PatternmakingTipsforFashionMajors

Whatsthedifferenceinpatterntypes?
o

Commercialhome:Vogue,McCall,etc.
Everythingismadetobecutonthefold,andtendstohavelargerseam
allowances
Why?Mosthomesewersareonlygoingtocutthepatternonce,andwantto
gettothesewingasfastaspossible.Doublefoldedcuttingsavesthemtime.
Thelargerseamallowanceisformistakesandthosewhocantreadthepattern
sizesproperly.
Yes,thesizesaredramaticallytoosmallfornormalpeople.Thesearestillbased
ontheoldpatternmeasurementsystemforsomereason.JimmyHoffawillbe
foundbeforewefigureoutwhynoonehasthoughttoupdatethesizingsystem
ofcommercialpatterns.Makesureyoualwaysmeasurebeforebuyinga
pattern.Donotbeshockedordismayedifyounormallybuyasize4inthestore,
buthavetocutasize12inpatterns.Itofficiallyclassifiesasredunckulous.
TrueIndustry:Onepatternpieceforeachcuttheentirepatternshouldbeabletobe
laidflatwithoutanyflipsordoublecuts,etc.
Whatdoesthismean?Anycutonfoldpatternsaremadesotheycanbe
openedandlaidflat;anycut2patternsaremadewithaleftandaright.
EVERYTHINGiscutone.Thereisnoneedtowriteacutnumberonthepattern.
Why?Youwastetimecuttingthingsonthefoldwhenyouhavethousandsof
cutstomake,plusitcanbepulledoffgraineasilyonthefold.
Sizingisaccordingtoyourfitmodelforyourlabel.Again,thisisnotvery
consistent.Thesize8fitmodelforBananaRepublichascompletelydifferent
measurementsfromthesize8fitmodelforGap.Thisiswhyyouhaveone
particularbrandofjeansthatfitsyoureallywell.Theirfitmodelhasasimilar
bodyshapetoyou(evenifsheis2sizessmalleror8sizesbigger).
Whatwedo:inbetweenwemakecutonfoldpatternsfully,butcut2patternsas
cut2
Why?Youneedtounderstandtheindustryprocessgettingusedtofullfront
orfullbackpatternsgetsyouintotheideathatitshouldalwaysbeflat.
However,youcangothroughALOTofpapercreatingfullpatternspreads.
($$$)SolongasyouUNDERSTANDthatthemarkerwillbecreatedwithaleft
andright,youcangetawaywithjustwritingcut2onthepatternatleast
here.
Doesanyoneelseusethismethod?Yes,actually.ManyofyourNewYorkand
LAshops(forworkingpatterns),andquiteafewcostumeshops.Theystillcut
flat,buttickoffthesidethatwascutandflipthepatterntocuttheotherside.

PivotorSlash?
o

Youchoosetopivotorslashandspread.Occasionallyoneworksbetterforthedesign
butmostlyitswhatworksforyou

WhycantIusemybasicslopersforknitfabrics?

o
o
o

Patternsforknitfabricsaredifferentfrompatternsforwovenfabrics.Infact,knit
patternsaredifferentfromoneknittothenextknitaccordingtohowmuchstretchisin
thefabric!
TECHNICALLY,yourwovenpatternsshouldbeadjustedaccordingtoyourfabrictypeas
wellhmmm..
Knitsalsohaveadifferentseamallowanceamountsincetheyareusuallyonlyserged
together,orjoinedthroughaknittingmachine
Sothesimpleansweristhatifyoutrytouseyourbasicsloperfromflatpattern1class
foraknitfabric,itwontfitcorrectlyandyouwillbemostunhappywiththeoutcome.

