Good morning,

I am really struggling with making a shirt pattern that fits. I have a good bodice sloper (no...I really, do) but trying to translate those measurements into a shirt that fits me has become one of the more frustrating experiences I've had in recent history.

I chose the casual shirt pattern, loaded in my bodice sloper measurements, printed it out (another story of frustration...printing...but I'll leave that for later), whipped up a muslin sample and found a shirt that fit...almost. The sleeves are too tight, and the rest of the shirt, although will button, was just too snug for my size 18 fatness to feel comfortable in. It fit my measurements, I think, however I assumed a casual fit shirt would have much more room to move around in than this one did. Now, I know this is just a problem of ease so I used the fit tool to change the casual settings to the comfort settings and it still doesn't feel comfortable, hugs my posterior section and is just a bit loose in the top (my standard problem with store bought patterns and clothes) and at this point I'm beginning to feel really fat as opposed to just the normal fat I usually feel. I added a yoke and a pleat in the back to add some fullness and end up with a seriously ugly balloon shaped garment that is still too tight in the sleeves.

At this point, I tried other patterns (the unfitted shirt pattern and the man's dress shirt pattern...neither of which came anywhere near fitting...both too huge in the top and somewhere between too big and really too big around the butt) and I had problems with the yoke seam being longer than the seam it is supposed to match up with on the front of the man's shirt after I loaded in my measurements. Never did figure that one out.

So, I eventually went back to the casual shirt pattern and enlarged the sleeve bottom so that the sleeve would be fuller all the up and will use pleats to get it to fit to the cuff (shouldn't this be automatic when using the shirtmaker sleeve since those types of sleeves ordinarily have those pleasts?) and messed with the ease until I had pattern measurements close to those of the one long sleeved cotton shirt I own, and with any luck at all it may fit. My concern with that is that on the pieces it did print it says it has added TWO inches of fullness to the back to accomodate the pleat in the center of the back even though my pattern only has a ONE inch pleat programmed in.

I don't know for sure that I've resolved any of these fit issues because now I'm having problems getting the pattern to print out correctly. I've been using legal size paper while making the previously mentioned patterns and it has been working fine. I ran out of legal sized paper and had to change to letter size. I changed the printing preferences in my printer and I changed the page layout settings in the program to letter sized, printed it out and found it was still trying to print legal sized. I threw that pattern away and reset the printer and program settings (that still said letter sized paper was being used, BTW) and tried it again. It might have worked but after printing out one page, I ran out of black and yellow ink. Yesterday I got ink and more legal paper and tried it again. Before attempting to print, I changed my printer preferences and the program page settings back to legal size just like I had been using successfully all along and printed out the pattern. I guess the program decided that I really wanted letter sized paper after all, even though the settings all say legal, because that's what it did...printed it out letter sized on my legal sized paper. I threw that pattern away (do we see a theme developing here?) and messed with the settings again even though they already said legal, and printed it again. This time it appeared to believe the paper was, indeed, 14 inches long, however I don't know what it thought the width was because it didn't print the entire width of the pattern. Every piece was missing some of the right side of the pattern and the marks that we use to match the pieces up when taping them together were also missing in action. Now my printer preferences said I'm using legal sized (8.5 x 14) paper, the program page settings said I'm using legal sized paper but I went back in and set those exact setting AGAIN. Now it's printing the width of the pattern okay and the page matching thingies are back, but every other page is coming out blank! And all of this trouble is to print out a pattern that may or may not even fit me.

Fortunately we've had a very mild fall here in New Mexico so I'm mostly still able to wear my summer shirts but, with only one long sleeved shirt to my name, if I don't get something workable soon, I'm going to be in living in Goosebump City.

I guess my question is...what the heck is the trick for using the bodice sloper measurements and making something that fits without having to make major adjustments to each and every pattern? And, if I do have to make major adjustments to each and every pattern, how do I figure out what to add to what to get the fit I'm after? Or, should I consider the fact that I'm too dumb to make a pattern that fits and run down to Penney's and buy me some winter shirts?

