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Ken Woodman

Hacking Jacket First Fitting

Hi All

I have reached the first fitting of what i am calling my hacking jacket. Three buttoned, angled pockets, ticket pocket, central vent. As you would have seen from my other post on Front Balance I have already made some adjustments before getting to this point. Following John W's direction I have slide the back up 3/4" to improve on the front balance. There is still a slight "A" slant at the front edge but really it's not as bad as the photo shows. Also the back is a little flatter than the photo shows. I am reasonably happy with it all but would be interested in any comments.

Cheers

Ken

ree — Buttoned. Dropped left has been accounted for (very clear against the mortar lines!). Sleeve lengths look ok considering left arm is lower than right

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David Richard

3 hours ago

At a glance it looks like:

Half back measure is wrong, probably why your sleeves look a little big.

Shoulder slope is wrong.

Sleeve pitch is wrong.

Looks like a drop shoulder on left side has not been accounted for.

Coat needs a lot of work yet, a few more fittings at least.

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Reece Yew

14 days ago · posted in The Trousers

Trouser cutting

Hi everyone, I’m mainly self taught and still an amateur so please don’t mind the questions(and any future questions I have).

For this one, I’d just like to focus on trouser cutting, and more specifically pleated trouser cutting, I mainly use a pleated trouser draft I have modified, however I am intending to try out using old school drafting systems. I’ll attach an image of one of the drafting systems I intend to follow.

I have a few questions so I’ll label them

1) I’ve noticed on many trousermaking systems, the distance from the crease line to the fly tends to only be 1/6 scale, and if I’m just using my measurements, that’s about 8.6cm distance from fly to crease line(which in my opinion is a little short). Am I right to say that it’s possible for me to shift the pleat line back towards the side seam while maintaining…

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John W

3 hours ago

If you want 1 1/2 inch pleats the total cloth for the pleat is 3 inches. If you want, further along the waist, let's say 1 inch pleat, the amount of cloth to make it is 2 inches.

That pattern will make nice trousers.

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Ken Woodman

18 days ago · posted in The Men's coat

Front Balance

Hi HTA Brains Trust

I am making a three buttoned hacking jacket. I have baste it up but not yet put the sleeves on but obviously, when i have the shoulder seams sewn, tried it on with the shoulder pads placed in (who doesnt?) I seem to have a long front balance as the coat is "A" Shape down the front edge. I know i should complete the baste with shoulder pads, sleeves and collar but obviously it would be good to give the first fitting its best shot if i can sort out a bit of this "A" Shape. I have done quite a bit of reading in books and various HTA Forum pieces.

I have found this in the "Tailoring Suits the Professional Way" by Clarence Poulin

I have pinned out the shoulder like Fig 36 and 3/4" brings the front edges in line

The solution is this

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John W

3 hours ago

This goes back to patterns from about the 1860s. The front piece went around to most of the back. The back covers most of the back neck heading to the shoulder (down a bit) drops 3-4 inches, curves over the shoulder blade (they can adjust for a very good shoulder blade fit) towards the center back about 3-4 inches wide. So all the part of the back that isn't filled with the back piece is part of the front. Balance was fitted different. Eventually they added a seam cutting the front piece into two parts so they could keep the back, now two parts sewn. This made moving the back balance adjustments easier by sliding it up or down and adjusting the shoulder blade fit. Which is still used to this day. It is simple and quick. Some other changes may need to be done whether you use this method or not. All human backs, fronts and shoulders are different. The first method he shows is more work and error prone. If you cut away to much of the front, you got a disaster. The back, if you make a cut error you can open up the inlay, back seam, and recreate the rest. An inch inlay can be helpful. Way cheaper than buying new cloth.

Since we are discussing breast measurement, circumference,

which includes balance. Raising the the back means back length longer, which means, the width of the back is wider/longer. The pattern needs that room. The back is curved length and width. This changes the circumference measurement. To bring back the correct circumference the front needs to be reduced. The length is shortened. If you are dealing with a rounded chest beyond normal the back is not rounded the directions are reversed. When you look at tailors inlays they are very helpful with adjustments.

