Being the inhabitor of a "non-traditionally shaped (tm)" body, and a former Rainbow Girl (IYKYK) I got a crash course on frankenpatterning and pattern alteration VERY early in life. I'd like to offer my top 3 tips as follows: 1.) gift wrap with the measured grid on the back is your new best friend. 2.) as tempting s it may be to just add an inch/cm or 2 at the seamlines, DON'T. learn to slash-and-spread your pattern pieces to make them fit your body. 3.) make mock-ups. if you can make a mock-up that fits, you can usually finagle it into a wearable garment after!
I fear scaling gridded patterns. I did it once with a ridiculously complicated choli for my dance troupe. Then had to make it to fit 9 very different women. Haven't attempted it since.
Hopefully there are some other options here that will work better for you! It's a really fiddly method and I hope you can find solutions that work better, especially for 9 different sizes! Gracious... You are a champion among sewists!
Cholis are usually a highly skilled specialty for Indian tailors. People go so far as to keep their excellent choli making tailor a closely guarded secret. And they're almost always custom made. I hope you don't let that experience stop you forever, almost everything else is easier.
When I was a teen, I cut patters from Carl Kohler's history of costume... So Janet Arnold was never an issue. I love her books. Grading is key. Also yes, the extant garments are really to give you the grasp on the shapes, techniques and proportions in play during the time period.
I have experience with modern patterns but who can find 1590's pair of bodies patterns in the store? You can't. I scaled up a gridded pattern. It wasn't perfect but with draping and multiple muslin fittings and draping i got a garment that I am very proud of and I learned so much about the process and getting away from strict pattern making. I'm glad I gave it a try.
There's a book titled, Bodymapping by Kathy Illian, that gives directions to have someone drape one inch gingham on you, when the fitting is done you have a gridded sloper.
Thank you Liz for this video! It puts the whole subject of gridded patterns into perspective for me as a beginner. I saw these books and was wondering "Why" and your explanation that they were observations and deconstructions of a specific garment really helped.
After owning Patterns of Fashion for years but only scaling up once for a really simple twenties dress, I ended up doing a bunch of scaling up and trying making things with random bits of fabric during lockdown (when I had some time) just for fun. I think that's what I'd recommend for anyone trying it for the first time - have a go just for fun, like you're doing a puzzle, and don't do it for something you're really invested in. If you enjoy the process and like the result, you'll know it's worth it for you. Having said that, I'm now back to mostly using commercial patterns now i don't have the time for all that faff!
Retro Claude has recently been demonstrating how she adjust patterns and works with them in a slow but steady series for 'Clodmass' . I enjoy her honest, professional and informed demonstrations while I'm knitting, also her tendency to use venacular English. A useful adjunct to Ms Capism's piece above.
Funny you should mention it. I've been scaling and grading and drafting and draping, and Franken-patterning since September. Of course, dealing with vintage and antique patterns, I am used to finding these patterns in a twenty something waist. Right now, I am procrastinating making an 1882 outfit based on Manet's A Bar at The Folies-Bergere. After finally finding that the non-existent name of the blasted skirt I'm looking for that EVERY ONE seems to totally take for granted and totally ignore is an underskirt, I found the perfect pattern. It has a diagram and measurements, and all of it, conveniently fit on one piece of paper. I totally expected to add up the pieces and come up with a 26 inch waist. BUT NO!!!! Without the pleats pleated up, it was 50 inches, and with the pleats done, it was 38!! I'm a 36. This is one of the only times I have ever NOT had to do math or alter or adjust or-- ANYTHING!! The really wonderful thing about this is that the pattern was taken from a magazine at the time, and it didn't automatically assume the reader was a twenty something inch waist. HUZZAH! Glad to see you again. I hope things are well, or at least, better.
I have not made anything from a gridded pattern, and after this video I'm confident it's not the tool for me. I'm quite differently shaped from any "standard" ideas and I have to mod my patterns accordingly anyway. That said, I'm super happy there are a variety of tools available to accommodate a variety of sewists and I will still be eagerly awaiting the gridded pattern video.
People back in the day weren't any more uniform than now...they cheated. The normal method was 1) take a pattern in whatever silhouette is currently fashionable, 2) scale it up as much as necessary until it goes around you, this will lead to some parts being larger than your measurements, 3) add padding, structured foundation garments, or whatever else you need between you and the pattern to fill the gaps. Now you have a fashionable silhouette for that period. With a few exceptions, this is how people did it from about the mid 1600s up to WWI and with revivals after that, too (cf. Dior's "new look").
Back when I just started costuming, made 18th century stays using a gridded pattern (because it was free from a library book...). First time I made all the panels, hand stitched them together, only to find out it was a couple of sizes too small and totally not my shape. Second attempt (after sulking for half a year) took me 8 mockups to get the fit right. I stubbornly kept going this way and more or less know what I'm doing now. It probably would have been a better idea to just buy a pattern or two to start with and learn the basics with proper instructions, but... guess that's what headstrong means? 😅
I feel you. This was me too. Sort of. I started with a commercial pattern, crossed it with two gridded patterns, put my blood and tears into the mockup (stays, you know), and then it turned out it was too short - I had trusted the modern pattern (never wise), on the length. Time to start over. Of course, now I have a pretty decent pattern put together, but got kind of bummed about the whole experience and have yet to follow up on it. I learned a huge amount though. And that was the first time I ever tried using a gridded pattern. I should probably at least sew a mockup of it to see if I got it right this time...
I have a love of pattern making - to the extent that I've fully patterned something, made mockups, repatterned, etc, and then not made the final item, because the fun was all in making the pattern... That being said, I took one of the PoF coat gridded patterns and had a glorious time draping it on my me-sized dress form, cutting, adding large swaths of paper, slightly adjusting the drape, learning how the historical peeples must have been thinking when they were draping it, and just generally having a blast. I even made it past the mockup and into the final fabric just barely in time for my pirate Halloween. I reconceptualized the coat as a waistcoat, removed the sleeves and hood, stopped to make a new shift/pirate shirt as my old one had mysteriously shrunk, and in the last 24 hours when my cat vomited on my ironing board and I could no longer use it, just kept sewing until I was able to wear, with only a few pins still in place and a few bits still unstitched, my lovely new waistcoat. Granted, I hadn't quite reconciled the need for more structured undergarments entirely with my adjustments, but close. With a nice new-made leather belt to hold it shut instead of pins and the front bit, I had reconceptualized the fantasy 1700s lady pirate costume, and had a blast doing it. Thank you PoF and Janet Arnold for all the splendid inspiration! (An aside, it's really hard to find an authentic cut on one of the modern costume patterns. Oh - plus I figured out how the tailors back then made adjustable clothing - just unstitch a line and readjust the arm scythe and the side with a bit of a fold, and voila, once more it's perfectly fitted! Very cool.)
