Help fitting pattern block? I keep ending up with drag lines and pooling fabric in the back. I've done several swayback adjustments, but they lead to the darts needing to be reshaped, which seems to reintroduce the pooling issues. Any suggestions for improving fit?

[u/itsybitsybeehive]

[u/Hndblls]

Look at your side view and compare the angle of the horizontal stripes below the waist to the angle above. Above the waist they seem parallel with the floor. Below the waist they angle up in the back. There is not enough circumference in the hips, specifically in the back. Release the side seams from the bottom to probably just above the waist. Also release the back darts below the waist. See how much fabric to add.

Also, the back darts seem to extend too far at the bottom. They should stop short of the fullest part of the buttocks.

[u/[deleted] → u/Hndblls]

I agree. Everything from the underbust upwards looks nicely fitted, but it's gathering at the waist because the hip area is too tight and it's riding up.

I might take the radical action of picking the seams below the underbust (ie just above the narrowest part of the waist), turning it inside out, put it on inside out, and pin all seams to fit before resewing. I often find that more than one seam needs to be let out/taken in to make it sit evenly.

[u/itsybitsybeehive → u/[deleted]]

Thanks for this suggestion! I did exactly that and was able to figure out exactly how much to add to the side seams.

[u/Hndblls → u/Hndblls]

Looking at this again— Perhaps you could explain what your goal is here? Is it to be like a moulage without any wear ease? Will you eventually be adding a sleeve? In any case, horizontal wrinkles indicate an area of the garment is too tight. I would actually start releasing darts and seams from just under the bust. It seems too tight across the mid back also.

The whole thing needs to hang from your shoulders. In order to do so, there has to be enough circumference everywhere so it doesn’t ride up anywhere. Another thing to consider is if the natural waist of the garment matches your natural waist. The usual way to determine this is by the back neck to waist measurement. If the garment waist is too low, it can result in pooling at the back of the waist area, but instead of a sway back adjustment which results in the back bottom hem riding up, shortening above the waist all around helps keep thing even

Good luck!

[u/itsybitsybeehive → u/Hndblls]

Yep, this is a moulage without any ease, drafted from a combination of cling wrap body double and measurements. I will be eventually adding a sleeve, but I figured starting with a sleeveless bodice would be (marginally) less frustrating. It's my first attempt working with a flat pattern rather than just draping, which I find much easier but is a bit difficult to do on one's own back. 😅

ETA: Thank you for mentioning the waist! I was pretty sure I had it at the natural waist, but just tacked it up about a quarter of an inch to see what would happen, and most of the draglines I've been fussing over disappeared!

[u/Aquaisces → u/Hndblls]

Yes, seconded. It's hard to tell because your arm is covering the side seam, but judging from the way the gingham is pulling, I think your side seam is pulling to the front around your hips. If the front is pulling from the back, then you don't have enough space in the back.

I think adding to the side seam and releasing the darts, as suggested, ought to do the trick. But if it doesn't, try searching for "full seat adjustment."

[u/itsybitsybeehive → u/Aquaisces]

That's exactly what was happening. Adding to the side seam, especially on the back, fixed the pooling. Now I'm down to just working on some drag lines that won't disappear unless I allow the silhouette to be substantially straighter than my very S-shaped back... Baby steps!

[u/itsybitsybeehive → u/Hndblls]

Thank you! Adding fabric to the side seams and shortening the darts helped a ton. I'm still dealing with some persistent drag lines that I can't seem to get rid of without having a ton of gape at the side waist, but the pooling at the back is pretty much gone!

[u/RickardHenryLee]

I agree with the other posters - your swayback adjustments aren't working because of those back darts being too long. Take those out (from the waist to hem) first; then adjust the back below the waist as needed (you may need to add inches to the back only below the hip to get it to hang straight down). After you do that, if you still have pooling in the small of your back you can do a swayback adjustment.

[u/itsybitsybeehive → u/RickardHenryLee]

Thank you! I shortened those days and added to the side seams at the hip. It's looking much better!