My first contribution to the sewing directory goes live this evening at 8 pm – take a look at my detailed guide to facings!
The Sewing Directory!
Part 2 – Understanding a dress making pattern
Welcome to part two of this 2 part series. If you missed part one you can always catch it on my blog page! In part one we looked at the front of a pattern envelope. Now let’s take a look at the back of the envelope in more detail. We will also look at some common pattern markings so when you pick up a dress making pattern your will feel much more at ease.
The envelope back becomes a little more technical, and here you will find all the additional information you need in order to purchase fabric and trimmings – otherwise known as ‘notions’. You will certainly need your glasses for the back of the envelope as there is so much information crammed into a very small space!
The back of the pattern may show you the back views of the garment, if they did not appear on the front of the envelope.
The envelope will tell you how many Pattern Pieces are required for each style variation in the envelope. The most complex pattern I have ever come across was by Issey Miyake, it only had 1 pattern piece, but it was more like origami than a dress making pattern!
One of the most important pieces of information you will find on the back of your pattern envelope are the Style Details -for example the description may state that ‘the trouser front has a fly front opening’ – you may be put off the pattern at this point! Here you will also find a description of the garment, including an indication of the fit. This information is often the deciding factor when buying a pattern, as you can quickly decide if the pattern is the right one for you.
You will also be provided with fabric types suitable for the design, it’s best to stick to the suggested fabric when you first try a style, you are more likely to make a success of the project. Next time you make the pattern you can begin to experiment with different fabrics to create a different look.
Most pattern envelopes give you a very brief size chart, this may be the bust, waist, or hip that each pattern size is intended to fit. This is one part of the process that you should take a little time over. Selecting the wrong size pattern that will not fit your actual body measurements can waste so much time and effort. Always have a tape measure to hand and measure yourself. Just because you usually take a size 12 on the high street does not mean that a size 12 garment, made from a pattern, will fit you.
Notions: here you will see how many buttons to buy, how long your zip needs to be etc. Notions are a complete list of all the extra trimmings you need to buy in order to make your garment. It is always a good idea to buy your sewing thread at the same time as you buy your fabric as you want a good colour match. Tip – If you can’t quite get the right shade – better lighter than darker!
The fabric quantity guide: this lets you know exactly how much fabric, lining and interfacing fabric you need to buy. These guides are usually quite generous so if you are on a particularly tight budget lay out your pattern pieces at home to see how much less fabric you can get away with. Or you can take your cut out pattern pieces to the fabric shop and lay them out – this can save you a lot of money!
Inside the pattern envelope.
A lay plan is the common term for the guide to putting your pattern pieces on the fabric, it’s worth taking the time to get this part right. You must place the pattern pieces on the fabric exactly as described. Fabric has what’s known as a grain and placing the fabric on the wrong grain will result in a garment that behaves differently to the designer’s intentions.
I wonder if you have ever worn a pair of jeans or leggings where the inside leg seam wraps to the front leg and no matter how much you pull, it will not go back. This happens when a trouser pattern is cut ‘off grain’. This means that the trouser pattern was not placed on the fabric correctly! It’s a common fault with cheap garments when the manufacturer wants to save money. Let’s look at how pattern pieces should be placed on fabric.
Knowing the selvedge of a fabric piece is the key to placing your pattern pieces correctly – often described as the finished edge of the fabric – here is a close up image to help you next time you visit a fabric shop. Its particularly important if you are buying remnant or off cut pieces of fabric.
You will also find detailed making instructions inside the pattern envelope; the larger pattern companies produce detailed illustrations and a brief description of the sewing process. Smaller independent pattern companies often photograph the garment being made in stages and go into a lot more detail. Smaller pattern companies also produce guides to their patterns on YouTube! (see my bandeau top video on my YouTube channel)
Finally let’s look at some of the most common pattern markings. At first glance this can be a little daunting because there are so many lines and markings. Your making instructions will have a key and a description of each marking.
As I have already mentioned the most important pattern markings are the grain lines, the fold line – also illustrated above is also very important. The fold line indicates that you must place your pattern on the fold of the fabric to create a whole mirrored piece. Notches are placed on the pattern to enable you to match up the fabric sections as you are sewing them. This is a part of the process that many dress makers forget, however, they are essential. So always make sure you transfer all pattern markings to the fabric. Gone are the days of tailors’ chalk, modern dress makers use dissolvable pens to mark their patterns!
