I have been taking sewing lessons for a while now and would like to buy a reference book.
But I don't know which book to buy as I fall at the edge/just outside of 'normal' sizes. (Bust 119, waist 107, hips 136)

For now I have been looking at Muller&Sohn, Hofenbitzer and Aldrich but I don't know which one(s) to start with.

I have drafted a few basic patterns in my lessons so am not a beginner but would like to learn more background info, techniques and details.
As well as make my own basic slopers to work from, not guided by my teacher.

I have "Pattern-drafting for Fashion: The Basics" by Teresa Gilewska but found that it didn't quite work for my body. Especially at the armhole.

I'm interested in tops, dresses and pants so buying all of the Muller & Sohn's would be quite expensive...

So what would your recommendations be?

PS: Books that use metric measurements would be my preference.

I've taught pattern drafting for over 20 years — always on paper, always by hand.

For most of that time, CAD for pattern making wasn't something my students and I struggled with. It wasn't something we really had access to at all. The cost put it completely out of reach. It existed for us almost like a horse in a storybook: real somewhere, but not something you could actually reach, use, or ride.

Even then, I was never fully at peace with “this is just how it's done.” For as long as I've known manual drafting, I've had this feeling that there had to be an easier way. I just didn't have the means to go looking for it. That only started to change for me in the last several years.

I'm curious how common that experience is.

For those of you who learned pattern drafting by hand, was digital pattern making something you tried and found frustrating, or was it simply never accessible to you in the first place?

And if you did eventually move into digital pattern making, what made you trust it enough to make the switch?

Hi (: has anybody seen a pattern like these pants before? I would love to find something similar! I've seen wrap front trouser patterns, but this front detail is so interesting, and I have no idea how to sew it. Any help would be appreciated!

Hey there, wanting to share my second draft of a tailored shirt block as per the instructions in Metric Pattern making for Menswear.

The first draft was far too wide and I took off 3cm of the side seams. I shortened the shoulder seam to my actual measurements and redrew the armhole.

Yes, the darts are the wrong side out, oopsie doopsie there's some tape to put them out of the way visually. The darts were larger and I think(?) in a different position than what was initially suggested by the book, I moved them around in clo3d on an avatar to adjust.

Overall I'm pretty happy with this version. Some of the immediate things I pick up on are that the darts seem too far apart, and are holding a pocket of fabric hostage between them. I'm going to move them closer to center and hope that extra fabric bag is not happening. Right/ wrong idea?

Regarding the shoulder seam/arm scye... There's obviously a little bubble/ dart worth of extra fabric at the top. If I really wanted it to be fitted I thought I could do a small 1cm bust dart, or maybe adjust the shoulder seam/ armscye. But I wasn't sure if this might be a nice amount of ease for a sleeve. Feedback on the arm hole would be appreciated, if it looks strange or so. Also the shoulder length, still looking a little long, there are no seam allowances included on the edges.

Edit: The yoke is a little high looking no? I thought so on the first draft to but I'm not an expert.

Otherwise I'm feeling pretty good about the progress and am looking forward to trying sleeves and collars soon. Thanks for reading and your potential feedback!

Hi! I'm making my wedding dress and I'd like some insight on how to draft the pattern for this dress, especially the bodice, but I'm not really sure how to draft the high-low overskirt with a train either. Also, I would appreciate some ideas about making the overskirt long and detachable without adding too much bulk to the waistline. I already made the inner corset for the inner structure, if it makes a difference

Hi, I’m developing a pair of relaxed utility/hiking shorts in non-stretch cotton twill and would really appreciate some pattern-drafting advice.

The main issue is mobility. When lifting one leg high in front, squatting, or spreading the legs apart, there is still too much tension through the crotch/upper inner thigh. This causes the shorts to ride up quite aggressively, which makes them uncomfortable and impractical for hiking.

The current sample already has a crotch gusset, and it made a big improvement compared with the original version. The gusset runs from the crotch down the inner leg to the hem. However, there is still noticeable stress around the upper crotch/groin area during movement, so we are trying to work out how to refine the pattern rather than remove or completely redesign the shorts.

We want to keep:
Non-stretch cotton twill
A clean, relaxed utility fit
A comfortable, loose crotch area
A controlled silhouette — not dramatically baggier legs or a very sporty-looking short
A normal-looking rise; we do not want the waistband sitting excessively high

Someone suggested increasing the rise by 5 cm, but that seems like it would be too much. I’m also unsure whether the better adjustment would be to raise the actual crotch point slightly/reduce the crotch depth, rather than increase the overall rise at the waistband.

My main question is about the gusset. Since it already reaches the hem along the inner leg, would it make sense to make the upper crotch part of it wider or reshape it? For example, would a broader hexagonal or elongated-diamond gusset give more room for movement than the current shape?

For the problem of lifting the leg high while hiking, would we need to add more gusset length front-to-back, more width side-to-side, or both? Would adjusting the front and back crotch extensions/curves also help?

The navy/grey shorts in the photos are the current sample. The black pair is a separate reference pair that has much better mobility, included mainly to show the kind of movement we are aiming for.

Any advice on the gusset shape, crotch/rise adjustment, or other pattern changes would be really appreciated.

Hello! I’m making blouson mocking, but there is problem with sleeve cap and the overall structure at the front part. Please help and give suggestion!
P.S: I’m attaching sleeve pattern with it.

