Drafting 4: Sleeves and Skirts JENNIE CHANCEY Gets sleeves rst ‘Sleeves can seem like a daunting prospect, especially when you consider the sheer numberof sleve shapes and styles from 67 bistory. This is where i willbe hepflto study sleeve shapes in soureslike Patterns of Fshion, The Cut of Women's Clothes, Period Costumes for Stage andl Sereen, and other excellent gridded pattern books. Once you get a fel for what sieeve styles look ike when lid out at, you'll be ready to rol Here are just afew examples: Puffed ballgown sleeve (lef, as it looks; right, “Then, of course, you have sleeves that come haid fay Jn two pieces like this one: a Pegi) ABasic Sleeve Sloper 1840s leg o! mutton sleeve (left sit ooks; right, lad flat) Before we dive into couple of historical sleeve styles for 1812, you'll want to master creating a basie sleeve sloper for yourself You do not really need to make basic sleeve slopers in every size for which you plan to draft patterns, however. While I find it extremely convenient tobe able to pull outa basic bostice sloper in the size T need, I find that I can whip together a sleeve sloper from my mid-sized bodie's armsaye measure in no time. For now, let's make a US size 12 or 14 long-sleeve sloper (or one to fit your own measurements if you're not drafting patterns for others) Write down: 1. The measurement from shoulder point to wrist (you can use yourself or get this from a tailored louse in your own closet), . The measurement around the bicep for the same size sleeve, ‘The measurement from the shoulder to the fullest part ofthe flexed bicep (you ean take this on yourself or another “average” ga. The measurement around the armseye from the bodice sloper for the size you're working on. “The measurement from the underarm to the wrist (again, going from an average siz), ‘The measurement around the knuckles of your clenched fist (which will have to ft through the end of sleeve). ‘Now add two inches tothe armseye measurement and two inches tothe knuckle measurement for ease 5. Finally, add two inches tothe bicep measurement for ease — you are not making a dsely fitted loper, since you want it tobe versatile,‘The length of the rectangle is the length from the shoulder point to the wrist “The dotted line is placed across the point where the shoulder-to-bicep measurement hits. “The dots on the outer edge ofthe upper part ofthe rectangle (which are the rectangle's width) come at ‘the underarm (underarm to wrist measurement) and are as wide as the armseye measurement plus (Shenker bee two inches. Shower wt “The two dark dots on the dotted line are the bicep plus ese. ‘The two dots at the bottom ofthe rectangle are forthe knucke plus ease measurement. | ‘Kelle ps See ‘Once you have these dots in place, you are ready to eonneet them with your straightedge and your French eurve(s). First use the straightedge to make the side seam lines from the underarm dots through the bioep dots tothe wrist dots. "Now take your French curve(s) and use them to create the top curve and the front and back armhole half curves. ‘The final result should look lke this righd "Now you have your basic sloper! This will make a simple, semi-fited cap sleeve. Now's where the fun begins. From this humble litle sloper, you can ereate just about any other sleeve under the sun. You can slash this basic sloper to create a host of different sleeves. A Short, Puffed Sleeve | Tomales ple deo nytt ote basen sper aint. 3 qndcating tut not ay Goa tang ere mar shen whee sah Nes serena hes heave dee But if you wanted to make a fuller sleeve (gathered atthe top and bottom), you'd need to “explode” the sleve like this ‘You can see how you slash the sleeve and manipulate it to create greater width atthe top and bottom (more atthe bottom in this example). ‘Tomake a puffed sleeve with more gathers atthe op and fewer atthe bottom, you'l ‘manipulate the pieces this way. Accouple of things to keep in mind: Always make sure you have plenty of ease to play with when you are creating a ited or semi-fitted sleeve. You ean always eut off excess; its much harder to2dd it back on later! Don't be afraid to slash and play! That is how the most interesting sleeves come into being, Interfacing can be your best friend, as you can try all kinds of shapes and slyles without running through a heap of muslin.Moving on to historical sleeves "Now, that was the easy, modern sleeve method. To use the vintage method I've found ‘utlined in excellent dressmaking texts fram the 1890s through 