If you are interested in how to make a sloper, I have a new post over at the Curvy Sewing Collective! It is the first part in a new series I’m writing for the site. The goal is to show how to use a sloper to design your own patterns, recreate patterns that don’t come in your size, or alter patterns to fit.

And just for giggles I tried on some ready to wear dresses this weekend. I haven’t purchased a woven (non-maternity) dress in 5 years and now I remember why!

The pink dress is the smallest size in Ashley Nell Tipton’s line for JCPenney and was several inches too large though the bust even though by the size chart the OX should have fit in the bust and waist and too tight in the hip. The lemon dress is from Liz Claiborne and the size chart put me in a 14 bust/16 waist/18 hip. I picked the 16 to try and you can see that as the size chart predicted it is too large in the bust, but going down a size would have meant this dress is too small everywhere else.

So while sewing takes up a good chunk of my free time the results are well worth it! And with a sloper you can make clothes even more customized without playing the retail sizing game. I call that a win!