Manipulations:
o

o
o

Writehintsonyourworkingpatternstohelpyourselfoutifyouhavetocutoffone
sectiontoattachtoanothersection,indicatewhereitcamefromwhatsidegoes
where?Whichisfrontandwhichisback?Whichendisup?
Ifyouhaveseveralpiecesthatlookverysimilar(corsets,goredskirts,etc.),indicatevery
carefullyhowtheymatchupthroughnotching.Alsoclearlyindicatetoyourselfthe
ordertheymatchupthroughanumberingsystemwitharrowsforup1,2,3.
RememberthattheArmstrongbooklikestoaddextensionstomanyofthepatterns
atcenterback.Mostoftheseextensionsarejustseamallowance.Theonlytimeyou
needtoaddanyextensionsarewhenyouneedabuttonlaporothertypeofoverlap.
However,ifyouarefollowingthebookinstructionsexactlyandaddtheextension,do
notaddseamallowanceaswell.YouwillmakeaREALLYlargeoutfitifyoudo.
Whencreatingonepatternfromanotheralwaystracefromtheseam,nottheseam
allowance.Thisismoreaccurateandpreventsmistakeslikeaddingaseamallowanceto
aseamallowance.
Ilikecupcakes
ALWAYSuseyourtoolsdonotfreehand.Noonecandrawastraightline.Thisiswhy
wehaveradicalthingslikerulers.Curvesareevencooler.Onlydweebsfreehand.
DWEEBS.
Darts:
CantIjustgetridofthatdart?Theanswerisnoifyouhadtothinkaboutit.You
canneverjustgetridofadart.Itisthereforareason.Youcanmoveit,change
ittoapleat,atuck,gathers,flareorputthefabriconthebias,butyoucannot
justmakeadartmagicallydisappear.
YouCANNOTjustaddadart,either.Itmustcomefromsomewhereelse.You
mustmoveitfromanotherlocation,ortakeitfrompreexistinggathers,pleats,
etc.ofthepatternyouaremanipulating.Itmayseemlikeyouarejustmaking
updartsindraping,butthedartsarealreadythere,youarejustpinningthemin
accordingtothedressformsshape.
Rememberthatwhenmovingdartsaround,gofromtheAPEXpoint,notthe
dartpointifithasbeenmovedback.Thisisthebustpointonthebodicefront,
theshoulderbladepointonthebodicebackshoulder,etc.
Remembertotrueyourdart,andmovethepointbackawayfromtheapex
afterwards.
AddingFlare:
Fewseams(frontandbackskirt,sleeves,etc.):youcanonlyaddalimited
amountofflaretothesideseams.Inessence,thisjustmakesasimpleAline
skirt,notaflaredskirt.Withasleeve,youwillgetaweirdpiecejuttingoutfrom

theseamratherthanaflaredlook.YoumustSLASHandSPREADtotrulyadd
anyflaretothese.Remembertokeepitbalancedfromfronttoback.
Multipleseams(princessdress,gores,etc.):becauseinessencethepatternis
alreadyslashed,youcanaddjusttotheseams,butmakesuretosticktoa
balancedamount,especiallybetweenseams.IfyouwanttoaddaWHOLELOT
offlare,yes,youcanslashandspreadeachpiecetokickitoutmore.Atthat
point,though,itmayjustbeeasiertodraftacircleskirt.
Alwayscheckthebalanceoftheseamsoyoudonthaveaseamcurlingtothe
frontorback.Itshouldfallstraightdownwhensewn.

Fit:

Themoredartsorseamsyourgarmenthas,thecloserandtighterthegarment
canfittothebody(thoughmultipleseamsdoesnotmeanthatithastofit
tightly).Thisisbecausefabricisflat,andthebodyis3D.Thereforewehaveto
sculptitthroughcuttingandstitching.Makesense?Thisiswhycorsetshaveso
manyseams.
Oftenstudentswantatightfittingdress,butdontwantanydartsorseamsto
show.Youroptionsforthisaretocutthedressonthebias,makeaknitpattern,
oracceptthefactthatdartsandseamsareanecessarypartoflifeanddesign.
Lookcloseratthedesignergarmentstheyarefullofdarts,seamsandother
constructiondetails.Itsusuallyyourimaginationthatthefabricwasmagically
sprayedonthebody.
Alwayslabel.Ayearfromnowyouwonthaveanyideawhatpatternthisisorwhereit
goes.Atthatpoint,itwillendupinthetrash.Oneweekafterthat,youwillrealizethatit
wasthedetrimentalmissingpiecetothatcoatyouwerelookingtoresizeforthe
President.Nowitsgoingtobelatebecauseyouhavetorepatternthatpiece.The
PresidentwillnothavetherightoutfitfortheWorldSummit.Warwillbreakout.The
nuclearholocaustwillinsurethatnothingsurvivesexceptTwinkiesandcockroaches.
AnditsALLYOURFAULTbecauseyoucouldntbebotheredtolabelyourpatterns.
KeepinmindthatneitherTwinkiesnorcockroacheswillemploypatternmakers.
Yourname
Date(soyouknowwhichversionismostrecent)
Pattern(i.e.:sixgoreskirt)
Piece(i.e.:sidefront)
Size
Cutnumber(unlessdoingtrueindustrypatterns)

