Customer Reviews

Make Your Own Clothes: 20 Custom Fit Patterns to Sew

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I've got to admit, I only bought this one for the patterns. I don't use sewing instructions, so I haven't even read the book, but I've given the patterns quite a workout. You type in your measurements and the program caculates a pattern which you then print onto lots of sheets of paper (handy hint, shift the pieces around before printing to reduce the page count) and stick together. It's fiddly, but a lot less so than trying to alter a standard sized pattern. I bought this to try out the drafting software with a view to purchasing the full package from Patternmaker, who produced it. I am a patternmaker by trade, but I like the design part, not the drafting from scratch part, so a custom fit basic will save me so much time. I am now teaching hobby sewers, so I've tested the fit on a variety of people, and can see that, with a little care, these patterns will work fairly nicely. The closer to average posture the better, it would seem - the draft relies heavily on the front/back balance being a certain proportion, so women with a pronounced stoop or very upright posture may find it spits out a weird looking pattern that doesn't sit right, and you really need some pattern experience to see how to fix it. I have a slightly forward neck, so it interpreted my back length as all height and made a slightly longwaisted pattern that still needed extra length up to the back neck. One of my students has very rounded shoulders, and a short front, so that didn't work at all, another has a very large bust, and the chest width ended up far too wide. Fixable, but fiddly, and if you didn't know what you were looking at I can see that it would be too frustrating to continue.

I like the range of patterns included. The styles are all quite basic, but as a patternmaker, I don't look at detail, I look at silhouettes, and I felt the styles included could be the starting point for a complete wardrobe. With only a little pattern design knowledge, you could get a huge range of well fitting patterns.

There is quite a lot of information regarding the system available at www.leenas.com, and I understand there is a user group also. The pattern system used to develop the program is fully described, with hand drafting instructions. Worth a visit.

My only gripe would be the silly errors. I can't say if there were any typos in the book, because I haven't read it, but the style sketches don't always match the pattern diagram properly, and I find that kind of thing annoying. One of the patterns also seemed to draft up oddly, but I haven't had time to recheck it. I may have typed in a wrong number. You can't save measurements, although you can print out a set you've entered, so each time you have to re-enter the measurements.

All in all, I'm very happy. It's a versatile addition to my pattern reportoire, and it's fun to use. I don't even mind taping the pages together :-) I think that if you have average posture, this pattern will accommodate girth and length variations reasonably well, but if you find you have to always make lots of alterations to store bought patterns, this may not be the easy fix you'd expect.

very good book for new sewers. Easy to follow direction and easy to understand. I have been sewing for many years, I wish I had this book when I was starting out.

I felt this book was a little dissapointing. The styles of clothes given look as if they are from the 1980's. So it's not particurally inspiring fashion wise. I tried the software disk and its very clunky to use. I think it would have been far better for it to have had a basic straight skirt pattern instead of the very daggy tulip one. I'm sorry, but I just thought it could have been a much better book but it just isn't. If you like stylish clothes this is not worth getting.

I just finished making a Mother of the Groom dress using the tulip skirt modified and Leena's basic fitting shell you download as an extra when you load the software. Other than moving the side dart in the bodice to a waist dart and contouring it a bit for a more fitted dart - I didn't have to any altering. The dress I was copying the skirt had two inverted pleats, but the same shape as the tulip skirt. So instead of three small pleats I combined them into an inverted pleat, again great fit. I just finished the dress on the front cover in a mauve fine Italian wool - WOW looks like a $300 dress.

Crappy CD with bad interface. The talking help was impossible to understand, distorted, cut out a lot, which was too bad since the product is not intuitive. The pattern pieces in the layout were all on top of each other and I couldn't move them. I updated the software, reinstalled software and still it was a no go. Returned product.

After reading the book's instructions, installing the software, printing patterns supposedly "custon-fit", taping pattern pieces together, cutting them out, trying them on, I threw everything in the trash. I was going to dontate the book to our local library, but it, too, hit the round file today. After having sewn for 30 years, and owning an expensive sewing/embroidery machine, I can do your book no justice. Also, I cannot do myself any, as well. I would say that your photos are good, but the clothes you have constructed have obvious sewing errors, identifiable on sight. Oh, and before I gave up, I left a voice mail at your customer support department, and I received no reply. :-(

I have been sewing for over fifty years and the idea of using software and creating your own custom pattern got me all jazzed up. So I bought this book and software and have to say I was a little more than disappointed. I had someone else do my measurements so I knew they were accurate. But the pattern that printed off for the simple slacks was the size of clown pants. It was a waste of my time, effort and fabric. Also the book instructions on how to use the software is very poor and almost non existent. Much more effort should have been placed on describing the tasks needed to successfully size and print your pattern off, as well as save and modify it. I am sorry I could not recommend this product.

when i looked at the "look in side" preview i was sold but when i got it i was very disappointed alot tof the pictures are misleading like the 2nd picture the one with the realy cute short sleve top and kaki pants, you would think they would have the pattern for the shirt sence it was so prodminate in the picture but it's not the pattern is of the pants :( i gave this tree stars only because i do like some of the patterns but wish it incuded more patterns of all the clothes depicted in the pictures.

This is probably one of the favorite books that I've bought in a long time. I'm new to sewing, but you'd never know that based on what I've made from this book. I couldn't be happier with my purchase.

My title says it all. Great for the directions but I wouldn't wear any of the clothes in this book. I was really disappointed. Maybe she could rewrite it using her sewing knowledge but let someone more in touch with fashion pick what she makes.