The past few months I’ve been working behind the scenes to redraft all my sewing slopers. I started a new exercise program this summer and am finally getting back my pre-kids fitness level. Weight loss plus my changing body shape at 43 meant it was time to start from scratch and redo my slopers.
I slowly worked through my Craftsy classes with Suzy Furrer (I can’t praise her courses highly enough!) I own the Bodice Sloper, Pant Sloper, Pant Drafting and Creative Sleeves courses and streamed the other courses. I actually got the streaming monthly subscription this summer to use with my daughter but kept it for all the sewing content for me! Even after 5 months there are still classes I’m looking forward to taking.
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It’s time consuming to make all of these slopers (these were made over the course of three months) but having a perfect blueprint of your body to draft from makes my clothes fit so much better. Even if you just use them to check the fit of a purchased pattern it makes adjustments so much easier. I just lay my slopers over a pattern and adjust. Easy peasy.
My Current Measurements:
- Height 5′ 7″
- Bust 37″ Underbust 31″
- Waist 29.5″
- High Hip 36″ Low Hip 39.5″
- Thigh 21.25″ Calf 14.75″
- Inseam 30.5″ Outseam 40.5″
Suzy Furrer Bluprint Classes I Used:
- Patternmaking + Design: The Pants Sloper
- Patternmaking Basics: The Bodice Sloper
- Patternmaking and Design: Creative Sleeves
- Patternmaking Basics: The Skirt Sloper
Skirt
The skirt sloper class with Suzy Furrer is a great starter to learn to draft. You learn how to make a custom skirt sloper for both wovens and knits and explore a variety of shapes and silhouettes. Flared and Pleated Skirts, Flounces and Drapes, and Circle Skirts are all shown as well as all the necessary linings, waistbands, and facings.
The skirt block is probably the easiest to make. Only a few measurements and a simple shape. I’ve also drafted a few skirt patterns with this basic block that I’m looking forward to making up soon!
Bodice
This is by far my favorite course. It’s a bit more complicated as there are many measurements to consider, but you end up with an amazingly accurate sloper. I really geek out doing the math and drawing the slopers-it’s such fun! You first learn to draft a moulage (meaning to mold in French) and then turn it into a sloper with added ease and transfer it to tag.
Above: Woven Bodice Below: Knit Bodice
My bodice Sloper probably has changed the most. My bust has dropped a bit with age and my upper body is a bit slimmer. Doing Tracey Anderson Method (TAM) workouts has really helped to define my arms and keep them slim. The exercise has really helped my energy, mood and stress. Plus my hormones! I’m really trying to manage all my perimenopausal symptoms. I do TAM now 3-4 times a week ( I did 5-6 days/wk to start), and yoga every other day. We also just started doing nighttime family walks together. A 3.5 mile loop around our community. Love that family time!
Sleeve
In the Creative Sleeves course you learn to draft your own sleeve slopers as well as learn how to construct a variety of sleeve shapes. Two piece, 3/4, short sleeve, drop shoulder, linings, pleats and cuffs are all discussed and you end up with a wonderful selection of patterns to work with.
Left: Sleeve Sloper Right: Tailor Sleeve
Tailor Sleeve (shown Above) with Elbow Dart
Regular Sleeve Sloper (shown above and below)
I’m really happy with the fit of these sleeves. Great ease of movement and I really love how the tailored sleeve improves the fit. I’ll use this one pretty regularly.
Pant
In this course you learn everything you need to know to draft your pant sloper. This is the what makes pant sewing so easy for me. With your sloper your pants are tailored to your own body and fit so much better than a commercial pattern. She also walks you through drafting a cigarette pant and a trouser. Her Drafting Patterns class is a great addition to this course and I’ve been using it regularly to draft my pants patterns.
My pant sloper has changed quite a bit too. I think I finally aced the crotch curve. My waist, high hip and low hip are slightly smaller and the workouts and walking I’ve been doing have really changed my leg shape. I feel awesome! I really didn’t think I would ever get back into the condition I was before kids. I had a really physically demanding job back then and worked out really consistently. Now that the kids are back in school and I work from home I’m finally getting there.
Back next week with my first creation using this new pant sloper- culotte lightwash highwaisted Jeans! They’re amazing! I’m also working right now on a cropped trouser. Happy Sewing!
I really enjoyed reading this post. I am currently in the middle of making some slopers (starting with a bodice sloper) and I’m using Winifred Aldrich’s book. I am hoping to be able to make some great fitting sleeveless tops from it. I do really like the toiles you’ve made. Perhaps I should give the Bluprint classes with Suzy Furrer a try? It’s also interesting to see the comparison you did between your old and new slopers. None of us stay the same do we?
Thanks so much! You’re so right! One of the reasons I wanted to share this was to show how much they can change over time. I really hadn’t noticed until I redrafted these. I found the visual nature of the Suzy Furrer classes really made it easy to follow along step by step. I had tried before using books to draft my sloper but hadn’t been very successful on my own. Drafting patterns from books (using my sloper) is much easier.