Bodice pattern drafting

[Orphena]

Well, I've been working on my newest gown, and its time to work out the bodice, my least favourite part.  I've attempted to draft a pattern using the instructions on the Sempstress blog, but I'm not having much luck. Math was never my strong point, and I must be doing something wrong. I'm now considering drafting something using my dress dummy, but I'm nervous.

How does everyone else do this? Any suggestions? Or tutorials?

I have several old costume books - costumes for theatre, etc. I do not own the correct Janet Arnold book, nor do I have Margo's pattern for women. I have my corset pattern, my older bodice, and perhaps I could work with simplicity 3782, which I do own.

Help please!

[gem]

I generally drape my own from an existing well-fitting bodice. Do you have a pair of stays that fit you well? You should have no trouble draping/drafting a corresponding bodice for them. (I haven't had much luck with the "measure here; draw a line" methods, either.) Start by taking either your best-fitting or your most similar-to-your-end-goal bodice, lay it out as flat as possible on your pattern paper, and trace around it. Add seam allowances, adjust neckline/openings/etc, and try a muslin.

Our own Centuries Sewing has an excellent tutorial on draping a bodice on her blog. She demonstrates it on a dress form, but I do it on myself. It just takes longer, and it's helpful if there's someone else in your house to put pins where you can't reach.

There's a trial and error process, where I move between flat pattern drafting and muslin draping, but if I have a good idea of where I'm going, I can usually get there in the end. I have had a couple of failures (the actual dress in Centuries's tutorial is an example; she wrote it after I totally gave up on a bodice based on the Tudor Tailor kirtle... but I have new construction theories and will start from scratch one of these days!).

I'm also going to recommend the new book Draping Period Costumes. It's a little bit pricey, but for me it was a total revelation. I can do flat patterns, and I can drape on myself--but I've always been mystified by grading, and how to take, say, a Janet Arnold pattern and make it fit me. Draping Period Costumes is like the (very obvious) step my brain is missing in that process--how to transfer the shape of pattern pieces onto MY shape.

Good luck! I will say I have had the very worst luck when starting completely from scratch, and all my most brilliant successes have come from either tracing or adapting things that work on my body already. YMMV, but it might be worth a try!

[Orphena]

gem!  I knew you would chime in with advice I could run with!

Ok - as per your suggestion - here is what I have right now.  I dressed my dress dummy up - she is padded out to my measurements, and stands shoulder to shoulder with me (so she's the correct height).  Her bust line is a little different than mine - but I've worked out a squishable solution. The crazy green is so that she has arms, and it keeps all the padding in place. 

As per your suggestion, I've thrown my older bodice on over the corset, and the measurments/ fit are fairly close to when I wear it. The light blue is my muslin. It's a titch long yet, causing a few horizontal wrinkles, and that front point will need to be a bit reduced, but we all know it is easier to take away than add!

The join at the shoulder will need to be rounded out. I'm going for front opening (with hooks), slightly arched front -but it may be a bit high still.

I'm planning to add puffed paned sleeve caps, but one thing at a time.

[CenturiesSewing]

Popping my head out of Middle Earth for a moment....

Orphena looks like you are off to a good start with your blue mock up, one extra thing you might want to do is adjust the darts so the muslin is smoothed out, that way it will be easier to mark them for pivoting them out later. 

It is hard for me to see if you marked it but how high is your bodice back going to be? If it is down to where the end of the white shows in the back that is too far down, you will be fighting to keep the sleeves up.

[Orphena]

Hey Centuries! Thanks for your tutorial! The back is actually quite high - the white is part of how I'm adjusting the bustling, so it can be disregarded for this project.  I was thinking of keeping the neckline right up where my gold bodice hits - less area to sunscreen, more support if I ever get a wired collar built, or want to add a ruff.... You can see it marked in pink on the shot of the shoulder seam from the top. Do you think that will that work?

[CenturiesSewing]

If I am seeing the right mark, that should be plenty high enough. 

[Orphena]

Ok...so, once I have that dart nice and smooth...how do I get rid of it again?