Thanks for listening. Linda

"So, I eventually went back to the casual shirt pattern and enlarged the sleeve bottom so that the sleeve would be fuller all the up and will use pleats to get it to fit to the cuff (shouldn't this be automatic when using the shirtmaker sleeve since those types of sleeves ordinarily have those pleasts?)"
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I pulled only one of your comments from your post,as it is indicative of what you are expecting versus reality.

The silhouette patterns such as this blouse dont presume anything.

You may wish to pleat the sleeve to the cuff or ease gather it. Thats UP to the sewist not the program.

You seem to have problems in two areas that may not show up in a bodice sloper; and you don't mention making a lower torso pattern before.
First bodice slopers dont come to abd and hip just the waist so the bodice sloper doesnt "prove" the lower torso measurements.

If the abd/ hip area is too tight that would only show up in the pants or the torso sloper dress pattern available from the class room forum.

Lets go back to the sleeve. There `are two possible reasons the sleeve feels too tight;and one is the obvious around hand measurement which determines hem circumference but my crystal ball says it may be another issue.The sleeve length and elbow depth!

If the over arm length is a tad short and the elbow depth is off even a little bit,when a sleeve with those issues is worn it will feel "tight" at the bottom and always pull when the arm is in motion. yech

The finished sleeve length should be the over arm length MINUS the shoulder extension.

The casual shell has an extended shoulder that will range from 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch depending on your chart.(the extension is figured by a percentage of yoru shoudler length)

Put the sloper on underneath the pattern in the program and measure the difference. By measuring your sleeve pattern from the cap apex mark tothe hem you get over arm length.(use the grid on the puter before printing!) IF you ask for a cuff the sleeve is further shortened by finished cuff width. so also deduct cuff width.

Check yoru a`ctual shoulder poiint from shoulder/arm intersection not from top of arm! compare.

The cuff thats selected will be for a circle cuff not vented UNLESS you asked for a vented cuff with placket and set the amount of overlap.

What blouse closure did you choose? A front button or none? What size button placket did you chose in options. A Button closure is NOT automatic but must be selected and you can adjust the closure and the "overlap" in options adjusting for the size button you want down the front.

I cant tell you how many times a new user has selected a blouse, forgotten the placket and lost the placket width and seam allowance making the garment too tight; OR vice versa and selected a placket and then dcided to do a pull over top anf cant figure out why the thing is inches too wide.

The point here is the program doesnt know whats in your mind as for the END design. Silhouettes allow you to do anything presuming you made all the decisions and choices and may take a pencil and scissor to the pattern.

Don't GIVE UP.

A CASUAL versus fitted garment is a slightly more relaxed fit not a BIG fit. But if casual isnt fitting Fitted sure wont.

Check three things before going on. Over arm length, around hand around the fisted hand) bicep measurement plus abdomen front back and hip front back before printing more.

and DO fix your printing issues. It may well be your registration marks are off and when you tape the pattern it is not even close to resembling what the pattern was reallllllly drafting to.

Get with [URL=support@livingsoftnw.com ]livingsoftnw[/URL] ASAP and get that fixed FIRST.

Good luck.....
Kaaren

Kaaren,

Thanks for the reply. I didn't really expect the program to assume the sleeve pleats...just griping, I guess. It's been a frustrating month.

Thanks for all the tips on fit. I'll apply those and see what happens. I did consider that not having made a pants sloper could hamper the shirt fit around the hips but, for just that reason, I did make sure I had an accurate hip measurement in the measurement chart. I thought that should take care of the problem. I hadn't ever thought about the printing being off if the registration marks were there and things appear to match up when I put them together. I'll need to work in that direction also.

