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Friday, September 5, 2014

Pant Drafting Part 1

This has been one incredibly busy week. But, I guess crazy busy is better than being totally bored!
I want to do a pant drafting series to go along with the Clover pant sew along that's being done on the Sew News blog. I drafted my first pair of pants when I was 15. Being the novice that I was, I actually believed that because I was using my own personal measurements, the pants would fit perfectly right from the beginning! Of course they did not and I was devastated. Because I knew so little, I thought that I had done something wrong. Nothing wrong, they just needed to be fitted, but how? And of course that is the cry of almost everyone who either does make or has tried to make their own pants. One issue especially with pants, is that our bodies have a tendency to change on almost any given day. Even if it is a slight change, it can have an effect on how the pant fits. So I have come to the point that unless it is a perfect day, with perfect fabric, there is no such thing as a perfectly fitting pair of pants. We can obtain a good fit and then chase the perfect fit. My opinion anyway :)
So we will begin with taking measurements and move on to the actual drafting.
Here are the measurements that you will need;
1. Waist
2. Hip
3. Hip Point Length
4. Crotch Depth
5. Waist to Ankle Length
6. Inseam
7. Knee circumference
8. Leg Opening

In my next post, I will take my own measurements and have a corresponding picture for each measurement taken. I think pictures will be better than drawings.
Pants drafting is something that is fun to do. Yes, it can be a little frustrating, but I encourage you to give it a try. A pant sloper can be a very valuable tool when making pants. So good luck if you decide to give it a try, and if you just follow along, I hope you'll enjoy the posts.



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8 comments:

  1. Looking forward to read the posts. I cant join now. But soon I am making a pant. The point which confuses me while drafting pants are the amount of ease at various levels of the pant from waist to ankle. Phew.Thanks for this sew along Rhonda

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  2. Rhonda, thank you so much for starting this series. I would love to have a pair of well-fiting trousers. Really looking forward to this series. Xx

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  3. Can't wait to see how you get the crotch curve right. Please talk about us over-50 type who have a bottom that falls BELOW the crotch. I believe the term is "scooping". But WHERE and HOW MUCH? Thanks for all you do!

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  4. This is perfect timing, I really want to have some great looking pants (anything better than RTW will be a great bonus).

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  5. I can't wait to see how you do all this Rhonda :)

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  6. I am looking forward to this! I need some great fitting pants, jeans and trousers.

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  7. I can't wait to make my sloper! I need some good fitting pants, jeans and trousers.

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  8. I'm really looking forward to making a personal sloper. I've made them before using a few different drafting methods, but there was always something lacking (of course that could be due to my horrible body shape), but having said that, I'm sure that "good fitting advice" is what's missing from my previous experiences.

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