Hello all,

Update version 6.10 is now available for download. You can find this update on the usual Livingsoft web site update page. Or, download it directly from:

http://www.LivingsoftNW.com/Updates/DS6_10_Update.exe

This update includes a new product release titled "Sew Quick Summer Casuals". This is a terrific collection of 30 easy to make, easy to fit patterns, designed primarily by Kaaren Hoback, but with advice and suggestions from Nancy Nason, Bonnie Triola, Carolyn Brown, Janet Dean, Janet Brown, Bernedette Wilcox, BJ Nichols, and Bobbie Connelly. This is a terrific collection both for new Dress Shop users and for anyone that needs a blouse, dress, shirt, or jacket in a hurry. There are some really cute designs in there, too as well as 3 new necklines and 6 illustrated how-to articles. Check it out!

In addition to the new product, this update contains the changes and corrections listed below. The first two items listed should get particular attention as they can effect pants waist fit and armhole shaping on all patterns.

We think you'll like the changes and hope you'll check out the new product. You can preview it once you download the new update. It will be available for a very short time at a reduced introductory price, so don't wait too long.

- Bob Clardy

Build 6.10 was released on July 11, 2005 with the following changes:

1. The curvature in the waist darts of pants and skirts was causing a variety of fit and sewing issues. So, the curvature was removed and the dart legs are now straight again. Also, depending on the angle of waist tilt, some pants / skirts waist darts could have dart legs that were not the same length. Depending on whether you cut to the short dart leg or long dart leg length, your darts could have been too narrow, providing excess ease at the waist.

2. The restrictions on the width at center of the front and back armholes were loosened considerably. Also, front and back bust ease (user added amounts only) will now revise the shape of the armscye more, allowing for greater control of across chest and across back fabric than before. NOTE: If your Across Chest or Across Back measurements were too large, this change will now allow that overly large number to have an effect. If your armholes bulge out in the center now, reduce either Across Chest (front) or Across Back accordingly.

3. Some vent / godet positioning options were not enabled for those that owned Illusions but did not own Spring & Summer 2005 Collection.

4. Drawstring waists were not drafting wide enough.

5. Empire waist dress - skirt length was not what it should be.

6. The Skort pattern was altered to make the skirt slightly longer (to better cover the shorts) and to allow flare angle on the skirt without effecting the shorts.

7. If Length was adjusted in the Options dialog, the Defaults button would restore center front length and length at the side seam, but not center back length. This should now be corrected.

8. Facings for princess line and side panel patterns without sleeves were drafting incorrectly.

9. Princess Pocket Blouse with no pocket had a bad outseam.

10. The back shoulder dart is now default in the bodice sloper, the basic bodice, the blazer, and the double breasted blazer. For all other patterns, the default now is no shoulder dart. A shoulder dart can be added to any fitted pattern using the appropriate setting in the Dart Tool. If you do to have a dart tool, the setting will be in the Options dialog.

11. Ab Averaging has long been setup to work for pants and skirts. But, it did not effect tops, including the bodice part of waisted dresses. This was modified so that waisted dress bodices got the same ab averaging as the skirts they were intended to match.

12. The following patterns had illustration problems that got corrected: Yoga Top, Low-Rise Yoga Pants, Empire Waist Nightgown, Weskit, and the Raglan Princess Blouse.

13. Shoulder Strap position on the shoulder was not being saved and restored when saving patterns.

14. Using the skirt tool on the low-rise skirt or hip-hugger skirt would change it back to a waist level design.

15. Adding curvature to a hemline that was ab depth or less would not work.

16. The length of either inseam or the outseam of flared culottes would not match front to back with measurement sets that included any waist tilt.

17. The Neck Tool would not work properly for users with Dress Shop Basic or Dress Shop Standard.

18. Some cases where a neckline merged with the princess line were not stable as you viewed all pieces versus front only or back only. Sometimes the neck would merge with the princess line and other times it would not. That was corrected.

19. The pattern illustration in the Pattern Summary was not showing the proper pattern illustration in some cases.