The toile fitting

Tailoring 101  Week 4

The toile fitting

For this fitting you are  looking for problems in the fit of the pattern. The muslin toile should have the centre front marked with the button placements. I find it helps to mark  the chest or bust line,the centre and bicep lines on the toile.
Most of the fitting problems apply to both women's and menswear.
 Be critical study the jacket/coat toile for creasing and wrinkles. Evaluate the proportion and balance of the jacket/coat on the body.

Have trust in your judgment!
 Pin the shoulder pads onto the shoulder seam before the client puts on the jacket.
Begin by pining the jacket accurately in place down the centre front line at the button placement marks.Now stand back and study the jacket for fit problems.

shoulders back or stooped shoulders

 full bust or sway back

When fitting a jacket it is important that your client is relaxed and standing naturally with their arms at their side. How they stand is going to be key to fit problems.










The front

Is the centre front of the jacket hanging straight with no pull lines from the break line down to the hem line?
  If the jacket front is opening and pulling towards the side from the lower pined button placement the hip line of the jacket is to small

or

Is there to much fabric at the hem line






Look at the chest line is it sitting as a straight line around the body? Is it sitting in the right place passing across the bust point in the front or sitting above or below?
If the line is pulling up you will have to lengthen the shoulder-bust point length. If it is drooping down make a  a tuck across the front on the chest line

Is the waistline sitting on the waistline?

 Cut across the waist line to the side seam and add fabric to adjust the fit if the waistline is sitting to high or make a tuck across the front to the side seam to adjust the fit if the waistline is sitting to low
        







Is the jacket pulling across the bust line coursing the lapel to gap ?
Cut the seam apart over the bust line and add fabric at the side of the bust area; This amount will be divided and the pattern adjusted.



If you have front darts check that the top point of the dart finishes 1 inch ( 2.5 cm) below the bust point.










Is there pulling across the bust/chest line?  Adjust the front darts and add to side seam; you may have to adjust the lapel and armhole


If you have a princess line jacket adjust the side front panel at the bust point and side seam down to the waist; for a full bust you may also have to lengthen the should to bust point





Are the shoulders to long or to short? Take a tuck or tucks along the shoulder line to adjust the length if the shoulder is to long. Measure out or pin fabric to the armhole to lengthen the shoulder






Is the shoulder line sitting to far forward or back?
Try adjusting the shoulder pad by moving slightly forward or back.
If the shoulder is pulling back the length from neck -waist in the jacket back is to short adjust this length; if the shoulder is pulling forward cut the shoulder open and add fabric to the front shoulder; re pin the front to the back shoulder adjusting the extra fabric until the shoulder is sitting in the correct position

Back
 It will pull up in the centre back if the neck -waist length is to short, adjust the length by cutting across the shoulder line and adding fabric
                or

A stooped posture will make the jacket pull upwards and stick out at the back hem line; make a tuck starting in the side panel across the centre back finishing in the other side panel; adjust the size and length of the tuck until the jacket back is sitting correctly








The back vent is pulling open - to narrow across the hip line, let out to adjust fit











Sagging or diagonal creases down one or both sides of the jacket  - pin the fabric across the back shoulder line until the creasing or sagging disappears; the adjustment will be made on the pattern at the jacket side not at the shoulder as this would alter the depth of the back armhole





Wrinkling and creases in the back armhole - increase the size of the shoulder pad first to see if this eliminates the problem if not  cut open the shoulder line at the neck edge and add fabric to the back shoulder across to the shoulder centre and across the to centre back to increase the height of the back neck line until the creasing disappears.


Wrinkles at the back neckline means the neckline needs to be lowered, adjust on the pattern




Or
 if the back neck line is to low adjust the pattern by raising the centre back neck line



Sleeve

Is the sleeve sitting to low in the underarm? When the arm is raised does the entire side of the jacket raise up? You will have to adjust the depth of the armhole





It is better to have a sleeve sitting high in the armhole but make sure this is not restricting movement. If movement is being restricted the armhole will have to be lowered.


Is there wrinkles coming from the underarm area in the sleeve front when the arm is resting at the side. Remove a little fabric at the front notch point until the wrinkles disappear





Is there pulling and creasing across the sleeve head?
Re set the sleeve so that it falls a little back or forward
until the creases disappear. Re mark the notch points on the sleeve
and jacket and transfer to the pattern








 The sleeve head is to narrow if there are pull lines forming. Cut down the centre of the sleeve head to the bicep line and add fabric until the 'pulling' disappears.

Check that the sleeve is not twisting - this is because the sleeve was not cut following the grain of the fabric.

Check the sleeve length - the sleeve length is a matter of personal preference

 Make all adjustments to the pattern before cutting out the fashion fabric.

Next week will be starting to work the jacket/coat fronts. For this you will need all the interfacing's such as a natural hair canvas, or a balanced hymo canvas, pocketing or silecia fabric, chest piece  or domette, 1/4 inch tape and fusible weft interfacing if using.