Swimming

Pattern School: The Original Home of Stretch-fit Pattern Making looks like a great resource blog for anyone wanting to design swim or dance wear.

Outsizes

I want this book but it's not in my near future: "Master Patterns and Grading for Women's Outsizes," by Gerry Cooklin.  Hmmm... I seem to be leaking content from my post about making plus sizes.

Subtraction Pattern Cutting

"The basic premise of Subtraction Cutting is that the patterns cut do not represent the garments outward shape, but rather the negative spaces within the garment that make them hollow. Simply put, shaped holes cut from huge sheets of cloth through which the body moves." 
   -taken from 'what is Subtraction Cutting' on Julian Roberts' Subtraction Cutting web page


Good thing I happened upon Julian's Pattern School and fully downloadable notes about 4 years ago before he pulled up the free sign! Yes, I have the notes from a Master Class he taught and can attest to the fact that they are very worth reading. Would I buy the book? Yes. I wonder what else is in there.

So what's it all about? Well, an entirely different way of pattern making and garment construction. It's sculptural, a little mind boggling and a great way to avoid working with measurements and numbers. Take a look at the photos on his web page  and see for yourself, but I'd say the results definitely lend themselves toward a 19th century look with lots of volume.

If I were a dressmaker or designing for the bridal industry I would incorporate this technique into my practice for sure!

Library of Congress

Want to download a free, Italian pattern drafting book from 2004, or a pattern grading book from over at The Library of Congress? How lucky can this possibly be? Some kind of mistake perhaps? Better snap them up quick!! Where am I finding this information? Fashion Incubator, of course.

Zero Waste

     Every once in a while I let my disdain for waste stop me from beginning projects. Whether this is a paralyzing act of eco-conscience or just a complicated form of procrastination is of little consequence. Either way, nothing happens.

     Have you ever heard of zero fabric waste fashion? I found this site through the Fashion Incubator forum. Blogger Timo Rissanen is a PHD candidate concerned with eliminating fabric waste by changing design practices. Really, if you can scroll down to October 02, 2010 to see a pattern layout it's worth checking out. He uses every inch of fabric. I wonder how easily patterns could be graded and whether it lends itself to a certain look. I hope he publishes his dissertation!

Public Domain

It took me forever to find pattern drafting books when I first started looking and even longer to find books on pattern grading. School just wasn't in the cards, new books cost more money than I had, and at that point the internet was just a thin line to Elsewhere for which I had very little patience.

Enter vintagesewing.info. I could just stop there. Maybe I will. Bon voyage!