Seams:
o
o

Matchingseamsneedmatchingseamallowance.Itwontsewtogetherverywell
otherwise.
Whentakingawayexcessfabricareas(sleeveless,strapless,lowwaisted,etc.)youwill
needtocontouryourpattern.Thismeansyoutakeintheseamsincertainplacesto
makesurethegarmentwontfallofforgetyourclienttoomanyunsavorytipsthat
night.
Sleeveless:youwillneedtoraisethearmholeandtakeinthesideseamslightly
tonotflashsideboob
Straplessorhalter:youwilltakeinseveralplacestopreventanunexpectedfull
show
Lowwaisted:youwilltakeinthewaistslightlytostopthedroopybottoms

Thegeneralrulesofseamallowance:
Basicseams
Flatfelledseams
Knitseamsorsergesewseams
Extremelycurvedseamswithout
addedbulk(gathers,pleats,etc.)
Facingseams,collars,pockets,
waistbands
Interfacing
Perfectlystraightseamsbeforefitting

5/8

3/8

Mostcommon
Toallowthefoldover

Mustmatchgarment

0
1or

Takeallseamallowanceoff
CBmostcommonusedforfittingpurposes,
afterpatternisperfected,seamallowancewill
betakendowntonormalamount(or
closureS.A.)
Closures:buttons/buttonholes

Becausetheyusuallyhavefacings
Centeredzipper

Invisiblezipper

Lappedzipper
1 Needlargeramountforlap
Exposedzipper

Flyzipper/buttons

RememberthattheseareGENERALrules.Theymaychangeaccordingtothecompanyyouwork
forandtheirguideline/format.Itmayalsochangeaccordingtowhatfabricyouarepatterning
for.

Truing:
o

o
o
o
o
o

Alwaysdoit.Severaltimes.Especiallyifyoujustchangedanything(evenjustalittle).
Yourlifewilldependonit.Thelivesofthoseyoulovewilldependonit.Thelivesof
small,helpless,adorable,endangeredmarsupialsdependonit.Thisisapressureyou
cannotignore.
Checkallcorrespondingseamsandnotches.Thisisthemarkofagoodpatternmaker
anditwillmakeyourlifeeasierwhenyougettothesewingpart!
Remembertodealwithease/gathers/pleats/dartsappropriatelywhenwalkingaseam
DontbesurprisedifItestyouonallofthislater(theentiresetofrules,notjusttruing)
Checkthatcurvesrunsmoothlyfromoneseamtotheother(armscyes,necklines)
Darts:
2orless:foldtocenter(front,backorwaist)andmarkthebottomfoldwith
thespikydangerwheelofdeath/punchawlholedownfromdarttipand
circleit(soitcanbefound).Notchthelegswhereithitstheseamallowance
(bothsides)
Morethan2:addseamallowancetoeachleguntilthelinesconverges
towardstip

Fisheyeordoubleended:punchawlholeinfromeachtip(centered),one
holeinthecrosscenterofthedartmiddlefoldlineandthelargestpartofthe
dart(oftenthewaistline),andonehole1/8infromonesideofthewidestpart
(fourholesinall).Circleallholes.
Whydoitthisway?Itisfastertomarkthiswayinsteadofmarkingwithchalk.
Thestitcherknowstosewpasttheholetip,and1/8beyondthesideofthe
foldedfisheyedart.Thenotchesandholeswillnotbeseenoncesewn.

Pleats:
Theseareeasiesttocalculatemathematically.Yes.Thereismathinfashion.
Deal.
Calculatein3timesthesizeofyourpleats(thepleat,theoverlayofthepleat
andthereturnofthepleat),howmanypleatsyouwant,plusanyspacing
betweenthepleats.Ifyouwantthepleatstomakeuptheentirepattern
(pleatedskirt)youwillhavetodividehowdeepyouwantthemintothe
measurementofthespace(hipline)tofindthenumberyouneed.
Ifthepleatsareonashapedpatternpiece,itiseasiesttopleatthepattern
paperandoverlaythepatternontoptofigureouthowthepleatslayonany
curves.
Ifyouhaveapatternonthefold,youwillhavetounfoldALLpleatsinorderto
tracethepattern.Tracingitwhilefoldeddefeatsthepurpose.

