sewing: combining patterns for a custom fit
This post is written by Caroline of Maika Made.
Pattern modifications – do you do them? Adjust your bust? Widen your shoulders? Lengthen your torso? I have a love-hate relationship with pattern adjustments, mostly I discard them to the “too hard/attempt another time” basket.
I love making my own clothes but I’m often afraid of adjusting a pattern for fit. Sometimes deciphering the sizing information on the pattern envelope is difficult enough! I want to get on with the sewing, I want the gratification of the finished product, if I get bogged down in adjustments then I know that the moment will be gone and some of my projects just won’t end up taking flight… so often I sew with the given pattern and if it fits, it fits. Sound familiar?
Over time I have slowly learned to be more adventurous and less of a worrier about making mistakes… and be more patient. The more experienced I get with my sewing the more I realise that tweaking little things here and there for fit can make a big difference. I’ve also learned to use the patterns I know and love as a guide to making simple adjustments to suit my style and fit – take a bit from here and add it to there kind of thing.
I’m going to share with you two simple modifications I make to one of my favourite patterns so that it is more to my liking and style. Straight up I’m not claiming any of this advice is fool proof, but it might give you some ideas when using the patterns in your own personal collection.
I have used the Stylish Dress Book several times to make top “B”. There are two aspects to this top that I have changed to suit my body shape and general style preferences. Firstly, top B has a high neckline, high necklines are a no go zone for me. I have a rather triangular body shape: wide shoulders, a slightly larger than average bust and no hips, so anything with a high neck makes me look really boxy up top. A lower neckline is the way to go for me, like what you see below for top “O”.
Indeed, both tops have pretty much the same pattern piece for the front bodice. I overlaid my traced front pattern piece for “B” over the front pattern piece for “O” and traced the neckline for “O” onto my pattern, then I marked in the little gathering markers and finally cut the “B” pattern piece down to the new lower neckline. You can see a visual of this idea below.
If you have a good eye you could also do this by deciding how low you want to go at the centre front, make a mark and and sketch yourself in a new neckline following the curve of the original one, eventually merging the two lines around the shoulder area (tip: you can use a piece of string as a guide to help you get a nice smooth curve).
The second adjustment I make has to to with the volume of fabric around the body. The bodice at the hem is very wide making the overall look very full and flouncy. I have made top “B” previously with the full amount of fabric but it billows around me too much. I reduce the fullness by altering the width of the bodice pattern pieces at the side seams (don’t do this at the centre fold, you’ll just muck up the neckline). Again, I already have a pattern that I use as a template: New Look 6705 is a pattern I have used a lot for summer tops, it’s similarly loose fitting and pleated at the front bust, but not too voluminous.
As shown below, I laid my traced New Look pattern piece over the top “B” pattern piece, matching at the armpits and the centre fold as best I could, then traced the outer edge of the New Look pattern onto the top “B” pattern. I did this for both back and front pattern pieces. (Again, if you feel confident you could sketch a new shape of your own design, starting from the armpit down to the hem.) Then you can trim the front and back pattern pieces down the sides and your pattern has its new shape.
As you can see I have lost more fabric from the back piece than from the front, which for this example is a good thing as I still want the front to be full enough for gathers at the neckline to sit nicely. At this point you could make yourself a muslin of the bodice to check the fit, but I do admit I didn’t bother (what was I saying about patience?).
And the finished product:
I’ve taken about 20 cm (8 inches) out of them hem line and and dropped the neckline 6.5 cm (2.5 inches) so it’s now a more slim fit and the scooped neckline that I like wearing so much. It’s my perfect go to, grab and wear top for our sub-tropical winter days. Looks great with a scarf or a jacket over the top too.
Do you have any simple alteration tips of your own? Do you pattern mash? Do share!
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