#bodice pattern tutorial

In this post, I will primarily discuss to the best of my recollection the construction of the dress’ bodice.

The Bodice:

I was too cheap to buy a pattern for my bodice, so I decided to draft my own. In retrospect, I probably made things harder on myself, but it was interesting, and I feel like I learned a lot. One of the things I learned is that drafting a bodice is difficult (no, duh).

How to draft a super simple(?) bodice pattern with only your measurements:

If you’re too cheap to buy a bodice pattern like me, this is a pretty basic way to make one yourself. It is not a perfect method and requires a lot of messing around with, but it generally works and is free.

Tools I use:

Newspaper (or other thin paper)

L-shaped 8″ grid ruler (not necessary, but I find useful)

Cloth tailor ruler (or string/ribbon)

Curve ruler (not necessary, but super helpful for neck and arm holes)

Yard/meter stick (or regular 12″ ruler is fine)

Scissors

Scotch tape

Pencil/pen

I typically first draft a pattern on a thin type of paper like newspaper, tape the paper pieces together to get a general idea of fit. This paper pattern does not include any seam allowance. Once I’m relatively happy, I move to muslin to make a prototype I can edit further for better fit. This muslin version does have seam allowance, which is typically 5/8″.

If the following diagram looks like there are a lot of necessary measurements in drafting a bodice, that’s because there are. It’s very important to have something flexible you can use to take various measurements around your body, like a cloth tailor ruler. If you don’t have one of those, you can use a piece of string or ribbon to wrap around different parts, straighten the string/ribbon, and them measure the straightened length.

a = Desired width of the strap/ neck to shoulder

I usually start from my neck to where the seam on a shirt normally lies on my shoulder and then subtract from either end until I get the desired size.

b = Front distance between straps/ width of neck

Try to get as straight a line as possible from either side of your neck. If you want the straps further away, add additional length.

c = Front depth of neckline/ neck to neckline

Measure from around the Adam’s apple/voice box to the desired depth of the neckline. To get the curved neckline, use the curve ruler to draw a curve from the side neck points to the lower neckline point. If you don’t have a curve ruler, you can approximate and fix it later on your muslin.

d = Front arm hole curve/ shoulder to armpit

Measure from your shoulder point to your armpit area. If you have a shirt that fits you the way you want your pattern to fit, you can follow the armhole seam to get a good measurement.

e = Over bust/ armpit to armpit

f = Front bust/ underarm to underarm

Measure from side seam to side seam under your arm over the fullest part of your bust. Make sure you measure straight across.

g = Under bust/ underarm to underarm

h = Front neckline to waist

Measure from your desired neckline depth point to the narrowest part of your torso under your ribs. It’s better to go long than short so you can make sure the length takes into account your bust.

i = Front waist

Measure seam to seam at the narrowest part of your torso under your ribs. This number is different from your total waist measurement divided by 2.

j = Armpit to waist

Measure down the side seam of a shirt to your waist.

k = Back distance between straps/ width of neck

l = Back depth of neckline/ neck to neckline

m = Back arm hole curve/ shoulder to armpit

n = Back bust/ armpit to armpit

o = Back neckline to waist

p = Back waist

On the back bodice piece, the dotted lines down the center are where you would cut to put in a zipper. Once you have all of these measurements, the outline you draw will be roughly the shapes in the image. Next, put the patterns together with tape to check the shape. The sides and arm holes might not match up perfectly, or the waists might not be at the same level. That’s fine. You can always modify the pattern by adding or cutting aways pieces of paper. Once you have a shape that you like and think will fit properly, transfer the pattern to muslin by pinning the paper to the fabric and tracing around the shape with pencil, pen, or fabric chalk. When transferring the pattern to muslin, add 5/8″ to all sides you’re sewing, including the edges you want to finish (like the neck and arm holes). Cut out the muslin pieces and pin or baste them together to try the bodice on. If the fit is not right, draw on the fabric with pencil while you’re wearing it to approximate the appropriate lines. Once you’re happy with the muslin bodice pattern, unpin/un-baste the pieces and cut them out of your desired fabric.

In my case, I made the waistline a bit bigger to fit the circle skirt, cut the arm holes larger, and lowered the neckline to get my final product. I did not add seam allowances to the arm or neck holes because I wanted a raw edge finish. Just as with the circle skirt, I doubled the fabric to make it not see-through.

In drafting the pattern, I really learned that arm holes are difficult, and they were especially so because I did not have a curve ruler. I have since purchased one, and wow, it’s so much easier. You can see that I wasn’t able to get the back of the arm hole to lay properly in this picture.

Finishing Touches:

I cut the back of the bodice in half, sewed all the pieces including the skirt together, and stitched in the zipper. I didn’t finish the raw edges because I wanted a more unpolished look. The final touch was the wrap around the waist, which was a spare stretch of the same muslin fabric (~2 yards) tied in a knot behind my back.