Part 2: Sewing Class
My Story Part 2: Sewing Class “I’ll just make my own clothes” At the end of 2002, at the age of 38, after a lifetime of a lot of ill-fitting and uncomfortable clothing (at least since puberty), I decided that I had to do something about it. Given that I might well have another thirty-eight […]
Part 3: Patterns from Clothes?
My Story Part 3: Patterns from Clothes? What happened next I tried various times to make a garment from a commercial pattern, then make adjustments to fit, but it was completely beyond me. I was waiting for an upcoming sewing class to start – I had missed out on a couple due to other things […]
Part 4: Patternmaking Classes
My Story Part 4: Patternmaking Classes I was so excited! When I did a (Google) search (back in December 2003) on patternmaking in Sydney, all that came up was a TAFE course: The Principles of Patternmaking. It was one of the subjects in the Certificate IV in Fashion Technology. The Principles of Patternmaking consisted of […]
Part 5: Another Block Making Method
My Story Part 5: Another Block Making Method It seems to have all the answers… So I found a new textbook, and it looked so exciting. Such a lot of patternmaking information, and a block-making method that looked much more detailed than the instructions by Aldrich. If there were some assumptions in Aldrich (and at […]
Part 6: Outsourcing
My Story Part 6: Outsourcing To a Dressmaker for HELP! So… this was my thinking….. Although I was determined to understand why block making instructions didn’t end up fitting me when I used my measurements, this might take me some time. Maybe a few more years. In the meantime, I sure would like to have […]
Part 7: Community College Block Making Course
My Story Part 7: Community College Block Making Course The original course I was supposed to do After all the things I tried, after all my efforts… This wasn’t going to go wrong. I kept an eye out for Community College classes that offered Block Making courses for patternmaking. I soon found one; in a […]
Part 8: Esmod Block Making Course
My Story Part 8: Esmod Block Making Course Money straight down the drain This one won’t take long. I saw an advertisement for the Esmod school of patternmaking in 2009. They had lots of short night courses. It was really close to work and not that far from home. Very convenient, wouldn’t take long to […]
My Story (Part 1)
My Story My Story (Part 1) It took you HOW long? It took me years to make myself a well-fitting block – or rather a block from which I could consistently make well-fitting clothes. From my first attempt at making myself a personalized bodice block to the final block I now took …..seven years. To […]
Part 9: Another Dressmaker, Another Class
My Story Part 9: Another Dressmaker, Another Class Patternmaking Classes with a Dressmaker My last attempt for assistance. I found a dressmaker who offered classes in making personalized blocks and making patterns. Her shop was 15 minutes walk from where I lived. It was so convenient. I wasn’t excited, I couldn’t let myself get excited […]
Part 10: On My Own
My Story Part 10: On My Own A custom fiberglass form I had tried to get help many times and had just thrown money away. I decided getting a personalized body form – a custom-made replica of my body made with fiberglass – would be a better way to spend money. Then I would just […]