Welcome back!!! I haven't done any grading up, but at this point I'm starting to be able to do a chaotic mixture of vague drafting, frankenpatterning and draping-on-myself.
Slowly realising that despite being very beginner at sewing/costuming, i am at an advantage for dealing with scaling and adjusting gridded patterns because I'm a geologist used to scaling things for cross-section or map and doing related math. Such a weird skill cross-over.
I like the Janet Arnold books for giving a guideline about the shapes of the pattern pieces. For things like ruffles or very drapy garments, I have a hard time picturing the flat shape of the piece. It gives a good starting point for then draping the garment.
I had nearly forgot about this, but I have actually used a gridded pattern once, and I clearly should have opted for another method. It is currently one of the very few projects in my UFO-bin. But I learnt a lot from the process, even though the pattern didn't fit my proportions at all and I had to fiddle around with it for so long my motivation run out. But just two months ago I made a pattern that I later realised could be the perfect base for frankenpatterning for said ufo-project. Now when I know what I'm up to, I can use the gridded pattern just as a reference to what pieces I need to make the garment, but I should to the pattern pieces myself instead.
I usually do a ton of mock-ups when I scale up the patterns or drape the pattern pieces myself with the book patterns as references as to where the seamlines are placed. Mock-ups are to be expected and alterations are very important since I would intentionally draft/freehand draw the pattern to be excessively too big and with alterations being basically included in the initial fitting stage.
I haven’t used gridded patterns but have used some of the patterns from the National Garment cutters books with middling success. This last time I made a Victorian bodice I used my bodice block and fitted it to my corseted body. Then used that to draft the pattern pieces. Not perfect but much less hair pulling and math.
As someone who has to alter commercial patterns enough that drafting is often quicker for me anyways I knew most of these things before I got into historical patterning so buying books like Janet Arnold gave me a way to access knowledge that wasn't easy to get, especially in the pre and early internet days, and as someone who doesn't live anywhere near the museums that house collections. I have scaled up one JA pattern, and used the shapes as a guideline for me. You have summed up some great usable knowledge as always. Thanks for sharing.
I made a hood from Woven into the earth and for the pattern I went to a copyshop after figuring out how many times larger the pattern had to be (5x). I have used a chemise, combinations and petticoat pattern from an 1898 century book with varying degrees of success. (the petticoat's waistband took me months until I noticed it resembled the way circle skirts are cut.)
Welcome back Liz! I hope you and your family are doing well. Love the video, and it definitely reinforced my level of sewing skills to myself…that no matter what everyone on IG says, I’m not quite ready for anything Janet Arnold and that I need to get back to sewing once we’re moved into the new house 😅 All the best hun 💖
Thanks so much! I'm so glad you''ve found value in this. It's so hard to tell people they probably shouldn't do something without feeling that you are in some way discouraging them. This really helped that worry! 😊
I have most of these skills. I’ve scaled up book illustrations very successfully. In the Eighties, no internet, no fashion history existed yet. It can be done, but I recall it as a crap shoot. I buy historic patterns, because it’s just easier. It’ll be my size and it’ll go together properly.
So happy to see you back Liz! This was actually a really helpful video as I'm planning on diving into trying to scale up a gridded pattern sometime soon and this video definitely made me consider what I might need to be prepared for and what specific pattern would be worth doing the scaling on... So, looking forward to upcoming videos!
I have a double-major diploma in Apparel Technology and I've never scaled up a gridded pattern. My preferred method is to have a basic bodice block fitted to me (or the client), and then I just draw the pattern shapes on top of that, using the mini-pattern a guide to know how to shape each piece. It's an easier method for me. But uh, I don't know how much of that easiness comes from just being familiar with how patterns work, and also a natural aptitude for being able to translate 2D shapes into 3D shapes in my head.
I made my first 1890s ballgown from a gridded pattern in POF. I was very lucky that the original owner was a similar size to me apart from being slightly more busy but one mockup was all I needed. It was the first historical costume I made but I have been sewing for many years and have explored couture techniques in the past so although there were some mistakes - the pocket in the back seam came out as it just looked vaguely obscene! - I was really happy with the finished result.
I've accidentally made pockets like that. I refer to them as "Georgia O'Keeffe pockets". She paints flowers. That reference... Yeah. Only she does it intentionally, and my pocket fails were just lack of knowledge.
I adore your videos. I've made one thing from a gridded pattern so far to give scaling and grading a pattern to my shape a go. It was during a Zadie Grossman Jump-along so it was a fairly simple unstructured item that I further modified for more flexibility in size. I think the original garment was for a pre-teen as there was very little room in the chest and the torso length was very short. As a 5'6" DDD person, I had a lot to change lol The only places I needed to adjust after scaling it to fit my width, since jumps/quilted waistcoats aren't very fitted, was the waist length and shoulder strap length about 4 inches to account for my chest. I only sewed up the back seam so I could put eyelets at the shoulders, side seams, and center front (this was the only place on the original with lacing) in case of body size fluctuations. I would highly recommend starting with a more simple garment like this if folks want to try their hand at scaling and grading
When I had the historic clothing business I used these all the time. I'd scale up to the original garment size and then grade them out using the Bishop Method. Sometimes someone would be differently shaped enough I'd have to drape, but not often.
I also highly recommend the 'doll clothes' if you are confused about how something ought to go together. It will save you lots of time, fabric & frustration. And write it down step-by-step, do not skip that part.
I wanted to play around with figuring out some of the shapes in the gridded pattern books so I bought a used one of those 16" Tonner dolls and have been making tiny Victorian outfits for her. If someone asks I pretend its for a niece or friends kid but it's actually just fun for me. 😆
I love gridded patterns! I like to scale them up by tracing or printing out a clean copy of the diagram on a small sheet of paper, then I stand in front of a mirror and picture in my mind where the pieces would lay on me as part of the finished garment (looking at reference pictures of similar garments if necessary). I mark the widths and lengths of a bunch of places on the little pattern piece diagram, and then draw them up to that size on builders paper, checking the measurements with a ruler but doing the proportions mainly by eye. If it's something with sleeves then I don't scale them up until I've done a mockup of the bodice portion, so I have an accurate armscye measurement. I usually get a pretty good fit with this method, and only need a few alterations. I know it wouldn't work for everyone though. When I started doing it that way I already had a couple years experience of drafting patterns from basic blocks in college, and I still have the formula sheets, but 18th century suit shapes are so completely different that starting with a modern basic block just doesn't make sense.
