Saturday 20 April 2013

How to Draft A Custom-fit A-line Skirt Pattern

When I started to sew I wanted to be able to make my own designs. As I found out later, that means being able to draft sewing patterns. Skirts are easy to draft so this is good place for a beginner to start.

This will be a series of tutorials that will show you how to:-
  • Draft your skirt pattern
  • Cut your fabric
  • Sew the skirt
  • Sew a professional back centred-zip
  • Line the skirt
You will need a basic sewing machine (at least a straight stitch and a zigzag stitch) and a sewing kit. For the pattern drafting you will need:
  • A long, straight ruler or yard/metre stick
  • A square (a piece of card will do). Funnily enough, "set squares" are actually triangular rulers.
  • A French Curve or Hip Curve
    (Note: the above three items can be replace with a Shoben Fashion Curve or a Dressmaker's French Curve)
  • A calculator
  • Large sheets of paper (you can use newspaper or greaseproof paper)
  • Pens and pencils
I will be working in metric. You can work with imperial (inches) if you wish, but metric easier to use on a calculator. In case you are using imperial measurements, here are some decimals and their fractional equivalents:

1/2  =  0.5
1/4  =  0.25
1/8  =  0.125
1/16 = 0.0625
1/3  =  0.33333...
1/6  =  0.16666...7

The measurements you will need are:
  • Waist plus ease
  • Hips plus ease
  • Waist to hip length
  • Skirt length
  • Dart = ((Hips+ease)-(Waist+ease))/14
If you fill copy this in now, it will save mistakes later. I've put my measurements in for examples. It's quite wide, so you'll probably need to click on it or zoom in.



You will also need to work out your dart measurement. This is where a calculator is very handy. Here is the formula:

(Hips + Ease) - (Waist + Ease)
14

If you have some silly long decimal number (more than 1 number after the decimal point), you can round up or down to the nearest 0.5cm. This is your dart measurement.


We will draft the front and back pattern separately because it is quicker later.

We'll start with the front.

  • At the top of sheet of paper, about 10cm (4") down and 2cm (3/4") in, mark A. Square down the skirt length and mark D.
  • Square across your "Front Hips" measurement (the eighth column) and mark B.
  • Square down the skirt length and mark C. Square back to D.
  • Measure down from B your waist-hip side-back measurement and mark E. Square across to the A-D line and mark F.
  • Up from F, measure your front waist-hip measurement and mark I.
  • From A measure across on the A-B line 1/4 (waist + ease) + 1 dart width. For me, this is 15.25cm + 2cm = 17.25cm. Mark this point G.
  • Square up 1.2cm (1/2") from G and mark H. Connect I and H straight. Divide this line in three. Square down from the third-mark nearest H by about 1/2 of your waist-hip side/back measurement (here, 10cm).
  • On this line, make a dart. For me I measure out 1cm each side of the line giving a 2cm dart. Draw the dart. In the illustration I have curved this dart. It's best NOT to do this because you need the fabric to allow room for your tummy.
  • UPDATE: I'm not sure if I've included this step (I can't find it). Connect H to E, curving out 0.5cm at the mid-point to give tummy-room. Even if you don't have much of a tummy, this room is good for the high hip area (the pelvis). If you don't curve out, your skirt will ride up.
  • Now we will give the skirt a bit of flair. This gives an A-line, and saves your putting a vent in the back. From C on the D-C line, measure out 1/4 D-C. Mark X (I haven't). Measure E-C and make a line from E to X the length of E-C Mark X2. Connect X2 to C with a smooth curve, making X2 a right angle so that it will be a smooth line with the side seam on the back skirt.
  • Add seam allowances down the side seam. 1.5cm is usual, 1cm may be preferred if you are sure of the fit, or you can use 2-2.5cm seam allowances for your toile.
  • Add 3-5cm for a hem allowance along the bottom of the skirt. When you sew, you will have to ease the bottom edge in a bit because it is bigger than the inside of the skirt.
  • Cut a generous seam allowance along the waistline edge because we are going to blend the line and make sure that it is a smooth curve.
  • Cut out your pattern. Fold the dart. Draw the waistline as a smooth curve. Now unfold the dart and add 1-1.5cm seam allowance along the waistline seam. Draw a notch at point E on the side seam for the zip and for matching when sewing.

Now we'll do the back. It's a lot like the front, but with more ease and an extra dart.
  • Start at the right-hand edge of the paper this time, 10cm down and 3cm in. Mark A.
  • Draw across, the length of your "Back Hips" measurement and mark B.
  • Square down from A your side/back waist-hips measurement and mark C.
  • Square across from C, the length of AB. Mark D. Square up to B.
  • Down from B mark your side/back waist-hips measurement and mark E. Square across to the AC line and mark F.
  • On line AB measure from A your Quarter-waist + 2 darts measurement. Mark G.
  • Square up 1.2cm from G and mark H. Connect A-H straight.
  • Divide AH into three. Each of the marks along the line will be a dart so square down from each of them.
  • The one nearest the CB will be 3/4 your side/back waist-hips measurement.
  • The other one will be 2cm shorter and L.
  • Make each dart your dart width as you did for your front dart, and draw the dart shapes. I like mine to curve out from their centre-lines so that they fit the shape of the back better.
  • Connect H to E, curving out 0.5cm at the mid-point of the line. This adds ease for the tummy area. If you don't add this your skirt will ride up.
  • A-line the hem as for the front.
  • Add seam and hem allowances, and notches at the line E-F for matching and for zip placement. Leave a extra paper at the waistline because you have to fold out the paper darts and smooth out the waistline curve. Otherwise you may have a pointy waistline. (Same as for front.) Then add seam allowances, and mark the darts clearly as in the illustration or as you best see fit.
This is your basic A-line skirt pattern. If you have not made your own pattern (and even if you have, really) it is a good idea to make a toile out of light-coloured fabric. You must mark the vertical and horizontal grainlines so that you can see if the skirt is balanced when you wear it. Add or take fabric away where necessary to get it to balance. This can sometimes mean that you need a full pattern (i.e. not mirrored or "cut-two") if you are asymmetrical. But don't be too picky. It does no good to get paranoid about slight wrinkles and things on your clothes. No one but you (and other very picky seamstresses) will notice. : )


