Sewing to fit scoliosis

I have lots of figure flaws that drive me nuts. I recently bought C&S casual blouses and am working on that. I'm getting a far better fit than I ever expected. I'm still running into some problems so I email customer service and they have been a big help. I tell them the problem, they want to know exactly what I'm working on and asked me to send my measurements. They then told me what to change as far as numbers go. I think it's worth investing in

Sewing to fit scoliosis snipped-for-privacy@NOSPAMfrontiernet.net (sewin=A0mama)

I too have scoliosis. The curve is in the upper spine and causes the left shoulder blade to stick out considerably, especially when bending over at the waist. Question for all you experienced sewists: How do you fit any type of bodice to this? Since age 13, I have been cursed with poorly fitting blazers, blouses, etc., including RTW. How do you adjust the upper back to accomodate one side protruding? The clothing just doesn't hang right.

Cindy, in cold, snowy West Virginia

protrusion is to slash-and spread the back of the pattern, creating more room in a garment for the fabric to go over the hump. Fitting it is similar to shaping to fit over the bust, because you have a rounded shape to go over.<

Thanks for the great suggestions. I have a Kwik Sew catalog and will look for the patterns you mentioned. Have printed your advice to file away. The comments by the other poster to use C&S software also sounds interesting. I've already been to their website and checked it out.You guys are always so great to help out.

I'm trying to lose weight right now so am not sewing much for myself these days...but hopefully will be in the spring :) The problem with the shoulder protruding isn't bad, in fact, most people never know I have scoliosis. But to ME, there's an obvious "twist" to the jacket/blouse in the back, the sleeves sometimes don't hang right, and it pulls too snugly when I bend at the waist.

Thanks again, and I'll let you'all know if I've had success.

Cindy

Re: Sewing to fit scoliosis

half if you had a friend to help adjust for this particular fitting problem.<

Cea,

My sister, who is an excellent seamstress, may be able to help. She has sewn clothes for me in the past, but never addressed the scoliosis issue, mainly because I've had the mindset to just live with it. I can get her or possibly my MIL (another wonderful seamstress) to help with the fitting.

Thanks again so much, Cindy

If you have or can borrow Sandra Betzina's book on Fast Fitting she has a bit on fitting for scoliosis. It works really well, but I need to enlarge the sleeve cap more than the right back was spread for the extra ease, but it works. You may need to adjust the collar and neckline as well. Also use the uneven shoulder section.

If you take a good set of measurements on both sides you'll find that you stand with one hip higher than the other as well so you will need to make high hip adjustments on anything that has a waistband. These will get rid of the strange wrinkles and "creep" in pants and skirts.

You can get by without the high hip adjustments in stuff that doesn't have a waistband, but the hang is much better if you adjust for the hip at the waist instead of at the hem.

Avoid anything with a long back zip, it will lump and bump as you move your shoulder no matter what.

It's a pain to get a good fit, but once you've got it you know what adjustments you need to make.

And good measurements are crucial, and they do change, so it's worth it to get someone who knows how to make them. And take the complete set of measurements on both sides, as your entire body is asymmetrical, and more than one adjustment needs to be made.

The asymmetrical arty patterns are great for hiding asymmetrical bodies underneath. Moderately close fitting patterns work well.

Loose flowing garments are harder than fitted patterns because there aren't a lot of places you can adjust for asymmetry without disrupting the drape of the fabric. BTDT.

Barbara

I see you've been given some excellent ideas to be going on with.

Can you take pattern-drafting classes? Because drafting your own patterns might be a good way to go, rather than trying to alter paper patterns. You could easily draft different patterns for left and right back.

When it comes to paper patterns, the alters for 'round shoulders' would help. As Cea mentioned, this involves slashing and spreading the pattern. I will happily send you a diagram of how to do this, if you send me your email.

Either way, once you'd got a back pattern that you were happy with, you could fuse it to interfacing and superimpose it over any commercial pattern you bought, so you could see the required alters clearly - it usually means measuring the shoulder-to-waist-back length, extending the shoulder dart, adding a neck dart and cutting and spreading across the back to lengthen it.

The computerised pattern programs, as JJ mentioned, are a good move: I've heard that Dress Shop is the best for left/right body differences.

Finally, drafting via draping is a very good technique for difficult fitting solutions, though it requires a very different approach from flat pattern drafting. Kay Lancaster is the expert here, though, so I'm reluctant to comment.

HTH

:) Trish

If you use any software program, you can input measurements for each side of the body separately, and print out a "right" side, and a "left" side. That should also work.

Karen Maslowski in Cincinnati

The other comments are good. Cea mentioned going over a curved shape, and I immediately thought of my stash of shoulder pads (removed from RTW because I don't need to look like a linebacker). Could you add a shoulder pad in a weird place, to equalize the scapulas (scapulae? shoulder blades!)? HTH

--Karen M.

Wow!

Thanks to all for the great suggestions. I will try to find Sandra Betzina's book and get my sis to help me with good measurements. DH is a patient man, but not that patient!

Sewing classes in this area, not to mention pattern-drafting, are few and far between, but perhaps there are some good books on the subject.

You have all been so helpful. Thank you again.

Cindy

But are they reshaped or merely larger?

I haven't done anything with the more recent pattern makers but the older programs merely enlarged the side with the longer back measurements. Including the bodice front, neckline and sleeves. So the back would fit, but the rest would be off. And it doesn't take that much difference to look really bad.

Spitting the back, and extending it lengthens the back shoulder and the back of the armhole only. If your shoulder is very low you need to shorten the front shoulder and lower the front armhole (not make it larger).

It's a by guess deal as well, since there really isn't a set of measurements to tell you exactly how much to start with. Use cheap muslin, large seam allowances and lots of pins.

And everyone is different, and if your spine is turning forward as well as the lateral S curve the alterations are much more extreme.

Barbara

They are reshaped.

The current software programs out there draft as nicely as if you did it by formula from a flat pattern drafting method. You might still need to fit some by hand, but my daughter's graduation dress pattern fit her H-cup bust and large upper arms perfectly.

Check out the demos at

(my personal favorite), (Dress Shop, the one mentioned as being good for asymmetric body shapes), and I don't know any of the other web sites offhand. They really do come just as close to a custom fit as any other flat-pattern drafting method; not like Lutterloh and those old "plunk in your bust and hip measurements and create a pattern" systems that were prevalent in the 40s, 50s, 60s, etc.

If you're seeing diagonal wrinkles across the back, do pay special attention to the symmetry of your shoulders question. Another common problem with scoliosis is that the protruding shoulder blade side shoulder tends to roll toward the front, so the part of your shoulder that the garment's shoulder seam rests on is actually anatomically farther back than where most folks would have a shoulder seam. This can give an interesting hollow effect in the upper front bodice on one side. Usually this is not an issue except in something like a summer dress -- the effect is much less noticeable with heavier fabrics.

Because I tend to think like a draper rather than a flat patternmaker, it's easier for me to just pinfit and watch the grainlines for cues as to what to do when dealing with someone with scolosis or such.

If you think like a patternmaker or are using a computerized pattern program, remember you can do separate half-patterns for each side of the body, and they'll meet in the middle.

Kay, whose own clothes never get cut "on the fold" from half-patterns.

March 2013. Cindy, I am reading a blog that dates back to 2004. Have you fit your scoliosis figure? If not, I have information to share having fitted my own scoliosis figure.

inspirepoint dot com is not a "blog". It is a really *ugly* archive of Usenet posts, in this case "alt.sewing". There were several very helpful replies to the post you refer to at the time of the original post.