I recently finished a tudoresque kirtle, turns out, it was exactly my size. On the other hand, I was doing quilted jumps, and had to take in 20 cm on the waist! My preferred method - to scale up pattern as is, do a mock up with generous seam allowances, fit the mock up
Oh, well if I'm not meant to use this hammer on everything, then why does everything look like a nail? I tried draping a pattern for a jerkin on a mannequin that I made of myself from duct tape and foam, and it was disastrous! Definitely in awe of your ability to make cloth behave like it ought to, but I've always found it easier to just draw patterns from scratch.
Huzzah - a Sunday video drop from Ms. Liz. Welcome back, Kiddo. Hope all is well. I'm saving up my gridded pattern play points until I work my way back to the Edwardians. Right now I'm futzing with the 1930's-50's paper patterns. As soon as I can get to the point of FBA's and other pattern adjustments no longer being A Big Thing To-Do (in the space between my ears), then I'm going to be turning to Janet Arnold and the Simington Corset Collection. Thanks for the tips. - Cathy (&, accidently, Steve), Ottawa/Bytown/Pimisi
Best of luck! Just keep doing them and doing the mockups and you eventually start to get a feel for what's going to work on your body, commercial patterns are definitely not made to fit my "brick with boobs" shape, I already know that waist darts are just not going to be a thing for me!
@@bunhelsingslegacy3549 Thanks! For me the fall down-go-boom point is always how to accommodate the girls and the hips. With the possible addition of t-rex arms, sway back and short waisted. I'm getting there...
I have to scale everything up. I try just grading, but it’s not possible to just grade when going up several inches. On average 8-10 to make things fit.
I've only made patterns based on the medieval T-Tunic style, though I have made Thorsberg pants but none of them are based on gridded patterns. I have picked up Woven into the Earth but more for the techniques then for the patterns as I did not buy the companion book. Though the nice thing is those patterns are easy to recreate if you've made t-tunics the tunics and dresses in this book set are easy to draft. But then again I've been drafting or scaling up my kids' garb patterns for the last 19 years. so I've learned a bit. (I don't trust my skill for modern patterns). Though I have made victorian pockets from gridded patterns. That was easy.
I think I’ve sort of scaled up a pattern a couple of times but I think I don’t find it difficult to figure out how a flat plain will translate to 3D. I recently Made a bodice sloper though so I’m gonna try making things from that as well
You did a great job of explaining the various aspects of patterns, and altering them. My first experience with sizing up patterns was a Burda pattern when I was about 15. Oh the horrors! Yet, I figured it out, as I'm a mix between a half size, and petite. I had to learn to resize patterns. Most off the rack clothes don't fit well. My first foray into historic patterns were the early Folkwear. Not the easiest, but they worked. I came across my first Janet Arnold pattern when I was commissioned to make an 1860's day dress. I had photocopies of the pages, and that's it. However, the grid pattern made so much sense! I was working 'long distance'. ie, the person that commissioned it lived 1000+ miles away. I had a duct tape dummy as a reference. It worked, and I made other costumes for this client. Prior experience helped immensely. If I had tried a grid pattern first off, I'd have bailed. Thank you again for your video. It really is useful.
Goodness, that's... a LOT! I am so very happy I don't make clothes for other people. Also - I just got the most amazing flashback when you mentioned Folkwear patterns. It's been a WHILE since I used one of those!
@@LizCapism I've been sewing since I was 10. So, yes. Lots of experience messing with patterns. As for Folkwear, I love their patterns for certain things. Between Folkwear, Patterns of Fashion, and a few other sources, I've learned a lot.
Thank you for this video. I definitely know that scaling up a gridded pattern is not for me. I did it once and Oi, what a pain. Mostly because I am well out of the range of any gridded pattern. I've yet to try draping, but I'm thinking I need to figure it out. I have a dress form that I made from the Bootstrap pattern and, honestly, I'm a little nervous about trying to. But I think it's time to bite the bullet, as they say. And it's good to see you back. I hope everyone is as better as they can be.
What if you make a grid that corresponds to your back length on the vertical and your bust on the horizontal? IE: back length 3 squares= 15," by bust 6 squares=30". 3x5=15, 6x5=30.Your back is 15". One vertical square=5 vertical squares, your bust is 36. 6x6=36. so one horizontal square=6 squares. Then you make alterations to that for waist etc.
I’ll be honest - I have no earthly concept if that would work! If you have the math chops and the brain power to keep all that straight in your head, I totally trust you to go for it!
I suspect based on my limited experience with grading and scaling that this should at least get you to a better starting point than just one or the other!
Maybe, based on some TH-cam clips I watched a long while ago (someone may be able to name the Costuber or the book) about an Edwardian pattern book that includes a special set of rulers for drafting the patterns to your exact measurements. The rulers appeared to work at different ratios (like Liz mentioned about halfway through). I'd try stretching the original version into what you think is the right proportions on a computer, then trying Liz's mini-mock-up on the print-out. The issue I can see is that you're unlikely to be consistently bigger/smaller than the original, especially if it's a corset era pattern. I suspect you'd need to use the resultant pieces as a guide for draping a full mock up...
I have a few of those books that have the graduated rulers, and they have directions for drafting their patterns. Measuring out so far, and down so far, with lines and dots. I have spent countless hours drafting those patterns in quarter scale only to end up with lines not crossing where they should. Two lines that are supposed to meet are miles apart. One of them calls for an unknown tool. I did make a top once that was a pretty good fit but not good enough. This year I am working on a pattern for a dress form cover to stuff but everything takes too long. I have a Lutterloh book with patterns you size up with radial lines, but it's from the 1990's and I don't like any of the styles, they all have huge shoulders and armholes.
YES, you can scale at different ratios for the x and y, your math looks good. We do this all the time for cross-sections in geology, and then i did this for scaling up a grid skirt pattern but I didn't realise it might have been an unusual concept for sewers.