You may like to have a waistband for fitting. Just cut a rectangle of fabric to your waist measurement + 2.5cm (for overlap), and 5cm deep (it will be folded over). Then add seam allowances all the way around. It is a good idea to interface this even on your toile to eliminate non-fitting-related folds and wrinkles.

There shouldn't be much to change if the instructions were clear enough to you, and if your measurements and maths are correct. That's why it's such a good idea to work out your maths (carefully) first. And it saves a lot of paper. (Oh the rolls of grease-proof paper I have got through because of sloppy maths!)

Once you have got the hang of drafting and have your numbers handy, you can draft a skirt pattern very quickly. I drafted mine like this in about an hour.

Extremely Brief Sewing Instructions for Skirt Toile/Muslin
  1. Sew the darts.
  2. Sew the CB seam from the bottom and stop at the notch.
  3. Using a longer stitch (3-5mm), baste the rest of the way up (this is much easier by machine).
  4. Insert zip be centred or lapped method.
  5. Sew side seams.
  6. Make waist-band and attach to waist-line. Add a buttonhole to one end and a button to the underlap.
  7. Hem.
(I told you they were brief. Don't worry, more detailed explanations will follow in the styled skirt make up.)


Once you have made and fitted your toile and transferred any changes to your pattern, you can adapt it to almost any style you can imagine. But I'll end this post because it's getting a bit long and will take ages to load.

Sabrina

P.S. If you make your skirt to these instructions and blog about it, please send me a link or put one below because I'd love to see it! : )

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Monday 25 March 2013

Bagging Jacket Linings at the Front Facing

I'm feeling quite pleased with myself today. Not only have I made (albeit with the help of Kathleen's post and the one at PatternScissorsCloth) samples of bagged jacket linings and facings, but I got an A+ on my last English essay at college.

But onto the bagging. I've got three different samples: one like Kathleen's, one like it but with a pleat in the hem, and one like the hem of my Trinny & Suzannah coat. All-in-all, I think Kathleen's was the easiest to sew. I expect all my samples would have turned out better had I sewn them from fabric instead of tissues, and used an iron. Still, no hand-sewing required and the patterns are simple and straight-forward to make.

We'll start with the one like on my coat because that's the one I did first (worked it out by reverse engineering) and it has the neatest instructions. They're brief, but I hope you can get the idea. If someone asks, I can do a more in-depth tutorial for any of these corners.


Okay so it's not very neat, but you try marking and sewing tissue (and I mean like Kleenex, not tissue paper). It has a pleat and the lining is level with the hem. Here are my instructions:-


You should be able to get a bigger image by clicking on the one above.

Now for Kathleen's. This one took a bit of working out, but when I finally got it this morning - oh! it was so easy!


The instructions I've written on it for my future reference are:
  1. Sew lining to hem allowance.
  2. Sew seam A (the corner or facing seam). Clip inward corner.
  3. Bring hem/lining unit up so that the hem is level and sew seam C (the facing-lining seam) from hem upwards.

Easy peasy!

Last one: the hem with pleat.


You can see this one has a sort of rounded corner (not very good, I'll admit, but I didn't draw the stitching line or cut the edge until after sewing). The pattern is the same as for Kathleen's except the lining and shell are 2cm longer for a pleat, and the lining is 1cm lower because my mental maths went a little wrong.

The instructions are:
  1. Lining--Hem
  2. Seam A and clip (as for previous sample)
  3. Tack pleat at start (and in real life, blind-stitch to shell)
  4. Bring lining-hem unit up with pleat in finished position and sew seam C (the facing-lining seam) from bottom to top.
You don't need a pleat at the hem (see here) but it does look luxe, doesn't it?


I'm keeping these samples and writing out instructions for my own future reference. I may need to reverse engineer my own work if/when I forget how to do these corners. That's one advantage of keeping a sewing blog: it's like a notebook that doesn't clutter up your house! : )

Monday 18 March 2013

How to draft a French Dart Shift Dress


The design is based on the extremely popular shift dress from BurdaStyle 10/12. I drafted my own a while ago because I wanted to figure it out. And I did, so here is how you can draft your own from your close-fitting dress block.

First, take your block and draw on it the French dart and the boat-neckline (also called the bateau-neckline because bateau is French for boat).


To draw the neckline, you can move the dart to the new position first, or you can fold out the original dart and draw the neckline while the pattern is in 3D (as here). It's up to you.
If you haven't yet, fold the original bust dart and tape it closed. Cut carefully along the French Dart and the pattern will flatten out again.


Now for the final steps to the main pattern. Trim the neckline at the shoulder by 3mm (1/8") to prevent gaping there. You may wish to take out a little more at the original bust dart if you have a fuller figure, to account for possible gaping.

Now we will shape the French dart. This gives a much more flattering silhouette, and less of a sack-dress look (who wants to look like a sack?)

