Students develop the skill to engineer (design, plan and
construct) patterns for exclusive Couture or mass produced (ready to wear)
garments to appropriate standards.
Students begin by
learning the basics of measuring and to apply this to a basic block pattern
which is then manipulated into any garment style, fabric type, figure shape,
size, gender and age Students learn to compile and follow pattern specifications.
Grading (sizing)
of patterns forms an integral part of this subject.
Taking a pattern
from a completed garment and combining existing patterns also forms part of
intensive pattern classes.
Pattern Theory
Includes the language and set rules of patternmaking in an academic format, as
opposed to the practical application. It includes all the standardizations of
measurements used to draft patterns. (For example: standard widths of collars
and buttonstands). This theory also aids in quality management.
Although Marlene, as inventor of the X!act Design
Patternmaker™, believes that this is an excellent tool for furthering skills in
pattern making, she is still of the believe that students should be taught to
think and solve problems without falling back on solutions handed out by
lecturers.
Says Marlene, “A pattern is a solution to a problem, and
problem solving (not only relating to patterns) is an underdeveloped skill in
South-Africa”. Her concern is that some of the institutes are ‘skipping over’
the crucial elements of pattern making.
“With our recent market research, whereby we focused on
tertiary training institutes to include the X!act Design Patternmaker™ in their
syllabi, we found that so many colleges have excluded the drafting of basic
block patterns from their syllabi. This came as a very huge shock, and I’ve
discovered that learners who have qualified from these institutes are
themselves frustrated as to realise that they do not know how to draft the most
crucial part of a pattern. ”Pattern making requires a technical approach rather
than a creative one. I say this because,
in clothing design, our object of study is actually the human figure: To dress
the figure. This is the technical aspect, as we’re working with a figure that
is a 3D form, but the pattern is a flat form.
Our aim is to dress the figure, firstly to cover it (the technical
aspect), then to dress it in order to beatify it (the creative aspect).
With drafting basic block patterns, we create a replica of
the figure, taking into consideration the shapes and forms of the figure. To
develop this technical aptitude students have to analyse and study various
figure types and proportions to really understand standardised sizing and the
distribution of size. Ultimately, if at the stage of basic block drafting, they
develop the skill of size analysis, the tuition of grading (sizing) of patterns
becomes easier. When we omit the basic block from training, we are not
developing the technical process. A pattern is a solution to a problem, and with
no technical ability or frame of mind, the student cannot solve the first and
most crucial problem, which is the fit. The next problem is to ensure the style
of the pattern result in a garment that is made according to the original
design. Adding the style lines and flair to the patterns is the creative part,
which is the easy part.
Marlene has also found that lecturers supply students with
complete templates of basic block patterns, already drafted to a standardised
size. “From these templates, students add the style details, learning and
practicing thousands of style combinations. The problem is that again, they’re
not relating to the figure, only to the style of the garment. Institutes that
do however instruct students on drafting the basic block pattern, do so by
letting student draft block patterns according to their own measurements. The
style patterns are then practiced using these blocks. The student then only
develops the fitting criteria based on his/her own figure. By the time they
qualify, they’ve only learned to solve fitting problems for their own figure
type”.
Whenever Marlene raised this issue, she gets the same
response, that basic blocks are not used in the industry. “Indeed”, she says,
but notes that industry is not only made up of the large manufactures. “Any
person who makes and sell a garment for profitable gain, forms part of our
industry. Not all design students end up
working in factories, many of them become self-employed and their pattern making
(fitting) abilities are crucial to their professional reputation. Should a
student not have learned to develop patterns, constantly keeping fit, form and
function as focus, they would not be able to develop successful style patterns
with a perfect fit. This affects sales figures, because the costumer is firstly
attracted to a garment due to its style, but if the garment does not fit, the
sale is lost. This applies to mass produced and exclusive garments “.
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