I tried to draft the pink 1908 Edwardian gown in the Fairbank collection, and it went ok, but I noticed that there were patterning issues meaning that some pieces were an inch too short.
Thanks for a while new approach (or two or three) to 'figuring' it out! I'm in the middle of my first ever attempt frankenpatterning - a 1930s gown which totally isn't made for hips or fat arms (plus sleeveless is a bad idea for Anglos in an Aussie summer). It's a seriously scary prospect, despite having a pretty good understanding of draping and how patterns go together. Even the little bit you mentioned here was helpful. I'd love to watch a Lizcapism guide to Frankenpatterning.
Удивило кольцо в Вашем носу,интересно что могло вдохновить на такое.Последний раз видела такое кольцо в носу у быка производителя, когда посещала деревню несколько лет назад.
I got the idea from Mariah Pattie to use the upper half of a corset in place of a sports bra. I found the reduced pattern for an "athletic corset" online as a free PDF so I printed it out, it had the waistline marked so because it had no scale listed, I just measured its waistline, measured mine, and scaled it up from there (I did math and drew my own custom sized grid on wrapping paper). But I knew this was just as a starting point and would need a lot of alterations and adjustments to fit my "brick with boobs" figure, I already knew from using Sewstine's Kefta pattern that I am not the shape patterns are made for (if I go by Mood's sizing chart, my bust is size 12, my hips are size 8 and my waist is size 18, I'm not kidding about brick with boobs), but thanks to several zoom calls and a bunch of emails with a friend who does know how to do alterations, I now have a princess seam bodice block and THERE'S NO STOPPING ME! - *ahem* So yeah, I started out with something I knew wasn't going to fit my shape and I was right, even having measured and scaled up based on the waist measurement I ended up removing all waist darts and still expanding the waist and reducing the bust (my waist is not squishy, my bust apparently is), so my pattern pieces have very little resemblance to the original pattern. I'm short-backed so I trimmed it down, though honestly I think it still worked out a bit better than the first Princess Seam mockup since I now had half a clue what I was doing, I just kept pinning things and unpinning things and marking each step on the fabric in a different colour sharpie so I knew how many versions I'd been through (4 different colours used) until I got something I was happy with, I stitched in a zipper for ease of tryons, then added in some boning channels made out of the rolled hem of the cotton twill IKEA curtains I was using for mockup fabric, stuck some heavy duty zip-ties in, discovered that if I put the sideboob boning channel in on the opposite slant from what the pattern suggested, I could get my sideboob to squish up front instead of out my armpit (my usual complaint with any bra without underwire). The final mockup did require a little hands on assistance from my wonderful friend who'd helped me remotely with the kefta pattern alterations when she happened to be visiting, and I finally did assemble the thing this month and I only need to make one little further alteration and it'll be more comfortable than a sports bra (I need to let it out just the tiniest bit at the bottom, it's JUST too snug enough that it's compressing my floating ribs in the same way that any waistband at my "natural waist" does before it slips down to about navel height. What you said about pattern pieces not looking the same after draping? yeah, totally feeling that, so many of my pieces ended up rectangular by the end that I was able to go from 6 pieces each side down to 4 plus one complete back piece. If I figure out some dart wizardry, I could probably combine two other pieces and have the entire thing being a total of 7 pieces instead of the original 12, yay for being not curvy. Would I do it again? Maybe. For another stays-or-corset-like object, probably, because a commercial pattern ain't gonna fit this bod anyways, so I might as well use a starting point that doesn't cost me fifteen bucks. Would I do it for something really fancy and complicated? Probably not, I'd just see if I can modify my princess seamed bodice block or this corset pattern to do the job. Am I going to scale up the rest of the one I started with if I ever decide I want to try a full corset? Nope, I'll just sketch out the approximate shapes and stick 'em to the bottom of what I've already got, if the bust was too big, there's no way the hips won't be. I have rarely used commercial patterns, what I usually do is trace existing clothing whose fit is good enough and make a pattern on paper from that, adjusting as necessary when I get to the actual fabric I want. I had first tried Morgan Donner's instructions for the medieval kirtle pattern made to one's own measurements, and the mockup for that was what initially suggested that my bust is squishy and my torso is not, but after a mockup and some time in the Bad Clothing Pile, I now have a really cute kitle pinafore that just needs a bit more taken out of the bust (which isn't going to happen because eyelets have already been done, I'm just gonna put in some pushup pads next time I wear it), and I'm planning to make a full dress someday but will probably first make a supportive vest thing cause I hate bras (specifically a tight underbust band) but time marches on and what didn't used to need support now kinda does. So the way I see it, I've gotten to three very different patterns through three very different methods and all needed modifications, but all were a great starting point to get to an end result, and I learned a lot about both patterns and my body with each one. Each customized pattern is a tool in my tool kit for when I want to tackle "not a baggy or stretchy shirt or medieval panels and gores dress", which has been and continues to be my go-to for general wear.
Slanting the boning to make side boob more like front boob?! I love it. Did you end up slanting the top of the boning to the front or the back? My brain is managing to picture both as possibilities.
@@lynn858 When I mocked it up I did one the way the pattern wanted on one side and flipped it on the other, what I found held the sideboob in better had the top slanted to the back. I should also mention that during fitting the fabric parts I shoved everything front and centre too, fit it how you wanna wear it.
"we're going to use math, don't be scared" I feel like less people would be scared of math if we didn't treat is as such a scary thing. or maybe it's just me, a person that thinks drafting manuals are cool puzzles...
THE INTRO EDITING OH MY GOD INCREDIBLE
Oh, you are an ANGEL for saying so! I was very proud of those 30 seconds. 😁
Being the inhabitor of a "non-traditionally shaped (tm)" body, and a former Rainbow Girl (IYKYK) I got a crash course on frankenpatterning and pattern alteration VERY early in life. I'd like to offer my top 3 tips as follows: 1.) gift wrap with the measured grid on the back is your new best friend. 2.) as tempting s it may be to just add an inch/cm or 2 at the seamlines, DON'T. learn to slash-and-spread your pattern pieces to make them fit your body. 3.) make mock-ups. if you can make a mock-up that fits, you can usually finagle it into a wearable garment after!
I fear scaling gridded patterns. I did it once with a ridiculously complicated choli for my dance troupe. Then had to make it to fit 9 very different women. Haven't attempted it since.
oh my, hugs to you
Hopefully there are some other options here that will work better for you! It's a really fiddly method and I hope you can find solutions that work better, especially for 9 different sizes! Gracious... You are a champion among sewists!