1910s, you will change the shape ‘of your sleeve slightly. ‘Modern sleeves tend tobe pretty much symmetrical, but earlier sleeves were not. There are ‘exceptions to this rule, ofcourse (the leg ' mutton sleeve shown above looks like a symmetrical ‘mushroom), but the majority of sleeves from the Edwardian era and earlier don't lok ike a ‘moder sleeve with a symmetrical cap. Here's an example ofa basic Edwardian sleeve shape (ight): “The vertical marks show where the sleeve will match the underarm seam and the top shoulder seam of the bodice. ) Foran excellent tutorial on ereating a perfectly fitted sleeve with a historical shape, be sure to read Marion MeNealy’sartide, Drafting a Basie Fitted Sleeve, Marion's method is identical to mine, so I won't repeat it here. Instead, I'l present photos fora gathered 1812 sleeve. A Gathered Long 1812 Sleeve First, I ly out my bodice front and back pieces flat on my cutting board, overlapping the dropped shoulder seams to make the seam line up as itllbe when finished, and create the ‘armhole opening, ‘Taking my tape, I measure the curve ofthe armseye from side seam edge toside seam edge. Laying down a piece of interfacing, lay out the curve as! measured it (Gouble-checking it ‘against the actual amseye curve). Using. pencil, I drave this curve onto my interfacing. "Now it's time to plugin the rest of the measurements Gust as I did forthe basiesleeve in the instructions above). Firs, shoulder-tobicep (marking a dot there).‘Now from shoulder-to-hem (which is going to be two inches below the wrist). [Now I draw a horizontal line across the bicep dot that matches the bicep measurement plus tree inches for ease (remember, start with more; you ean always subtract ater!) “Then I ly the measuring tape down to create one sleeve edge from curve tohem, touching the bicep line. repeat this forthe ather side ofthe sleeve, then cut out my sleeve Sloper. Setting aside the sloper for naw, I sew up my bodice in my fashion fabric and pin it tothe ‘mannequin so can get the armhole in place ‘Here's the front "lining" erossed over stays and pinned.Bodice crossed over and pinned tomannequin. Armseye, showing the fit over the stays and the dip toward the center back ofthe bodice. ‘Taking up the interfacing sleeve sloper, 1 pin-bast it and tes it by pinning it aver the armscye on the outside ofthe bodice. ‘This shows the seam allowance taken up atthe front of the armhole.‘Sleeve back curve fullness pleated and pinned. Satisfied thatthe sleeve fits the armhole nicely, I remove it and try it on myself to test the Hmm! Looks a bit bagaier than 1'd like. I]be eutting it down from bieep to wrist fora loser fit. ‘Now T take the flat pattern piece and lay it out on my cutting board as if 'm ready to pin ‘and sew it, Tis helps me to catch errors in the seam match-up, as you see right. ‘The “dip” inthe armhole curve should intersect exactly with the 5/8" seam allowance on the ‘other side, forming 2 "V" at the seam. This will ave tobe tweaked, ops! There's sight discrepancy at the hem edge ofthe sleeve. Will do some trimming. here. Here Ihave trimmed away just abit ofthe sleeve back curve so that it will intersect properly withthe sieeve front “ip.” ‘When I match up the sleeve seam, I now have a perfect 5/8" intersection atthe top.‘Totake in the fullness from bicep to hem, 1 use my measuring tape to create a gentle imeard curve from sleeve heed on dawn, "want to keep the width the same at bottom and top so this allows me to pullin fullness only between those two points. { pin the interfacing sleeve together again and try it on the bodice. Satisfied with the results, I cutout the real sleve in my fashion material. After sewing up the sleve, I test-basteit into the armhole to check the rotation, ‘On many sleeves from this time period, the seam goes forward of the bodice side seam in ‘order to match the fullest part of the sleeve head with the inward curve of the back armhole. ‘When I test-baste the sleeve after eyeballing it, find I've skewed the seam too far forward, creating an awkward drape tothe sleeve (it aso helps to try the bodice on yourself to see hhow the sleeve fees), ‘The back shows this even more dearly, asthe sleeve ends up folding onto itselfas it hangs. So remove my basting stitches and rotate the sleeve seam so itis abit closer tothe side seam bot stil in front of it also decide T want the sleeve gathers to hit below the dropped shoulder seam in backHere's the sleeve unpinned to show you the fullest part ofthe