Pandemic Apparel

Trueing the front & back bodice:
Preparing the Paper:
• For the front bodice mark the Center Front (CF) & Bust Level Line (BLL).
• For the back bodice mark the Center Back (CB) & Shoulder Blade Level (SBL).

Front Bodice:
• Now remove the muslin from the dress form & lay it flat on the table. Match up the CF & BLL on the muslin to the paper, use pattern weights or pin the muslin to the paper.
• Transfer all of the marking with the tracing wheel. Then remove the fabric & with a pencil remark your markings.
• With an L or Clear Ruler make a 90º mark at CF/Neck 1/4 inch long & CF/Waist 1/2 inch long.
• Front Shoulder & Waist Dart: Connect the waist dart marking to the Apex & do the same to the shoulder dart markings. Then measure away from the apex towards waist 1 inch, center the marking between both lines & connect this point to the waist dart markings. Do the same to the shoulder dart.
• Creating the neckline: Place the french curve with curly side down & move it until you match up the CF/Neck & Neck/Shoulder.
• Shoulder Seam: Close up shoulder dart & draw a straight light from Neck/Shoulder to shoulder ridge.
• Waist Seam: Close up waist dart & draw a curved line with your Hip Curve Ruler matching up the CF/Waist, Waist Dart & Waist/Side Seam (SS).
• Draw in the SS. Then Measure down 1 inch & out 1/2 inch for Ease.
• Drawing in the Armhole: with the french curve, make sure the curl is away from center & connect the following points: SS/Armhole, between Armhole pinch, & shoulder ridge.
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Back Bodice:
• Now remove the muslin from the dress form & lay it flat on the table. Match up the CB & SBL on the muslin to the paper, use pattern weights or pin the muslin to the paper.
• Transfer all of the marking with the tracing wheel. Then remove the fabric & with a pencil remark your markings.
• With an L or Clear Ruler make a 90º mark at CB/Neck 1 inch long & CB/Waist 1 inch long.
• Back Shoulder & Waist Dart: Start by drawing the waist dart. Find the center of the dart & draw a line parallel to CB, that is 7 inches long and connect the two waist dart marking. Then Connect the waist dart point to the shoulder dart marking closest to the neck. From the shoulder dart marking measure 3 inches down & connect that point to the other shoulder dart marking. You should have both your shoulder & waist dart marking drawn in at this point.
• Creating the neckline: Place the french curve with curly to the righ of you & move it until you match up the CB/Neck & Neck/Shoulder.
• Shoulder Seam: Close up shoulder dart & draw a straight light from Neck/Shoulder to shoulder ridge.
• Waist Seam: Close up waist dart & draw a curved line with your Hip Curve Ruler matching up the CB/Waist, Waist Dart & Waist/SS.
• Draw in the SS. Then Measure down 1 inch & out 1/2 inch for Ease.
• Drawing in the Armhole: The back armhole is done in two steps. First place the french curve at SBL/SS, making sure the curl is away from center. Then draw in your armhole. Move the french curve to match up the SBL/Shoulder ridge, then draw in your armhole.

Balancing the Armhole:
• Measure the front & back armhole. The front armhole should measure 1/2 inch shorter than the back armhole.

Correcting front & back armhole:To make the armhole longer removing 1/4 inch at the middle of the armhole, shaping back to its original corners at the top and bottom.
• To make the armhole shorter add 1/4 inch at the mid/armhole area, and again, reshape to its original corners at the top & bottom.
• If the arm hole does not balance by removing or adding 1/4 inch an error was made on the dress form or when transferring your markings.

Checklist:
• 1/2 inch ease at side seam/armhole
• 1/8 inch ease across front chest area without pulling
• 1/4 inch ease across back shoulder blade level
• Draped side seams align with dress form side seam.
• Side seam draped together with out pulling, twisting or distorting.

Manila Paper:
Cutting your block out of manila paper. First fold the manila paper in half and place the CF on the fold, then staple in place. Staples as much as you can, just keep in mind the more staple you use the more time you'll be using to remove the staples later. CB doesn't have to be in the fold, but we need two pieces (the right & left back bodice). Once you have both pieces stapled its time to cut. A tip when using your shears to cut manila paper, angle your shears away from the pattern piece. Don't go over board, just a slight tilt should do the trick.

Notching:
• Once you have both pattern pieces cut out, its time to notch. You'll need the CF/neck & waist, CB/nack & waist, Shoulder & Waist darts & armhole.
• For the Front & Back Armhole Notch measure 3 inches away from SS. Note that the back armhole gets two notches. So measure 1/2 inch from the 3 inch point & notch.

Marking your patterns:
• First open your patterns so they are mirrored. The front bodice shouldn't be a problem, but the back bodice since they are two seperate pieces, you should have a right and left back bodice.
• Start by Marking the Front Bodice CF, grainline, Pattern Piece Name, Size & Cut # (circle the cut number).
• For the Back Bodice mark the CB, grainline, Pattern Piece Name, Size & Cut # (circle the cut number).
• Like I said in this episode, I'm going to make a separate tutorial explaining all you need to know about marking your patterns.

Buying Supplies
• I usually go downtown to the fashion district to buy supplies. I've added a link if anybody is interested in buying these supplies online. The cost of shipping paper might be expensive, so try to find it locally.

Atlas Levy Sewing Machine, Co. has a Basic Designer Package
Which includes: 1 Pattern Notcher 45N-1/16 Depth 1/4" Width 1/16", 12 Large pattern hooks for 1" and 1/12" pipes, 1 7" Needle Point & Pattern Tracer, 1 Awl (Punch Hole) 1 Package of Pins, 1 Seam Ripper, & 1 Measuring Tape. If you're starting out and need a starter kit, then this is for you.