How to pattern cut for your own body?

There are many different techniques to make made to measure accurate patterns, pick the one that suits you and start making that perfectly fitting wardrobe!


Drawing up a pattern with your measurement using a manual/text book
-Your manual would require you to take a number of measurements from you body and then instruct you by using those measurements to draw out a pattern. It can be a little technical and mathematical, but this method can produce great results. The difficulty depends on the book that you use. The more measurements the manual requires, the more precise the result will be to your body shape.

 Draping fabric on the mannequin
-If you own a mannequin, you can mark important lines on it (centre front, centre back, side seam, waist, neck, shoulder) and drape fabrics onto it. The draped fabric is then marked in all the areas where the seams and darts  are and other important features. And then this information is transferred onto paper. This method is faster and less mathematical.
-If your mannequin is not the right size or shape, it’s not the end of the world. You can pin shoulder pads or warding around the mannequin to achieve your body shape.This method requires very detailed measurements of your body and may still be not precise.
-Another method of size change would be to grade the draped pattern up or down.

Copy the pattern from a garment
-If there is a garment that fits you really well, use it to make a pattern! It’s not that difficult to copy a garment and you don’t need to unpick and take it apart! You can do this by measuring the garment and aiding with pin-wheel tool.

 Amend a ready-made pattern to your specific measurements
-You can buy a ready-made pattern and amend it to your specific body shape. Choose the pattern that is quite plain and can act as your body basic block. Choose the size that it the closest to yours and amend the measurements.
Whichever the method you choose I would strongly recommend to start from making a basic body pattern: a basic skirt and then a basic dress or top. Those could allow you to make a variety of designs to practice your skills on. Only when you are at an advance level I would advise to move on to jackets, coats and trousers.