Many of my garments are too big in the neck area. How can I fix this but still have the room I need for my bustline and arms? Mary G.,
e-mail
This problem is very common in ready-to-wear garments and plus-size patterns because of the grading process. Grading is the method of enlarging a small-size pattern by slashing and spreading the pattern pieces horizontally and vertically by precise amounts in certain areas. The simple assumption is that as people get bigger around, they also get taller and larger in certain areas and by predictable amounts. Real women are much more complicated.
Loosely-fitted sportswear patterns or ready-to-wear garments without details in the neck area can be easily adjusted by taking out the extra neck width with a pleat.
Try on the garment, and pin out the excess fabric at the center-back neckline (A). The extra fold of fabric can be placed on either the right or wrong side of the garment for a box or inverted box pleat (B).
Mark the pin location, remove the pin and open up any facing. At the mark, stitch parallel to the fold, starting about 1" below the neckline, sewing up through the neckline seam and through any binding or facing (C).
Center the pleat fabric over the stitching line, and tack the pleat edges in place at the neckline. Fold down any facing and press. For patterns with design details in the neck area and for a more precise fit, a series of pattern adjustments are needed. For example, if you have a full bust, choose your pattern size by substituting your upper-bust measurement for the bust measurement. Adjust for cup size by adding or changing the size of the bust darts. Other adjustments may also be needed, such as for a rounded upper back or large arms. The good news is that none of these are tricky. Once you learn the adjustments you need to make, you'll be able to quickly and easily adjust any commercial pattern to fit better than any ready-to-wear garment. Many sewers are daunted by this task, but keep in mind that you don't have to know how to make every type of adjustment--just the ones you need.
Barbara Deckert is an author and custom dressmaker in Elkridge, MD.
For more information on adjusting patterns to fit plus sizes and fitting ready-to-wear, read Sewing for Plus Sizes: Design, Fit, and Construction for Ample Apparel and Sewing 911: Practical and Creative Rescues for Sewing Emergencies, both from Taunton Press.
This problem is very common in ready-to-wear garments and plus-size patterns because of the grading process. Grading is the method of enlarging a small-size pattern by slashing and spreading the pattern pieces horizontally and vertically by precise amounts in certain areas. The simple assumption is that as people get bigger around, they also get taller and larger in certain areas and by predictable amounts. Real women are much more complicated.
Try on the garment, and pin out the excess fabric at the center-back neckline (A). The extra fold of fabric can be placed on either the right or wrong side of the garment for a box or inverted box pleat (B).
Mark the pin location, remove the pin and open up any facing. At the mark, stitch parallel to the fold, starting about 1" below the neckline, sewing up through the neckline seam and through any binding or facing (C).