Fold the pattern along the dart, matching the waistpoint as shown (this picture really give it away that I was using a scale pattern). If you can see through your paper, trace the French dart line.


Otherwise you will have to flip the larger part of the pattern over the smaller part and draw along the French Dart curve. This gives a mirrored dart to the waist.


Now unfold your pattern and trim away the excess:



Next, you shorten the bust dart by 1-2.5cm. I find a longer dart gives a nicer dart tip. There are also sewing techniques for dart tips that you can find online, but until my darts look really nice, I won't doing any tutorials on them. : )

In a proper French dart dress, it's almost impossible to get full waist-shaping so we erase the front waist-dart. Even on me the dress is a nice shape without it. So your pattern should now look something like this:


The pink section is for the pocket which was not in BurdaStyle's design, but I added because I like pockets. It's cut on the fold and you need two as with a regular inseam pocket. With being cut in one piece (left and right) it doesn't sag when you wear the dress. Word of advice though: when you sew the dividing lines along the centre of the pocket, do some about 5cm each side of the centre otherwise the pocket's contents shift towards the CF and it doesn't look very pretty when you have a tape measure there. (Guess how I know.)

This pocket sews together quite magically and I'll let you figure it out for now. Hint: there is some turning inside out involved and it reminds me of instructions for sewing and all-in-one facing.

For my dress I have a 100cm hem circumference, but I think I would like a bit more for my next one (which will probably be yellow. You just measure out from the CF and CB 1/4 of the hem circumference you would like.

Finally draft facings for the front and back neckline 5-8cm (2-3") is wide enough.

The Back
Trim the shoulder dart width off the armscye, and then draft the neckline so that the shoulder is the same length for the front and back. Trim 3mm off the shoulder-neck point to match the front.

If you already have CB shaping you can just add seam allowances and hem allowances and use the pattern as is. If you don't, it's best to shape the CB because it gives a nicer silhouette, and a smoother fit.

The Sleeve
For my dress I made cap sleeves with a seam, and a scallop edge.

Walk your sleeve pattern to find out how much ease there is, and divide it along the top notch. Draw the new seam on the sleeve pattern. Draw the hem line (the curve). The blue lines going to be slashed up to the capline and the sleeve will be spread to make it flare a bit (or a lot, as your taste dictates).



Here you can see the patterns separated and slashed and spread:




To make the sleeves look more like the original design, take them it at the seam. Make right-angles at the hem as shown so that the hemline will be smooth when sewn. You can pin the sleeve pattern together and put it on to see how you like the look of if and then edit it as you wish.


Now draft facings for the hemline unless you are going to use scallop stitching or bias to neaten the edge.

When you have added any seam and hem allowances, and a notch where the CB zip will end, you have your finished pattern and can get sewing.

Never will you know style and comfort more than in a shift dress. And the pattern is extremely versatile. It can be a top, or a dressmaker jacket. By choosing your fabrics carefully, you can make dresses for casual wear (sportswear if you're American), evening wear, workwear. Adding a belt makes it more stylish and modern. With trimmings and decorative stitching, you can vary the look even more!

Sunday 24 February 2013

I Think I Finally Understand Kimono Sleeves

They have been a bit of a puzzle to me insofar as getting a really close fit (like Gertie's wiggle dress). What confused me was the kimono block in Metric Pattern Cutting for Womenswear - see how low that curve (black line) is at the underarm? It starts at most a few inches above the waistline. That is definitely not the silhouette I have seen elsewhere!




But look a couple of pages later, at the styles with panel gussets. They fit more as I want, more like a regular dress. I saw in Natalie Bray's book (I think it was More Dress Pattern Designing from the library) a design that had a large gusset that was cut from the bodice pattern and arranged so that it had enough fabric to function ss a gusset, like the designs below where I have drawn in blue (water disolving pen).




And yesterday morning I thought, what if the segments were cut very narrow, maybe an eigth of an inch wide? (The blue lines on number 45 give a better illustration of what I mean.) That would give the same fit but with a much more traditional/discreet gusset. This way I can have a high-cut underarm for a kimono sleeve pattern. And there I was thinking that the instuctions on page 63 were the only way to get a comfortable fit! Thank goodness for the Internet, sewing bloggers and Google Images!

I've thought about it again, and I wonder if Aldrich only considers is to be a true "kimono" sleeve if it has the curve at the underarm, and without it, she calls it a cap sleeve (even if it's long)?

Update: I thought I was forgeting something!

For a closer-fitting sleeve, I wonder if it would be alright to use the "close-fitting sleeve" adaption (number 5 on page 51).



I'm wondering about the bias-cut. I think Gertie's dress was cut from a stretch fabric so that wouldn't be an issue. But what about wovens? Vintage dresses were cut from wovens and they often had quite close-fitting kimono sleeves, if the pattern illustrations and fabric recommendations are anything to go by (and I hope they are!).

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Thursday 21 February 2013

My Sewing Pattern and Rulers

One of these drafts is my old (uncomfortable) one and the other is the one I made after adapting the method in Winifred Aldrich's Metric Pattern Cutting for Women's Wear (5th Ed.). The one on top is the old one (it has an orange outline) and the one underneath is my new one with seam allowances.



It's quite bizarre how different they are, especially the back pattern. What happened there? The bust dart is the right size though (not standard; I had adapted that far).

Now for the sleeve:


There is a profound difference in the size. The old one is on top. I'm not sure if I used this pattern (it's likely though). No wonder my old sleeves were so uncomfortable. But still, you can see that the neither sleeves is  symmetrical, which is good. I agree with Kathleen on that matter.

