Pattern Making and Garment Construction
This domain tests body measurement, pattern drafting, pattern symbols, seam allowance, ease and the correct order of garment construction.
Core concepts
- Measurements must be taken over well-fitting clothing, with the tape snug but not tight. Record bust/chest, waist, hip, length and required style measurements.
- Ease is the extra measurement beyond the body that allows movement and design shape. Seam allowance is added outside the stitching line.
- A pattern needs a grainline, notches, darts, fold line, cutting line and stitching line. Darts shape flat fabric to the body.
- Construction usually follows: prepare pattern and fabric → cut → mark → darts → seams → facings/waistbands → hems → pressing and finishing.
Worked example
A skirt block uses hip measurement 96 cm and design ease 4 cm. The total hip line is 100 cm. A front skirt pattern piece represents one quarter of the hip, so its width at the hip line is 100 ÷ 4 = 25 cm. Seam allowance is added separately, for example 1.5 cm on each side seam. The reasoning is: total circumference plus ease is divided by four because the skirt has separate front and back pieces, each covering half the body and each cut as a pair.
Traps that cost marks
Forgetting seam allowance is a common error. Do not place the grainline at an angle unless the design is intentionally bias-cut. Do not cut notches inward too deeply. Do not sew darts after joining a seam that the dart crosses. Press as you sew; pressing is not the same as ironing.
Exam focus
Pattern symbols, measurement calculations, construction sequencing and seam-allowance questions.