Thegeneralrulesofhems:
Rolled

Lightweightorsheerfabrics
alllengths
Doublefold/topstitch
3/4
Mediumweightssportylook
shorttomidlength
Turnonce,blindhemortopstitch 12
Allweightsclassyalllengths
Luxuryhem
34
Highendmidtolonglengths
Facedhem(shaped)
seamallowance+ Curvyhemsorshaped(high
hemfacing
end)alllengths(depends
moreontheshapethanthe
length)

Notches:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o

Notchall:Seamallowances;CF/CB;dartends;correspondingseamnotches;gather/ease
startandstop;pleats
Makesureallnotchesmatchoncorrespondingseams
Checkthatyouhavenotchedallnotchesgoaroundeachpatternpiececlockwiseto
makesureyouhaventmissedanything.
Allnotchesshouldmeansomethingdoyouknowwhythatnotchisthere?Doesit
matchsomething?Doesitindicatesomethingimportant?
Beaccurate.Thisistheonlyinformationyourstitcherhasinmostcases.
Ifyoumisnotchfixit.Tapeoveritandrenotch.Markoutthemistake.
Nevernotchinthemiddleofyourfabriconlyontheedge.Thisincludespatternson
thefold.
Dontnotchslashandspreads.Onlyindicatethebeginningandendofgathersorpleats.

o
o
o
o

Doublenotchesindicatetheback.ThisISuniversal.Neverusedoublenotchesonthe
front.
Areyoupayingattention?YouknowIcanhearyoursilentscream.
Avoidanythingoveratriplenotch.Itwilltearupyourfabric,andyourstitcherwillnot
beabletotellwhattypeofnotchitis.
Ifyouhaveasequenceofpatternsthatlookalike(goredskirts,corsets,etc.)make
yournotchsequencesobvious.Dontnotchinthemiddleorequallyspreadoneachend;
itcanbeflippedupsidedownbyaccident.

Facings:
o

o
o

Facingsgoonopennecklines,insidecollarnecklinesoropenarmscyes
Closuresotherthanzippers(buttons,frogs,slit,etc.)
Waistlineswithoutwaistbands
Shapedhemsskirts,sleeves,jackets.
Canremovedartexcessifapplicable
MatchseamandseamallowancetopatterncanremoveSCANTamountsoseamsturn
towardsfacing

Interfacing:
o
o

Makeinterfacingpatternsforfacings,waistbands,andcollars.
Interfacingpatternsdonothaveanyseamallowance.Trimitalloff.

Lining:
o
o
o
o

Theneedforliningdependsonyourdesign,marketandfabric
Thepatternisbasedonyourshellpatternminusanyfacings.Remembertoaddseam
allowancebackin(shouldmatchfacing)
Sometimeseaseisadded,especiallyforjacketsseeyourbookforhelp
Thehemshouldfallapproximately1shortoftheshellhem

Fabric:
o

Youvedesignedthegarment,patterneditandnowyouneedfabric.Ihatetotellyou
this,butyouvejustdoneitbackwards.Generallyspeaking,anyonewhodesigns
somethingintheirheadandputsthatmuchworkintowillhaveaveryspecificfabricin
mind.Youwillneverfindtheperfectfabric.Especiallyinyourpricerange.Thismakes
foraveryfrustratingday.
Designersworkfromthetextilestothedesign,andthepatternismadewiththatfabric
inmind.Thatwaytheyknowthat1)thefabricexistsandisavailable2)thedesignis
madeforthatfabricratherthanhaveadesignmakeduewiththefabricyoucanfind
and3)thepatternshouldalwaysbemadeknowingwhatfabrics,notions,interfacings,
etc.aregoingtobeused.Itmakesahugedifference

Analyzingthedesign
o

Asapatternmaker,youareusuallycreatingpatternsofsomeoneelsesdesign.This
meansyouneedtobeabletoaccuratelyinterpretthedesignanddeliverapatternthat
canbesewnintoagarmenttolooklikethatdesignandmakeyourbosshappy.