The benefit to having such a full back sleeve (even if there may be no ease) is that the fabric acts as a sort of gusset that lets you bring your arms forward. With that and the correctly drawn armscye, I can stretch my arms right out in front of me. (Of course the bodice comes up a little, but I have had much worse sleeves on a jacket from a book called Make Your Own Clothes from PatternMaker software. That jacket never worked for me...)

On another note, I've been designing and drafting a new blouse and I have two options. Option one:


And option 2:


At first view, the designs might not look that different. They're not. The only differnce is the opening. The first option is a standard button-up. The second one has a "closing under a box pleat" with instructions similar to those in A Nu-way Course in Fashionable Clothes-making from (I think) 1926. It was on Vintage-sewing.info when it was up and I copied and pasted to and edited on Word (that took a very long time, but it was worth it). You can find it on Google's Wayback machine now.

I think I'll go with option 1 because I drafted it before I figured out how to draft option two, and it uses less fabric anyway.

On a third note, have you ever had something for ages and only then realised how incredibly useful? I have, and this is that thing:


The Pocket Shoben fashioncurve. (6" ruler in there for comparison of size). I got it for my 19th birthday in set when I got my full-size Shoben Fashion Curve. It should come in handy when I go to college in September. Anyway, is useful for smoothing out small curves (like a French curve is) and it's also great for adding seam allowances to small places. It's much more convenient than using my full-size fashion curve on something like a neck-line. This is the full set:


The rectangular thing is mainly for adding button placements to patterns. The corner thing is a scale ruler in 1/4 and 1/5 scales and is very good for that. Also included are 1/5 scales master patterns on card, but I didn't take a photograph of them.

That's all for today.

Toodloo! : )

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Tuesday 12 February 2013

"Redrafting my Sloper" or "Updating Aldrich"

For some reason when I tried on my old sloper (the one whose shoulders I found out needed squaring, after making my French Dart Dress and having the neckline gape) it didn't fit at all. That put me in a dreadful mood for the rest of the day. Today I drafted two new ones using a modified version of Aldrich's close fitting block. I drafted one to have 6cm bust ease but it ended up with none (or as good as)! It had been taken out in the shaping of the seams and darts. So I drafted new one with"10cm" ease. It fit much better so I checked the measurement along the bust line. There was only about 7.6cm ease (not what it said on the tin but fine with me and actually a "close fit"). What effect will this have on the lingerie block adaptions and the strapless bodice? The latter will have negative on the bust. That can't be right, can it?


To understand what on earth I am talking about in this post you will have to get your copy of Metric Pattern Cutting out and turn to pages 16 and 17.
Anyway, the adaptions I made to the method are these:


 

Centre Back Length:
0 -- 5: Full back length
5 --1 = centre back length ( gives much better fit at the back neck).







Back Shoulder Slope/Pitch/Squareness:
To get the shoulders the right amount of slope, use your ruler as a giant drafting compass from 5 to draft an arch for the shoulder pitch. To get the shoulder point do  similar thing from 9 using the shoulder length plus 1cm for a dart.

Armscye Depth:
0 -- 2 = Armscye Depth + 2cm (I used the standard measurement).

Centre Front Length:
For front length go down from 4 the full front length measurement and mark "x". Measure up from x the centre front length. This gives a more comfortable neckline. 20-27 = DART WIDTH. 20-26 is bust depth marked along the dotted line.

Front Shoulder Slope/Pitch/Squareness:
The shoulder is drawn much like the back shoulder was, but using 27 as the neck point. For the pitch, go up from x to the bust point and then use the bust point as the pivot point. Arch from 27 the shoulder length. Where the arches cross is the shoulder point. On my new sloper it is level with the back shoulder point even though my front pitch is 2cm longer than my back pitch.

Armscye:
Divide 29-22 in half and mark. Connect the point and 32 straight. Slide your square along this line until its arm hits 22. Connect straight, divide into 3 and mark the point nearest 22. Curve from 30 to half-point to third-point to 32.

Repeat for the back armscye except that you use the third-point further from 14. You will probably have to draw these curves by hand (i.e. without a french curve).

Waist-shaping:
12cm shaping is not going to work for everybody. The amount you need to take the waist in will of course depend on how small it is compared with your bust, i.e. 

(bust + ease of 10cm) - (waist + ease of 6cm)
(79+10cm)-(60+6cm) = 23cm, divided by 2 (for a half-a-person pattern) =11.5cm

Then divided that by 3 (=3.8). We'll call this w.

For the front waist dart you add 0.5cm to this. 3.8 + 0.5 = 4.3cm

For the front side shaping (i.e. how much you take the side seam in at the front) you divide w by 2 and add 0.5. 3.8 / 2 = 1.9cm, + 0.5 = 2.4cm

The back side-seam shaping is w/2 - 0.5cm: 3.8cm/2 -0.5cm = 0.9cm.

The back dart is ((w - 0.5cm)/3) x 2 : ((3.8cm-0.5cm)/3) x 2 = (3.3/3 = 1.1) x 2 = 2.2cm

The centre back waist shaping is (- 0.5cm)/3: 3.3/3 = 1.1cm


I think the CB shaping helps avoid swayback misdiagnosis. This is like a dart that is in a seam so you must still leave the original drawn CB line for when you add extend down to the hip line. Once you have tried this CB shaping I think you will be very pleased with the difference it makes to your dresses and tops.

