Learn how the industry grades, drafts, and sews high-end, exquisitely made garments that fit. Here is the information you need to make beautiful clothing that fits. All information is fully-diagrammed, step-by-step, and has been classroom tested to make sure it is easily understood.
In Grading to Fit is the information one needs to develop slopers (basic patterns from which style patterns can be drafted to fit). Then the book shows how to use plotting to determine coordinates that enable grading home sewing or other grade-rule patterns to a custom fit.
Grading and Sewing a Blouse to Fit shows how to use the grading coordinates developed in Grading to Fit to grade the blouse pattern; then how to cut and sew a high-end blouse that fits.
Available now: The essential Sewing Techniques from the Fashion Industry is filled with necessary high-end sewing instructions. Drafting & Fitting Pants and Skirts contains the drafting and fitting information needed to successfully custom draft and fit pants and skirts. Its companion book, Sewing Pants and Skirts shows how to cut and sew professionally finished pants and skirts.
Laurel’s ability to teach her method of fit and pattern making is incredible. Her methods are clear, concise, and thoroughly tested to ensure success for sewers of all skill levels. She has identified, addressed, and corrected all of the fit problems that most sewing books and courses deem “problem areas,” forcing the sewer to accept less than perfect results. She has successfully married her methods to those of industrial construction techniques to guarantee professional-looking results.
Marguerite Rittenhouse
The Grading to Fit series is in progress. Grading to Fit, completed and offered on this website, introduces custom grading. The book contains 492 pages that explain how grading works and how to use it to grade purchased patterns to a custom fit.
Grading and Sewing a Blouse, also completed and offered on this website, shows how to prepare a purchased blouse pattern for custom grading, how to grade the pattern, and then how to cut and sew the blouse. Both of these books are now available for sale on this website.
Grading a Woman’s Jacket to Fit, in progress, contains the information you need to prepare, then grade a jacket shell to fit, then draft all the supporting patterns.
Tailoring a Woman’s Jacket, also in progress, gives you the essential information you need whether you wish to sew a jacket pattern you have that already fits, or if you prefer to cut and sew a jacket pattern you prepared using Grading a Woman’s Jacket to Fit.
Copying a Man’s Shirt should be on the market within the year. It presents how to copy a ready-made garment, the fastest way to learn what industry is doing.
Here is the information you need to learn how that is done. Copying the garment is just the beginning. Often the garment could fit and/or be sewn better. Those issues are also addressed in this book. Included are high-end sewing procedures that both speed the work and produce professionally sewn shirts that fit.