Category: Pattern Drafting Crash Course

• Fractions are obvious I would guess.
• The decimal was found by dividing 1 by the number after the / so 1 divided by 64 gives you the .0156.
• The MM was found by multiplying by 2.54. To read the MM section correctly you read after the decimal as mm and before the . as CM. Thus 1.3 cm is 1 centimeters and 3 millimeters.
• My books and other drafting tutorials are written for standard thus this is to help convert the fractions to a more manageable format. When reading a long MM measurement such as 25.7969 you will want to round the .7969 to .8 thus 25 cm plus 8 mm is what you will find your measurement will have to be for 1 1/64″

When all else fails plug it into Google!

• Abdomen – area between the waist and hips around the belly button area
• Abdomen arc – 1/4 of the total circumference of the fattest part
• Apex – the doll’s nipple if she has one or the tip of her breast
• Arc – 1/4 of complete circumference measurement
• Banana dart – a dart that looks like a straight up and down banana
• Basic block – your pattern that you drafted from your measurements it has no design to it
• Bias grain – the diagonal of the fabric and your grain line is lined up with it for a different drape
• Blend – making separate lines look like 1 continuous one
• Bust – chest level on a child or man or the breasts of a lady doll
• Bust arc – the distance from the flat ribs below the bust to the apex
• Bust bridge – distance between apexes
• Cap ease – difference between cap and armhole measurement
• Cap – height distance from biceps to cap at center
• Center back – center of the back usually where there would be a spine
• Center front – center of the front of a doll where there would normally be a breast bone
• Circumference – distance around somewhere
• Cloth body – the body is made of cloth and is very soft and huggable.
• Composition body – the body I made of a plastic substance and does not squish when you hug your doll
• Cross grain – grain running from selvage to selvage
• Crotch – area where a drink and wet doll wets and where panties would normally go
• Dart intake – the extra added to a pattern so that when you sew the dart it doesn’t end up too small
• Dart leg – one of the lines that makes up a dart
• Dart point – the tip of the dart
• Darts – used to fit a garment close to the body primarily for lady dolls but can be used on children or men but never on a baby.
• Drape – holding and pinning a piece of fabric up to a doll and pinching the material until it fits then marking where darts are and making a basic pattern from the fabric markings in a connect-the-dots style.
• Ease – the extra bit of room that allows you to dress the doll without breaking her
• Elbow level – elbow of doll
• Finger span – the distance around all the fingers at the largest point
• French curve – plastic tool used to draw curves various sizes are available including ones specifically for dolls
• Grade – to enlarge or shrink an current pattern
• Grading – the act of enlarging or shrinking a pattern
• Grain line – center of garment running normally from top to bottom of piece
• Hip arc – 1/4 of the total hip measurement
• Horizontal balance lines or HBL – horizontal lines used as a basis of where the bust waist and hip lie so that measuring is more accurate and easier
• Notches – used at the armhole and top of sleeve to ensure that the sleeve doesn’t end up crooked when sewn
• Porcelain body – made of porcelain doesn’t squish and is very hard similar to a composition body only very fragile
• Princess line – the style of a pattern where the bodice or skirt has been split into 2 pieces for each quarter of the body
• Raglan – a style where the sleeve doesn’t come from the shoulder tip but from the neck/shoulder junction as in a sweatshirt
• Right angle or RT angle – a 90-degree angle commonly found at necklines centers side seams and armhole bottoms
• Rulers – measuring tool
• Seam – sewn together pieces of fabric to form 1 piece this can be done by hand or machine
• Seam allowance or S/A – allowance of extra fabric so that your sewing machine has a little extra to grab on to when it tries to feed your fabric through.
• Sleeve cap -the curved top section of the sleeve from the front to the back
• Sleeve ease – the added room needed to allow the arm to move if necessary
• Straight grain – the vertical grain of the fabric
• Style lines – various lines made on patterns to create a new look or design
• Torso – the body part of a doll without the head, arms, or legs.
• Truing the pattern – checking to be sure that all areas match up side seams are the same length, shoulder seams are the same etc.
• Waist arc – 1/4 of the total waist circumference measurement
• Wrist level – the bottom hemline area of a sleeve, level with the wrist of the arm

Below is the supply list you will need to draft patterns for small or children dolls. In future posts I will also try to list places to find some of the more unique items such as French Curves suitable for drafting in the smaller scales.

