If your background is like mine, your mother taught you to take a hip measurement – but only one. In pattern making, women’s hips are generally measured in two places. There’s a High Hip measurement, which represents the top of the hip curve, and the Full Hip measurement, which is the actual widest part of the hip line. Given the amazing variety of of feminine shapes, it makes sense to take the extra measurement. The high hip measurement is used for fitting both skirts and pants that are meant to skim the body between the waist and hip, and for longer line corsets.
1 CommentTag: Patterning
The Underbust measurement isn’t as famous as the bust or waist, which is sort of a shame, I feel. The Underbust is the measurement of the ribcage, directly below the bust. Aside from being a crucial measurement for making modern bras fit, it’s important for underbust style corsets, some styles of later-era long line corsets, regency fashion, and even modern baby-doll styles. Here’s how to take the measurement accurately….
1 CommentThere seems to be some confusion these days as to where waists are located. Taking a waist measurement at the proper place is a crucial step in pattern making, especially for historical periods that emphasized the waist as a central point of the feminine silhouette. We’re going to talk about the right way to take a waist measurement, as well as some “cheats” for specific body shape issues.
8 CommentsThe bust measurement is probably the most important measurement when it comes to making any torso garment fit a woman. Whether you’re making a sixteenth century corset, a modern jacket, or a 1960s trapeze dress, if it doesn’t fit correctly at the bust, it doesn’t fit. How do you get the right measurement?
2 CommentsAfter years and years of showing the entire internet how to draft patterns to my measurements-du-jour, I’ve decided to start working with a model. There’s a couple reasons… Firstly, I already have more costumes than I possibly know what to do with. I have so many that I’m trying to come up with ways to get rid of them, without actually taking the huge, ego-wrenching risk of putting things on ebay and finding out that my treasured work is not worth a 25$ bid.
2 CommentsThe surviving pattern published in Juan de Alcega’s ‘Libro de Geometria, Practica y Traca’(1589) represents almost everything we know about the farthingale. Most articles on recreating the Alcega farthingale focus on faithfully reproducing the pattern based on fabric widths. Honestly, though, calling this a “pattern” is a bit of an overstatement: the book was more intended as a series of cutting diagrams to help tailors avoid waste. The problem is, Alcega included some rather sharp commentary on on what he considered the proper size for the bottom hoop of the farthingale, but no real information on the size of the intended wearer. Complicating things further, modern bodies aren’t build quite like the popular model of the 16th century. So what’s a costumer to do? How about some trigonometry!
Trust me, this won’t hurt.
9 CommentsFile this one under “possibly useful to some one, at some time, somehow”: this is a series of pictures of corsets I’ve made over the last several years. Each one shows me standing in profile, next to my dress dummy. This makes the changes in my shape imposed by each corset fairly obvious, and the pictures all together give you a pretty good idea what different types of boning and styles of corset can do for a girl.
11 CommentsTo Pattern the Brim
To make the Brim pattern, you will need:
- a Flexible Ruler
- a Regular Ruler
- Paper (notebook/printer and larger)
- a Head (the one the hat is meant for)
- Scissors
- a French Curve (optional, but nice)
This is a very popular style of bodice amongst the english during the Elizabethan period. It shows a distinctive inverted arch to the neckline.
2 CommentsThe kirtle is sort of a general purpose under-dress. The pattern
being drafted below is actually somewhat earlier than the elizabethan period
— I’m basing the seam placement on Fouquet’s The
Virgin of Melun.
