How Do I Know How Lopsided I Am?

Fitting Question

Sewing Friends:

Gee! You gals are quick! I barely got the last post out, when I was asked how I determined how lopsided I am. In other words, how do I know that I am one inch larger on the right side of my hips and one inch higher on the right side? Did I just keep guessing until I got it right? Absolutely not!

That's where my common sense fitting method comes in. If you follow the instructions in my ebook, "Common Sense Fitting For Hard To Fit Folks Who Want Great Fitting Skirts and Pants", you can determine exactly where you differ from side to side and exactly how much that is. There is no trial and error or guessing at all. It makes sense to measure and fit this way. Try it!

It is so important to understand how much your body differs from side to side to get a good fit. Particularly, as we age, we seem to shift more due to operations, arthritis, etc., etc.

Oftentimes, folks don't even realize they are lopsided. They just know that their clothes are uncomfortable and don't fit. Consequently, these ladies usually choose very loose fitting garments to get the comfort they seek. This causes them to look more frumpy and matronly than they should look. They are unhappy with their sewing results and no longer sew for themselves. These ladies usually wear knits rather than wovens for the same reasons. Knits stretch where they have larger "bumps"!

If you are one of these ladies, please do yourself a favor and check out my Common Sense Fitting Method to learn more about your body, what you need, where you need it and how to apply that to a commercial sewing pattern.

Then, get the Wild Ginger pattern making software and input your larger measurements as your sloper. Print out patterns with your fit already in them for that side and then, after you cut out your garment, trim off what you don't need for the smaller side.

I am telling you that this is so much easier to do than fitting every pattern every time you make a garment. If you think about it, you probably only wear a few basic style garments, like pants, a top, skirt and jacket. Get those patterns to fit you and have fun sewing different fabrics and using different sewing techniques to create different looks without all the fitting frustration you suffered in the past.

Sew for yourself once again and really enjoy it! Good fit is possible! Go for it! You will look and feel so much better. It just makes sense!

To Your Sewing and Fitting Success,
Marian

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Classic Sewing Patterns

Sewing Patterns

Sewing Friends:

Thank you for your comments, emails and phone calls regarding my rant on the sloppy styles! You made my day! Maybe we can start a style revolution!

This inspired me to search for some good basic classic patterns that I think might work for most of you to help give you some ideas on what to sew and how to sew them to achieve the most professional results. I plan to add my own sewing tips. techniques and suggestions to each pattern so it will be a mini sewing course in itself. I hope to develop a good "Classic Pattern List".


How do you like that idea? Tell me your thoughts!


If you have a good, well cut pattern that you recommend, please let me know so I can test it out and add it to our "Classic Pattern List".


Now think about this!


Most of us wear just a few styles on a regular basis. It is our "uniform" so to speak. Look for sewing patterns to duplicate that look. Get your fit worked out in those few patterns and then just cut and sew to your heart's content. Imagine! You just might use up some of that stash that you have.


It really is a lot of fun to sew when you know the garment will fit without trying it on, ripping and restitching a dozen times.


Stop struggling with a new pattern every time you make a pair of pants! Get a basic pant pattern perfected for your shape and then learn how to change the design (not the fit) to create any other style pants you might ever want or need. Don't confuse "style" and "fit"!


Even if you gain or lose weight, your crotch basically stays the same. And, if you were lopsided before, you still are! You may just be more or less wide, but still the same shape!


You know how to let out or take in a side seam. It's the curves, lumps, bumps and tilts that cause your frustration! Everyone has a different combination of those. You just need to find out what yours are and how to accommodate them so your garments can hang "on grain" on your body. Then the wrinkles and pulls disappear.


My Common Sense Fitting Method will help you get the best fit. Try it! It just makes sense!


I am here to help if you need it.


To Your Sewing Success,

Marian



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Fitting Tip - How To Move A Bust Dart

Fitting Tip - How To Move A Bust Dart

Hi Sewing Friends:

Just got back from AZ where we spent New Year's Eve with our son. We went to a lovely party and I really enjoyed seeing all the different outfits everyone wore. What a variety! One in particular caught my eye. It was a lovely sheath dress with a sheer overcoat. It fit pretty well however, the gal's bust darts were in the wrong place and spoiled the look of the dress. Someone had made the dress for her and used a lot of couture techniques in the construction. If only the bust darts pointed to her bosom, it would have been perfect.