Cholis are usually a highly skilled specialty for Indian tailors. People go so far as to keep their excellent choli making tailor a closely guarded secret. And they're almost always custom made. I hope you don't let that experience stop you forever, almost everything else is easier.
When I was a teen, I cut patters from Carl Kohler's history of costume... So Janet Arnold was never an issue. I love her books. Grading is key. Also yes, the extant garments are really to give you the grasp on the shapes, techniques and proportions in play during the time period.
I have experience with modern patterns but who can find 1590's pair of bodies patterns in the store? You can't. I scaled up a gridded pattern. It wasn't perfect but with draping and multiple muslin fittings and draping i got a garment that I am very proud of and I learned so much about the process and getting away from strict pattern making. I'm glad I gave it a try.
There's a book titled, Bodymapping by Kathy Illian, that gives directions to have someone drape one inch gingham on you, when the fitting is done you have a gridded sloper.
Thank you Liz for this video! It puts the whole subject of gridded patterns into perspective for me as a beginner. I saw these books and was wondering "Why" and your explanation that they were observations and deconstructions of a specific garment really helped.
That’s so great! I’m glad I could help. 😊
After owning Patterns of Fashion for years but only scaling up once for a really simple twenties dress, I ended up doing a bunch of scaling up and trying making things with random bits of fabric during lockdown (when I had some time) just for fun. I think that's what I'd recommend for anyone trying it for the first time - have a go just for fun, like you're doing a puzzle, and don't do it for something you're really invested in. If you enjoy the process and like the result, you'll know it's worth it for you.
Having said that, I'm now back to mostly using commercial patterns now i don't have the time for all that faff!
Retro Claude has recently been demonstrating how she adjust patterns and works with them in a slow but steady series for 'Clodmass' . I enjoy her honest, professional and informed demonstrations while I'm knitting, also her tendency to use venacular English. A useful adjunct to Ms Capism's piece above.
Funny you should mention it. I've been scaling and grading and drafting and draping, and Franken-patterning since September. Of course, dealing with vintage and antique patterns, I am used to finding these patterns in a twenty something waist.
Right now, I am procrastinating making an 1882 outfit based on Manet's A Bar at The Folies-Bergere. After finally finding that the non-existent name of the blasted skirt I'm looking for that EVERY ONE seems to totally take for granted and totally ignore is an underskirt, I found the perfect pattern. It has a diagram and measurements, and all of it, conveniently fit on one piece of paper. I totally expected to add up the pieces and come up with a 26 inch waist. BUT NO!!!!
Without the pleats pleated up, it was 50 inches, and with the pleats done, it was 38!! I'm a 36. This is one of the only times I have ever NOT had to do math or alter or adjust or-- ANYTHING!! The really wonderful thing about this is that the pattern was taken from a magazine at the time, and it didn't automatically assume the reader was a twenty something inch waist.
HUZZAH!
Glad to see you again. I hope things are well, or at least, better.
What an awesome find! I hope it goes together easily for you!
Oo, sounds great. Can you share the source?
I have not made anything from a gridded pattern, and after this video I'm confident it's not the tool for me. I'm quite differently shaped from any "standard" ideas and I have to mod my patterns accordingly anyway. That said, I'm super happy there are a variety of tools available to accommodate a variety of sewists and I will still be eagerly awaiting the gridded pattern video.
People back in the day weren't any more uniform than now...they cheated. The normal method was 1) take a pattern in whatever silhouette is currently fashionable, 2) scale it up as much as necessary until it goes around you, this will lead to some parts being larger than your measurements, 3) add padding, structured foundation garments, or whatever else you need between you and the pattern to fill the gaps. Now you have a fashionable silhouette for that period. With a few exceptions, this is how people did it from about the mid 1600s up to WWI and with revivals after that, too (cf. Dior's "new look").
Back when I just started costuming, made 18th century stays using a gridded pattern (because it was free from a library book...). First time I made all the panels, hand stitched them together, only to find out it was a couple of sizes too small and totally not my shape. Second attempt (after sulking for half a year) took me 8 mockups to get the fit right. I stubbornly kept going this way and more or less know what I'm doing now. It probably would have been a better idea to just buy a pattern or two to start with and learn the basics with proper instructions, but... guess that's what headstrong means? 😅
I feel this energy deep in my bones. I’ve definitely done something similar. 😋
I feel you. This was me too. Sort of. I started with a commercial pattern, crossed it with two gridded patterns, put my blood and tears into the mockup (stays, you know), and then it turned out it was too short - I had trusted the modern pattern (never wise), on the length. Time to start over. Of course, now I have a pretty decent pattern put together, but got kind of bummed about the whole experience and have yet to follow up on it. I learned a huge amount though. And that was the first time I ever tried using a gridded pattern. I should probably at least sew a mockup of it to see if I got it right this time...
I have a love of pattern making - to the extent that I've fully patterned something, made mockups, repatterned, etc, and then not made the final item, because the fun was all in making the pattern... That being said, I took one of the PoF coat gridded patterns and had a glorious time draping it on my me-sized dress form, cutting, adding large swaths of paper, slightly adjusting the drape, learning how the historical peeples must have been thinking when they were draping it, and just generally having a blast. I even made it past the mockup and into the final fabric just barely in time for my pirate Halloween. I reconceptualized the coat as a waistcoat, removed the sleeves and hood, stopped to make a new shift/pirate shirt as my old one had mysteriously shrunk, and in the last 24 hours when my cat vomited on my ironing board and I could no longer use it, just kept sewing until I was able to wear, with only a few pins still in place and a few bits still unstitched, my lovely new waistcoat. Granted, I hadn't quite reconciled the need for more structured undergarments entirely with my adjustments, but close. With a nice new-made leather belt to hold it shut instead of pins and the front bit, I had reconceptualized the fantasy 1700s lady pirate costume, and had a blast doing it. Thank you PoF and Janet Arnold for all the splendid inspiration! (An aside, it's really hard to find an authentic cut on one of the modern costume patterns. Oh - plus I figured out how the tailors back then made adjustable clothing - just unstitch a line and readjust the arm scythe and the side with a bit of a fold, and voila, once more it's perfectly fitted! Very cool.)
Welcome back!!!
