Help my dress fit like a dream!
March 21, 2011 9:01 AM Subscribe
I've made a dress. It doesn't fit. Do I need to take the whole thing apart, re-cut and sew back together, or can I alter it another way?
My pattern was the Colette Crepe dress, a Fifties style wrap around tea dress in woven cotton. I cut a 16 - I normally take a 12/14 in US sizes - to allow for a large bust, going by my measurements on the chart. It fits on the bust, but underneath there's a bit of excess fabric and the back is pretty baggy too. If I pull it really tight, it looks OK, but it doesn't hang quite right.
This is the first time I've ever made anything on a machine, so I did it with the help of an experienced friend who doesn't believe in using a muslin! By the time we got it finished we were pretty tired after a long day so I didn't check the fit until later. I also don't yet have a sewing machine and the thought of unpicking all that work makes me sad...
So what are the options? Could I unpick the seams, cut it a size smaller (the wrap design may allow for ease on the bust) and try again? (NB I do need to take off the skirt and restitch as the pieces weren't put together correctly, which would make bodice alteration easier.) Would it be easier to put more waist darts in? Or should I just write this off as a practice? (I'd like not to do the latter as I do love the fabric and it'd be a pain for me to get more...) Also: I know I need a copy of Fit for Real People or similar, but in the meantime, I just want to know whether it's a case of alteration or remaking the whole thing.
My pattern was the Colette Crepe dress, a Fifties style wrap around tea dress in woven cotton. I cut a 16 - I normally take a 12/14 in US sizes - to allow for a large bust, going by my measurements on the chart. It fits on the bust, but underneath there's a bit of excess fabric and the back is pretty baggy too. If I pull it really tight, it looks OK, but it doesn't hang quite right.
This is the first time I've ever made anything on a machine, so I did it with the help of an experienced friend who doesn't believe in using a muslin! By the time we got it finished we were pretty tired after a long day so I didn't check the fit until later. I also don't yet have a sewing machine and the thought of unpicking all that work makes me sad...
So what are the options? Could I unpick the seams, cut it a size smaller (the wrap design may allow for ease on the bust) and try again? (NB I do need to take off the skirt and restitch as the pieces weren't put together correctly, which would make bodice alteration easier.) Would it be easier to put more waist darts in? Or should I just write this off as a practice? (I'd like not to do the latter as I do love the fabric and it'd be a pain for me to get more...) Also: I know I need a copy of Fit for Real People or similar, but in the meantime, I just want to know whether it's a case of alteration or remaking the whole thing.
I would definitely follow Bunglegirl's advice, with one addition: Turn the dress inside-out for purposes of fitting it; that way, when you pin (or better yet, baste) where the side seams should be, your markings will be on the side you'll be re-sewing.
posted by DrGail at 9:11 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by DrGail at 9:11 AM on March 21, 2011
I didn't join in, so have no specific advice, but you might be able to get some suggestions from the Crepe Sew-Along on Gertie's blog (which you should all be reading anyway; it's great).
posted by librarina at 9:40 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by librarina at 9:40 AM on March 21, 2011
Response by poster: I had a look - in fact that's where I found out about the pattern! But she explained the process for altering a muslin and not for a finished article, so whether this will be useful to me I don't know. (Have printed it off just in case.)
posted by mippy at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by mippy at 9:46 AM on March 21, 2011
Don't turn it inside out first - you'll swap left and right sides and if your alterations aren't symmetric, they won't work when you turn the dress right side out again. (To visualize this, imagine putting on a skirt, then pulling it up over your waist so that it's inside out. To wear it, you have to rotate it left --> right before putting it on.)
Put on the dress normally, pin the seams tighter as needed, then carefully take off the dress without dislodging the pins. If you have a washable or air-erasable marker, you can make dots at the pins so the markings will be visible on the inside when the ink bleeds through. (Test your marker to make sure you it will disappear completely!)
