. That’s ok too. Adjustments, substitutions, the best places to alter patterns etc. are all skills too, and there’s books about how to do it and articles and tutorials so that people can learn how to make the adjustments for themselves. It shouldn’t be expected from every designer all the time.

[raptured-night]

Service Work Is Skilled Work – Get Over It

Think service workers like baristas are “low-skilled” workers who deserve low wages? It’s a common idea, but this info reveals what you're getting very wrong.

[raptured-night]

Service Work Is Skilled Work – Get Over It

Think service workers like baristas are “low-skilled” workers who deserve low wages? It’s a common idea, but this info reveals what you're getting very wrong.