I haven't done any grading up, but at this point I'm starting to be able to do a chaotic mixture of vague drafting, frankenpatterning and draping-on-myself.
Slowly realising that despite being very beginner at sewing/costuming, i am at an advantage for dealing with scaling and adjusting gridded patterns because I'm a geologist used to scaling things for cross-section or map and doing related math. Such a weird skill cross-over.
I like the Janet Arnold books for giving a guideline about the shapes of the pattern pieces. For things like ruffles or very drapy garments, I have a hard time picturing the flat shape of the piece. It gives a good starting point for then draping the garment.
I had nearly forgot about this, but I have actually used a gridded pattern once, and I clearly should have opted for another method. It is currently one of the very few projects in my UFO-bin. But I learnt a lot from the process, even though the pattern didn't fit my proportions at all and I had to fiddle around with it for so long my motivation run out. But just two months ago I made a pattern that I later realised could be the perfect base for frankenpatterning for said ufo-project. Now when I know what I'm up to, I can use the gridded pattern just as a reference to what pieces I need to make the garment, but I should to the pattern pieces myself instead.
I usually do a ton of mock-ups when I scale up the patterns or drape the pattern pieces myself with the book patterns as references as to where the seamlines are placed. Mock-ups are to be expected and alterations are very important since I would intentionally draft/freehand draw the pattern to be excessively too big and with alterations being basically included in the initial fitting stage.
I haven’t used gridded patterns but have used some of the patterns from the National Garment cutters books with middling success. This last time I made a Victorian bodice I used my bodice block and fitted it to my corseted body. Then used that to draft the pattern pieces. Not perfect but much less hair pulling and math.
As someone who has to alter commercial patterns enough that drafting is often quicker for me anyways I knew most of these things before I got into historical patterning so buying books like Janet Arnold gave me a way to access knowledge that wasn't easy to get, especially in the pre and early internet days, and as someone who doesn't live anywhere near the museums that house collections. I have scaled up one JA pattern, and used the shapes as a guideline for me. You have summed up some great usable knowledge as always. Thanks for sharing.
I made a hood from Woven into the earth and for the pattern I went to a copyshop after figuring out how many times larger the pattern had to be (5x). I have used a chemise, combinations and petticoat pattern from an 1898 century book with varying degrees of success. (the petticoat's waistband took me months until I noticed it resembled the way circle skirts are cut.)
Can we talk about how gorgeous it is that your lipstick exactly matches your hair color and that you can pull that look off? It's stunning as hell.
Welcome back Liz! I hope you and your family are doing well.
Love the video, and it definitely reinforced my level of sewing skills to myself…that no matter what everyone on IG says, I’m not quite ready for anything Janet Arnold and that I need to get back to sewing once we’re moved into the new house 😅
All the best hun 💖
Thanks so much! I'm so glad you''ve found value in this. It's so hard to tell people they probably shouldn't do something without feeling that you are in some way discouraging them. This really helped that worry! 😊
I have most of these skills. I’ve scaled up book illustrations very successfully. In the Eighties, no internet, no fashion history existed yet. It can be done, but I recall it as a crap shoot.
I buy historic patterns, because it’s just easier. It’ll be my size and it’ll go together properly.
So happy to see you back Liz! This was actually a really helpful video as I'm planning on diving into trying to scale up a gridded pattern sometime soon and this video definitely made me consider what I might need to be prepared for and what specific pattern would be worth doing the scaling on... So, looking forward to upcoming videos!
Wait now can you show us how to scale one up. Can you do the effigy stays 😅😀🥰
I have Janet Arnold’s books. Used them in college.
I have a double-major diploma in Apparel Technology and I've never scaled up a gridded pattern. My preferred method is to have a basic bodice block fitted to me (or the client), and then I just draw the pattern shapes on top of that, using the mini-pattern a guide to know how to shape each piece. It's an easier method for me. But uh, I don't know how much of that easiness comes from just being familiar with how patterns work, and also a natural aptitude for being able to translate 2D shapes into 3D shapes in my head.
I made my first 1890s ballgown from a gridded pattern in POF. I was very lucky that the original owner was a similar size to me apart from being slightly more busy but one mockup was all I needed. It was the first historical costume I made but I have been sewing for many years and have explored couture techniques in the past so although there were some mistakes - the pocket in the back seam came out as it just looked vaguely obscene! - I was really happy with the finished result.
That’s awesome! It’s nice when the fit works out like that.
I've accidentally made pockets like that. I refer to them as "Georgia O'Keeffe pockets".
She paints flowers. That reference...
Yeah.
Only she does it intentionally, and my pocket fails were just lack of knowledge.
I adore your videos.
I've made one thing from a gridded pattern so far to give scaling and grading a pattern to my shape a go. It was during a Zadie Grossman Jump-along so it was a fairly simple unstructured item that I further modified for more flexibility in size. I think the original garment was for a pre-teen as there was very little room in the chest and the torso length was very short. As a 5'6" DDD person, I had a lot to change lol The only places I needed to adjust after scaling it to fit my width, since jumps/quilted waistcoats aren't very fitted, was the waist length and shoulder strap length about 4 inches to account for my chest. I only sewed up the back seam so I could put eyelets at the shoulders, side seams, and center front (this was the only place on the original with lacing) in case of body size fluctuations. I would highly recommend starting with a more simple garment like this if folks want to try their hand at scaling and grading
When I had the historic clothing business I used these all the time. I'd scale up to the original garment size and then grade them out using the Bishop Method. Sometimes someone would be differently shaped enough I'd have to drape, but not often.
I also highly recommend the 'doll clothes' if you are confused about how something ought to go together. It will save you lots of time, fabric & frustration. And write it down step-by-step, do not skip that part.
I wanted to play around with figuring out some of the shapes in the gridded pattern books so I bought a used one of those 16" Tonner dolls and have been making tiny Victorian outfits for her. If someone asks I pretend its for a niece or friends kid but it's actually just fun for me. 😆
Ugh thank you. Im absolutely SHITTY at math so these patterns are so freaking hard!!
I hope this video helps you find some ways to either figure it out or find another way! 👍
I love gridded patterns!
I like to scale them up by tracing or printing out a clean copy of the diagram on a small sheet of paper, then I stand in front of a mirror and picture in my mind where the pieces would lay on me as part of the finished garment (looking at reference pictures of similar garments if necessary). I mark the widths and lengths of a bunch of places on the little pattern piece diagram, and then draw them up to that size on builders paper, checking the measurements with a ruler but doing the proportions mainly by eye.
