Hi Rory
I have started the draft of the trousers and I notice that you have an additional step in the video that is not shown on the drafting notes. Point 23 is shown on the notes as sitting on the top of the waistband line, but in the video you lower that by the same distance as between 24 and 25. So am I right in thinking that the line 23(modified)-25 lies parallel to 23-24 as shown below for the back part draft?
Hi Rory
Further to the above, can I clarify that the dart on the front is in effect removed by taking the dart width from the waistline seam at the top of the front piece leaving the shaping to continue on the trouser facing piece.
In essence the length along the waistline seam becomes (Waist/4) + 3/8" (seam allowance on side seam only as fly side is a stitch line)?
No actual dart is shown being sewn on the front panels in the video so this is what I have understood to have occurred.....Is this correct?
That’s right
Yep, that step is missing from the notes.
@Rory Duffy thanks for clarifying. 👍🏼
Hi Rory
I have completed my trouser draft. I decided to use a program to create it from your formula instead of drafting by hand as it has meant that I can dip into it at any time I get a spare moment from work, without having to set up my work table. I appreciate that this might be sacrilege to purists of the handcraft approach - so apologies in advance - I'm just trying to get these garments made to the best of my ability in the spare time I have at the moment!
Before I start striking the pattern could you (and/or any other members) have a glance over this to see if there are any obvious errors in construction/interpretation of the formula. In particular I am concerned that the formula only has a value for Waist (which I assume is taken through the line level with the belly button) but since the rise I have chosen is lower than that there is a different value for the waist measurement at this point. This is probably an obvious question but should I be using the waist measurement at the intended waistband level in the formula rather than the measurement at belly button height?
Hi, another techie here! What program are you using? I tried to do the same with the coat in seamly 2d, but stopped due to the lack of a french curve there. As far as the blasphemy 😜 of using CAD or similar programs to strike patterns, I suppose one could look at it the same way as I heard or read somewhere (Was it Rory?!), regarding the difference between "made to measure" and "bespoke".
You can draft or strike a pattern with all formulas and measurements you want: It'll never be bespoke until someone goes and makes adjustments that actually complement your stature / body.
I started off with MTM garments from https://freesewing.org - which definitely works really nicely - but it will never be possible to take every possible peculiarity into account using mathematics. Things like dropped or square shoulders, hollow backs etc. - that's where realy craftsmanship comes in.
I’m using Valentina. It’s free but very good as it’s fully parametric. Once you have created the draft in accordance with the formula you want to you can plug in new measurements (for another customer say) and it will instantly redraft for the new measurements. I’m really impressed. It’s the first time I’ve used it and I’d say it took half a day to grasp how to use it but now it seems pretty intuitive.
I have a good working knowledge of Autocad and other 3D and graphic programs so it wasn’t a huge leap to get to grips with this. I think it is well worth spending a few hours learning. Now I can dip into my drafting as and when I get a few minutes spare without setting up a large drafting area. You can print out on a normal printer and position the ‘tiles’ of A4 onto your drafting card with reposition-able spray adhesive and cut out your pattern. It’s very convenient.
@jeremymarkbarnett Cheers, I looked at Valentina, but didn't use it (yet), as I wasn't sure if it was maintained at all. The stuff Valentina does sounds a lot like the platform https://freesewing.org does, which can used for exactly these things. I've already learned so many things here from @Rory Duffy, which I will definitely integrate in my work with patterns from freesewing.org. Although I am quite pleased with my "Wahid waistcoat" for instance, I am very much looking forward to the Waistcoat videos. The Simon Shirt I made are still not 100% what I want them to be, so - as soon as coats and trousers are done, I will definitely have a very close look into the Simon pattern and see if I can "deduct" a more bespoke way of sewing these shirts!