If not, turn the dress inside out and mark the position of each pin with a piece of chalk, tailor's tack, or whatever. Now remove the pins and lay the dress out flat. You should be able to connect the dots to make a smooth curve for your new seamline. If anything looks too abrupt or jagged, try again - it won't look right when sewn.
You may find that taking in the seams isn't enough or just doesn't look right - you may need to add darts at the back and front waist. You want the grain of the fabric to remain vertical, and sometimes taking too much in at the sides will pull the grain askew at the waist. Make sure the bodice and skirt still fit together after taking in darts - you may need to add corresponding darts to the skirt.
I think you can probably alter this dress to fit, but I hope you've joined Team Muslin at this point!
posted by Quietgal at 9:58 AM on March 21, 2011
Put on the dress normally, pin the seams tighter as needed, then carefully take off the dress without dislodging the pins. If you have a washable or air-erasable marker, you can make dots at the pins so the markings will be visible on the inside when the ink bleeds through. (Test your marker to make sure you it will disappear completely!)
If not, turn the dress inside out and mark the position of each pin with a piece of chalk, tailor's tack, or whatever. Now remove the pins and lay the dress out flat. You should be able to connect the dots to make a smooth curve for your new seamline. If anything looks too abrupt or jagged, try again - it won't look right when sewn.
You may find that taking in the seams isn't enough or just doesn't look right - you may need to add darts at the back and front waist. You want the grain of the fabric to remain vertical, and sometimes taking too much in at the sides will pull the grain askew at the waist. Make sure the bodice and skirt still fit together after taking in darts - you may need to add corresponding darts to the skirt.
I think you can probably alter this dress to fit, but I hope you've joined Team Muslin at this point!
posted by Quietgal at 9:58 AM on March 21, 2011
Response by poster: Ah, Quietgal, that makes sense. So it's just a case of increasing the seam allowance, after a fashion? I was confused looking at Gertie's blog, as she was taking a whole horizontal tuck out of the back and front, but then she did say that was part of a small bust adjustment which wouldn't apply to me :)
posted by mippy at 10:18 AM on March 21, 2011
posted by mippy at 10:18 AM on March 21, 2011
Patterns don't work well if you have a larger hip/bust to waist ratio so it's not odd that you bought the pattern for your biggest area and had to take it in at the waist. A few more tips:
* You don't have to rip out the seam before you pin and re-sew. Just leave it in. When you try the dress on again the seam may seam bulky but I think it's easier to sew with the original seam in there. It also reminds you that there shouldn't be any crazy sharp turns (as Quietgal says above).
* Don't take in too much. I tend to over-fit it to myself when making alterations and don't leave enough ease. Ease is there so you can move so, depending on the type of fabric and fit of dress, leave yourself room to breathe.
Congratulations on your first project! It gets easier the more you practice.
posted by Bunglegirl at 10:33 AM on March 21, 2011
* You don't have to rip out the seam before you pin and re-sew. Just leave it in. When you try the dress on again the seam may seam bulky but I think it's easier to sew with the original seam in there. It also reminds you that there shouldn't be any crazy sharp turns (as Quietgal says above).
* Don't take in too much. I tend to over-fit it to myself when making alterations and don't leave enough ease. Ease is there so you can move so, depending on the type of fabric and fit of dress, leave yourself room to breathe.
Congratulations on your first project! It gets easier the more you practice.
posted by Bunglegirl at 10:33 AM on March 21, 2011
If you have a full bust (by which I mean anything more than a B-cup) and you want to keep sewing, familiarize yourself with the Full Bust Adjustment (FBA). For instance, check out this method (though googling will reveal untold FBA riches): sewmamasew.com/blog2/?p=486
It's a bitch, but you'll appreciate it in the long run.
posted by oohisay at 12:51 PM on March 21, 2011
It's a bitch, but you'll appreciate it in the long run.
posted by oohisay at 12:51 PM on March 21, 2011
good advice so far. If you can get your more experienced friend to help you, all the better. Doing my own alterations is my own personal hell (I find it so much easier to fit other people!), so I always say, buddy system.