Don't let this happen to you. Move your bust darts to point to the apex of your bust for a better fit.

Here is an easy way to help you find your bust point and to move your bust darts on your sewing patterns.

http://sewingprojecttips.com/2007/01/05/fitting-tip-how-to-move-a-bust-dart/

It just makes sense!

To Your Sewing and Fitting Success,

Marian

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Sewing Pants That Don't Fit!

Hi Sewing Friends:

I am on a pants fitting rampage today. I can't stand to see you continue to suffer from fitting frustration.

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"Finally! Pants That Really Fit"

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How many times have you seen the headline, "Finally, Pants That Really Fit"? Well, I know I've seen it many times over the years. And, I can tell you, too, that I was suckered into believing I had found the magic key to pants fitting success. But the results were always the same, "Pants That Don't Fit".

Every "expert" I found basically laid out the same plan to achieve good fit. . .take your full hip measurement, yada, yada, yada, and make muslins and more muslins and tweak it, tweak it, tweak it until you finally give up totally frustrated, or. . .maybe you got a decent fit, but you have no idea how you got it and can't do it again! It makes you feel like you need to call one of those "Extreme Makeover" Shows for help to redo your body!

I'm sorry to rant on like this, but I just read another article about fitting pants in a well-known sewing magazine and it drives me crazy! No wonder you quit sewing for yourself. These articles are not what you need. It is the same old song, so you will get the same result. . .more pants that don't fit in the UFO pile.

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Whose fault is it?

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It isn't your fault. It is the instruction and information that you've been given over the years that is basically a guessing game about what you need and where you need it to achieve good fitting pants.

It probably isn't the "experts" fault either. They can get good fit if they work at it, but they have years of "tweaking" experience. They can start out with a pattern that fits no one, put it on you, and pin and tuck until it comes close to fitting. Then, they send you home and tell you to continue doing the "trial and error" method til you get what you want.

I actually paid a lot of money to have someone do that for me. I still didn't get what I needed. Who knew I was lopsided? I had to find that out for myself.

A balanced sewing pattern can't possibly work on an unbalanced body. The "experts" don't want to deal with unbalanced figures in their classes. It just takes too much time. One of the major problems is that so many people are lopsided, but they don't even know it and many of the instructors don't recognize it or know how to deal with it. You don't know either; you just know that your pants don't fit.

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What do we want?

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I know that most of us who sew are not pattern drafters, nor do we want to be. That is not our forte or interest. We simply want to sew something, put it on and enjoy the fruit of our labor.

We like to use sewing patterns to help us do that. We can read and follow instructions, but the sewing pattern instructions are vague and fitting all the different types of figure deviations can't be addressed in an envelope.

Sewing pattern companies are in the business to sell patterns, not to actually help you get a good fit. They want you to continue to buy more patterns! So, you keep trying different ones.

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So, what am I promoting?

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Now, I can hear you asking, so, what am I promoting? Yes, I have developed a fitting method for pants that works a heck of a lot better than anything I've ever tried in my 50 years of teaching sewing before. Yes, I do sell it. But, I don't really care if you buy it or not. It is up to you. If you want to try it, fine. If you don't, that's OK, too. It isn't a big investment in money, but it is a tremendous investment in achieving the fit you are so desperately seeking.

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How is it different than all the other pants fitting methods out there?

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It is based on common sense! It is not a "trial and error" or a "tweak it" method.

I hate "muslins"! I don't even have it in my house. I want to wear what I spend my time sewing. If you know how to measure accurately, you should be able to wear what you sew.

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How do you achieve good fitting pants?

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Basically, to achieve good fit, you must have the right amount of fabric where you need it. . .not too much or too little. To do that, you need to know how much you need. You achieve that by measuring each section of your body, not the whole body. You need to know how to do that and most methods gloss over this, but don't address it. Then, you need to know how to apply that knowledge to a commercial sewing pattern. That's the tricky part that usually isn't covered either. Sewing the pants is the easy part.

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Does this make any sense to you?

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If I have made some sense to you and you want to know more about my common sense skirt and pants fitting method, "Common Sense Fitting Method For Hard-To-Fit Sewing Folks Who Want Great Fitting Pants And Skirts", check out my website, 1st Step To Sewing Success, at: http://www.1ststeptosewingsuccess.com

To Your Sewing Success,

Marian


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