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Friday, March 12, 2010

Design it Yourself skirt: Pattern drafted and muslin

The Kitschy Coo Design-It-Yourself Clothes Sewalong is starting to heat up, and I was feeling behind the power curve!  So, I drafted my pattern and got going on my muslin.
Here are my pattern pieces.  I deviated only slightly from the instructions in that I didn't do a front dart.  I have a reasonably flat stomach, so I don't see any point in adding curves there.  I do have significant "back" so I deepened the dart in back to accommodate my posterior curves.

I cut it out of some scrap fabric and sewed up a muslin!  I know, me, a muslin?  I want to make the final version out of some silk twill and I didn't want it to end up yucky, since I can't get any more of this particular print.  Besides, I've never drafted anything fitted before, so I had no idea how this was going to go.
From the front.  I think I was holding the camera funny, since the picture is at a slight angle.  I'm not sure why my hips look uneven.  Probably the somewhat hasty and slapdash zipper installation...
From the side the fit looks good.  Excuse the pointy butt darts.  It's a muslin, after all!  I'm not sure about that side seam, though.  I think that it may be listing a bit to the front at the hemline.  What do you think?
I'm very happy with the fit from the rear.  Since I am a bit more curvy than the standard block that most pattern companies use, my rear view is seldom this good.  I am definitely a fan!

A few comments on the book itself.  Since I am a very novice pattern drafter, I think this is a perfect book for me.  Someone with more experience would probably find it a little simplistic.  The woven blouse, for example, doesn't even have bust darts.  This is also not a sewing text!  The assembly directions are quite brief, so if you haven't already sewn together a skirt or two, you may find yourself in trouble - or at the very least in need of another book to help you out!  With those caveats in mind, I heartily recommend this to someone who is just getting started in pattern drafting.  It is any easy and fun read and the drafting instructions are clear and well written.