That said, looking at the line drawing for the Crepe, it seems to have back darts. so you can always take the darts in as well - if you cut the 16, you can use the guidelines for the 18 and see what that gets you. Use longer stitches ('basting stitches') if you're worried about it not working out. Sometimes if you take in the side seams too much, the whole thing can start to look wonky. I can't tell from what's available on the website how the ties are done - if you take too much out at the sides, you might shorten your sash in a way you do not like.
If you still have questions, photos help! I was looking at this the other day, and I think it's a lovely look. Congrats! Sewing is awesome.
posted by Medieval Maven at 1:46 PM on March 21, 2011
That said, looking at the line drawing for the Crepe, it seems to have back darts. so you can always take the darts in as well - if you cut the 16, you can use the guidelines for the 18 and see what that gets you. Use longer stitches ('basting stitches') if you're worried about it not working out. Sometimes if you take in the side seams too much, the whole thing can start to look wonky. I can't tell from what's available on the website how the ties are done - if you take too much out at the sides, you might shorten your sash in a way you do not like.
If you still have questions, photos help! I was looking at this the other day, and I think it's a lovely look. Congrats! Sewing is awesome.
posted by Medieval Maven at 1:46 PM on March 21, 2011
Mippy, you are increasing the seam allowances but not in a consistent way - you can't just sew 3 cm from the raw edge instead of 1.5 cm (or whatever). The beauty of making your own clothes is that you can custom-fit them. It's also the hard part! You may need to take in (= make seam allowance wider) at the waist and let out (= make seam allowance narrower) at the hips, or whatever, to get the fit you want. It's virtually guaranteed that you won't be a standard size, but the nice thing is that once you've figured out what adjustments you need to make, you'll find you make those same adjustments on most patterns.
This is because pattern companies design for specific body measurements at each size. Idealized, to be sure, but they're consistent across all patterns at that size. Imagine a set of dress forms in various sizes: these are the "bodies" that the pattern designers need to fit, no matter what style they're creating. The way in which you, personally, differ from that Size 14 dress form is what you have to compensate for when you adjust the pattern to fit you. In fact, most big pattern companies use the same set of standard body measurements, so once you work out how to fit a pattern from Simplicity, say, you can be pretty sure that the same set of corrections will work on a pattern from Vogue. (Note: European standards are just a little different from US sizes, but some indie pattern companies use totally different standards.)
The more fitted the garment, the more adjustments you'll need to make (and you picked a very fitted style for your first project, you brave gal!) Sewing is a great hobby and useful skill but there's a very long learning curve for professional-looking clothes. MeMail me if you want further suggestions, and good luck!
posted by Quietgal at 3:32 PM on March 21, 2011
This is because pattern companies design for specific body measurements at each size. Idealized, to be sure, but they're consistent across all patterns at that size. Imagine a set of dress forms in various sizes: these are the "bodies" that the pattern designers need to fit, no matter what style they're creating. The way in which you, personally, differ from that Size 14 dress form is what you have to compensate for when you adjust the pattern to fit you. In fact, most big pattern companies use the same set of standard body measurements, so once you work out how to fit a pattern from Simplicity, say, you can be pretty sure that the same set of corrections will work on a pattern from Vogue. (Note: European standards are just a little different from US sizes, but some indie pattern companies use totally different standards.)
The more fitted the garment, the more adjustments you'll need to make (and you picked a very fitted style for your first project, you brave gal!) Sewing is a great hobby and useful skill but there's a very long learning curve for professional-looking clothes. MeMail me if you want further suggestions, and good luck!
posted by Quietgal at 3:32 PM on March 21, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
When you pin the sides where you want to take it in check to see if the waist darts look odd. Hopefully it's not such a large alteration that you need to re-se the darts. Perhaps a picture of it will help us to determine where you should take it in.
posted by Bunglegirl at 9:07 AM on March 21, 2011