Master Designing Sysytem

[That_Steve]

Hello!

I often wear vintage suits for work (as a magician), but finding reasonably affordable vintage suits that fit, and won't immediately fall apart on me, is becoming increasingly difficult - so I thought I would try my hand at making my own. It's a topic I've been interested in for a while, I have some experience hand-sewing, and a few well-thumbed books on the subject.

In trying to find suitably vintage patterns and drafting guides, I bought a copy of the Master Designing System from an Etsy seller, and figured I'd start with trousers, and work up through waistcoat and jacket. I don't know if anyone here is familiar with the system (or can recommend anything better!) but it is a proportional system, that relies heavily on the scaling features of a traditional tailor's square - and this seems to be where things are going awry for me!

Where it says, for example, 'A to B is 1/3 seat on "3rds"', is this 1/3 of the seat or 1/3 of 1/3 of the seat? I've tried both approaches and, while the latter seems to work better, it still doesn't quite feel right.

I have tried referring to this (https://growyourownclothes.com/2019/02/25/free-printable-tailors-square/) to see whether the "3rds" isn't quite as simple as dividing a measurement by three, but I'm afraid it only increased my confusion!

Any advice or suggestions would be extremely gratefully received - many thanks!

[Schneiderfrei]

Start with waistcoats.  Much simpler.  And when you get the hang of fitting a waistcoat the measurements can be transfered to a jacket.

Trousers are a whole different problem of fitting.

G

[pfaff260]

You could try this https://www.muellerundsohn.com/en/shop/fundamentals-menswear/
It's a good system with a thorough explanation of how to do it. But fitting is an other issue.
Good luck.

[Schneiderfrei]

I am almost only using Mueller/Rundschau now.

Except to try historical items of interest.

[TTailor]

Where it says, for example, 'A to B is 1/3 seat on "3rds"', is this 1/3 of the seat or 1/3 of 1/3 of the seat? I've tried both approaches and, while the latter seems to work better, it still doesn't quite feel right.

This means, take your full seat measurement and divide in half. This is the number you will use on the square.
So if your seat was 100 cm, then 50 is the marking you will use on the square, whether it is 1/3 or 1/8 or 1/12.
Same with chest and waist, take half the total and that is the number you use when directed to find a proportion.

"On the thirds" just references that section of the tailor's square

[That_Steve]

Thank you all for your responses, I really do appreciate it!

Pfaff260 thank you, I'll definitely take a look!

TTailor I was wondering about that last night actually. I had a look at a couple of other drafting systems and they started by halving the waist and seat measurements. I couldn't see any reference to that in this one, but it certainly makes a lot more logical sense!

[TTailor]

Regarding which garment to start with, either trousers or waistcoats are fine. I think trousers require a bit more sewing skills than waistcoats. Many people find fitting trousers daunting but all fitting is daunting if you are starting out.

My advice when attempting to draft something is to first draft it using the numbers given in the sample, make sure you understand the process, and that the end result looks like the diagram.

When you plan to start using your own measurements you need to compare your measurements with the standard ones that the draft is using.
If they are vastly different, then you will need to spend more time and research to understand how your personal shape can be incorporated into the draft, whether it is a flat seat, big belly, bowed legs.....you get the picture.

[That_Steve]

Thank you so much T Tailor

That all certainly feels like excellent advice, and it's genuinely appreciated