Replies

1. 
   jjgg | Jan 16, 2008 05:32pm | #1

   http://www.owfinc.com/

   http://www.seattlefabrics.com/?gclid=CITEz6z8-pACFRvrYAod_AMMyw

1. 
   sunnycenter | Jan 16, 2008 07:55pm | #2

   Oh those look great. I guess it's necessary to get the samples.But just knowing they are available is great! Thanks!

1. 
   jjgg | Jan 16, 2008 08:15pm | #3

   Your welcome. I've ordered stuff from Outdoor Wilderness but never from Seattle fabrics. I've had great service from OWF. There are other sources as well.
   Judy

2. 
   Teaf5 | Jan 17, 2008 01:15am | #4

   Unless you're an unusual size, it's not much cheaper to make skiwear than it is to find it at end-of-season or online sales.  The specialized fabrics, zippers and fasteners are expensive, and then you have to deal with fitting and all the different features--pockets, plackets, snow baffles--that are so useful in ready-made skiwear.

   I just saw my ideal $400 ski jacket on the rack of an off-price retailer for $35, and the same one is available in a major online sporting goods vendor right now for $79.  The raw materials for that particular model--if I could find them all--would probably add up to at least $200, and even then, it wouldn't have a manufacturer's guarantee, and I wouldn't know till I finished how well if fit.

1. 
   scrubble4 | Jan 17, 2008 08:26pm | #6

   Hi:  I totally agree with buying specialized outdoor wear. 

   My outdoor passion is biking which I do here in NOT SUNNY Vancouver BC 12 months of the year.  I thought I would make my own raingear, just so it fit really well.  Boy the cost was enormous.  I decided to go with top-end, on-sale, raincoats and pants. 

   Also, the details for these specialized outdoor outfits such as:making sure the seams are sealed, getting all that reflective tape on smoothly, expense of top line zippers, inside pockets, velcro closings, elastic thumb holder, zipper vents under the sleeves and in the back etc. also made me realize sewing them would not be a walk in the park.  I decided to put my sewing time into fashion outfits and leave this specialized area to the experts.  

   While purchased raingear probably doesn't fit quite as well as I could if I was making them, all parts on them work really well which I really appreciate in a rainstorm. 

   Just my thoughts and experience.  Scrubble4

2. 
   mainestitcher | Jan 17, 2008 04:26am | #5

   I'll second Teal's opinion.  My winter jacket, (not ski wear, just a jacket) contains and outer fabric, four different lining fabrics, five pockets with velcro, one that zips, cord locks and I don't know how many snaps.  To make one seems to be re-creating the wheel.

3. 
   nmog | Jan 18, 2008 12:44am | #7

   You could always try Textile OUtfitters in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Their website is
   http://www.justmakeit.com/
   and their service is great. They really know their stuff!
   Nicole

1. 
   sunnycenter | Jan 18, 2008 07:52am | #8

   Thanks for all the links and the input about the time and money ratio involved when buying this stuff as ready to wear on sale. It's so true, so often we can buy what we sew for so much less than it costs to sew it up ourselves. While I definitely try to be fashion conscious and use a good design sense when I make something, I have to say that for me, the main reason I sew is to feel that I made something myself, whatever it is. I simply feel empowered knowing it didn't come from a factory or worse yet a sweat shop. Of course there is a point where I have to draw the line. I see some of this active wear has details that obviously require industrial equipment to make, but other than that, I think it is cool to be a part of creating what I use. I think it's a big piece of what is missing in todays world...
   That said... I still buy some of my clothes! But I feel great about what I can make.
   Sun

1. 
   Teaf5 | Jan 21, 2008 12:32am | #9

   If you have the time and funding to make everything from scratch, go for it! 

   Like many posters here, I have to squeeze sewing time into a life with a full-time profession, parenting, home maintenance, volunteer work, and yardwork, so I reserve it for things that I can do better than RTW can. 

   And when I'm on a ski slope in 30 mph winds and temperatures in the teens, I am very, very grateful for all the technology, specialized materials and techniques that are built into my skiwear!