• 1/8 or 1/4″ Ribbon -used to mark where the bust waist and hips land so that measurements are accurate. To help measure hard to get into places on small dolls. You can lay the ribbon on the doll and then use a pen dot to mark the desired amount and then measure the end to the dot.
• A plastic coated twist tie works very well for very tiny dolls as you can bend the wire to the exact amount you need and then use a ruler to do the measuring
• Eraser– pink pearl or kneaded gum
• French Curve, tape dispenser, or sets of “doll size” French curves
• Glue stick helps hold tiny pieces to cardstock for final blocks
• Light Table or A Box with a Light Inside and Clear Glass or Plastic Over the Top or A Child’s Light Table – used for tracing patterns easier
• Magnifying glass – Lets you see small things easier
• Manila Envelopes, Thin Cardboard, Card Stock Or Junk Mail Post Cards Or Thin Cardboard Boxes- for creating permanent blocks
• Measuring Tape – a normal sized human one works OK for larger dolls. Alternatively the retractable purse size measuring tapes work well too. It just needs to be narrow and flexible.
• Muslin– relatively inexpensive way to do test fits and be able to sew the pieces together along with marking on the pieces any changes
• Paper– light weight for first drafts of the pattern
• Paper Towel, muslin, used dryer sheets – inexpensive way to test patterns*Pencil- mechanical pencil or a no. 2 normal pencil with a sharp point
• Ruler – an accurate one marked in 1/16ths and also centimeters (metal is best) There are clear rulers that are marked in 1/10ths that are very useful as well
• Scissors – fine tip sewing scissors some for paper and another pair for fabric
• Scotch Tape – taping parts of a pattern in place while adjusting or stylizing
• Small Rotary Cutter With A Sharp Blade – to ease cutting out pieces from fabric optional The 18mm size is perfect for cutting out even 1″ scale pieces accurately
• Small Rotary Mat – must be used if you use a rotary cutter optional
• Ultra-Fine Point Sharpie – used for giving a very fine line that is more visible than pencil to a final pattern
• Xacto Knife – to aid cutting out permanent blocks

Pattern Drafting Crash Course

This tutorial was originally created in 2000-2001 and tested on my daughter at about a year old (she’s an adult now). I have also used this tutorial to draft patterns for a doll as small as 1/2″ tall of course using magnifying glasses and a very sharp pencil! This is a preview of the techniques used in Pattern Making for Dolls and Pattern Drafting For Miniatures which were originally sold as hard copy books, moved to CD and finally are now available in PDF as an instant download. If anyone would like the books in hard copy or Kindle format please let me know and I’ll post them on Amazon or another variation thereof for ordering.

Included in this tutorial series are all the items that will be needed for all the pattern drafts and even some of the items that will be needed for the stylizations in sections of the full book. 

Please feel free to draft patterns and critique anything you find that doesn’t work quite right for you. 

Please also remember the full book covers ladies clothing and babies clothing too along with styles, construction tips and techniques. If you pass this on to anyone else please remember to give me credit and point them to my website or contact information. 

Contact me with any questions you have regarding my technique.

If anyone is interested I have plans to write additional books on Computerized Drafting with Inkscape (Corel Draw or Illustrator will work too) and a book on Advanced Stylizations for Dolls and Miniatures. I’ll also be adding some machine embroidery items and working on new patterns that can be cut using a Cricut or other cutting machine via SVG files.

I’m also happy to announce that I’ll have an app to track your dolls and patterns using some of the material found in this tutorial and in the books to assist with the management of your collection!

Terms of Use

This is only a preview of the books there is a lot more information included in the full books! 

The terms of usage for my tutorial.

• Please leave all copyright information in place and do not sell this Pattern Drafting Crash Course. 
• If you want to link to it please go ahead but also let me know so I may link back. 
• Any and all patterns you make using this information are yours and you may sell them just not my “How To Do It”. 
• Please if you do sell the patterns made from this or any of my books, place a small note somewhere that you used my Pattern Drafting Crash Course or my books Pattern Making for Dolls and Pattern Drafting For Miniatures and list my URL or e-mail. 
• This is a very small thing to do for me and otherwise I give the Pattern Drafting Crash Course freely with no expectations that you will buy the books or anything from me. 

Please feel free to drop me a line telling me what you used the Pattern Drafting Crash Course for or if you used it to make a pattern and sold it. I like to hear about your success!