Sencha FBA

When I posted pics of my finished Sencha blouse in April, Rachel asked me if  I'd be willing to share how I did my FBA on this blouse. I didn't think people would be interested in this, since most people seem to struggle with the exact opposite problem with Colette patterns. Although I appreciate the curvier and more generous C-cup sizing of Colette patterns it still isn't quite enough. If you find yourself in the same situation, this tutorial might help.

The FBA I did on Sencha is really just a fairly regular FBA. To make things a bit clearer and easier to understand I made little hand-drawn illustrations of the pattern changes, which I edited in Paint. Yes, Paint! My graphic design skills and tools are rather limited.

STEP 1
Choose the right pattern size. For bigger than B-Cup it is best to choose all patterns by upper chest measurement rather than bust measurement. This way it is easier to get a good fit at the shoulders and neckline. Cut out your front and back pieces.

STEP 2
Tissue-fit* the back and front pieces to your body. The tissue-fit doesn't have to be particularly accurate. Mine never are. When you have tissue-fitted the pattern to your body, mark your bust point on the pattern and determine the difference between the pattern's CF and your body's CF. In my case, the difference was considerably less than it usually is on other commercial patterns I have used.

* For a tutorial on tissue-fitting you can check out Gertie's vlog on tissue-fitting.

STEP 3

Take the pattern off again and remove all pins. Measure your shoulder length plus 1.5 cm seam allowance from the neckline. Mark a point anywhere along this line on the shoulder seamline (1.5 cm from the pattern egde). I drew my point at the end of the line, but anywhere else along the shoulder is fine too.

 

STEP 4

Draw a line connecting the point at the shoulder with the bust point and then continue the line as shown in the picture.

Alternatively you could draw a line straight down from the bust point to the hemline. This would, however, move the tucks to a different position after the cut and spread. They would then have to be redrawn to their original position. Spreading around the tucks eliminates this extra step.

STEP 5

Cut and spread the pattern by the amount determined in STEP 2. Leave the seam allowance at the shoulder as a hinge.

STEP 6

To add length to the pattern not only horizontally but also vertically draw a line perpendicular to the CF starting at the bust point.

STEP 7

Cut and spread the pattern. I spread the pattern about 2-3 cm. This can be checked and corrected in a muslin. For some this step may not even be necessary.

STEP 8

Redraw the hemline.

STEP 9

The FBA is now completed. If you have a big bust but still a rather smallish waist it is necessary to remove some of the room in the waist that was created by the FBA. For my Sencha I simply redrew the side seam. I determined the amount by measuring the pattern and by checking the fit on a muslin. If a lot of waist reduction is necessary it's probably a good idea to reduce the waist not only at the side seam but also by making the dart tucks deeper.

STEP 10

This is the finished pattern!

I hope this tutorial was easy to follow. If you have any questions, just leave me a comment, and I'd be happy to clarify. Good luck with your Sencha!