If it's something with sleeves then I don't scale them up until I've done a mockup of the bodice portion, so I have an accurate armscye measurement. I usually get a pretty good fit with this method, and only need a few alterations.
I know it wouldn't work for everyone though. When I started doing it that way I already had a couple years experience of drafting patterns from basic blocks in college, and I still have the formula sheets, but 18th century suit shapes are so completely different that starting with a modern basic block just doesn't make sense.
I recently finished a tudoresque kirtle, turns out, it was exactly my size. On the other hand, I was doing quilted jumps, and had to take in 20 cm on the waist! My preferred method - to scale up pattern as is, do a mock up with generous seam allowances, fit the mock up
That's probably a good method a lot of the time! I think knowing that you might run into trouble is half the battle with these things!
Oh, well if I'm not meant to use this hammer on everything, then why does everything look like a nail?
I tried draping a pattern for a jerkin on a mannequin that I made of myself from duct tape and foam, and it was disastrous! Definitely in awe of your ability to make cloth behave like it ought to, but I've always found it easier to just draw patterns from scratch.
Huzzah - a Sunday video drop from Ms. Liz. Welcome back, Kiddo. Hope all is well.
I'm saving up my gridded pattern play points until I work my way back to the Edwardians. Right now I'm futzing with the 1930's-50's paper patterns. As soon as I can get to the point of FBA's and other pattern adjustments no longer being A Big Thing To-Do (in the space between my ears), then I'm going to be turning to Janet Arnold and the Simington Corset Collection. Thanks for the tips.
- Cathy (&, accidently, Steve), Ottawa/Bytown/Pimisi
Best of luck! Just keep doing them and doing the mockups and you eventually start to get a feel for what's going to work on your body, commercial patterns are definitely not made to fit my "brick with boobs" shape, I already know that waist darts are just not going to be a thing for me!
@@bunhelsingslegacy3549 Thanks! For me the fall down-go-boom point is always how to accommodate the girls and the hips. With the possible addition of t-rex arms, sway back and short waisted.
I'm getting there...
I have to scale everything up. I try just grading, but it’s not possible to just grade when going up several inches. On average 8-10 to make things fit.
I've only made patterns based on the medieval T-Tunic style, though I have made Thorsberg pants but none of them are based on gridded patterns. I have picked up Woven into the Earth but more for the techniques then for the patterns as I did not buy the companion book. Though the nice thing is those patterns are easy to recreate if you've made t-tunics the tunics and dresses in this book set are easy to draft. But then again I've been drafting or scaling up my kids' garb patterns for the last 19 years. so I've learned a bit. (I don't trust my skill for modern patterns). Though I have made victorian pockets from gridded patterns. That was easy.
I think I’ve sort of scaled up a pattern a couple of times but I think I don’t find it difficult to figure out how a flat plain will translate to 3D. I recently Made a bodice sloper though so I’m gonna try making things from that as well
You did a great job of explaining the various aspects of patterns, and altering them. My first experience with sizing up patterns was a Burda pattern when I was about 15. Oh the horrors! Yet, I figured it out, as I'm a mix between a half size, and petite. I had to learn to resize patterns. Most off the rack clothes don't fit well. My first foray into historic patterns were the early Folkwear. Not the easiest, but they worked. I came across my first Janet Arnold pattern when I was commissioned to make an 1860's day dress. I had photocopies of the pages, and that's it. However, the grid pattern made so much sense! I was working 'long distance'. ie, the person that commissioned it lived 1000+ miles away. I had a duct tape dummy as a reference. It worked, and I made other costumes for this client. Prior experience helped immensely. If I had tried a grid pattern first off, I'd have bailed. Thank you again for your video. It really is useful.
Goodness, that's... a LOT! I am so very happy I don't make clothes for other people.
Also - I just got the most amazing flashback when you mentioned Folkwear patterns. It's been a WHILE since I used one of those!
@@LizCapism I've been sewing since I was 10. So, yes. Lots of experience messing with patterns. As for Folkwear, I love their patterns for certain things. Between Folkwear, Patterns of Fashion, and a few other sources, I've learned a lot.
It's so overwhelming to look at books like that, for sure. Thanks for all the great ideas and tips. That makes it a bit less scary.
hello liz its nice to have you back. you were missed. i hope everything turned out well.
Yes, this helped me not fear trying to reproduce historical-looking fashions as much. Thank you.
I’m so glad! That’s very gratifying to hear. 😁
Oh my gosh I love the flow chart trap!
XKCD is solid gold math jokes. 😁
Thank you for this video. I definitely know that scaling up a gridded pattern is not for me. I did it once and Oi, what a pain. Mostly because I am well out of the range of any gridded pattern. I've yet to try draping, but I'm thinking I need to figure it out. I have a dress form that I made from the Bootstrap pattern and, honestly, I'm a little nervous about trying to. But I think it's time to bite the bullet, as they say. And it's good to see you back. I hope everyone is as better as they can be.
What if you make a grid that corresponds to your back length on the vertical and your bust on the horizontal? IE: back length 3 squares= 15," by bust 6 squares=30". 3x5=15, 6x5=30.Your back is 15". One vertical square=5 vertical squares, your bust is 36. 6x6=36. so one horizontal square=6 squares. Then you make alterations to that for waist etc.
I’ll be honest - I have no earthly concept if that would work! If you have the math chops and the brain power to keep all that straight in your head, I totally trust you to go for it!
I suspect based on my limited experience with grading and scaling that this should at least get you to a better starting point than just one or the other!
Maybe, based on some TH-cam clips I watched a long while ago (someone may be able to name the Costuber or the book) about an Edwardian pattern book that includes a special set of rulers for drafting the patterns to your exact measurements. The rulers appeared to work at different ratios (like Liz mentioned about halfway through).
I'd try stretching the original version into what you think is the right proportions on a computer, then trying Liz's mini-mock-up on the print-out.
The issue I can see is that you're unlikely to be consistently bigger/smaller than the original, especially if it's a corset era pattern. I suspect you'd need to use the resultant pieces as a guide for draping a full mock up...