(12th July 3013) UPDATE: 
The standard proportion of waist shaping show above doesn't work for everybody (me) because some people have more shaping at the back than at the front. Therefore a better, more personalised way is needed, and this is how I do it:

Subtract a quarter of the waist+ease measurement (Here 66 divided by 4 = 16.5cm) from the front bust-line meausurement (3--32 on the above drawing) and call this F. Divide F by three and call this f. The front dart is 2f (so you can just measure out f from the front waist dart line), and the front side waist shaping is f. That's the front waist done.

The back shaping is done like this:
Subtract a quarter of the waist+ease measurement (16.5cm) from the back bustline measurement (here line 2--22). Call this B. The back waist dart is 0.5B. The CB shaping is 0.2B. The side seam shaping is 0.3B. If you like you can probably equalize the side seam shaping.

Hip-darts:
The darts are extended 3/4 waist to hip (on me 3/4 20cm = 15cm).

Hip measurments:
The back hips should also be bigger than the front hips. This makes a real difference to the hang of the garment when it's unbuttoned (like a dressmaker summer jacket). It you have the pattern's back hips too narrow and the front hips too wide, you will find the garment swings open when unbuttoned and when it's closed, the front will have flare and the back will bubble up above the hem; it won't be smooth. 

So you see, the garment swinging open is not always because of the shoulders or bust. They might be fitted perfectly but the garment still swings. To find out how much bigger your back hips should be compared with your front hips, have the tape measure around your hips with the start at where you feel your side seam should be and the lower numbers to your front. Put your finger nail on the other imaginary side seam and, taking care to keep the measurement "marked", remove the tape measure. Now you have your front hip measurement and your full hip measurement. Take your front hips from your full hips and you have your back hip measurement. (It's worth noting these down by the way).

Divide this measurement in two.
Suppose the full hip measurement were 88cm and the front hips were 43cm. That means the back hips are 45cm. The pattern will use half-measurements so we have:
Full hips: 44cm
Front hips: 21.5cm
Back hips: 22.5cm.

This means that for the pattern's sake we have a difference of 22.5cm-21.5cm=1cm difference between the front and back hips (2cm in real life). So even after ease has been added the hip measurement, and that number divided in four for the front and back patterns, we add 0.5cm to the back hips and take 0.5cm from the front hips for a difference of 1cm on the pattern.
88cm + 6cm ease = 94cm
94cm / 4 = 23.5cm
Front: 23.5cm - 0.5cm = 23cm
Back: 23.5cm + 0.5cm = 24cm
Difference = 1cm on the half-a-person pattern, total 2cm difference in real life.


My Toile/Muslin




[My hat is off to those blogger who can take a good photograph of themselves (especially a backview). Do they have lightweight cameras or tripods or something?]

I think these adaptions should avoid many fitting problems, but I would love to know what you think. If you have blogged about it, please add a link in a comment below and (as long as it's not spam) I'll enable the comment (comments with links seem to go straight to spam).

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Thursday 31 January 2013

"What does this stitch do?"

I have had a request for a post that shows you the different stitches on a sewing machine, telling you their names and purposes. It would be impossible to list all the stitches because there are hundreds if not thousands if you count the purely decorative stitches. But I will show you some common ones.

This the stitch panel on my sewing machine. There are 40 stitches, some of which are purely decorative.


00: This stitch is the moveable straight stitch, meaning by altering the "stitch width" on your sewing machine, you can move the needle. It's default needle position is the far left. This is the stitch you will use the most often for just about everything.

01: This is the centerised straight stitch. It is like a safety straight stitch for sewing zips so that you don't hit the zipper foot. It cannot be moved.

02: This is the Triple Straight Stitch, also called the backstitch, stretch stitch, triple stretch stitch, and probably some other names as well. It made by the needle going two stitches forward and one stitch back. This makes a stronger seam which some people like to use for crutch seams and armscyes. It is also great for sewing stretch fabrics because it doesn't snap like an ordinary straight stitch can (when stretched). You can use it for top-stitching as well if you like.

03: This is the stretch stitch and is also called a lightning stitch. It's a very narrow zigzag. It's supposed to give stretch seams that can be pressed open, but I much prefer stitch 02 for that. I'm not a big fan of this stitch.

04: Ah the zigzag stitch. Stitch of a myriad uses. Neatening raw edges is the most common use. Satin Stitching (length 0.2-0.3mm). Appliqué. Stretch sewing (length normal, width 0.2 or so). Bar-tacks. Very manual buttonholes (if you have an automatic buttonhole, do use it). Satin Stitch in free motion stitching (great for monograms). You can probably add some more uses.

05: The triple zigzag stitch, this has several names as well, but as long as you can see what it is, you'll be fine. Its primary uses are neatening raw edges (especially fabrics that fray badly) and sewing elastic. But as each step counts as a stitch, you can make really long zig zags.

06: Overcasting stitch. This can be used for seaming knits, neatening edges, and making picot edges and shell-tucks.

07: Strong overlocking stitch. Like its friends, this has many names and I don't know them all (who could?) It's used for seaming and neatening at the same time.

08: Same as 07 but it looks different, and the straight stitches are more reliably close together.

09: Blind-hem stitch. It don't think you'll find a machine less than 50 years old without this stitch. Its use is blind-hemming.

10: Stretch Blind-hem stitch. Same as 09 but for stretch fabrics.

11: Appliqué stitch/Blanket Stitch. This is used to sew appliqués and replicate a hand-sewn blanket stitch. It really looks very nice.

12: Shell-tuck stitch. Used with the satin-stitch foot, this makes even nicer shell-tucks than stitch 06.

