To a beginner dressmaker a dressmaking pattern envelope can be a bit overwhelming – there is so much information, using dressmaking terminology which you haven’t come across before and so its easy to get put off. Today I thought I would write a post which helps to demystify those details and therefore help you to get stuck into that dressmaking project ready for summer!
Let’s start with the front of the envelope. There is generally always a photo of the finished garment being worn by a model plus some artwork of the different versions that you can make from the one pattern. The drawings usually show the pattern in different colours and also demonstrate the various sleeve and neckline options that the pattern comes with. Sometimes there may also be a different skirt option, if the pattern is a dress – e.g. a straight skirt and a fuller skirt with more volume which you can choose from. Each version of the dress in the artwork has a letter underneath and this is to help you match up which pattern pieces you need for that version once you get inside the envelope.
The front of the envelope also has a number and this is the pattern number which you could use to search online for versions of the dress that other people have made for inspiration. E.g. on Instagram, search for the hashtag for that pattern number – for the one in the photos #newlookk6023 for example.
Underneath the pattern number there is the sizing for the pattern – this pattern is for US sizes 6 – 16 and European sizes 32 – 42. This is to check that you will fit into the overall sizing for the pattern or whether you need to select another size range. We will come to more exact sizing details further down on the back of the envelope.
So, onto the back….the first thing you will probably see is a line drawing of the pattern. This helps you to more clearly see the style lines on the garment – e.g. whether it has darts, or princess seams, whether there is a waist seam, what the collar looks like. So this is useful to really understand what you are going to sew before you make a start and to also ensure that you are happy with the style of garment before you invest lots of time making it.
On this pattern, above the line drawings there is an indication of the number of pattern pieces that the pattern has. This one has 19 pieces in total that make up the dress, although its important to note that you may not need to use all 19 depending on the style of dress you decide on. E.g. you may decide to make a sleeveless version and then you don’t need to use the sleeve pattern piece.
Moving onto the tables on the back of the envelope….the table on the left uses yards and inches, while the table on the right is normally in French and uses centimetres and meters. Both sides have the same information so you just need to decide which measuring system suits you. The top section of the table shows the body measurements that fall into each of the size brackets – bust, waist and hip being the key numbers. It may be that you span several sizes and that’s fine – you can grade between sizes on the actual pattern pieces – I will cover this in another blog post at some point. I would recommend that you circle the numbers that correspond to your measurements to help identify which size(s) to cut out.
The next section in the table shows how much fabric you will need for each version of the dress in each of the sizes. It also breaks the quantity down between width of fabric. Most fabrics come in either 45 inches wide or 60 inches wide, so the amount of fabric you need varies accordingly. For example – if I am making view ‘A’ in size 10 with 45inch wide fabric, I will need 1.75 yards of fabric (or 1.6 meters). If you are between sizes, I would recommend you go with the fabric requirement for the higher size to be on the safe side.
The following section in the table tells you how much lining fabric you will need and also how much interfacing and which weight interfacing you should buy.
We then move onto the ‘Garment Measurements’ – these are the actual measurements of the finished dress in each of the sizes. These will always be larger than the body measurements because they include the ease of the pattern. Ease is the amount of ‘wriggle room’ you have in your clothes – e.g. the difference between your body measurements and the measurements of the garment. Ease allows you to move around, breath and eat a big meal without feeling uncomfortable. Ease is a personal thing, some people like more, some less for a more fitted look. So its useful to look at these numbers when selecting your pattern size. For example with this pattern, if I selected a size 14, there would be 3.5 inches of ease at the bust (39.5 inches minus 36 inches). If I decided 3.5 inches was too much, I could potentially then decide to make a smaller size, as long as all other dimensions of that size fitted too.
The envelope then gives you lots of suggestions on the types of fabric which would be ideal to make the garment in. This is really handy to steer you in the right direction in the fabric shop!
Whilst in the shop (or website if you are shopping online!) you can also refer to the next section which tells you everything else you need to make the pattern – e.g. zips, buttons, hooks and eyes, etc
Finally if you have selected fabric with a nap – the raised surface on some types of fabric such as velvet which feels soft when you stroke the fabric one way and rougher when you stroke the other – then you may need to consider the amount of fabric you buy – note the asterisks against the different fabric widths above in the table. This is because the placement of your pattern pieces on the fabric may need to be different – and therefore require more fabric – to take account of the nap.
Well, that’s about it…lots of information to take on board about each pattern but hopefully its helped make it all a little bit clearer, so you can make a start on your handmade summer wardrobe!
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