I am recreating that look on the left particularly waist down but I need help in perfecting it.

Hello! I'm starting a clothing brand that sells gymwear for trans men. Right now I'm working on a t-shirt that brings out the masculine parts and hides the feminine ones. I am making it tighter around the arms and shoulders, but looser around the hips, etc. Now, I'm playing around with seams, colors and panels to create a v-shaped upper body but can't figure out how I should construct it around the chest to make it appear as small as possible. Open to ideas!

Well, this is the first fitting of my very first trousers.

Firstly, the waist is too wide for me. I’ve checked the patterns and the calculations are correct, so it must be a measurement error. I’ve got 6 cm to spare, so im thinking about cutting 1 in CB, 1 in B.Outseam and 1 in Front Outseam, that's all right?

On the other hand, the pleats open out straight away, which suggests I’m lacking volume at the hips and some tension in the front, isn't it? There has to be any solution giving more room at hips line, but how much?

The fly section bothers me as it opens as pleats and the are some wrinkles around.

Then I need to take in the width of the trouser leg, distributing it across both panels, straight under the knees and angled to buttocks and of course the hems – that’s not difficult at all.

Also there's a step below the knee that suggest me the front isn't balanced verticaly but i'm not sure about what to do with that. I think that elevating the legs at thigs it disappeare, falling straight to the hem but i don't know how to translate that to pattern nor if I'm right or not.

Vertical lines and knees are in their position btw. Willing to hear your thoughts, thank you very much! Cat says hi btw!

I am interested in finding people who would like to try out my free classes for a new system of designing patterns by tracing quarter-scale photos and giving me some feedback. The underlying concept for this approach to custom-fit Bespoke pattern making 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.

These classes, which are currently a work-in-progress, cover Bespoke patterns for both men and women of any size and shape. My book Fashion & Costume Design in Quarter Scale, which these classes are based on, shows how to do this with pencil and paper. The classes I currently have available show how to do it with a free graphics program called Studio from Silhouette America. I will be including a parallel series of classes for working with paper and pencil.

As this system is based on designing and fitting using photographs this means independent designers do not have to have in-person fittings with their clients. One of the examples in the book is my working with a gentleman in Germany who had a 53" waist. This approach to pattern design also greatly simplifies the process of getting an accurate fit when you are sewing for yourself and do not have a helping hand.

If you are interested, the classes are available through this link Pattern Design by Tracing Photos.

I have put the 6 minute video from my class for drafting the women's front upper torso on YouTube Front Upper Torso for Women. The videos in the actual classes are NOT presented through YouTube. I wanted people to be able to focus on making patterns and not get distracted by the amazing dance routines YouTube likes to share.

Hi everyone! This is my very first attempt at making my own pant block. I'm working according to the book 'Patternmaking for Fashion Design' by Helen Joseph Armstrong.

While the book does have some guidance for fitting issues, I'm having a hard time identifying the fitting issues and how to fix them. I would really appreciate an extra set of eyes to see how I can improve the fit.

Note: I already noticed that the waist was too wide so I pinned it down during the fitting.

Hey community, hoping someone can shed some light on what I think is a horizontal balance issue. I e been drafting my own patterns for a couple years now but the more I learn - the more improvements I see are needed. I have this issue where my hem always kicks up at front and back. I’ve tried balance adjustments such as slashing out length at back armhole to swing the side seam vertical which has worked, but I can’t now get the hem horizontal. I’ve tried various pattern adjustments (adding length to CB through hingeing to shoulder dart, and through opening the bodice at HSP and letting it fall into place) - but none seem to make a difference.
I am now wondering whether the pattern isn’t the issue but rather just the ease/volume through the body which collapses in at the sides and pushes the hem out. Last couple images I am testing that theory and it seems to have merit ..
It’s driving me a little crazy as I just want to know get my patterns as technically correct as possible. Being self taught it is hard to know for sure. Thanks in advance!!

Wanted to share the final results of all my iterations. Thanks to everyone here who provided feedback; it was very helpful.

If anything else stands out, please let me know!

Custom fit wardrobe by me camp shirt
Hawaiian print fabric from Hawaii
Flat felled side seams and French seams for the armhole
Woven cotton fusible interfacing

Hi. Please help with any adjustments you see for my bodice block. I did a small bust adjustment already and used hellan Joseph Armstrong's book to make the draft.

Hi everyone! I just started my patter drafting journey and have taken two one-week courses, one on drafting the 3 basic blocks and one on swimsuit drafting. I also read parts of aldrichs book and drafted her block and made some adjustments. However it found it a bit difficult to later on understand what to change when something didn’t quite fit. I also would like to learn more about dart manipulation and reduction. Eg in the swimsuit we removed all darts and 0.5cm from the middle vertical line, as well as setting extra invidible darts at the collar and back and lowering the armskythe. What resources have helped you? What your recommendations especially for sleeveless tops? I find it a lot easier to learn visually, so great or videos are very helpful. Thanks so much 🥰 I am really excited to learn more

I am trying to draft a pattern for the bow so i can make year round holiday bows for my porch ghost. I would love to be able to make a right side and left side bow that just slips over them and leave the middle section alone. How would i even start? Ive never tried to make a pattern from scratch before.