What's the Secret to Sewing Great-Fitting Garments?
The Rub-off--the Insider's Technique for Creating a Great-Fitting
Pattern!
Do you love to sew your own clothes but find it difficult to make
commercial patterns fit? Has your favorite blouse seen better days but
is no longer available in stores? Have you gained or lost weight so that
your most flattering skirt doesn't fit quite right, or would you like to
update it by remaking it in a new fabric or adding new details? If you
answered "yes" to any of these questions, you'll find the solution right
in your own closet--by creating customized sewing patterns using
garments you already own and love to wear.
In Patternmaking for a Perfect Fit, Hollywood and theater costume
designer Steffani Lincecum demonstrates the rub-off, a method of pattern
drafting used by fashion and costume industry professionals that traces
an existing garment or accessory without deconstructing or damaging it.
Steffani starts with the basics, outlining two rub-off methods--tracing
onto paper or draping with fabric--and explaining essential tools,
materials, and sewing techniques. She then shows how to duplicate a
skirt, a dress, a blouse, and a handbag, from rubbing-off the original,
to creating the pattern, to cutting and sewing the new version, to
making adjustments and incorporating a variety of other elements and
details--not only refreshing your favorite fashions but replenishing
your whole wardrobe with brand-new looks.