Firstofall,rememberthatifyouarehiredasapatternmaker,thatmeanstheydonot
wantyoutoadd,embellishorimproveanyofthedesigns.Itisyourjobtomake
whatyouseeintoareality.Onceyouareestablishedatthatjobasreliable,youmay
havetheopportunitytostartmakingsuggestions.Alwaysbeawareofoverstepping
boundaries.Thisdoesnotmeandonttakerisks,itjustmeansbeawareofpeoples
reactions.
Askquestions.Donotbeafraidtoclarify.Thismeansthatyouarepayingattentionto
detailandintendtodoagoodjob.Youmaygetthebrushoff,whichinturnisan
indicationthattheywanttoseehowyouinterpretsomethingorwhatyoucomeup
with.Inthatcase,doyourbest.
PorportionalizeMakeacopyofthedesignandmarkitintoproportionsaccordingto
thebody.Especiallyifyouhaveafashionillustrationthatsextremelywonkyintheway
ofhumanproportions.Markthemajorbodyareaswaist,bust,knees,elbows,etc.
Doestheskirtgohalfwayorthreefourthsofthewaytotheknee?Howmanypleats
areinthefront?Whereonthejacketdoesthatpocketfall?Howmuchroomdoesit
takeup?Doesitcrossoverthedart?Completelybreakdowntheentiregarment.Ifyou
onlyhaveafrontpicture,trytoclarifytheback.Ifyoudontgetanywherewithit,make
yourownflats,andaskforapproval.

Designingyourown
o
o
o

Keeptheprinciplesandelementsofdesigninmindatalltimes
Itisbesttostartwiththefabricwhenyoucan.Itsawholeloteasierthanbeing
disappointedbynotbeingabletofindtherightfabricforyourdesignlater.
Ingeneral,youwanttokeepacertainconsistencyfromfronttoback.Forinstance,if
youhaveprincessseamsinthefront,youdontwanttosuddenlygobacktoplaindarts
intheback.Peoplewillpointandlaughandcallyouafreak.Wedontwantthat.
Keepinmindthatalldesignersworkfrominspirationofsomekind.Sittinginfrontofa
whitesheetofpaperexpectinggeniustosproutforthdoesnotworkwellforanyone.
Dontexpectitfromyourself.Buildjournalsofinspirationssources,constructiondetails,
favoritedesigners,etc.
Dontexpecttoinventanythingnew.Pantsprettymuchtookthecake,andyourenot
goingtobeatthat.Ifyouwanttoblowpeopleawaywithfashioninventions,gointo
textilescience.Thereisnothingnewinfashionithasallbeenseenbefore,multiple
times,andallofithasbeenseenonLadyGagaorBjorkatsomepointintime.
Dontbothertryingtopatentyourfashiondesigns,theresreallynopointandittakes
forevertogothroughtheprocess.Youcouldpatentaparticulardesign,butthen
anothercancomealongandchangeoneortwothingsandstillproduceitwithoutbeing
inviolationofthepatent.DidImentiontherewasnopoint?Besides,yourenotgoing
toinventanythingnew.Idontcarewhatitis,itsbeendone.
Thisdoesnotmeanthatitisokaytostealsomeoneelsesdesign.Youstillhavetoput
someoriginalthoughtintoyourownwork.Whilealldesignsareborrowedattheroot,
theyareoriginalthoughtsthroughthecombinationofelements,fabricchoices,cultural
meaningsorsomeothergrouping.
Themoreart,arthistory,worldhistory,culturalknowledge,andcurrenteventsthatyou
learnorkeepupwith,thebetteryouwillbeatdesign.Thereisadirectrelationship
betweendesignandamentaldatabaseofhistoryandculture.Whileyoumaythink

thoseclassesarenotveryinteresting,Iguaranteethateverymajorlabeldesignerout
therenotonlykeepsupwithcurrentevents,butknowstheirhistoryandworldcultures.
Knowyourtargetmarketaboveallelse.Whoisthisdesignedfor?Whatpricecategory?
Whichseason?Wheredoyouseeitbeingsold?Ifyouareyouronlycustomer,thisisnot
agoodsign.Alsokeepinmindthatabundantlywealthysocialites1924yearsoldwho
liketogoclubbingonaregularbasisareinveryshortsupply.
Rememberthatwhenyoudesignyourgarmentforaparticulartargetmarketandprice
point,youhavetomatchyourpatternmaking,fabricandconstructiontechniques.To
makethepoint,yourabundantlywealthy19yearoldclubbingsocialitewillmost
definitelyNOTbuyyourdressmadeoutof$12/yardJoAnnslaceandpolyestersatin.
SeasonedMarineswillcowerunderthelookshejustgaveyouforsuggestingsucha
thing.