Comments on: Saran wrap pattern making method #2

By: Julie

Julie — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 17:12:26 +0000

I just tried this yesterday. I have yet to sew up the muslin sloper I got off the saran wrap, but I had a very different experience from anything I’ve read about with this technique, and I thought I should share it just in case.
My boyfriend was doing the wrapping, and as he’s not exactly crafty or familiar with sewing, it took longer than expected. About an hour in, we were just finishing up and getting ready to mark the waistline, side seams, etc. when I started to feel slightly ill. I told him to hurry up, but my discomfort quickly (within about 1-2 minutes) progressed to me almost fainting, and having to be cut out of the wrap along the center back (approximately :/ ) and laid out on the couch. After laying there for a few minutes, I got up and told him to keep marking; within about 30 seconds, I had completely konked out.
We did eventually mark the waistline, etc. — he must have thought I was crazy — although now, no doubt from all of the abuse, the two sides are fairly different and I’ll have an interesting time getting a sloper out of it. I just thought I should put it out there that the process should maybe not take too long, esp. if you have a tendency to faint (which I really don’t, btw).

By: Donna

Donna — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 15:42:59 +0000

Tried this and the first one was way off on the grading. I modified the second attempt and came out with a really well fitting shirt.

By: rito

rito — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 21:46:58 +0000

awww…your son is a sweetie

By: Sabine

Sabine — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 05:40:22 +0000

I really honestly had to laugh out loud at this:
“There was no way my son was going to put on a bra and panties -children can be so non compliant. ”
Originally I wanted to use my daughter as the underwear model, but I just could not convince her, despite me cutting out the models whole body, so i know exactly what you mean, hehe

Thank you for sharing this, will try this, but also plan on making a body form.

By: AJ

AJ — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 16:38:58 +0000

Kathleen, did you ever post the pattern pieces that came from this? I am writing an article which compiles all the “make your own sloper” type links on the net that I can find and I would like to include this because it’s so simple and likely a lot more accurate than using thick tape but I think novices may get stuck on the fact that there are no photos of what their final pieces will look like.

By: Kristal

Kristal — Mon, 18 May 2009 22:37:25 +0000

I imagine I’ll be updating this posting regarding the pattern I make from this so I’ll save my other photos for that demonstration. However, you can work ahead if you like.

Have you posted / updated this post? I am considering trying out this method to get an idea of how big my 2D/flat-self really is so that I can make my own clothes. I understand up to the “cutting it only so far as to render it flat” part but where should I be cutting and how far… or is this one of those go with the gut type things? I’m kind of just being to get into the entire world of “make your own clothing” (I’m overweight & commercial patterns are NEVER a quick and simple thing for me… I got Don McCunn’s Pattern drafting book “How To Make Sewing Patterns” it’s a vrery good book. Once I figured out what to do and how to do it I was fine- I just keep forgeting to add seams and hems! But it doesn’t cover some things like grading, and I feel like some things were explained/partially explained but I just didn’t get it!?)

I was going to take a closer look at the books you recommended in the 1st part of this post and save up money for them – If I had the $$MONEY$$ I’d definitely donate to this site… you seem to me like one of those folks who knows their business (forward, backward, sideways and up-side-down). You explain yourself/methods/how-to so well that while I do re-read it to myself to get the basics of telling me figured out right in my head, you keep it simple and to the point, it’s easy to understand. (I’m finding it to be a very rare thing to find on the internet!)

So anyway i was just wondering if you had already posted an addition to this post (I have not been able to find it yet?!) or even if you had. I understand that you do have a life outside of this site and you probably get all kinds of requests for more tutorials, but was there anyway you would be able to “clairify” the where to cut and how far dilemma I’m having?

Again, (completely understandable) if you don’t have the time, then you don’t have it!

Thank you for ‘public’ access to what I am able to view and post comments to. You really do have a spectacular site here,
Thank you for your time,
Kristal

By: Leslie Hanes

Leslie Hanes — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 06:17:30 +0000

Personally, I’m pretty sure you stole the idea from the Egyptians. But, I wonder when they thought they would get around to actually drafting the pattern? Talk about leaving your model in the wrapping too long!

By: Liron

Liron — Mon, 12 May 2008 14:49:04 +0000

Hi Kathleen
I am so delighted about finding your site ,and this entry is great. As I am now learning pattern making (and we will not be grading in this course-its a separate one) I would like to ask about grading up- Does grading up relace the ease of the block or or should you ease some anyway?

By: Alison Cummins

Alison Cummins — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:19:21 +0000

Um, couldn’t this be a case of convergent evolution?

The idea of wrapping the body in something to make a model of it has been around for a while. Duct Tape Doubles are the current thing, whereas before it was Brown Paper Office Tape Dummies. Perhaps more closely related to the Saran Wrap exercise is draping — sewing muslin to a form or person and then cutting it apart to make a pattern from it. Substitute Saran Wrap for muslin and voila.

Kathleen, I have no idea whether you or Connie came up with the idea first or who published it first. If an idea is a good one, it seems to me that smart people might hit upon it independently. While Connie may certainly have taken her inspiration from you — you’re a *very* smart person — that’s between you and Connie. I don’t think you have to worry about the rest of us imagining you to be intellectually dishonest. Because we know you aren’t.

By: Kathleen

Kathleen — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:01:29 +0000

I hope you’re not implying that I copied the concept from Connie. If you think she originated it, it’d mean you’d fallen sway to pre-emptive bias, meaning, you assume the originator to be the person you heard it from first. But thanks. I’ll look it up in Connie’s book and mention to her she should have credited me with the idea because I certainly don’t need allegations of intellectual dishonesty from people who hear of it there first.

Secondly, as I say over and over and over and over and over and over (and over and over); this *isn’t* a pattern making method per se. It’s a way for people to see the shapes of their bodies. Besides, you don’t have to pull it on with tension, but pat it on (you know, balling up the saran wrap rather than heating it). Lastly I say repeatedly to grade it up a size or two. I’m guessing you didn’t read entry #1 although I also mention it in this entry.

Btw, the “Robbie” mentioned in this article is Robbie Fanning, I wrote a version of this article for her newsletter (the Creative Machine) back in the mid 90′s, well before Connie was writing pattern making books.