I could go on forever as this is a huge topic and sewing using your first pattern will be a huge learning curve, but if you have any questions at all I am always happy to answer them!
Or If you have a pattern envelope that you don’t understand take a picture and let me take a look for you.
See you soon for a new sewing project!
Nicola x
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Baby & Toddler Size Charts 0 to 24 Months
How can you get your new children’s wear business off to the best start?
Every clothing company should have a detailed set of measurement and sizing guidance. The truth is that many don’t!!!
As a freelance pattern cutter and grader, children’s wear became a daily task for me, even though I much prefer ladies and menswear. Many of the companies I dealt with did not have their own size chart. This was always a worry for me. If a company doesn’t have their sizing clear in their own minds, how will the customer ever know what size to choose? How will that company also keep their sizing consistent as they move from pattern cutter to pattern cutter and grader to grader? The answer is that they wont!
There are huge sales potentials withing babies wear, and customer loyalty is key. Your customer must trust your sizing, but the questions is – Do you trust your own sizing?
My Guide to Baby & Toddler Sizing was produced to supply the small children’s wear designer or pattern cutter with the information they need to run a successful business.
The guide also goes hand in hand with my children’s wear basic blocks – coming very very soon to my shop – including romper blocks!
I have carefully collated all my sizing knowledge in this PDF guide. The size charts supplied in the guide have 26 individual measurements! You can simply use my size charts or use them as a reference point to create your own. I also cover suggested size bands for your clothing range.
A list of the contents of the guide below give you a summary of the topics I have covered.
Measurement locations
How to measure a baby
The measurement process
Detailed size chart with 26 individual measurements
Understanding baby growth rate – illustrations
Body measurement location guide – illustrations
Suggested size bands for your company
Design guidelines – for the designer
Pattern cutting guidelines – abdomen adjustments
& nappy / diaper adjustments – for the pattern cutter
The above information has taken me a career to collate and verify, however my company policy is to provide young designers and pattern cutters with the tools they need to enhance their business, so feel free to use these size charts as a basis for your own sizing, all I ask is that my customers do not pass it along to others as the content is protected by copyright.
My guide is available in my Etsy Shop and on my main web site:
Any questions at all then please ask – I also have more information on my blog page about ease in children’s wear so please take a look at that.
I would love to hear your comments and questions.
Nicola x
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Understanding a Dress Making Pattern – Part 1 – The Pattern Envelope
I am frequently asked to explain to both experienced and novice dressmakers how to read and understand all the information printed on a sewing pattern envelope.
If you want to make your own clothing, then the ability to understand and locate the information you need is essential.
In part 1 of this two-part series we will look at the information printed on the outside of a pattern envelope.
In part 2 we will take a more detailed look at all the information you should expect to see on the back and inside, plus look at how to understand all the symbols on a pattern piece.
Hopefully you will then have the confidence to go out and purchase a pattern and begin to make your own clothes!
The pattern envelope itself, in such a small amount of space, gives you a huge amount of information. Importantly a picture or illustration of the garment and the quantity of fabric you will need to purchase and a guide to notions – every hobby has its own language so lets take a closer look!
The front of the pattern envelope will show you what size range and figure type the pattern is aimed at. Be careful if you are buying a vintage pattern or a pattern from another country as the sizing will not be accurate. Some patterns come in a wide range of sizes, some in two or three and some in just one, so look carefully. A vintage pattern size will come up very small in comparison to today’s sizes, so select a pattern that takes this into account. If you are buying an American pattern online then don’t forget that American sizing is different to UK sizing, each American size is 2 sizes down from a UK size, so for example a size 14 UK is a size 10 USA.
A very important point to note – is the pattern designed for a woven or a knit fabric? You need to know this in order to select the correct fabric. Making a knit pattern in woven fabric will not work as woven fabric has no stretch at all and your garment will end up much too small. Making a woven pattern in knit is also a mistake as knit fabric stretches and the garment will end up much too big for you. Also, a woven pattern will have design details that are just not suitable for knit fabrics.
The difficulty level of a pattern is usually illustrated and will let you know if the pattern is for a beginner or an advanced sewer.
The pattern company name and the style name or number will also be indicated on the envelope, very handy in today’s digital age as you can search and see how other sewers have tackled the making process and gather some great advice! There are a number of pattern review sites now, so you are quite likely to find a popular pattern from a large pattern company has lots of reviews online.
