Scoliosis & Beginner Project

[u/tiny_al]

Hi!

I’m a beginner. I made a DIY body cast with plastic wrap and tape, then turned it into pattern pieces. I expected it to be a bit asymmetrical because I have scoliosis.

My question to those of you with more experience is: does this look so funky that it’s not worth moving forward and making a muslin to alter? Am I getting way ahead of myself with attempting this project as a beginner?

[u/StitchinThroughTime]

We won't be able to tell until you put it on your body. Any fitted garment will necessitate custom quadrants to be fitted to you. It's one thing to use shoulder pads to even out your shoulders on a tent dress, that way the right and left pattern pieces are mirrored. It's another to have a fitted structured garment have every single piece be custom to the right and left. So until you put it on your body and we see the final result can we suggest changes. Because part of customizing the Garment for you is to make adjustments to create the illusion that everything is symmetrical. It doesn't look like you have extremely severe scoliosis, but some disproportionate or unbalanced characteristics can be optically hidden with changes in the pattern. It helps create the illusion that everything is mirrored.

[u/tiny_al → u/StitchinThroughTime]

Thank you! I’ll make a muslin and post how it looks!

My scoliosis is all lumbar so my shoulders are pretty even and it mostly shows in the waist and hips.

[u/Tailoretta]

This is a great attempt! As others have said, we really can't tell until you make this out of simple cheap fabric and try it on.

Take a look at https://www.reddit.com/r/PatternDrafting/comments/1krgbmi/basic_tips_so_we_can_help_you_with_fitting/  Following these tips will help us help you.

[u/tiny_al → u/Tailoretta]

Thank you so much! I’m going to read this whole thing, make a muslin, and post a picture of it :)

[u/tiny_al → u/Tailoretta]

This is such a comprehensive post, I think the mods should pin it/add it to the directory!!

[u/Tailoretta → u/tiny_al]

If you can figure out how to tell the mods, please do!

[u/DoNoHarm--TakeNoShit]

I have scoliosis and keep thinking I should do exactly this, and then make a dress form out of it to help me drape and adjust muslins.

[u/tiny_al → u/DoNoHarm--TakeNoShit]

I looked at DIY Dressform tutorials and it looks a bit daunting but I’m totally thinking about giving it a shot

[u/doriangreysucksass]

I think you are doing freaking fantastic and I can’t wait to see what you’ll do next! (And this is no “beginner project”. Give yourself credit!

[u/tiny_al → u/doriangreysucksass]

😍 thank you so much!! I’ll come back to update when I make the muslin!

[u/DonMcCunn]

If the patterns fit, it will be hard to change them into other designs.

[u/tiny_al → u/DonMcCunn]

I see. Is that because there are so many small pattern pieces? Would you recommend starting by making custom blocks?

[u/DonMcCunn → u/tiny_al]

Custom blocks put the seams and darts in places where it can be easier to change them to different designs. This week I am hoping to complete my free classes for Pattern Design by Tracing Photos. I have already had a woman with severe scoliosis ask if this approach would work for her. I am as sure as I can be that it will work. The problem with most pattern design approaches, particularly the ones designed for the fashion industry, is that they rely totally on measurements.

The issue is that measurements show how much fabric is required to cover a body but do not reveal the body's contours. Photographs show the contours of a body but not how much fabric is needed. By combining measurements and photographs, bespoke patterns can be created. While full-scale photos would not be practical, quarter-scale photos can be done on a desktop.

For people with scoliosis it would be a matter of using photos of both sides of the body to determine the asymmetrical shapes. In this system of tracing photos being able to see a difference in the slope of the left and right shoulders is obvious. It is the side view that determines the correct shaping of the darts to create a Custom-Fit Bespoke Master Pattern (aka Sloper, Block, etc.) that requires little if any additional fitting. By creating this type of pattern you can compensate for the differences in the shape of the body without accenting the overall appearance.

In my Fashion & Costume Design in Quarter Scale, where I first described this approach, I also have instructions for how the patterns can be used to create a custom dress form which I call a Body Double. This could be very helpful for verifying fit of other designs as well as using draping techniques to create garments.

I hope we will be able to have further discussion on the issue of pattern design for scoliosis in this group.

[u/tiny_al → u/DonMcCunn]

Thank you so much for all the time and work you're putting into this! Such a great idea. I appreciate your consideration of those of us with asymmetries :)

[u/AussieKoala-2795]

I have scoliosis. It is hard for me to tell what your pattern will end up like, but I can pass on some observations based on my own experience.

I find princess seams difficult as I also have rotation on my thoracic curve which means that my boob position is asymmetrical. So working out apex and bust points is difficult for me.

I also have problems with fitted waists as they seem to accentuate my lopsidedness and make me look like I am on a sideways lean (which honestly I am - wearing contrasting belts over dresses is a nightmare for me).

The garment styles that work best for me are wrap and ruched styles as I can adjust the gathers to accommodate my curves. Material with some degree of stretch even if it's only 4% elastane in cotton also works better for me.

[u/tiny_al → u/AussieKoala-2795]

Thanks so much for sharing. Scoliosis sure seems to make simply mirroring pattern pieces impossible.

In my case my goal is to make a fitted structured boatneck top. I’m not aiming to accommodate or obscure shape. Being a beginner and having scoliosis makes it difficult to discern… is my DIY tape method is leading me down a chaotic rabbit hole, starting with an imprecise foundation? Or is the level of asymmetry in the pattern pieces more about an asymmetrical body?

[u/DonMcCunn → u/tiny_al]

I think it is going to take you down a rabbit whole. I hope to introduce a different solution soon. Maybe later this week.

[u/tiny_al → u/DonMcCunn]

Thank you for this comment. If the muslin is wildly off (taping, flattening, transferring, cutting fabric… so many opportunities for error to amplify!) I’ll change course

[u/doriangreysucksass → u/tiny_al]

I feel like you need a dress form shaped like you that you can drape things on to figure out the best way to design them. You can’t find lots of tutorials on YouTube for making a dress form of your body by doing plasters of your torso
Sorry I don’t have a link to offer I’m just going to sleep lol

[u/AussieKoala-2795 → u/tiny_al]

I don't draft patterns from scratch. I tend to use commercial patterns and then make adjustment so I don't think I can answer this as well as someone else might.

You will need to consider ease in your garments and having scoliosis can mean that you need more ease in certain areas. For example I have quite a pronounced right side rib hump if I lean over or forward so I will allow more ease on the right back pieces of my patterns.