[CenturiesSewing]

I have a tutorial for that! 

http://centuries-sewing.com/2012/12/02/kirtle-sew-along-measurements-and-adjustments/#more-2782

Scroll down to "Removing that pesky dart".

If my tutorial doesn't make sense here another one:

http://www.modehistorique.com/research/eliminating_darts.pdf

[Lady Rosalind]

I have a tutorial for that! 

http://centuries-sewing.com/2012/12/02/kirtle-sew-along-measurements-and-adjustments/#more-2782

Scroll down to "Removing that pesky dart".

If my tutorial doesn't make sense here another one:

http://www.modehistorique.com/research/eliminating_darts.pdf

Gob*smacked... Your instructions for removing a dart were... AWESOME! And way easier than any other instructions I've read...

(sorry, just had to chime in!)

[Lady Kathleen of Olmsted]

Using a Drape can be a very good tool for Bodice drafting.

Often using a Corset generator works as well. I used that to draft the bodice for the Venetian Noblewoman I did last year for Lady Kett. I had made a  mockup for her to try on and it fit nicely. The double I cut out for me was what I used for the actual pattern. This particular project was bascically all had drafted. The Process for the Ladder Lacing was from the very talented Jen Thompson of Festive Attyre.






There are some excellent Corset generators on the Elizabethan Costuming Page that was very helpful as well as those by Janet Arnold.

[Orphena]

Centuries..your tutorial rocks! Thank you! So nice to have such resources available! Gold star from me!

So, next question... Just how lined does my bodice need to be? I see some people adding boning, some people adding canvas, some a layer of "nominal" lining that doesn't'tseem to do all that much... My. Old bodice was completely unlined - but there was a strip of boning next tithe lacing holes, other than that, no structure added.

My corset is fully boned - with steel boning, so I don't really need a lot of other support, I feel. If you all disagree, however, I'm open to persuasion!

The reason I ask is that I'm about ready to sew up my first mockup, and leaning towards using sheeting, at this stage of the game...

[gem]

The lining will prolong the life of the garment and help protect against wear, tear, distortion, etc. My corset (avatar photo) is unlined--it's just a layer of linen + one of canvas + the boning and binding. Two little layers. It's held up really well for 4 seasons now! My kirtle (from the same pattern) is four layers--2 boned canvas inside, the damask fashion fabric outside, and lightweight quilting cotton for the lining. I think it's really up to you, but I like having a nice finish inside and out. If I were on a super deadline and had a lot of other things to finish... I could probably be convinced to forgo a lining on an otherwise well-constructed gown. (I have never lined a skirt.)

[CenturiesSewing]

Seconding what Gem says about bodice lining, it also adds another layer to help absorb sweat and gives a tiny bit more padding between you and the boning.

[Orphena]

Ok, mockup one is done! I managed to lace myself into my corset, and got the mockup on. I took afew pics in my dingy bathroom, then added a few pins to tuck in the front a bit. My hubby came home in time to help take a few better pics (and help me back out of the corset!)

Some things I noticed... the skirt fits (phew!) but can tend to gape a little bit at the back due to the weight of the back pleats. I may need to add points to fix this, but things may also adjust once I get a proper hook on the skirt.

With the corset, I overflow - there is not much I can do about it - but I'm hoping that the bodice straps will help - they do in my gold bodice.

Ok, here are the pics... help me out ladies!

[CenturiesSewing]

You are off to a good start! Here are few things to try out.

Armscye needs to come up, it is far too low. If you attach sewed in sleeves to it you would not be able to lift your arms, also that will help control the side overflow.

Bit harder for me to see, but I'd also add about an inch to an inch and a half + seam allowances to the top of the shoulder straps and blend it down into the armscye. If you lift your arm up, where your arm and shoulder meet and crease should be where the outer edge of your shoulder strap hits when your arm is down. This is something I always have issues with myself.

The front darts look like they are pinned off grain which is causing some of those wrinkles, with the corset on you are smoothed out, so you may be able to get away with unpinning them and smoothing the excess fabric into the side seam.

The back looks like it is too long just under the shoulder blade area, you can pinch out the excess horizontally and pin it out to see if it fits better.