Pattern cutting · Plus size
Plus-size sewing pattern, drafted to your measurements
We can't sell to the United Kingdom yet. A plus-size pattern, with us, doesn't come from a size chart stretched upwards: it is drafted to your measurements. You show us the garment you like and give us your eleven body measurements; our studio drafts the pattern for your body, and you print it at home with its sewing instructions.
The trouble with size charts
Why plus-size patterns so often disappoint
Many patterns are drawn on a base size, then graded up size by size. The further you move from that base, the more the differences add up: a bust that needs more length at the front, a tummy or hips that don't follow the same progression, upper arms fuller than the chart allows for. So you choose between a size that's tight and a size that hangs, then alter.
A pattern drafted to your measurements has no chart to extend. Your bust, your waist, your hips and your upper arm are taken as they are. There is no ‘off the chart’ when there is no chart: the figures that size charts leave out are exactly the ones made to measure is for.
Said plainly
What our studio accepts, and its limits
Our patterns are drafted for a bust from 70 to 150 cm, a waist from 55 to 150 cm and hips from 60 to 160 cm. These are not sizes: they are the limits within which we know we can draft accurately today. Beyond them, the form won't accept the measurement, because we would rather not sell a pattern we haven't checked.
The standard sizes offered along the way stop at 3XL: they are there to get you started, not to dress you. For a plus size, it is your measurements that make the pattern.
The pattern follows your measurements; it doesn't replace a fitting. A toile is still recommended, especially the first time: it is what tells you whether the ease suits you.
Where to start
The families we know best
T-shirts and vest tops, skirts, jumpers and sweatshirts, hoodies and shorts are the families we know best. A simple skirt and elastic-waist shorts are the easiest; T-shirts and sweatshirts are sewn in knit fabric and need a stretch stitch (zigzag or overlocker). Either way, the sewing instructions guide you step by step.
To go further, read our article plus-size sewing: choosing and fitting your patterns.
Further reading
Read in the journal
Questions we're often asked
Frequently asked questions
What size do your patterns go up to?
We don't think in sizes: the pattern is drafted to your measurements. Our limits are measurement limits: a bust from 70 to 150 cm, a waist from 55 to 150 cm and hips from 60 to 160 cm. Beyond them, we can't yet draft accurately, and we would rather say so.
My bust and my hips are different sizes: is that a problem?
No, that is the whole point of made to measure. The pattern is drafted to each of your measurements, without forcing them into one column of a chart: there are no sizes to blend between the top and the bottom.
Which measurements do I need?
The eleven body measurements we ask for: height, bust, waist, high hip, front length, back length, neck, shoulder length, arm length, upper arm and wrist. Take them in your underwear, with your usual bra, using a soft tape measure laid flat against the body, without pulling it tight; our guide explains each measurement.
Should I make a toile?
Yes, a toile (test garment) is recommended: cut it from an inexpensive fabric that behaves like your good fabric, or from a knit with similar stretch for a knit garment. It checks the ease at the bust, the waist and the arms, where differences show first.
Get started
A pattern for your body, not for a chart
Start from the garment you love and give us your measurements: our studio drafts the pattern and checks it, with its sewing instructions, before sending it. Pay-as-you-go credits, no subscription.
Create my pattern to my measurementsPay-as-you-go credits, no subscription · See all pattern families