I really don't want to give up. I'm just getting so frustrated with the fiddling, printing, cutting, sewing and throwing away cycle. I'm wondering if I just don't have enough dressmaking fit knowledge to be able to modify a pattern to fit my poor old pear shaped body. I see all the great photos of things that people have made and wonder how all of them can do those complex things and I can't seem to make one simple shirt. I guess I just thought it would be easier than it turns out to be.

Thanks again. Linda

Hey Linda,Ive been sewing since I was around 8 or 9 and took some time off to run a couple buisness's, raise kids,all that stuff then really got back into it about 18 years ago.

I still learn something new every garment! The learnign process never ends.

But consider all you have learned just by the "fiddling" you so much dislike.

Until you get all the basics down try using inexpensive "wearable " muslins.By this I mean fabrics that don't cost an arm and leg but will look ok to wear as you improve your skills.

Consider these early garments as workbook projects and an investment in learning.

Get a great sewing book such as the Vogue encyclopedia of sewing and join your local ASG ( American Sewing Guild) group and use this list.

When in doubt submit a problem report.. your chart will attach and with a little patience will be returned with comments or even a new chart.

That takes time. Ive been working since before 7am and have reviewed and sent out all of 3 charts this morning and it' almost 1030!But I am almost caught up on all those in the que.

We all want everything instantly...acquiring knowledge on any topic takes time and can be frustrating but the rewards can be wonderful!

Kaaren

Kaaren,

Actually, I don't really dislike the fiddling. I just dislike the endless fiddling that comes to nothing. I enjoy messing around with patterns and fabric and I, too, started doing just that when I was pretty young. When I was a single mother I made just about everything my daughter and I wore, from pajamas to winter coats. Later on, when she was a figure skater I made all her skating dresses and a myriad of costumes including, but not limited to, a one piece outfit that had to look like a standard tuxedo and stretch like a skating outfit for her skating partner and a pink terry cloth two-person cow suit for one of the many shows she was in. Needless to say, there were no patterns available for these particular items. Fiddling around with this kind of stuff is fun and, as you say, educational. And I have to admit that fiddling around with Dress Shop is also fun (at least at first <G> and I have learned a lot about the program works. The frustration comes from the never-ending fiddling, printing, assembling, cutting and sewing that ends in throwing away yet another muslin disaster. The fiddling is frustrating because, even though I am learning how the program does things, when I'm fiddling with the patterns I'm never sure if what I am adding and/or subtracting is going to result in the fit I'm after. So far it hasn't. However, I have printed out my shirt again, cut it out and this evening will see if I have a success, a starting point for a future success or another total failure.

I do appreciate the responses and the support. I was ready to give up completely this morning and now I've gotten enough inspiration to try one more time.

Thanks, Linda

My sleeves were too tight,especially just above the wrist, because my wrist and hands are small but just 1" up my 'fluff' really jumps into play. I started using that upper measurement as my wrist measurement and it helped.

INCREAsE the around hand measurement rather than the wrist measurement.

The around hand plus ease determines the hem circumference of the sleeve which carries upwards to elbow.

The around hand is taken with the first loosely "fisted".

Kaaren

Kaaren,
How can she "put the sloper underneath the pattern measurements" when you and Bob said that feature doesn't work and was taken away? I know many have said they liked the feature and wanted it back, sooooo, is it back?

Kelly

Your are crossing apples and oranges !

The view sloper was not removed and is still there as it always has been. Itis NOT going away.

You can easily SEE the sloper on any pattern you elect to view.

What was removed was a poorly fucntioning "show other" which did NOT grab all the attributes of an "other" pattern that was displayed to save only as show other but not for printing or use.

Rather than continue to slow the program to provide a barely acceptable "other view" fully drafting a pattern with whatever settings the user thinks its asking for and possibly not gettign everything! and having the program do double duty drafting two garments siumltaneously it was removed.

I use the program extensively and NEVER used the show other function after I quickly discovered its shortcomings which were quite obvious if looked at closely!

Kaaren

Oh, good. I like to put my sloper up against other patterns so I am glad that part will not be removed. Thanks,Kelly