Simply Sewing - UK (2020-04)

94 WWW.GATHERED.HOW/SIMPLYSEWING

ALWAYSMEASUREYOURSELF

BEFOREyouchoosea patternsize

tocutout.Thesizesdovarygreatly

frompatterntopattern,soit’s

alwaysbesttomeasureyourself

accuratelyandthenrefertothe

pattern’ssizecharttofindyour

size.Thechartwillusuallybe

printedonthepatternenvelope

orontheinstructionsinside.

Measureyourselfinyour

underwearandpreferablyinthe

bra you’ll be wearing underneath

Preparingyourfabricandcutting

outyoursewingpatternaccurately

is justasimportantastheactual

sewing.Washyourfabricbefore

youbeginasfabriccanshrinkand

run. Once dry, press it well.

PREPARINGTHEPATTERN

Patternsoftencomewithseveral

optionsofdifferentfinishessoyou

mayhavemorepiecesthanyou

need.Theinstructionsheetwilltell

youwhichpiecestouse.Roughly

cutoutallofthepiecesoutsidethe

linesthenpressthepiecesusing

a dryironona lowheatto remove

the folds and creases.

CUTTINGOUTTHEPATTERN

Chooseyoursizeusingyour

measurementsandthesizechart.

Cutalongthecorrespondinglines

onyourpattern.Whenyoureach

anyfiddlycurves,takecaretocut

along the correct size lines.

CUTTINGLAYOUTS

Choosethecorrectoneforthe

width of fabric you’re using, the

yourgarmentasthiscanalterthe

measurementsslightly.Usea fabric

tapemeasureasit’llcurvearound

yourbodywellforaccuracy.You

canmeasureonyourownif you

standinfrontofa mirror,but,for

bestresults,aska friendtohelpso

theycancheckthetapemeasureis

sittingintherightplaces.Make

surethetapemeasuresitssnugly

aroundyoubutis notpulledtight.

Takethemeasurementsshownin

the diagram and note them down.

sizeyou’recuttingandthestyleof

garment.Manypatternshavemore

thanoneoption(orview)andeach

one can have a different layout.

CUTTINGOUT

Layyourfabricflatandsmoothit

out.Foldorplacethefabricas

shownonthecuttinglayout.Lay

thepatternpiecesintheorderand

rightsideorwrongsideupas

shown.Checktomakesurethat

thegrainlinesonthepatternare

parallelwiththeselvedgesby

measuring.Pinyourpatternpieces

carefullyinplaceandcutaround

themthroughthefabricusing

a pair of dressmaker’s shears.

TRANSFERRINGMARKINGS

Themarkingsonthepattern

piecesneedtobetransferredto

thefabric.They’rereallyimportant

formatchingupfabricpieceslater

andforpositioningelementssuch

asdartsandpockets.Youcanmark

thesewithchalk,fabricmarkers,

snipsonthefabric,or with small

tacking stitches.

The guide

FRESH IDEAS WITH FABRIC

HOW TO MEASURE

YOURSELF ACCURATELY

HOW TO USE A PATTERN

PAT TERN MARKINGS

Bk WaSLeG

From the top of your

spine at thebase of

your neck to your

natural waist

Hh Bt/ChS

Across theback,

under your armsand

Bt above the bust

Aroundthe

fullestpart

of your bust

HeGT

Stand against a wall,

barefoot, thenmeasure

from the top of your

head to the floor

Notches:Shownas

trianglesorsmall

lines,theseare

markedonthe

edgesandare

mainlyusedfor

matchingup

pattern pieces.

Arrows:Grainlinearrowsareused

toshowwhichdirectiontopinthe

patternonthefabric.Thegrainline

runs parallel to the fabric edge.

Darts:These

linesarefor

matchingupto

createdarts

withinthe

fabric pieces.

Pleats:Theselinesarematched

uptocreatepleatson the cut

out fabric pieces.

WaS

Yournatural

waistline, around

the slimmest part

of your waist

Hs

Aroundthe fullestand

widest partof your

thighs and bottom