Resources for making and altering bras
I have dabbled in sewing since my early adolescence and am almost entirely self-taught. I regularly alter clothing and design my own patterns with only my knowledge of geometry. Even though I've made some seemingly complex things, I don't have much experience using and reading patterns and conventional design principles. I would like some resources to bring me up to speed with the basics of bra construction, as I still find it generally intimidating. There is a lot of information out there, but I don't know how much I trust book reviews by the general population about such a misunderstood topic. So, any suggestions for where to start?
Filed under Bra alterations
4 comments
There are actually not that many books properly covering bra-making grounds, but here are two sources that I have found useful myself:
Beverly Johnson's 'Bra Maker's Manual' is the only one in print that is worth considering buying -- I'd suggest getting the digital version -- but it is expensive and if you're interested in drafting your own patterns, you'll have to get both part 1 and part 2 as there's nothing on the topic in the oft cited part 1.
foundationsrevealed.com has a very extensive series of articles on bra drafting, the first four or so -- http://foundationsrevealed.com/articles/bra-making/how-to-make-a-bra -- are freely accessible without subscription, but it is worth taking a subscription for a month or so and print out everything on the topic you can find, as it is rather unique material that you'll be unlikely to find anywhere else.
If you're just interested in learning how sew a bra, then there are plenty of interesting sew-alongs available on the internet that you could check out first. Just google 'bra sew along' or something and you'll already get alot of interesting hits :)
I looked up information on the Bra Maker's Manual and got very excited. Then I saw the price. If it's as good as it sounds, it wouldn't take long for it to pay for itself, but that's assuming I follow through with all this ambition. For now I'm going to play around with the free stuff and maybe splurge on the one month subscription. I know what I'm asking for for my birthday though!
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