I have a few of those books that have the graduated rulers, and they have directions for drafting their patterns. Measuring out so far, and down so far, with lines and dots. I have spent countless hours drafting those patterns in quarter scale only to end up with lines not crossing where they should. Two lines that are supposed to meet are miles apart. One of them calls for an unknown tool. I did make a top once that was a pretty good fit but not good enough. This year I am working on a pattern for a dress form cover to stuff but everything takes too long. I have a Lutterloh book with patterns you size up with radial lines, but it's from the 1990's and I don't like any of the styles, they all have huge shoulders and armholes.
YES, you can scale at different ratios for the x and y, your math looks good. We do this all the time for cross-sections in geology, and then i did this for scaling up a grid skirt pattern but I didn't realise it might have been an unusual concept for sewers.
I tried to draft the pink 1908 Edwardian gown in the Fairbank collection, and it went ok, but I noticed that there were patterning issues meaning that some pieces were an inch too short.
Thanks for a while new approach (or two or three) to 'figuring' it out!
I'm in the middle of my first ever attempt frankenpatterning - a 1930s gown which totally isn't made for hips or fat arms (plus sleeveless is a bad idea for Anglos in an Aussie summer). It's a seriously scary prospect, despite having a pretty good understanding of draping and how patterns go together.
Even the little bit you mentioned here was helpful. I'd love to watch a Lizcapism guide to Frankenpatterning.
Thank you, Liz, very helpful video. All the best to you and your family.
Thanks! Much appreciated, my dear.
Удивило кольцо в Вашем носу,интересно что могло вдохновить на такое.Последний раз видела такое кольцо в носу у быка производителя, когда посещала деревню несколько лет назад.
If you have the room it's a good idea to buy a form. Draping is so much easier than drafting.
Thanks.
amazing thank you!
You're very welcome!
I got the idea from Mariah Pattie to use the upper half of a corset in place of a sports bra. I found the reduced pattern for an "athletic corset" online as a free PDF so I printed it out, it had the waistline marked so because it had no scale listed, I just measured its waistline, measured mine, and scaled it up from there (I did math and drew my own custom sized grid on wrapping paper). But I knew this was just as a starting point and would need a lot of alterations and adjustments to fit my "brick with boobs" figure, I already knew from using Sewstine's Kefta pattern that I am not the shape patterns are made for (if I go by Mood's sizing chart, my bust is size 12, my hips are size 8 and my waist is size 18, I'm not kidding about brick with boobs), but thanks to several zoom calls and a bunch of emails with a friend who does know how to do alterations, I now have a princess seam bodice block and THERE'S NO STOPPING ME! - *ahem*
So yeah, I started out with something I knew wasn't going to fit my shape and I was right, even having measured and scaled up based on the waist measurement I ended up removing all waist darts and still expanding the waist and reducing the bust (my waist is not squishy, my bust apparently is), so my pattern pieces have very little resemblance to the original pattern. I'm short-backed so I trimmed it down, though honestly I think it still worked out a bit better than the first Princess Seam mockup since I now had half a clue what I was doing, I just kept pinning things and unpinning things and marking each step on the fabric in a different colour sharpie so I knew how many versions I'd been through (4 different colours used) until I got something I was happy with, I stitched in a zipper for ease of tryons, then added in some boning channels made out of the rolled hem of the cotton twill IKEA curtains I was using for mockup fabric, stuck some heavy duty zip-ties in, discovered that if I put the sideboob boning channel in on the opposite slant from what the pattern suggested, I could get my sideboob to squish up front instead of out my armpit (my usual complaint with any bra without underwire). The final mockup did require a little hands on assistance from my wonderful friend who'd helped me remotely with the kefta pattern alterations when she happened to be visiting, and I finally did assemble the thing this month and I only need to make one little further alteration and it'll be more comfortable than a sports bra (I need to let it out just the tiniest bit at the bottom, it's JUST too snug enough that it's compressing my floating ribs in the same way that any waistband at my "natural waist" does before it slips down to about navel height.
What you said about pattern pieces not looking the same after draping? yeah, totally feeling that, so many of my pieces ended up rectangular by the end that I was able to go from 6 pieces each side down to 4 plus one complete back piece. If I figure out some dart wizardry, I could probably combine two other pieces and have the entire thing being a total of 7 pieces instead of the original 12, yay for being not curvy.
Would I do it again? Maybe. For another stays-or-corset-like object, probably, because a commercial pattern ain't gonna fit this bod anyways, so I might as well use a starting point that doesn't cost me fifteen bucks. Would I do it for something really fancy and complicated? Probably not, I'd just see if I can modify my princess seamed bodice block or this corset pattern to do the job. Am I going to scale up the rest of the one I started with if I ever decide I want to try a full corset? Nope, I'll just sketch out the approximate shapes and stick 'em to the bottom of what I've already got, if the bust was too big, there's no way the hips won't be. I have rarely used commercial patterns, what I usually do is trace existing clothing whose fit is good enough and make a pattern on paper from that, adjusting as necessary when I get to the actual fabric I want.
I had first tried Morgan Donner's instructions for the medieval kirtle pattern made to one's own measurements, and the mockup for that was what initially suggested that my bust is squishy and my torso is not, but after a mockup and some time in the Bad Clothing Pile, I now have a really cute kitle pinafore that just needs a bit more taken out of the bust (which isn't going to happen because eyelets have already been done, I'm just gonna put in some pushup pads next time I wear it), and I'm planning to make a full dress someday but will probably first make a supportive vest thing cause I hate bras (specifically a tight underbust band) but time marches on and what didn't used to need support now kinda does.
So the way I see it, I've gotten to three very different patterns through three very different methods and all needed modifications, but all were a great starting point to get to an end result, and I learned a lot about both patterns and my body with each one. Each customized pattern is a tool in my tool kit for when I want to tackle "not a baggy or stretchy shirt or medieval panels and gores dress", which has been and continues to be my go-to for general wear.
Slanting the boning to make side boob more like front boob?! I love it.
Did you end up slanting the top of the boning to the front or the back? My brain is managing to picture both as possibilities.
@@lynn858 When I mocked it up I did one the way the pattern wanted on one side and flipped it on the other, what I found held the sideboob in better had the top slanted to the back. I should also mention that during fitting the fabric parts I shoved everything front and centre too, fit it how you wanna wear it.
@@bunhelsingslegacy3549 THANK YOU!
😍
"we're going to use math, don't be scared" I feel like less people would be scared of math if we didn't treat is as such a scary thing. or maybe it's just me, a person that thinks drafting manuals are cool puzzles...
Honestly, you’re probably not wrong.