13: Scallop Stitch. This is used to make decorative edges. First you stablize the edge (preferably hemmed) and then you cut very carefully round the outer edge of the scallop. I suppose if you wanted, you could sew it with the pointed edge towards the edge, and have a pointy edge like a batswing.

14: Ladder stitch: This is used to make channels for elastic and ribbon.

15: Overlocking stitch: This is made to look like an overlocker/serger stitch. It is used for seams, but you can also use it to make channels as with 14.

16: This stitch is for sewing on elastic, like 05. You can also use it for faggoting.

17: This stitch is also used for faggoting, and decorative stitching.

18: Much like 17.

19: This is used for sewing channels too.

20: RicRac stitch. Also ambiguously called triple zigzag stitch. It looks much nicer when sewing than the picture would lead you to believe. It is used for decorative stitching.

21: Serpentine Stitch. Used for decorative stitching and also for attaching elastic.

22: Hemstitch. This is used for doing drawn thread work by machine.

23: Daisy-chain stitch. Pretty decorative stitch. If you carefully poke a bodkin or awl through the middle you can use the flowers as a tiny eyelet.

24: Hemstitch. Yes there are a few stitches called hemstitch. They are used for drawn-thread work by machine. It can look very pretty and vintage.

25: Round-ended buttonhole. Used for blouses and such dainty things. It think if you widen it you could use it on jeans, especially if you use a double thread in the needle (but don't use topstitching thread).

26: Standard buttonhole. Used for anything you want.

27 and 28: Stretch buttonholes. If you are making buttonholes on sweater knits you must interface well top and bottom. I think 28 is best for sweater knits.

29: Keyhole buttonhole: Popular for jackets.

30: Bartack. Made with the buttonhole foot. I prefer to used a satin stitch because it is more reliable.

31: Hand-look stitch. If you use invisible thread in the needle and really increase the thread tension, you can make a stitch that looks like a hand-sewn running stitch.

32-40: The rest of my stitches are decorative stitches. IT is always a good idea to stablize when sewing fancy decorative stitches like these.
35 is called a domino stitch.
36 and 37 can be used like 13 to make very pretty edges.

They are all the stitches on my sewing machine and their primary uses. You can make other uses, because, after all, sewing is a creative hobby.

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Friday 28 December 2012

How to Draft Stereo-butt/Non-mono-butt Jeans

Any of you who are members of Kathleen Fasenella's forum at Fashion-Incubator.com will probably have come across the posts about jeans and the dreaded "mono-butt". Naturally I wanted to draft a pair of jeans that did not have this fitting faux pas, and set about figuring it out.

It's is my philosophy that simplicity is best, and if something seams difficult you're probably doing it wrong and over-complicating it. As it turns out, drafting trousers that fit is amazingly simple. It is best done starting from a pencil skirt pattern with at most 3cm total hip ease. I tried 6cm and the result was less than pleasing.

The measurements you will need are:-

  • Waist + 1 or 2 cm ease
  • Hips + 0-3cm ease
  • To take a comfortable and flattering hip measurement if you have a round abdomen, put a magazine over your front, hanging down like a little apron and measure your hips over that. This will give you a smoother fit there and avoid the "maternity jeans look."
  • Waist to hips
  • Crotch Depth:
  • There are two ways to take this measurement: one that automatically includes ease, and one that has no ease. To take this measurement with ease included, side on a hard flat surface in your tights/pantyhose and take the measurement from your side waist, over the curve of your hip, down to the surface.
  • To take the crotch depth measurement without ease, sit on a hard, flat surface, and measure upto your waist level, perpendicular to the table. In other words, do not take the tape measure against the curve of your hip. It must be straight. This method gives a closer fit, and therefore helps avoid the monobutt.
  • Side seam length
  • Knee
  • Take this measurement around your bent knee.
  • Foot entry
  • To take this measurement, pose your foot as though to put on a long boot, and measure round the heel and in-step. For skinny jeans, you can subtract an inch or two from this measurement, as long as you are using very stretchy fabric, or a zip at the hem.
  • Dart (formula and distribution to follow)


The equipment you will need is minimal:-

  • A straight ruler
  • A square (a piece of card will do)
  • A French curve
  • Thick paper such as brown parcel paper or marked pattern paper
  • Something to hold the paper down if it sticks up
  • Sewing kit

How to Work Out Your Waist Dart



a -- b = Waist to hips. Square across from a and b
a -- d = (hips + ease) divided by 2 (because this is half a pattern)
b -- c = a -- d
b -- e = one quarter of hips + 1cm ease
a -- f = one quarter of (waist + ease) + one dart
d -- g = one quarter of (waist + ease) + two darts
h and i are 1.2cm (1/2 inch) up from f and g respectively
j is 2cm down from a (this may just be me, but my clothes are more comfortable with this adjustment)
a -- k = crotch depth
square down from e and c to l and m respectively

And that's it. Now cut it out and cut the line e -- l so that you have a front pattern and a back pattern. Now we shall turn our patterns into jeans pattern...

First we'll add the waist-line darts 

FRONT: Divide your dart measurement into 3. The dart will be two thirds, and the CF will be shaped by one third. E.g. If your dart measurement is 2.4cm (mine is):

            2.4cm/3 = 0.8cm = front shaping,
            2 x 0.8cm = 1.6cm.

So shape the CF by making a point 0.8cm in from the CF waist, and connect to the CF hips with an outwardly curved line. (This makes a better fit over a naturally round abdomen). Taking this as the new CF waist-point, measure a straight line from their to the side waist-point. Divide this into three and mark the point nearest the side waist. Square down from here 10cm. Make your dart on this line, here 0.8cm from each side. For a nicer fit, make the dart legs curve outwards slightly, or if you have a full tummy, curve them inwards slightly.

