Pattern Drafting

Yes I have. It was over a weekend and we made a close fitting bodice block using Winifred Aldrich's book Metric Pattern Cutting for Women's Wear. It was very interesting and fun and really useful to have the tutor there to demonstrate and answer any questions etc. I must admit I haven't really used it much, but I'm quite lucky in that I'm a standard size in height and bust so don't have to do much tweaking to patterns.

I can also recommend Winifred Aldrich. It was widely used on my college course . She also came to give us a presentation.

I have done skirt and trouser pattern drafting classes both of which were excellent, the skirt used the Winifred Aldrich book but I can't remember details of the trouser course as I haven't used it as I found a Style Arc pattern that fitted without any adjustments. It's a good way of learning how to make patterns and also how to adjust/alter commercial patterns.

Winifred Aldrich is the name to look for then, thank you.

Twinnytwin - how did find your course? Was it local or advertised on a website?

I did pattern cutting for several years- its quite difficult and you have to be good at geometry and maths. The best thing I've got is a trouser block and a dress block which I drafted to my measurements , so in theory I can make any pattern I like. When I was doing the classes we would watch videos of designer fashion shows like Chanel, choose a dress or skirt or whatever, and then draft a pattern so we would know how it was constructed. We also did sewing couture techniques as well. You need quite a lot of bits and pieces, fancy rulers , French curves, dot and cross paper , notch makers etc. I did enjoy the classes though and learnt a lot. I rarely buy ready made dresses or skirts as I always look at dresses in the shops and think "I could make that" ( but rarely do!)

I don't think you need that much equipment. I find my pattern master very useful but could manage with a ruler and freehand the curves. I have never used dot and cross paper, have used wallpaper lining paper when necessary, notches can be pencilled on, no need for notches.

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Thanks all. On reflection I think it would be a better idea for me to find a few good fitting adaptable patters like several here have already. Style Arc gets a lot of praise generally so perhaps I’ll start there. Any others that folks like?

@Sidelined, Just be aware that the instructions on Style Arc are very minimal so need a good read to make sure everything is covered.

Nottingham Trent do several evening classes in seeing related areas.
www.ntu.ac.uk/study-and-courses/courses/find-your-course?sort=relevance&sort=relevance&sort=relevance&level-of-study=Short+course&sort=relevance&sort=relevance&sort=relevance&sort=relevance&sort=relevance&query=sewing&sort=relevance&gad=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwk96lBhDHARIsAEKO4xaxg5KsBtg2AFaZx51wuTwfBS7dDo00vOVjvp3P7d-yAtdM3-TTT-waAjW1EALw_wcB

There used to be a fashion school in Birmingham which did the same (and weekends I think) .

What is now called The University of the Arts has been doing short courses in this area for years:
www.arts.ac.uk/subjects/fashion-making-and-pattern-cutting/short-courses?collection=ual-courses-push-prod&query=!nullquery&start_rank=1&sort=relevance&f.Category|subject=Fashion%20making%20and%20pattern%20cutting

Just Google it "near me".

We have an upmarket fabric shop nearby where these courses are also run.

Cashmarette patterns are good for fitting.