The basic skirt sloper is the easiest basic pattern to draft and in the previous lesson, we drafted it with a standard 4 darts. In this tutorial, we shall incorporate 4 more darts which will help spread out the fullness. It is also just a variation for those who have larger darts due to a sizable difference between the waist and hip measurements.
Principles of pattern drafting
We shall be drafting Half of a Front piece and Half of a Back piece. This is because both sides are the same or symmetrical. You only need to draft a full piece if the two sides are different in some way. Since we are working in halves (half front/half back) or in quarters (Quarter of the whole skirt) depending on how you look at it, some measurements will be divided into 2, and some will be divided into 4. It will all make sense once we get into the work.
Tools you will need
1. Straight ruler
2. Set square
3. Curve ruler
4. Pencils / Eraser /Sharpener
5. Brown paper/ Drafting Paper – 1 sheet (30L x 30W inches) or (75cm x 75cm). It should be longer than your waist to knee measurement and wider than 1/2 hip measurement. You can always tape sheets of paper together to get the right size.
Measurements you will need (Feel free to work in Inches or Cm)
1. Waist
2. Hip
3. Hip depth
4. Length (Waist to Knee)
5. Apex
6. Across Back
IMPORTANT! Download Basic Skirt Calculation Worksheet first
The Skirt Draft
1. Leaving a space of about 1 inch (2.5cm) from the top of the paper, draw a straight line across the top of the paper to create a guideline.
2. Starting about 1/2 inch (1.2cm) away from the edge of the paper, square another line down from the top left corner of the paper. This should be perpendicular to the first guideline.
3. Line A – B = Length Measurement
4. Line A – C = Half Hip Measurement
5. Line C – D = Same as A-B
6. Line B – D = Same as A-C
You should now have a Square/Rectangle that is Length by Half Hip measurement.
7. Line A – E = Hip depth measurement
8. Square across a line to Point F
9. Line A – G = Front Hip measurement. Square straight line down. Label as G,H and I.
10. Label as Centre Front and Centre Back as illustrated above.
Insert Darts
Now we will calculate the Darts to shape the waist line. Darts are triangular shapes that remove excess fabric from a part of the garment to create shape and contours. Darts will turn the flat drawing into a 3D shape when sewn.
Essentially the size of the darts for a skirt is the difference between the Hips and the Waist. The result is then distributed among the 8 darts (4 in front and 4 in back) and the sides of the skirt. See worksheet for detailed calculations.
Front
11. A to J = Front waist measurement plus two-thirds dart measurement (e.g. 2inches)
12. Square up a line from Point J, 3/8 inch long (1 cm). Mark as Point J1.
13. A to K = 1/2 apex measurement minus 3/8 inch (1cm)
13. K to L = One-third dart measurement (e.g 1inch)
14. Make a mark halfway between points KL and square a line straight down. This line should equal 1/2 of the hip depth measurement. Mark dart point as M. Join points KML to form dart.
15. Join point L to J1 with a straight line
16. Mark a point halfway between points L and J1. From that point square a line down for the second dart. This should measure 1 inch (2.5cm) less than the first dart. Label as Point N.
17. Points O and P = Insert one-third dart measurement equally on either side of the dart point (e.g. for a 1inch dart, 0.5 inch on either side)
Back
18. C to Q = Back waist measurement plus two-thirds dart measurement (e.g. 2inches)
19. Square up a line from Point Q, 3/8 inch long (1 cm). Mark as Point Q1.
20. C to R = 1/4 across back measurement minus 3/8 inch (1cm)
21. R to S = One-third dart measurement (e.g 1inch)
22. Make a mark halfway between points RS and square a line straight down. This line should equal 3/4 of the hip depth measurement. Mark dart point as T. Join points RTS to form dart.
23. Join point S to Q1 with a straight line
24. Mark a point halfway between points L and J1. From that point square a line down for the second dart. This should measure 1 inch (2.5cm) less than the first dart. Label as Point U.
25. Points V and W = Insert one-third dart measurement equally on either side of the dart point (e.g. for a 1inch dart, 0.5 inch on either side)
20. Join J1 and H on the Front and points Q1 and H on the back with curved lines to complete the sides.
21. Separate the Front and the Back piece by cutting down the middle. To test, add seam allowance to the sides, cut the front folded and the back in two pieces to allow for a zipper.
The skirt block is complete. Try testing it without adding ease to easily detect any errors and use non-stretch woven fabric. Please ask any questions and I’ll be sure to help.
Appendix.
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