Going Baroque : Patterning Extravaganza

Ah, the joyous process of draping and drafting.  There is nothing quite like developing a pattern from nothing, finding the shapes, getting the exact fit.  I don’t claim to be *good* at it, only passable, and of course, each time we do it, we get better.

The first pattern I quickly draped (in the last post), was incredibly short waisted.  I must remember that both of my dressforms are short in the waist, and to always account for this.  My usual method is to use both my Uniquely Me form (Jane), and the Dritz My Double form (Millie) to work on a pattern, and somewhere in the middle of going back and form between them, I will end up with a toile that fits me.  Millie, however, is also short waisted – you can see in Version 2 of this bodice pattern than I have the waist at the indicator on the dress form…

…but in Version 3, I’ve dropped the waist down a good two inches or more to where my actual waist is, which conveniently falls at the bottom of the indicator on Millies’ waist.

I’ve come up with a pattern I’m very happy with.  How historically accurate is it?  Probably not at all – the front seams are curved over the bust.  I did this because a) I wanted perfect fit, particularly in the off-the-shoulder scooped neck, and b) because tons of silver trim will be covering that seam, and it made sense to put it there instead of in an area where it will not be covered in trim.

The muslin pattern, pinned together, fit me perfectly (despite looking rather rumpled in the photos here), so I’ve gone ahead and cut the canvas interlining and cotton lining…but that is for another update!