sleeve head and how it ‘matches nicely tothe back ofthe armhole. ‘Tofinish up the bodice, I cut ias strips of my fashion material tomake the neckline binding, ind the neelline lip carves, and hem the binding in place. Then I sew in my sleeves, which fit perfectly and provide the needed fullness across the back for ease of movement. Short, Puffed Ballgown Sleeve eeebretttt i Let's try one more experimental sleeve before we move on to skirts. Remember the striped crossover bodice I ereated las time? Here's short, puffed ballgown sleeve cut ont using the same method I've outlined for the Jong sleve (only I've made the sleeve earve wider for greater fullness). gather the lower edge into a small sleeve band, then gather the wide sleeve head into the armseye.07/08/2015 Drafting 4: Sleeves and Skirts | Your Wardrobe Unlock'd “The gathers run from justin front ofthe shoulder to the dropped shoulder seam behind, I ‘As you see, you can have alot of fun playing with sleeves just by familiarizing yourself with different shapes and experimenting with their placement in various armscyes, Some of the trckist sleeves come from the 1700s due tothe extreme curves and even angles of armseyes atthe bodice back, but experimentation will help you navigate through even those (as will Katherine Caron-Greig'sartile for YWU on setting in 18th century sleeves), Drafting Basic Skirts for Your Dresses ‘There are obviously just about as many types of skirts out there as there are sleeves, You ean go anywhere from having a basi front and back to having skirts with multiple gores, odets, and all kinds of draped, ruched, or tucked panels. Let's begin with the most basie dress skirt. Basic Dress Skirt For «skirt without any fullness at the waistline, the top of each skirt piece is going tobe exactly as wide asthe lower edge of each bodice piece. Take your bodiee toile and measure cach piece (i yaur bodice backis in two or three picacs, measure the left o right half of the sewn bodice back tile rather than cach individual piece). We will assume that your center front bodice and skirt pieces willbe ut on the fod, so fold the center front bodice piece in half before you measure i. Write down these measurements. ‘This tells you how wide the top of each skirt piece is going to be. Draw a straight line for the top ofthe skirt front piece (the measurement ofthe folded bodice center front). Decide on desired skirt length (ankle? mid-calf? ete) and note down that measurement, That isthe length of the ‘enter front lin. Go ahead and draw this vertical ine. "Now take the hip measurement from your "standar” list and divide it in hat (for example, i t's 38", you will note down 19" for the skirt front-or 9.5" from the front fold). "Now add room enough for your seam allowance and ease. Remember that someone has tobe able to sit and walk in this skirt, so the hip width eannot be anywhere near exact, or the skit wil strain or split atthe seams, For a semi-fited skirt, I recommend starting with at least four inches of ease to allow for comfort while sitting and ‘walking (you can always take i in ifyou find you prefer a closer (tlater). Two inches will goto the skirt back and two tothe skirt front (so one inch since we're working with a front fold). That makes the total hip width from the fold of the skirt front 9.5" + 1° + 5/8", or 21/8", From the top line of your skit piece, measure down 9" (average length from waistline to fullest part ofthe hip). ‘Now make a dot 11/8" from the enter front ofthe skirt and nine inches down from the top. Using a hipline curve (available from just about any fabric or eraft oulet as well as clotilde-com), mateh the top of the skirt tothe hipline dot, creating a gentle curve file//D:ICOSTURAIDICASIDicas %20para%20aprendizes/historicos/546- drafting-4-sleeves-and-skirts.ntm 9507/08/2015 Drafting 4: Sleeves and Skirts | Your Wardrobe Unlock'd Fora simple skirt without lot of fare, you ean just continue the line on down tothe desired hem Jength and draw a horizontal line to match up with the skit's conte front. There is your first skirt piece. ‘The method for the skirt backis identical. Ifyou plan to cat the skirt back on the fold lke the front, you won't need a seam allowance there but will add a "FOLD" marking instead, You can then plan for a side seam opening ora slash for ‘center back placket 1. Sew up a tole in muslin or interfacing fora try-an so you ean check the ease and the match-up tothe bodice. From this point, you ean ereate endless variations on a theme. 