Sewing Help Fitting Garments

Can you give me some tips on getting a good fit from a pattern?

Here is a great tip from one of our wonderful sewing instructors:
Before cutting out a garment it is wise to have updated measurements. Then it is always a good idea to measure each pattern before you cut out the pattern. Utilizing the body measurements, add the ease needed for wearing to the vital body measurements:

		Bust	+ 2 inches
		Waist	+ 1 inch
		Hip	+ 2 inches

How do I fit a gaping armhole without adding extra darts?

Q: I love sleeveless tops and dresses, but I usually have difficulty with gaping in the arms across the upper chest area. Besides putting a dart in to take up the gape (there is already a bust dart in the side seam), is there anything I can do to SHAPE the area differently so it lays closer to my body? I am an average size with an average "B" cup size. Help!

A: Since you are a B cup, you're in luck - most pattern companies draft for a B cup, so you probably won't need to slash and spread your pattern in order add bust fullness. However, if you have a high or low bust, you may want to move the position of the original bust dart or redraft just the armscye / shoulder / side bust area of your pattern to reduce the amount of fabric present. To do this you may have to go through several versions.

I might add that this is a fitting issue that women of all cup sizes face - from small to large. Because commercial patterns are designed to fit a generic, fictional body shape, almost every person will need to make adjustments to their pattern to achieve an optimum fit.

That said, a great resource for solving these fitting issues (and many others) is Sandra Betzina's excellent book, "Fast Fit." In particular, look at page 150 "High or Low Bust", page 181 "Narrow Upper Chest," or page 168 "Gaping Armholes." We stock this book - it's an excellent resource for all kinds of body shape and fitting issues, and Sandra helpfully explains what you'll need to do to your pattern pieces in order to remedy the problem.

back to sewing help main menu