I finished my Pin-Up Girls Classic Bra. I'm now officially a Pin-Up Girl (see sidebar :). Making this bra was really enjoyable. I love making bras. And although I'm not fully happy with it, it is definitely the most successful bra I have made so far. The proof is in the wearing and I have worn this bra a lot since I finished making it. It came out a bit snug in the band but else it's a pretty good fit after a bit of tweaking.
When I finished sewing the bra it gaped at the armhole, so I had to take off the elastic at the armhole and stretch it more than the suggested 1 inch I stretched it in the first place. I think I ended up stretching it about 2 inches in total.
Other minor things that didn't turn out so well is how the elastic lies both at the top of the bridge and under the bust. It has a tendency to curl outward at the top of the bridge and inward under the cup. I suppose I need to pull the elastic somewhat tighter at the top and not as tight under the cups in its next instalment.
I also think that my boobs would benefit from a power bar to stop them from spilling into the underarm, so I think I'll go straight into sewing up the Shelley Bra next, as this one has better shaping and a power bar.
I will also use more appropriate fabric for the cups next time. I used a very sturdy cup liner and an extremely light-weight polyester as a second layer. The polyester was not a good idea and the cup liner was a bit too rigid, especially for the upper cup portion. I'll stick to actual cup fabric, rather than the polyester I used over the cup liner, for next time.
But, hey, I made a bra that is wearable! Perhaps not the prettiest bra, but wearable is good enough for now.
So here is my official pattern review for this month's "A Year in Indie Patterns":
REVIEW: Pin-Up Girls
PATTERN TESTED:
Classic Bra, Printed Pattern, £16.16 (bought through BodilsWear on Etsy)
ABOUT THE PATTERNS:
Pin-Up Girls Bra Patterns are made by the Canadian company Bra-makers Supply founded by Beverly Johnson. Beverly Johnson herself teaches bra making courses all over the world and I think this is what makes these patterns unique: they have been tested over and over on real people. You really get the feeling that Beverly Johnson knows what she is talking about. Read this interview to find out how she came about drafting bra patterns and teaching bra making. The patterns are available only in printed format, either from Bra-makers Supply directly, or if you live in Europe it is more economical and faster if you order through BodilsWear Etsy shop in Sweden.
MY NOTES:
SIZING - The first thing that drew me to buying a Pin-Up Girls pattern is the comprehensive size range. Many commercially available bra patterns only have a limited size range (e.g. KwikSew). Pin-Up Girls bra patterns come in band sizes 30-48 and cup sizes AAA-H. Almost everyone will be able to sew from their patterns, or tweak the available sizes with little difficulty.
However, what confused me about the pattern is how it suggests you pick your size: You should take your high bust measurement and use that measurement in inches to select your band size. Next you should measure your bust and deduct your high bust measurement to find your cup size, whereby e.g. (in my size pack) 5" is an E-cup, 6" an F-cup, 7" a G-cup, etc.
Let's use me as an example: My high bust is around 37 1/2 inches, meaning I should be using a 38 band size. My bust is 40 1/2 or 41 inches at a stretch. This means the difference between my high bust and bust measurement is 3-3 1/2 inches. The bra size I should be sewing is a 38 C-D.
This seemed completely off what I usually wear and buy in the shops. Now as sewers we all know that shop sizes are no indication for what size to actually sew. Measurements are much more reliable. However, this size seemed so impossible to me that I stuck to what I normally wear, which is a 34G. That's two band sizes and 3 cup sizes away from the recommended size in the Pin-Up Girls pattern. The 34G cup I sewed fits. If the cup were any smaller, it wouldn't fit at all. Only the band is somewhat snug and could be adjusted up a half size or size.
I suppose sticking to my 34 band size, the difference between that band and my actual bust of 41 inches is indeed 7 inches, indicating a G-cup. So, is it the difference between the actual band size we choose to sew from (because it fits from experience) and our bust measurement that should be used for calculating cup size?
This was all very confusing and a treacherous territory for a beginner bra maker. It would be great if the instructions on choosing size were clearer and more reliable in the pattern instructions. Ideally even before purchasing the pattern, as Pin-Up Girls patterns come in four different size packs and you would want to know what size to buy before making your purchase.
PATTERN SHEET - The pattern comes on one big sturdy sheet of paper, so not on the customary flimsy pattern paper. That's because the pattern is supposed to be traced off the sheet. This way you can reuse the pattern, in case you do need to go up or down a size. Tracing off bra patterns is easy as there are only few pieces and they are small. The pattern has a 1/4 seam allowance included, which is the customary seam allowance for bra patterns and easy to work with.
Unfortunately, an error must have happened in the printing of my pattern sheet, as some of the pattern pieces were not printed fully. This would have annoyed me if my size was hanging off the page, but fortunately all pieces for my size could be traced fully with no guesswork.
INSTRUCTIONS - The instructions come on a separate A4 booklet and are both in English and French. I have never worked with bra pattern instructions before, as I attended a bra course once and have only used self-drafted or copies of my existing bras to sew new ones and therefore used my own instructions. This is why I can't compare these instructions to other bra pattern instructions. However, there is an illustration with every step, which definitely helps. I also like that a suggested stitch length, width and type is recommended for each step. This takes out a lot of the guesswork.
The format was a bit annoying and I often found myself misplacing a page or ending up on a French page instead of an English one. I think I will staple my instructions together in the right order without the French bits for next time.
GOOD FIT - The most astonishing thing is that this bra fits the best out of all bras I have ever made. It still needs some tweaking, but it is absolutely wearable and I have already worn it a lot. Even the bras I drafted from existing bras do not fit as well. I suppose having instructions and guidelines as to how snug the elastic should be pulled, etc. helps in getting a good fit, as well as having a much more accurate draft than my poor copies of RTW bras.
The support of the bra is excellent but I don't like the look of the bra I made much. But I will change this next time, as I now feel more knowledgeable about the type of fabric and elastic to use.
CONCLUSION:
I'm really happy with my experience of sewing this bra. I'm ecstatic that it is available in my size and that it comes with good instructions and lots of extra knowledge to be gained from reading Beverly Johnson's blog, which features lots of students' projects. I do not think that the Classic Bra is the ideal shape for me, so I will jump right into making a Shelley bra next, in the same size but with a slightly bigger back band.
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JOIN IN!
If you have made up a pattern by Pin-Up Girls, share your review and/or project via the A-Year-in-Indie-Patterns Pinterest Board. Just drop me a line via email or in the comments with your e-mail address, so I can add you as a pinner to the board. Would love to see other people's results with these patterns!