What a great class this afternoon!  Jill is making great progress, very fast progress, it was only her second class and she put together a mock up already!  It fit very well, for a first attempt it was AMAZING how well it really fit!  I can't wait to see the pants that she makes to wear! 
There will be homework :)
Homework will be to draft and sew another mock up using mom’s measurements to fit the body and draft a new pattern using personal measurements changing the ½ knee/hem measurement by 1.5 cm to make the leg larger also make all the adjustments seen on the previous mock up at the crotch and hips.  Once that is done sew a new mock up to see the difference in the leg and feel the fit. 
Next class we will be drafting pajama pants with no side seams and elastic waist.  Please bring some fabric and elastic in case we have time to cut and sew them. 

Some new projects I have been working on....
I never got to wear the spring coat yet because spring seems to be hiding and not available in Canada this year!!  Boo!!  The dress I did wear and it was a hit! 

I have a wonderful lady as a client who has a very hard time finding clothes to wear that are professional looking and fit well especially for her job, a real estate agent so she wants to look professional when meeting with clients/colleagues etc.  but with the fit issues she has it would be next to impossible to find a blazer that fits well, the sleeve had to be drafted several sizes smaller than the bodice because of the thin arms compared to the bust volume.  This client has a body that I really love fitting because it's not the "standard" but very well shaped with nice lines and can really show off a great cut on a garment!  I have drafted the pattern and fit the mock up on her, below is a front and back pic of the suit.  I was particularly happy with the pants they fit BEAUTIFULLY!! 
Now all she has to do is choose the fabric and I can get started, can't wait!!! 

What a weekend it seems to have just started and it's already over!  Very productive two days, we started with homework from previous session and took Saturday morning to analyze and answer questions that arose during completion of homework.  Once all those questions were answered we continued on to the princess seams incorporating any obvious findings from the measurements before cutting out the mock ups as homework. 
Sunday was another very fast, productive day with the mock up sewing first thing that, and get this in one hour they marked and sewed together the mock ups!!  Only one hour with no pins either!  Both Peggy and Karen were very happy with the end result there were very minimal adjustments to make as a result of the fitting.  Great job ladies!  They even installed their first set-in sleeve, see pic below what a great job they did with only ONE pin!!!!
Sarada is getting closer to a perfect fit, because bodies are not uniform or standard it sometimes takes a bit of work before it finally gels and the mock up fits perfectly.  Patience is the key in this department....

Homework assignments:

Karen and Peggy: 
I gave students a choice of homework assignments, they chose to draft Empire cut dress on page 77.  They are going to figure it out on their own, if there is time I would love to see them also draft a princess seam dress using different measurements, create a mock up and fit the body transferring the adjustments to the master pattern and pattern pieces as we did in class with their mock ups.  Ideally adding a sleeve to this mock up or to the empire cut dress would go a long way in solidifying today’s lesson. 
Sarada:
is to complete the adjustments on the mock up as it was too large this time, last time it was too tight so we have to find a middle ground to make the garment fit properly before we move on.  By Sunday afternoon everyone was tired and she chose to focus on this task instead of moving forward with the sleeve.  She will be caught up by the next class.
Georgie:
unfortunately was too ill to attend any classes this weekend, homework is to re-do the initial draft once again with different measurements just to keep it fresh in the brain, I hope we can make up the work at some point before the next class. 
Next class is May 12 and 13 I will let students know what to bring closer to the date. 

I would like to welcome Jill and thank her for a wonderful first day of class!  Jill has a natural talent for pattern drafting, an artist she has an eye for lines and how they should look, can't wait to see some of her sketches that she is going to realize into garments! 
Jill chose to start with pants as they are the garment she has the hardest time fitting her body so today we started with the dreaded/necessary storyboard! The storyboard is created using generic measurements then we take that knowledge and create personal drafts, this gives students a lot of practice using the tools, getting the muscle memory to kick in along with cognitive/visual associations between the lines and numbers will go a long way in clarifying and simplifying pattern drafting.  I find it's an excellent tool for beginners to practice plus the added benefit of having a 3-D reference to use at home when doing homework! 
Speaking of homework I know it's the first day of class after a couple of false starts with weather related cancellations, we do live in Canada after all, it would not be normal if we didn't have to make allowances for weather!!!
But I digress......  homework is to draft a pants front using personal measurements same as the one done in class plus 2 more pants front using different measurements.  
Next class we will be drafting the pants back in the form of a storyboard using generic measurements as well as personal measurements.  We will cut a mock up and sew it together to fit in class.  Please bring fabric to create a mock to fit your body, this will stay with the pattern so any type of fabric with no stretch will be fine. 
Have a great day, see you Monday at 1:30 pm. 

Hello all so the September class is now full with one extra person who really wants to learn to draft patterns!  First there were 6 then 1 changed their mind leaving 5 and now there are SEVEN!! 
I am so very excited to be starting this class in Bradford with some new minds to share this wonderful art of garment construction!  It will mean some traveling for me but that's fine I can drive LOL!! 

I can also do a Post Graduate Masters Class once again this year for graduates who want to learn how to draft basic blocks.  This skill will be extremely useful in the workplace and for personal use as well as all bodies are not created equal like cookie cutters, I teach students how to work with actual measurements taking their cues from the numbers to make any changes to the basic block personalizing it for a better fit on the mock up then go one step further and make any adjustments seen on the mock for a perfect fit!  Please feel free to contact me for more information from our contact page. 

