Pattern fitting, Part 2

This week I had my second and last class in fitting and sewing the Perfect Shift Dress with Mandy from Fit2Sew. My homework was to sew the waist and bust darts and when doing so, I realised they looked awful. My mistake was that at the points my darts stopped too suddenly and were not straight but curved. So we corrected that and Mandy showed me how to properly press a dart – there are so many steps to it!

Then we pinned the dress together for a final fitting and realised that the left side of my body is smaller than the right one. So we adjusted that by pinning out more fabric on the left side. Also, there was slightly too much fabric on my back. But we were able to adjust that by redrawing the sleeve seams. Then it was finally time to sew the dress together at side and shoulder seams, which was quickly done. Even quicker was to finish the seams with the overlocker (did I say already that I want one for Christmas?).

Next I stitched the neckline facing on and then it was sleeve setting time. How long did it take me? Two hours maybe? It was really frustrating! The first sleeve went in without to many problems (which might be because Mandy pinned half of it) and the second one was just a nightmare. I pinned and pinned, stitched it together, ripped out the stitches, pinned again, stitched, ripped and then Mandy took over and fixed it. I might have gotten there eventually by myself but not during class time. I think it actually might be a good idea to pin only one sleeve per day. Are you good with pinning sleeves? Is it normal that it is quite frustrating? And most important, will I get better with practise?

Class was over and the only task I had left was hand sewing. I have to admit that my hand sewing skills are non-existent. That’s why I love my sewing machine, right?! So the task ahead was to sew the hem, finish the zipper opening and attach hook and eye. Mandy estimated it would take me about 1 hour (she did not know about my poor hand sewing skills) and so, when I arrived home (after 8 hours of sewing) I started to catch stitch my hem because I really wanted to wear that dress the next day.  One and a half hours later I finished the zipper opening, had a shower, went to bed – with my sewing – and attached the hook and eye. Problem was, the hook and eye were to loose. Tired and defeated I finally fell asleep just to wake up the next morning at 5 am to rip out the stitches around hook and eye and put it together properly. One final ironing session and I could wear the dress to work, yeah! 

Here are some photos showing the lining (ignore the creases please, I was sitting all day in it):

At work I proudly presented my dress and bathed in compliments, hihi. I am so happy with the result and I am sure I will make the dress again maybe this time with a collar! I love my fabric and I love that I have interlined it - it is so nice to feel the silk on the skin (this is my first silky garment ever). The dress is perfect for the hot summer weather and will also go well with leggings and bolero at cooler days.

Fitting with the Palmer/Pletsch method

When I started to sew 3 years ago, I gave up soon afterwards because the clothes did not fit. I was de-motivated and did not wear anything I made.

So, when I took up sewing again, I wanted to learn how to fit properly. I spent many hours on the web and learned about the Palmer/Pletsch fitting approach. Using it, you mainly fit a tissue pattern and not your fashion fabric. Also, you do not need a muslin, which is great!

This is the Palmer/Pletsch book that explains the basics of the approach. It was originally published in 1995 I think, so the pics/clothes are a bit old fashioned. But otherwise, it is a great book.

Quickly summarised, here is the Palmer/Pletsch approach to fitting:

1. Fit the tissue pattern on your body (as you would a muslin).
2. Transfer the changes to your tissue and try on again.
3. Repeat step 2 until you are happy with the result.
4. Cut your fashion fabric (no need for a muslin here!) and fit it again. At this stage you can e.g. deepen darts or take away fabric at the site seams.
5. Sew your garment. Congratulations, you have your fitted garment!

So, that's the theory, but as always it is not so easy if you try it yourself. Doing some more research on the web, I found an instructor teaching the Palmer/Pletsch approach in the London area! Mandy has her fitting and sewing school "Fit2Sew" in South London and is teaching in a lovely bright sewing room in her home. Her classes are small---only 3 students---and if you are lucky you might even have a 1:1 tuition :) I have attended two classes already: Fit For Starters (the basics of the Palmer/Pletsch approach) and Fit And Sew The Perfect Shift Dress.

In my next post, I am going to review the Fit And Sew The Perfect Shift Dress class, so keep following!