Sew Easy: #3, The Selection of Patterns and Fabric

it's so much easier to sew if you buy everything you need to complete your dress on the first trip to the store too many of us go down to the store buy a pattern perhaps a fabric and some thread then we start sewing run out of thread which means another trip to the store or we do have to go back buy Belding and a buckle now today we're going to make a list of everything we're going to need to complete this dress the first thing for our list will be a pattern and if you are a beginner I'd suggest you select a simple pattern you can tell whether your pattern is simple by looking on the back side in this section that shows you the outline of the individual pieces of the pattern and now so that you can see this more clearly we've enlarged this section of three different patterns this first one has only six pieces and it is a very simple pattern as you can see the next one has three additional pieces are 9 in all and the third has 15 pieces and this would be the most complicated of these three patterns that I'm showing you I think you'll enjoy your sewing better if you'll stay with a rather simple pattern or one with only a few pieces in it and now let's look in the pattern book and pick out a pattern that'll not only be simple but will also include some of the construction problems you're going to want to learn for example if you should choose this pattern you would learn to sew on the collar put in sleeves join a blouse to a skirt and put in a side zipper as well as put on buttons and make buttonholes this pattern has some of the same problems except here we have a fitted dart at the waistline and a pleat down the front of the skirt here's another with those problems except here we have gathers at the shoulder line and the one next to it you would learn to put on a shawl collar and pleats coming from the neckline the dress I'm going to make for mrs. Moore will have a collar set in sleeves a natural waistline which will require a side zipper placket and the pleat and pockets on the skirt I've chosen this pattern so that you will learn all the fundamental construction techniques now that you know what kind of pattern to buy the next thing you need to know is what size and since the upper part of our figure is so much harder to fit than the lower part we buy by the bust measurement you remember we took two bust measurements the high bust and the full bust measurement it's been common practice to buy your patterns according to this full bust measurement but I found from experience that I got a better fit abiding by the high bust measurement and I think most of you will too now let me show you again what I mean by the high bust measurement now when you go to the store look inside the cover of your pattern book and under your correct pattern type you will find the size of your pattern directly over your bust measurement in order for you to see this more clearly I have an enlargement of that section so if you should your bust measure 34 inches you would buy a size 16 pattern now insist on the correct size pattern if a pat if the store doesn't have the size 16 don't think you can buy an 18 and just cut a half an inch off all around or this is what would happen here at the lower part of these two comparison of the patterns the solid line is your 18 and you can see if you cut a half an inch off you will be coming out just about right with your 16 but along the side you will not be cutting off enough then here under the arm you would be cutting off where you actually should be adding on then up here at the shoulder line instead of taking off a half an inch is really a change of slope of shoulder so insist on buying the correct size pattern with this information you should be able to buy the right size pattern in the right pattern type when you go to the store and now we're ready to select our fabric on the back side of your envelope you will find a chart telling you how many yards of fabric you'll need according to the size of your pattern the style you've chosen and the width of your fabric those on the back of this same pattern the suggested fabrics for this dress with these two dresses the one a straight sheath like dress and the other a dressier one with full skirt you can readily see that you'll need two different types of fabric with this tailored dress you'll need a fabric such as this that has body or such as this solid color one that would give smooth plains such as will be needed in making that type of dress with the other you'll need a filmier type of fabric or one that will gather and flare such as this piece of sheer material or we could use this soft taffeta to get the same effect in other words we want the fabric and the pattern to tell the same story so that you'll have a nice effect in your dress even though you've selected the right fabric for your pattern there's still some problems about the fabric itself for example this piece looks perfectly alright for a dress but let me show you something now you can see that this edge of the fabric has been cut so it follows the design but now let's see what happens if I snip in there and then tear it along a thread you can see now that this material was not printed along the grain or the thread of the material and now I'd like to show you what would happen if we made a dress of this fabric if we should make this dress with the grain you can see that these stripes are running downhill if we make it with the design you can see that it will not hang the same on both sides we refer to this situation as a fabric printed off grain now you don't have to take your scissors to the store in order to tell whether your fabric is printed off grain most cotton fabrics are torn from the bolt so all you need to do is look at the end of the bolt and see if the design runs off of the edge as this one does then the popular embossed cottons may be permanently embossed off grain as this one is however in those cases where they are resin impregnated we can disregard the grain and cut by the embossed design if you're a beginner I would suggest that you pick out a firm closely woven piece of fabric in solid color then you won't have the problem of print off grain or embossing off grain if a solid color doesn't fit in your wardrobe or if you don't particularly like a solid color then I suggest that you buy a small all-over print such as this one where a grain line will not be a problem we mustn't forget interfacing on the back side of your pattern it tells you how much interfacing to buy but it doesn't tell you what kind and the type of interfacing you buy will depend on the style of your garment and the fabric you're using for example if you're making this dress from gingham you'll need an interfacing down the front under the buttons and buttonholes for reinforcement now don't go to the store and just ask for interfacing but select a fabric that is firmly woven and still lightweight a nainsook or Battiste or lawn would be satisfactory and the same kind of fabric is suitable for the collar and the cuffs to add the body that will be needed now on the lower part of this jacket you need a stiffer interfacing for a style feature so ask for a permanent finish organdy or this nonwoven pellon that is washable on the back side of your envelope you'll find a list of sewing notions you'll need to complete your dress I'll tell you what length zipper and what kind and then be sure to get the color that you need tells you how many spools of thread how many buttons then get belting and buckle if you plan to make those then add to your list any sewing [age?] you need such as maybe a new measuring tape or pins now if you have completed a list such as this you'll be able to get everything you need to complete your dress with the first trip to the store but don't hurry home from the store and start making your dress for there's some things I want to tell you in the next lesson that you must know and do before you actually start cutting out the dress