Dress making

sheng719

Simplicity patterns from Habithat.co.uk are actually £3.95 which i think is reasonable for a pattern ( considering some of them are about £7-£8 ). there are quite a selection from tops, trousers, skirts or combination of tops trousers/skirts and jacket (mix and match pattern), bags and home furnishings. It is a shame though as the new look patterns are now about £5.95, as they were £2.95 a month ago....( i think..):p
today i am going to transfer and cut the patterns out and start on our dress so they will be finished in time for the wedding. Wish me luck everyone...I hope it all goes well.:p

sheng719

hiya all!!! I know in a bit of a snag with my dress making... I have bought the smallest possible size for my daughters dress but unfortunately, the pattern would have fit perfectly only if she had a bigger bust. Unfortunatly, she was no given the gift of a bigger bust. the rest of the pattern would suit her nicely. Is there any possible way that i could alter the patten to make it fit her? Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated in this time of desperation.:o

amandada

sheng719 wrote: »

hiya all!!! I know in a bit of a snag with my dress making... I have bought the smallest possible size for my daughters dress but unfortunately, the pattern would have fit perfectly only if she had a bigger bust. Unfortunatly, she was no given the gift of a bigger bust. the rest of the pattern would suit her nicely. Is there any possible way that i could alter the patten to make it fit her? Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated in this time of desperation.:o

It's difficult to say without knowing what the style of the dress is like....the easiest way to "lose" fabric is by making darts, but this obviously depends on the style of the dress.

I've recently come back to dressmaking after a few years' break, and did some fab moneysaving, converting a pair of my dd's too short jeans into a skirt! (pics on my blog)
I keep all my bits and bobs in the kids old nappy box-it's a perfect size!

sheng719

amandada wrote: »

It's difficult to say without knowing what the style of the dress is like....the easiest way to "lose" fabric is by making darts, but this obviously depends on the style of the dress.

I've recently come back to dressmaking after a few years' break, and did some fab moneysaving, converting a pair of my dd's too short jeans into a skirt! (pics on my blog)
I keep all my bits and bobs in the kids old nappy box-it's a perfect size!

The dress has already some darts in them as they are strapless dress(simplicity pattern 4628 or pattern 5238). So i really don't know how I am going to go around it as I am already aware that you can later the pattern through the darts. Is it possible to alter the pattern on the sides of the dress?:o

amandada

sheng719 wrote: »

The dress has already some darts in them as they are strapless dress(simplicity pattern 4628 or pattern 5238). So i really don't know how I am going to go around it as I am already aware that you can later the pattern through the darts. Is it possible to alter the pattern on the sides of the dress?:o

The way I'd do it is to cut out the fabric as per the pattern, and do the fitting actually on your daughter.
You'd adjust the darts simply by making them "deeper" so they pull more of the fabric in.
If it's only really the bust which needs adjusted, I'd take in most of the fabric in the darts, but you could also adjust the side seams of the dress, so the darts don't get too close together.

If you were local, I'd offer to show you!

Craftyscholar

Firehorse wrote: »

Fantastic suggestions. The pattern is a costume one which my dd wore recently. Lots of little girls were asking if I'd make them one. So was wondering about keeping an eye out for discounted material etc and making a few in my spare time (would stop the evening snacking) to rent/sell on. Not sure about the implications of this.

If you plan on making and selling costumes from one pattern you could be in trouble. I think the rule is you have bought the pattern for your own use, if you are making another one for payment you need to buy a new pattern.

frugalfairy_3

sheng719, I've had a quick look at the pattern envelopes you mention and it looks to me as though the bodices have princess seams over the bustline rather than darts. If you have already cut out the dress then the easiest way to alter the bustline in a princess seam is to pin a deeper (bigger) seam in the princess seams - do this on your daughter, and pin the two edges together so the bodice fits more snugly over her bust. If it's a big difference between her bust and the bodice, then you can also take a little bit in on the side seams if you want, you'll probably have to experiment a bit.

hope this helps
FF x

CannyAnnie_3

sheng719 wrote: »

hiya all!!! I know in a bit of a snag with my dress making... I have bought the smallest possible size for my daughters dress but unfortunately, the pattern would have fit perfectly only if she had a bigger bust. Unfortunatly, she was no given the gift of a bigger bust. the rest of the pattern would suit her nicely. Is there any possible way that i could alter the patten to make it fit her? Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated in this time of desperation.:o

Hi Sheng

I used to make dresses for other people fairly regularly, the way I dealt with this particular problem was to cut out the bits of the pattern which really have to fit properly - this is usually the bodice part on a dress - in fabric (I used plain white poly cotton from the market which I bought for the purpose - it's really cheap and lets you see what you are doing). Then I would tack the fabric sections together and try it on the person.

That way it's easy to see where it doesn't fit, and easy to see how to alter it so it will fit properly. Once you are satisfied with the fit in the plain fabric, mark where the seams have to be and cut it out in the proper fabric.

This takes a bit longer but it's really worth it! I once made a bridesmaids dress for someone (an adult) who said gloomily that dresses NEVER fitted her, she didn't know why. When I cut out the dress bodice in this way, it was easy to see that she just had squarer shoulders than average, all the bodice needed to make it fit was to adjust the angle of the shoulder seam and the dress fitted beautifully.

Just remember to keep the side seams vertical and you should be able to alter the fit until it's right for your daughter. Just try not to stick too many pins in her while you are doing it!!

Hope this is helpful, Annie

grimelda

Hi Sheng,

Not sure if you are interested in continuing with the dressmaking, but if you are I'd suggest obtaining 'Fast Fit: Easy Pattern Alterations for Every Figure' by Sandra Betzina. She covers just about every fitting problem women have (including small bust, large bust, large tummy, protruding sternum, and so on) and gives a step by step solution for altering patterns to make them fit. I have found her an invaluable source of dressmaking information and highly recommend any of her books, particularly this one.

By the way, how do you find Simplicity patterns generally? I have made them in the past and found them quick and easy to put together but usually the result is an unflattering garment with poor fit and quality. I stopped buying them ages ago but wonder if they have improved lately.

sheng719

grimelda wrote: »

Hi Sheng,

Not sure if you are interested in continuing with the dressmaking, but if you are I'd suggest obtaining 'Fast Fit: Easy Pattern Alterations for Every Figure' by Sandra Betzina. She covers just about every fitting problem women have (including small bust, large bust, large tummy, protruding sternum, and so on) and gives a step by step solution for altering patterns to make them fit. I have found her an invaluable source of dressmaking information and highly recommend any of her books, particularly this one.

By the way, how do you find Simplicity patterns generally? I have made them in the past and found them quick and easy to put together but usually the result is an unflattering garment with poor fit and quality. I stopped buying them ages ago but wonder if they have improved lately.

I have made a oriental style dress ages ago and was disheartened about it because when I got to the point of actually finishing the dress, I have realised that it does not fit me (I haven't taken into account that I was actually not a size 12 then). Recently, as I am going back to dressmaing, I have tried the dress on again, and it really fit perfectly and have actually motivated me to finish it. I am again attemptingthis patterns so hopefully, it will be all okay. I'll let you guys know regarding my progrss onthis project. Thanks!:p