Sewing with Patterns:: A Little Sewing Pattern History

Before I continue talking pants making I thought I’d back up a bit and bring a bit of enlightenment to the whole subject of how to fit a pattern. A short while back I discovered something that really changed my thoughts on garment sewing and pattern fitting. Did you know that prior to WWII most women made their own clothes AND they understood how to make a pattern fit their body? It was something they were taught when learning to sew. It was common knowledge and women helped each other with this!

Generations of women were wearing clothes that were fit to their particular body. Imagine this::  Your pants or skirts are the correct length. Sleeves aren’t too long or too short. Everything you wear is custom fit to your body.  This awareness hit me when I learned to make jeans.

Vogue Patterns, Simplicity Patterns, Butterick Patterns, and McCall’s Patterns all knew this. Their patterns came in specific sizes and you were expected to make adjustments for it to fit your body. It was a combination of fit and fashion.

Then somewhere along the way women got busy with work and started buying their own clothes. Sometimes they fit, sometimes they didn’t.  And.we.learned.to.live.with.clothes.that.didn’t.fit.well.

My mother is a perfect example of this. She grew up during WWII, making her own clothes. Went to college in the 50’s and got a degree in Home Economics {which, sadly, was one of her limited options at the time}. She sewed her wedding dress, most of her clothes, and a whole lot of clothes for me and my sisters. Her clothes were polished, our clothes were polished. Back then, she still remembered how to make a pattern fit.

Unfortunately, she gradually stopped sewing garments for her family and never shared with me what she knew about fitting. Along the way, she lost the skill and it was never passed down.

And, my mom is not alone in this. From the 70’s on, sewing women switched from practical garment sewing to quilting. A whole generation of talented sewing women left this skill set behind.

Where does that leave my generation and the next generation of sewists? Thanks to shows like Project Runway, garment sewing is making a comeback. And with it, the need to know how to make a pattern fit. {It doesn’t hurt that there is a Craftsy class for this}

And, that is where I am starting with my pants project. My first step was taking accurate measurements and then adjusting my pattern.

After that, I will be making a muslin ~ which is a trial of my now-fitted pattern. By making it out of muslin (or any inexpensive fabric – think old bed sheet), I can see where I might need to make adjustments to my pattern. I will do all of this before I cut out my fashion fabric.

Baby steps in the challenge to regain the lost skill of fitting. Let me know your thoughts on this subject. I’d love to hear stories about mothers and grandmothers who really knew how to rock the fit!