BACK: The total back shaping is 2 darts worth. This will be divided into 5 to give two darts and some CB shaping. E.g. using the 2.4cm dart again:

            2 x 2.4cm = 4.8cm = Total back dart shaping
            4.8cm / 5 = 0.96cm (near enough to 1cm for practical purposes) = Back shaping
            1cm x 2 = 2cm = Dart (and there are two darts, each 2cm)

So shape the CB by making a point 1cm in from the CB, and draw with an inwardly curving line to the hip point. This accommodates the shape of the spine. Taking this as the new CB waist point, measure straight to the side waist point and divide into thirds, marking each for a dart placement. Square down from each, 12cm for the one nearest the side, and 14cm for the one nearest the CB. (NOTE: These darts lengths are only guideline measurements, yours may be different.) Make a dart on each line, in this case 2cm side. Curve the dart legs outward to work better with the curve of the lower back.

Now we'll add the front crutch extension.

Extend the CF Crotch depth line by 1/5 of the pattern's front hip measurement (k-l). Connect this point straight to the CF hip point. Slide your square along this line until the other part of it meets the CF crotch (k). Connect straight. Divide this line into three equal parts. Draw a curve from b through the point nearest outer line, to the crotch point. (As illustrated.)

Now for the back crutch extension.

The difference between different types of trousers/pants, as far as pattern-cutting is concerned, is the length of the back crutch extension, and the height of the pitch. The pitch is the wedge you can see in the illustration, under the Crotch Depth line. The shorter the back crotch extension, the greater the pitch must be to make up for the loss of crotch length and let you wear the trousers/pants without doing yourself an injury.

Coco Chanel said that "Fashion is architecture: it all a matter of proportions." I think the same applies to sewing patterns. Why should we use "standard" measurements for pitch and so on and then fix the fit, when we can use a measurement proportionate to our own measurements and then have a nearly perfect fit right away?

Crotch extension and pitch must be in proportions to each other and to our hip size. We use 10th of our pattern's back hip measurement as unit (we'll call it x). In jeans or slacks we want a total of 5x. Trousers have a looser fit, which you can see if you Google Metric Pattern Cutting for Women's Wear and look at people's blog photos. They look more like men's trousers and are not altogether flattering on women, so I don't wear them.

  • Slacks:        Crotch : Pitch = 4x : 1x
  • Jeans:         Crotch : Pitch = 3x : 2x
  • Trousers:    Crotch : Pitch = 5x : 1x


So get your compass out and set if for a radius of 2x, and draw a circle from point m. Then draw a straight line from l the length of l -- m, touching the circle. Extend this line by 3x to give the crutch extension.
Now it is time to draw the legs.

BACK: The line that you had as the Crotch line, after pitching and before lowering the crotch point is the line you will use for drawing the leg, so find its centre point and square down the same length as it is on the front pattern. Copy the placement lines for the hem and knee.
So that is your jeans-fit pattern. Now you can change it into a pattern for jeans. You will probably want to trace it first in case of mistakes, or tea-spillage. It is a good idea to copy it onto thick, tough paper, fold it up neatly, and store it in a plastic sleeve.

Squared down 0.5cm to 1.5cm (about 1/4" to 5/8") from this point mark a new point that will be the crotch point. (By the was, this will make the back trouser leg shorter on the inseam than the front-trouser leg, and when this piece of fabric is stretched to match the front one, it will give a better fit. The more contoured you want this area to be, the lower you must drop the point.)

From the new crotch point, draw a straight-line up to the hip line. Slide your square along this line until its other arm touches the CB on the crotch line. Draw this line and divide it into three. As you did for the front crotch curve, draw from the hip line, through the point nearest the line, and to the crotch point with a curve.

FRONT: This is simpler than the back to explain. Mark a point half-way along the crotch line and square down. From top to bottom, this should be your side waist-hem length (we'll say side-waist to ankle).

Divide that in half and mark. 4cm up from that mark you knee line. This is where your knee measurement comes in.

Bend your knee as far as it will go, and measure. Mine is 40 cm, but I like a closer fit, especially with stretch denim slim jeans, so I will reduce it to 36cm. This allows you wearing ease. Divide that by 4 (9cm) and subtract 1cm. Measure this distance out from each side of the knee marking on your pattern. Connect straight to the crotch point and the side hip. Curve the lines so that they look right, i.e. inwards by about 0.8cm on the inseam, and by about 0.6cm or so on the outseam.

At the hem line you will need your entry measurement. To get this, pose your foot as though putting it into a really narrow calf-length boot, and measure around the heel and bridge. (One me about 30cm.) You will need the hem of your trousers/pants to be at least this, or else you won't be able to get your foot through. (A lot of good that would be!) Divide this measurement by four and subtract 1cm. (6.5cm) Measure this far out from the hem marking on your pattern. Connect to the knee point. Blend the knee if necessary.

For the knee width, divide the knee measurement by 4 and add 1cm, here giving 10cm. Measure this much out from the knee point. Connect to the crotch point and the side hip point, curving the lines inward so that they look right to you. (At least as much as you did for the front leg, and not more than about 1cm each more).

For the hem width, divide the hem measurement my 4 and add 1cm, giving me 9.5cm. Measure this much out from the hem point. Connect to the knee and blend if necessary.

NOTE: The centre leg lines are also the grainlines.

Making your trouser/pants pattern into a jeans pattern

The rest of the pattern-making is pretty much just drawing, closing darts, and adding seam allowances.