The front of the pattern envelope will also have views of the garment, in the form of illustrations or technical sketches and the different style options available. Sometimes patterns include 2 or three different style options for you to choose from.
The envelope back becomes a little more technical, and here you will find all the additional information you need in order to purchase fabric and trimmings – otherwise known as ‘notions’. You will certainly need your glasses for the back of the envelope as there is so much information crammed into a very small space!
Join me for part 2 when we will take a closer look at the pattern envelope back and some common pattern markings.
Any questions – feel free to ask.
Nicola x
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Mannequin Arms… Make your own!
I wanted some arms for my ladies, so I took a quick look online as I intended to buy a pair! When I saw the price of ready made arms I changed my mind!
I have lots of calico and the ability to make the pattern myself, so I went ahead and made a pattern. Several pairs later, I decided to make a pattern sheet – see the link at the bottom of the page for the pattern sheet on its own or the complete kit that includes all the calico you need – at a fraction of the price they are to buy ready made.
The instruction booklet provides you with detailed step by step making instructions…
Buy the complete kit with all the supplies you need, or just the pattern sheet on its own.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303193062521 Click here to buy the complete kit.
Or here to buy the pattern sheet on its own –
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303208836043
Why not give them a try, I also converted the traditional triangular section used to pin the arms to the stand into a more substantial elasticated harness. I will pop the additional pattern pieces in the members area for anyone that want to make them!
As always, I would love to see the arms you make! I think my next pair may be in a pretty fabric!
Nicola x
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Making a fabric bag
This little fabric bag is strong and versatile! Use it as a gift bag, a shoe bag, a book bag, I keep my passport in a bright orange one so I can find it easily.
Download my free template or simply follow the guidelines on the template to create your own template to your own set of measurements.
As always I love to see pictures of your makes so let me know how you get on.
Nicola
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Calculating Stretch Percentage %%%%
To test the stretch percentage of any fabric, take a fabric square 10 cm x 10 cm or grab a section of the fabric you want to test that is 10 cm wide, use my free PDF stretch gauge to help you calculate.
It is important to note which grain you are stretching first, so mark the weft, this goes from left to right and the warp, this runs parallel to the selvedge.
Take the fabric and fold in half if you are working with a cut piece, do not stretch on the cut edge.
Now stretch the fabric until you feel it wants to spring back, don’t over stretch. Make a note of the stretch percentage of the weft first and then the warp. Also it is important to note if the fabric returns to its original length. Fabric that does not have good recovery is not suitable for lingerie or tight fitting garments as it will become baggy and ill fitting very quickly!
For example – The weft of my sample piece stretched from a cut square of 10 cm to 14 cm and the warp to 12 cm. weft grain travels around the body so this perfect that it has more stretch. Therefore the stretch percentage of the fabric is 40% in the warp and 20% in the weft. Now I also know my Direction Of Greatest Stretch (DOGS) and my Direction Of Least Stretch (DOLS), important information in lingerie making!
Hope this helps,
Nicola x
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Sewing Knit or Stretch Fabrics – A quick guide.
Knitted fabric is constructed with loops, as opposed to woven fabric, which has a woven structure! Sometimes it’s something that sewers don’t realize. Sewing patterns for knitted fabrics such as Jersey are different to those for regular woven fabrics such as cotton.
The loops of a knitted fabric allow it to cling and stretch to the body much better than a woven fabric, as the loop structure can move around and expand. Some knitted fabrics rely on the structure of the fabric alone to help them stretch. There are also knitted fabrics that are a little more technical and they have an extra element called spandex, or Lycra (trade name) and this super stretchy filament allows the fabric to stretch and more importantly recover even more!
I can’t lie, an overlocker (serger) is the best thing for stretch and knit fabrics, the stitch is designed to allow it to stretch with the fabric. So when we are using a normal sewing machine, we are doing our best to avoid the problems we encounter when sewing a stretch fabric. So if you are a keen sewer and want to produce lots of stretch garments, then the best investment you can make is an overlocker (serger)!
If you have a regular sewing machine you can make a pretty good job too, by working in a particular way and using a particular set of stitches. You may well have a stretch stitch on your machine, they are normally not so good, but don’t let me put you off, give it a try, sew a sample and give it a good stretch and see how it reacts.
