Making the card reader feel rushed usually works better than rushing the rules guy, since he just wants to play right.

Heard my friend Melissa brag about snagging one of those fancy pattern packs on sale, half the price you paid, and she was thrilled until she opened it. She’s a solid sewer, made her own wedding dress even, and she still spent a whole weekend cussing at the collar instructions like they were written in another language. She finally gave up and drafted her own facing piece from scratch because the diagrams just stopped mid-step. Texted me a photo of the finished top and honestly it looked great, but she said the fabric waste was brutal and she’d never trust that designer again. Told me the only good thing that came out of it was a really solid lesson in never buying patterns without seeing real sewists’ reviews first.