Draw on the pockets as shown, add the fly (3cm wide), add the waistband (I made mine 3cm, but you can have whatever you wish).

The front pocket is the most complicated thing, because there are so many layers. There is the pocket bag/facing, the inner pocket bag, and the piece that you will see (I'm not sure what it's called, but it's the bit made of denim and in the illustration, it's red).

First, draw the pocked shape, which needn't the traditional shape, but that is easier to sew than, say, a heart shape. The thing-with-no-name extends a bit into the pocket (say 1.5 - 2cm) so that it doesn't peek out when you are wearing the jeans. Trace this piece off and add seam allowances.

Then there is the inner pocket bag, to which the thing-with-no-name is sewn. Using the line you just added for the inner edge of the thing-with-no-name), draw the inner pocket bag (the pink bit in the illustration).
Now for the pocket-bag/facing. Trace the pink bit but go up to the original pocket line instead of the inner one. This is what will be sewn to the outer denim. Now add seam allowances.

Now for the waistband.

The front waistband will need two pattern pieces: one for the left and one for the right, because one side will have an underlap for the button to go on. Trace off the waistband and close the darts by folding the paper so that the lines meet at the top and bottom of the waistband.


Now trace a copy of this and we will make a waistband for the other side, with an underlap. On your traced copy, fold the paper along the CF and trace as far as the fly stitching line. This extra bit is the underlap. Now open it up and add seam allowances all around the waistband pieces.

Now to do the back waistband. This is easy. You just do the same as you did for the front waistband without the underlap (because the back doesn't have an opening).

Now for the fly

You have a choice here. You can either fold back the paper on the front of the pattern and trace the stitching line, then add seam allowances; or you can trace it off separately and make a fly like you get on RTW jeans. I went with the first option and sewed it like a large lapped zipper (sewing instructions here). It's easier and less bulky.

After that it's just a matter of the pockets, seam and hem allowances, and sewing. On mine I had to slim the hips. Apparently I have very slim hips. And I somehow lost about 3cm on my waist over Christmas (I don't know how; I sat around for most of it) so that threw off the fit of my toile a little at the CF waist. Never mind.

Yardage/Metreage

As for yardage, I only needed about 1.5 metres of stretch denim, which is about half of what was suggested on a Vogue jeans pattern on-line. (I bought 3m so I may have enough to make a jacket, if not, then I can make a skirt or another pair of jeans). I am petite and about a size 10 or so on my hips (pattern size), so most people may need more. You will also need some lightweight cotton fabric for the pocket linings, and optional back pocket appliqué (I have a butterfly). The belt loops can be made out of scraps.
I can't give visual sewing instructions because I have only one photograph and that's not much use. You can either use your good sense and experience, or use instructions available in books, online, or in commercial patterns.

Critique of My Own Jeans

Here is a front view and a back view of my finished jeans: 


It is extremely difficult to take a good photo of your own back-view. This was the best I got.

Now, I suspect the crotch depth may have too much ease (it is automatically included when you take the measurement) and that is why my jeans are not super-fitted there, like here. Also, I mistakenly had the front crutch extension being 1/4 of the front hip, instead of 1/5 which is should be for jeans. And they're more of a slim-fit than a skinny fit, but isn't it like magic to be able to draft and sew something right of out your head, and then have it in reality?! (It's so neat!)

And yes, these do look high-waisted. But I am so slim that any jeans not defining my waist will be very unflattering and make me look more columnish. (That is probably not a word, but never mind - Shakespeare frequently invented words and if it's good enough for him...)

To prevent the waist from stretching (I used stretch denim and don't want it to stretch at the waist) I sewed the waistband seams with cotton tape in them. After only being able to buy jeans that slip down, it's nice to have pair stay on my waist!

Version 2.0

I made another pair with a shorter crotch depth (measured to omit ease), and a shorter front crotch extension (1/5 front hips; the first pair had 1/4 because I forgot that jeans use less than other trousers). I also narrowed the legs and hems a bit, and lengthen the leg. (They will shrink in the wash).




Hard-won Topstitching Wisdom

The topstitching went a bit wrong sometimes, especially when I went over the really thick parts. Note: it is better to sew the belt loops onto the waistband, after topstitching, instead of trying to include them in the waistband seams. Otherwise, it seems, you get a lot of skipped stitches.

Also, it is better to stitch the yoke seam allowance downwards, not upwards, because otherwise you get a funny bump along the back.

And a note on topstitching thread. Don't bother. I got much better results and wasted far less thread by using two spools of regular sew-all thread in a size 100 jeans needle. (A tip I got off Angela Wolf's video on YouTube). Below you can compare topstitching thread when it was working (the seam), and doubled sew-all thread (the double-stitched hem). Apart from the wobbly hem, you can't see much difference, and certainly not from a real-life distance, but it is much easier to sew with doubled sew-all thread, and you can still use your needle-threader if you use a 100 jeans needle.



If you make some jeans and blog about them, or post them on BurdaStyle, please let me know  -- I'd love to see how they turn out! Also, if this post is well received (and even if it's not) I want to turn it into a Kindle book, so please tell me what you think and if there is anything you want to know. I'll take the post down when I get the book for sale on Amazon.

You can see more about the monobutt on Kathleen's webpage entitled "Jeans fit so lousy these days".

P.S. I didn't prewash the denim, so now they have shrunk in the wash, and while they feel tighter, the fit looks better.

The formula is very simple, though it helps for certainty's sake to use a calculator, and it's easiest in metric (sorry USA).

Now that you have those things and measurements, you can draft your...

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