The challenge- drafting for people you have not measured.

[TTailor]

Where to start?

I drafted a half scale thinking model.


I set up some basic lines of my draft. I wont go through it in fine, fine detail, otherwise I wont have time to get the work done!
The back:
I used the proportional waist length and a scye depth for a 112cm/45" chest as a starting point.

I have three numbers for his cross back width. One from the measurement sheet, one proportional based on chest size and one from the jacket he wore. I decided to use the biggest number here as too big is much easier to deal with than too small.

Since his back waist length is 6.5 cm longer than proportional, I decided to apply 3.5 cm of that above the scye line and 3 cm below the proportional waist length line. It just seemed right to me at the time. At the armhole though, I added only 2.5 cm . I did this by cutting the paper and inserting a strip then pivoting from the CB to take out 1cm at the armhole.
I calculated his back neck width, 1/10 h chest plus 3 gives 10cm, and I compared it with another formula of 1/5 neck minus .5 which gave me 10.1. So 10cm is good.
Draw in the shoulder line and include a standard 2cm dart.
suppression at CB is a marginal 1.5cm.
tentative back dart placement and amount of 3cm.
Draw in a tentative side seam line and a marginal amount of suppression there.
Fronts:
I then marked the armhole width and located the CF line.
This is a doublet, and usually I would only allow 2.5cm ease on the half for something close fitting, but I increased this because again- a bit more ease is easier to take in, than not being able to button up the fronts.
I can see that his belly is full so at the waist line I allowed 2cm beyond the CF for corpulency.
Next is locating the neck point, both its height above the top line and its distance from the cf line.
       The further away from the CF construction line, the more crooked the neck point. This helps to create a closer fitting armhole, but also can put an excess of fabric in the neckline, or excess length in the CF line. I used a couple of methods and try them out to see what looks good to me. Not exactly scientific I know.

Once I get the neck point, I can draw in the CF line and front neckline, a tentative front shoulder line, a tentative armhole shape too. I like to cut out the back pattern and lay the shoulder lines together, looking at the slope and the run of the armhole over the shoulders.
I mark a tentative dart placement and amount in the front, check the waist size, draw in the bottom style line roughly.

At this point I then made a full size pattern and cut out a test in some drill. I stitched some of it together, but left a lot just pinned

The next step is to go and pad up a stand.

I went back later and changed my mind about how that excess back length would be split, adding a cm more above the scye and 1 cm below the scye.
Gives me an armhole of 70 cm though. That seems very large. Hmmm.

[TTailor]

basic pattern



padded a stand


quick mockup on the stand



After looking at this for a while I corrected a few things.
I changed how I divided up the excess back length to 4.5 above the scye line and 2cm below the proportional waist length line. I corrected the run of the front armhole.
i darted in the CF line slightly below the belly.
I gave him a little more length at the neck point, letting the fronts drop a tidge more. I had a nape to floor measurement and a base of throat to floor measurement, so I double checked that.
I think I will increase the back shoulder dart slightly.

[TTailor]

One of the garments is a doublet in faux leather with angled corded seaming, and slashes in the panels.
I used some tailors tape to play with placement of those lines.

I will move the side seam line forward

the yoke area extends into the top of the sleeve, so sleeve manipulation is in my future.

The other garment has to be quilted. It consists of a jerkin (sleeveless) and a set of quilted sleeves that are attached to a separate under bodice. At times he wears just the jerkin, other times the jerkin with under bodice and sleeves and other times the black faux leather doublet over the sleeveless quilted jerkin.
So the quilted look has to be developed first.

[Schneiderfrei]

Fantastic! Thanks for letting us look in.

[TTailor]

Waiting for fabric to arrive.
I will have to do a quilting sample.
Preliminary quilting/thinking lines. The darts in the base fabric will be as usual, but the fashion fabric layer will have the dart transferred to align with one of the lines of quilting.



I need to know the button size, for the overlap, and I have to figure out the best way to construct and finish the garment. There will be lacing on the sides, and I am going to have a separate lacing panel sewn on and that will be a good spot for leaving seam allowance for alterations (bigger or smaller)
The neckline and armholes, I am planning on binding with bias.

[TTailor]

All the quilting lines need to be first drawn out on paper, then drawn onto the inside of the base fabric.
After I do a quilting sample, the next step will be to baste the batting in place, -over a ham- then lay the fashion fabric on top and figure out the best way to baste it in place or quilting.

[pfaff260]

Thank you. Love to see the end result.

[TTailor]

Of course the fabric arrived on the day I had another project that needs to be cut out, so updates on this project may be spread out over a longer time than expected.

[TTailor]

Asymmetrical leather yoke, waist seam and panel seams in the back. A lot going on but that seems to be what they want.

In process, should be done mid week, then I can return to the original topic of this thread.

[hutch--]

What is this piece, I cannot tell if its a coat or a dress.

[posaune]

oho - the red lining looks bold!
You have such an interesting job.
Lg posaune
If you can spend some time, could you please please show a pic how you did the "meeting" from waist seam and skirt panels in the back  with the lining. I had some difficulties there with my "Gehrock". It nearly wrecked my brain.

[TTailor]

It is a jacket.
Posaune, i will take photos before I pack it up today.
It was unusual because the designer wanted a horizontal seam across all the back pieces, as well as vertical panel seams.
It made it more of a challenge and I dont think adds to the design. But my job is to do what is asked, although I did try to talk them out of it.

[TTailor]

I am sending it unfinished so they can fit it and trim the leather to whatever shape the designer de ides he likes. They will finish body and sleeve hems and do whatever alterations may be necessary.
I hope it fits.
Again, I did not measure the guy, just got numbers and photos and a "test jacket" that was not the style they wanted but I was supposed to reference.
The worst, in my opinion, was I had no direct contact with the designer. That part is unusual.

[TTailor]

Here is the back with a step vent.
Normally there would not be a horizontal seam at the back waist with a step vent but the designer wanted it.

Usually a feature on tailcoats frock coats and some period sack coats, a step vent requires the left back portion of the vent  to extend past the centre back seam. The "step" seam allowance needs to be clipped to allow this to happen.
I never clip the other side (right back of body)  because I think it becomes too weak. So the cb seam allowance is pressed open in the upper back, but the seam allowances are pressed all to the left at the area of the step.
I think there is a picture on my blog somewhere.
The lining is traditionally cut in one piece and carefully clipped and finished around the vent. It is fiddly and can go wrong easily. So now I cut a horizontal seam in the lining at the step vent. The lower lining can be put in by machine, and it is much easier to then just close the lining between the body and the tail by hand.

[TTailor]

Inside lining