Firstly though, lets take a look at the needle you are using. Ball point and stretch needles are now both widely available. They both have a rounded tip, as opposed to a regular ‘sharp point’ needle. The rounded tip helps the needle enter the structure of the fabric without damaging the fibers. The stretch needle is slightly less rounded than the ball point needle. Ball point needles were designed for heavier looser knitted fabrics and more modern stretch needles are designed specifically for the more technical knits I mentioned such as spandex and stretch lace. Again, practice on a swatch of fabric and see how they perform. In the past I have found that certain knit fabrics much prefer a regular sharp point needle and the special needles for knits didn’t perform as well and skipped stitches, so you never know until you try to sew!
The best stitch for knits, on a regular sewing machine, is a zig zag stitch. You can adjust the length and width to suit and the structure helps it stretch. The only downside is that your seam can look a little bumpy from the right side, so make a few samples and see how they look.
There is also a three step zig zag stitch, this looks great, but it is forcing a great many stitches into your fabric and this can cause waving and stretching that you don’t want, so again, a sample is the best test. Three step zig zag in my experience is less effective in most cases than the zig sag stitch.
In a previous post I covered stitch width and length so that may be worth a look for you.
Some tips I can give you if you are having problems are –
Try not to stretch out the fabric as you are sewing.
If your machine has the ability, take some pressure off the feed dogs, usually you can do this, but you may have to google that for your particular machine.
A good quality nylon or polyester stewing thread can make all the difference, if you are having problems and are using a cheap thread, then this is most likely the problem.
A twin needle can also be used on most machines, again you can take a look at this for your particular machine and give it a try! This is certainly an idea for another post!
A hope this very quick discussion has helped a little, practice samples and experimentation are the key and if you have any questions or comments then please ask!
Nicola x
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Sizing – the myths and the legends!
Sizing is such a controversial area. Many a time I have had to advise a client that they are working with incorrect sizing data. I have worked as a freelance pattern cutter and grader for over 25 years and have regularly come across small design companies, who have asked me to grade their patterns, only to discover that they have no size chart of their own!
If you are starting your own clothing business, the first and most important thing to do is to decide on your sizing and then stick to it. For each pattern and collection you produce, your customers can then be confident that the size they select from your range of designs will always fit.
Vanity Sizing…
Now this is where a lot of the confusion occurs, many high street retailers adopt this method of sizing and this then leads to sizing misconception.
In the UK, and in many other countries, there is, believe it or not, standard sizing data available. Much of it is old and out of date, but it is generally available.
Many designers tend to use vanity sizing for their clothing range, this means that they size a garment, which by measurement would be for example a LARGE, and they apply a SMALL label to the garment. This makes the customer very happy as in their shop they fit into a SMALL! However in reality the customer is actually wearing a large (by measurement) but the label tells them it’s a small. The company then makes more sales as the customer is happy to be a small size.
This is a common method of sizing and there is much research out there if you would like to take a closer look.
I have worked for many a company that alter the label and it can be very confusing for the pattern maker. When the designer asks you to make the sizes one size larger than they actually are. When they ask you for a sample in a size 12, you then need to ask – a size 12 or your version of a size 12 which is actually a 14!!!!
Of course there is also something called ‘ease’ that can also be added to a pattern. Ease is extra allowance for movement, so the pattern cutter can add in extra and then a little extra again and this then makes the garment larger than it would be with a ‘normal’ quantity of ease. So you can see, it can be quite confusing and misleading.
My best advice when using a basic block, which would have been labelled with the correct size, according to actual body measurements, is to not be too hung up on the size the size chart tells you that you are (as it is likely larger than the high street size you take).
It is important to measure the body you are intending to fit and compare those measurements to the size chart you have. You will find some useful size charts in my members only area, simply subscribe for the password.
Don’t worry too much if the size chart tells you that you are a larger size than you thought you were, it’s more important that you select the correct block to start your pattern.
I have had many a customer that fails to measure themselves and selects a block, one they imagine will fit, and then finds that the garment does not fit, as they didn’t take the time to measure their body and select the block that was most appropriate to their own body measurements.
I had a little fun making this short video that I popped on my Facebook page
So, take a tape measure when you are working and hang it round your neck, I sometimes forget mine is there and go out with it on!
See you soon,
Nicola x
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Part 3 in the video series.. Moving Darts
In part 3 of this 6 part series we look at putting one or both of the front bodice darts into the armhole. Make sure you subscribe to be automatically notified when parts 4, 5 & 6 are released!
Please subscribe and give me a thumbs up and a comment! It all helps.
See you soon,
Nicola x