Roy once wrote somewhere, years ago, to get the hem of the coat level it is all done with the shoulder seams. (Might not remember correctly). This might create adjustments needed other places. Most likely will.

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David Evans

24 days ago · posted in The Waistcoat

Fabric sewn into dart tip

I’m currently at the step of sewing darts into the waist coat. In the video Rory sews a small piece of fabric into the dart tip. Is the purpose of that fabric just so you have something larger to press the seam allowance flat?

Thanks!

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Rory Duffy

3 hours ago

Well said!!

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solo

29 days ago · posted in The Trousers

Lining for pleated trouser

Sorry if this has been asked already but does anybody have recommendations on how to cut the lining for pleated trousers? Do you cut it before you put in the pleats or do you put in the pleats beforehand? I’m just finding it a little tricky to figure out because of how the pleats “bulge” the cloth instead of laying flat like flat fronted.

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Jeroen Keerl

3 hours ago

•

You can always cut the lining at the fold of the slanted pocket. Just make sure it gets caught in the fold of the cloth during pocket construction and / or by your manual stitching while finishing. Preferrably, baste it securely in place, so it doesn't sag it's way out of the fold.

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solo

July 26, 2025 · posted in The Trousers

Question with finished trouser measurements

Hi all! The trouser I drafted has a 37“ seat, 31” waist, and a 11” rise. Rory mentioned in the video series that measured it should be 3” more than the measured seat (in this case 40”) but when I measured it, it came out at 40 1/2. While its admittedly not too much of a difference there are two questions I have:

if there is a possible reason it came out 1/2” more and if it being 1/2” more could hypothetically affect the trousers, where could this excess (on the pattern) be reduced? I have seen many tailors let out at the seat line, but if the waist is correct do I take it on the side seam? Or do I just adjust the seat angle a little on point 21-20?
If it’s because of my rise being an 1” taller, does the finished seat-to-measured seat naturally increase when…

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solo

3 hours ago

Well thats what I did so hopefully 11” is good! I brought it to a height I found comfortable, but I wanted to check with the community to be certain I wasn’t pulling the crotch too high up (in case there is a proportional spot to hold it).

And yeah 1/2” isn’t anything but I was mostly foreseeing what could happen with a 13”+ rise and such, where the finished seatline could possibly increase anywhere from 2-3” more than it needs to.

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564615

July 25, 2025 · posted in The Men's coat

half-Raglan sleeve draft: Balmacaan Coat Sleeve

I’m curious your take on drafting a Balmacaan Coat: where the back has a Raglan sleeve. I didn’t know what this drafting technique is called (half-raglan?). This draft is from my Italian book, just for illustration purposes. Any pointers on construction or fitting would be appreciated. This came to mind during our recent Overcoat discussion. Thanks for your time.

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Gunnar Hennig

July 23, 2025 · posted in The Trousers

Golden Thimble

Silver Needle

Trouser fitting issues.

I'm trying to sew a pair of trousers for my son. The photos are from the first fitting. My son has gained a bit of weight from waist 36 to 36 5/8 and seat 41 3/8 to 42 1/2 inch.

I'm unsure whether simply letting out the side seams - for the tight waist - will provide sufficient room for the prominent seat, or if I need to adjust the seat angle or make additional alterations.

I'd be very grateful for any advice or suggestions.

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Gunnar Hennig

3 hours ago

•

Thank you very much for your reply and your advice.

I remembered Rory’s video “Common Alterations in Trousers” in pattern drafting for bespoke menswear and came to the same conclusion as you mentioned. I'll give it a try by letting out the side seams and letting out the fork.

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David Evans

July 12, 2025 · posted in The Waistcoat

Front shoulder width measurement

I just started the waistcoat course. Thankfully my chest is a 42 so I could use Rory’s measurement from the video, but using the measuring chart I don’t see how the front shoulder width is determined. I have the pattern drafting book but I haven’t taken that course yet. Is there a way to determine it or measure it? Thanks!