Great news!  A September class is almost full there is room for one more student!  This is a group of home-schooled children (teens) who have a keen interest in learning how to design, sew, draft patterns.  I met with them on Friday to finalize details and meet them so they can see exactly what it is they are getting into :)
If anyone is interested in joining the class it will start on Thursday September 6, 2018 from 1 to 4 pm on a bi-monthly basis in Bradford/West Gwillimbury.  Tuition will be $500 plus all applicable taxes for 30 hours of instruction time
(9 - 3 hour classes + 3 hours to add to any sewing class along the way. 
This is a great opportunity for young people to be exposed to a truly international program, only one of its kind in North America.  The complete program will take about 2 years to complete on a 10 week cycle with school holidays. Once students complete the program they will know more about pattern drafting than College graduates because they are taught how to work with actual measurements to create basic blocks that can be used for individual use as well as industry use.  Don't hesitate in making your design dream come true apply now! 
For more information please feel free to contact me anytime I'm just a click away!

A great big welcome to Jill a new student who is starting on Monday!  It's so exciting to have a brand new, excited student to teach!  A very interesting person who is well traveled, a citizen of the world if you will.... She is hoping to have her own line of clothing soon along with an alterations shop, I am humbled to have been chosen as the teacher who gets to impart the knowledge to take her from knowing nothing about pattern making to making her dreams come true.  Her words were "I have been waiting for you to teach me all my life!" this makes me smile :)
A big welcome back to Denise B. who has taken intensive classes from me at Georgian College a few years ago and is looking to expand her already thriving business.  She is starting in a couple of weeks. 
Friday I am meeting with a group of people who want their children to start classes in the fall as part of their home schooling program!  How exciting! 

It has been a wonderful long weekend with family, this year we were together on Easter Sunday with the children, grandchildren and my mom, their great-grandmother!  Good times!

Today is the beginning of a new week and new students are showing interest in classes some who want to start immediately and a class of young people who want to start in September :) this makes me happy when there is such interest in this wonderful art that will surely die if it's not curated and passed down to future generations.  It would be very sad to rely solely on overseas markets to dictate what we should be wearing, the type of workmanship (or lack thereof in many cases). 

I believe we should be in control of our own destinies, take matters in our own hands and create the garments that appeal to us, especially anyone over the age of 50 with any sort of body issue who can't find anything that has a decent fit.  I believe there should be more custom clothing available to women the same as there is for men, to do that we have to train more tailors and pattern makers.  In fact a pattern maker diploma is more prestigious and sought after than a design diploma.  In Italy they got it right, before one can be a designer they have to be a master tailor and pattern maker to the highest degree, one should not be designing if they don't know garment construction inside and out first!  In North America they like to churn out new designers every 2 years who can draw very well, drape on a mannequin very well but when it comes time to fit the body they are lost! This is not fair to the students who paid a lot of hard earned money to get only part of an education.... In my opinion schools should go back to the basics because you can't build without a solid foundation.  I'm available to teach if anyone is brave enough to buck the trend and try something new! 

On the same token, if there are any graduates of North American Colleges/Universities who would like to learn all about how to create the basic blocks please feel free to contact me anytime I'm available to teach this technique to you.  Last year I had great success with George Brown graduates who over the summer learned how to draft the basic blocks in their words, "our lives have been changed with this in-depth knowledge"

What a weekend!  There are 4 highly motivated, highly intelligent, hard working women in this class who were pushed to beyond where they thought their limits were, sounds pretty harsh I know, but in the end they learned so much!  Imagine coming into a class knowing nothing or close to nothing on a subject and walking out with a working knowledge of the language and method at the end of the second day, yes folks the second day! 

This class started on Saturday morning with tools they had never seen before, terminology foreign to most, made to learn something one way only to have it flipped around so it is a mirror image of the initial technique!!  Well let me tell you they are troopers (hence bootcamp LOL) and worked until they got it right resulting in mock ups THAT FIT the first time!!  Yes there were some adjustments to be done but very, very minimal and completely expected because bodies are not cookie cutter shapes, they are unique and perfect for each individual person hence my tag line "the clothes must fit the body, not the body fit the clothes"
Kudos ladies on a job well done!  I would have to give an A+ for effort/accomplishment to all!!

Nevertheless there is homework:

• Draft princess and mock princess top patterns using personal measurements and a mock up for each style
  
• Draft and sew princess seam, mock princess or sheath pattern using two different measurements (pick one style and make both mock ups using same style to compare issues)
  

FYI

• Check out page 48 graphic “dress with sleeve”  to see the ½ shoulder adjustment on the back how it’s transferred to the front
  
• Check out page 72 to see the adjustment for the longer front neck to waist than the back adjustment
  

Prep for next class

• Next class we will be completing and sewing the mock princess dress on page 61 with a different neckline, flared at the hem, back mock princess seams, if possible we might even add a sleeve to the mix!  Please draft a front and back dress (the skirt length is on the chart) using the generic measurements to bring to class, a master draft only with front mock princess seams to the hem and the back with only side shaping NO DART we will be adding the back princess seams in class
• Please study the pattern graphics  to see if you can figure out the procedure, there will be a quiz

Things to bring:

1. Master generic pattern front and back
2. Muslin or broadcloth for a mock up of the dress on page 61
3. Sewing machines
4. Sewing kits etc
   
5. Drafting stuff