2. Ifyou want a full skit, you'll make the topline wider for gathers, pleats o gauging. Decide how full you want your skirt tobe (ifthe circumference is going to be 80", for example, your skirt front could be 40" wide and yout skirt back 40" wide). 33. Mark the frontline "FOLD," then draw a line out 20" tothe side, 4. Draw a line from the side to the hem, then back across tothe center front to create the rectangle (or square) ofthe skirt front piece, 5. Now just add enough room forthe waistline seam allowance and your hem, and repeat these instructions forthe skirt back. 6. Ifthe dress will open in the back, you need a slash for a placket or center back scam. Ifthe opening willbe on a seam, you will add 5/8" tothe 40" wide measurement to give you that seam allowance. Obviously, you can reverse these directions ifyou want the gathered skirt to open inthe front You can create more skirt panels inthe same way Ifyou want ‘more than a basic front and back. Ifyou still want an 80" hem circumference, you could make four panels of 20" each (plus seam allowances). Or, asin the Regency, you can make the skit front panel match the bodice width and have all he fullness in the back panel. It's all up to your preferences! Gored Skirts |fyou'd like your skirt to flare at the hemline and have no fllness at the top, you can create gored pieces. Gored skirts come in all shapes and styles. You'll int often find a center front seam, side front seams and side seams on a gored skirt front (or you may have no eentr front seam, as on my 1909 "Beatrix" s Pattern). ‘Whatever the choice, you determine the width ofthe tops ofthese pieces by dividing the waistline measurement in half (let's assume a 30" waist, which is 15" divided in hal) ‘Now divide this measurement in thirds for three skirt front pieces (5°). You do no, of course, have tomake the tops all the same with. Ifyou are dividing, 35" front waistline measurement into three gores, you could make the front gore three inches wide and each side gore six inches wide. I's all up to you! [Note: We're going to add in the fitting ease Inter] Decide how full you want the bottom of the skirt tobe (let's say 120") and divide that in half forthe skirt front (60°) divide ae that in thirds, and yom know that you need the bottom of each skirt front piece tobe 20" wide. Drave your waist-o-hem line, jig then draw your 20" lin, then draw your §"line atthe top and use your straightedge to make an angled line matching the top to the bottom: | Repeat all ofthis for the skirt back, remembering to account fora center back opening ora side seam opening, the fol, of course). It isa litte silly to spread out one inch of ease over three gores,soI recommend simply adding a quarter of | reoommended in a euiting book from 1916 for ease of hemming). However, the most graceful skirts havea slightly curved hemline. You can use your long French eurve todo this, beginning atthe center front (the very center should be fairly straight, then curve very slightly toward the sie front seam). Conti cede. po cal the way around until you have an even, gently curved lower ae "Now, I can tell you that I do not even bother with the French curve on these hemlines any more. I just put the skirt on the mannequin and "eye" the curve, "sing the litte hemline marker that is on the mannequin to make sure Iam cutting the skit tothe same length all the way around. You will probably find this much easier as wel. This is another area of pattern drafting where straight math just doesn't do the skirt justice — you need to eye it and "seulpt” it on the mannequin or on a helper model, ‘These are your skirt bases. Skirts really area piece of eke once you get started ~-way easier to fit than bodies! When sewing fora wide variety of body types, you might run into puckers over the derriere or hipline. Fitting each body is unique, so a skirt might pucker on one person and be perfect on another. Thats also true of bodiees and sleeves! This is where it wil help to include instructions in your pattern or in a separate document for common fitting problems, as I have done on my website. ‘Tofinish off this lesson, let me show you the skirt I created forthe 1812 crossover bodice gown I'm using as my cass model. 1812 Skirt file//D:ICOSTURAIDICASIDicas %20para%20aprendizes/historicos/546- drafting-4-sleeves-and-skirts.ntm 101507/08/2015 Drafting 4: Sleeves and Skirts | Your Wardrobe Unlock'd ‘First, made a basic rectangle for the skirt back, measuring from the highest point of the ‘enter back bodice to the desired hemline (adding seam allowance and hera width). Because the bodice back carves up in the middle, Ieuta slope from the highest point of the skin's center back othe side seams. ‘The skirt back is full enough to gather or pleat into the bodice back. pin the skirt back to ‘my mannequin (which is wearing the completed bodice) to get an idea of how it's going to look. "Now, in checking the apron-front gown gowns in Neney Bradfield Costume in Detail, I ‘noted thatthe skict back extends over the side seam towards the front ofthe bodice to allow {for an overlap atthe sides when the skirt front is tied around back: in a few large pleats ners the back to check the drape ofthe skirt, overlapping the fine seam totake up the seam allowance and check the match of the curves a the top of| the eonter back ‘To determine the width ofthe skirt front (which wll be a basi rectangle without gathers), T _measure from ane boaice side seam to the other across the front (inchuding both sear allowances), which is 16" file///D:ICOSTURA/DICASIDicas %20para%20apr endizes/historicos/546- drafting-4-sleeves-and-skirts.ntm 111507/08/2015 Drafting 4: Sleeves and Skirts | Your Wardrobe Unlock'd ‘Tosoeif this is going to provide enough fullness to overlap the side seam openi ‘over the hipline without puckers, I take my material and fold it vertically to ‘then pin that onto the mannequin Team already see puckers across the hipline, and when I check the side seams realize this iseuttingit too dase fora nice overlap or hemmed edges on the side openings. {decide to add four inches of ease and try the fold-and-pin method again. "Now I have plenty of roam for the overlap to cover the side opening gaps. It also looks like {ve got enough room in the hips so go ahead and eut my rectangle 20° wide and long ‘enough to match the skirt back atthe side seams. Pinning the skirt front tothe mannequin, I diseover puckers over the stomach area. 1T'm not alarmed, as Nancy Bradfield has already alerted me to solution to this problem on extant Regency govns! In fact, the gown she shows on page 100 of Cestume in Detail shows ‘one neat litle fix ‘The top ofthe skirt front rectangle willbe eut down slighty (making the side seams slope upward). Here's what happens when I experiment by folding down just the top ofthe skirt at the center front Voila No puckers. file//D:ICOSTURAIDICASIDicas %20para%20aprendizes/historicos/546- drafting-4-sleeves-and-skirts.ntm 12507/08/2015 Drafting 4: Sleeves and Skirts | Your Wardrobe Unlock'd ‘Lmark the fold line and cutit off with the skirt front folded in bal to achieve a gentle, symmetrical slope, ‘Since the apron-front wil not be sewn to the bodice, hem it under (creating, atthe same time, a channel forthe drawstring ribbon that will un around the back and te). ‘When I sew the skirt fronts and backs together (stopping 9” below the waistline on either side to reate that apron front) and attach the skirt tothe bodiee, [finda perfect match-up that ewers the side opening gaps. The Finished Gown Here's the 1812 gown going onto my mannequin step by step. First we see the inner bodice "ining" erossed and pinned over the stays. Now the bodice {ont is erossed over and tied in the back I ran drawstring ribbons through the hemmed lower edge of each bodice front half. These tie atthe eenter back cover the chemise. Right, isa detail shot ofthe lower edge of the erossover with the drawstring tucking under the skirt back The drawstrings are securely stitched tothe bodice side seams inside so they won't pull fre. file//D:ICOSTURAIDICASIDicas %20para%20aprendizes/historicos/546- drafting-4-sleeves-and-skirts.ntm 13/1507/08/2015 ‘Now I've lifted up the apron front skirt and pulled the drawstring around the bodice back, ‘where it runs through two self-fabric oops to stay securely in place. Drafting 4: Sleeves and Skirts | Your Wardrobe Unlock'd Loft, here's the finished gown, all fastened up! Middle is dose-up ofthe bodice front. Right, isthe gown back, showing the gentle rise atthe center back and the apron-front drawstrings tied. ‘That's there is oi! A litle measuring, a lot of draping and tweaking, and experimentation will get you from idea to finished pattern before you know it {In our final lesson, we'll discuss how to grade patterns for different sizes from your final sloper, test fit for accuracy, and move on to publishing your own, original designs! 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