Full Bust Adjustment + Fitting Simplicity 1364 How To!

Fitting Simplicity 1364 is simple, but the dart can be ridiculous.

As you can see in the above image, the french dart on this bodice is insane, but sometimes a big bust just needs a big dart.

For this blouse, I did a full bust adjustment of two inches. 

The two inches is pretty normal for me, so I expected this much of a dart increase (especially since there was no additional dart to balance the fullness out.)

If you’re experiencing weight fluctuation, this top might be for you.

I was recently asked in the comments section of one of my previous videos, Weight and Sewing Self Esteem, if I had any recommendations for people who are currently moving a little bit around in their measurements.

Simplicity 1364 is pretty versatile and I definitely recommend it as a comfortable, wearable, flattering top. 

Specifically the tank top version. The long sleeve version will be discussed more at length in my next sewing video!

Getting started with fitting Simplicity 1364.

You will need the items below or their equivalents:

• Rulers (clear straight ruler, french curve)
• Mechanical pencil and eraser
• Tape dispenser
• Paper scissors
• A traced copy of Simplicity 1364 (Watch the How to Trace Sewing Patterns video)

Step One: Shorten (or lengthen) the bodice + Swayback

In my case, I shortened my bodice about 1.25in because I’m suuuper short with no torso. You can observe the length of the bodice at timestamp 46 seconds in the video.

Also, I went ahead and took care of the swayback at this point because it would just be easier, with a .5inch swayback at timestamp 1:49.

Step Two: The Full Bust Adjustment

As in my previous videos, I measured the distance between center front of the bodice and the center of my actual body, timestamp 2:43, to determine how much I would need to adjust for.

The whole adjustment is covered at minute 2:52, however, as noted above the dart will be humongous if you have to do as much of an adjustment as I do. 

Why is this important?

Side darts normally finish cleanly into the side seam. If you have to do as drastic of an adjustment as I did (2in adjustment)- your dart might stretch into the bottom seam.

There are a few things to consider at this point.

1. Does your dart need to be rotated? After finishing the FBA, do a full bodice muslin to double check that the darts are landing at 1-2in from your bust point if you’re rocking a C-to-above. If the dart is pointing in the wrong place, you will need to rotate it, which may include rotating it off the waist seam.
2. Are you sewing your dart with a slight curve, to complete a French Dart?
3. If the dart looks ok, that’s fine! After sewing the dart, trim it so no extra fabric goes into the bottom seam. I decided to do this for this Simplicity 1364.

I originally posted this fitting Simplicity 1364 video before publishing this post.

Right away I got questions about things I didn’t cover in the video, so I’ve snapped a few pictures with additional tips down below. The questions focused primarily on fixing the shoulder and fixing the arm scythe, which are an easy, quick fix! And also are just a good excuse to pull out your french curve!

Adjusting the shoulders

The first thing you have to remember is that if you adjust the shoulders on this pattern, you will need to adjust the facing pieces to match. Please review my redrafting facings tutorial video to see how to transfer your chances over.

In the above example sketch, I decided to move the shoulder closed about an inch, to close up the neck a little bit.

Lines 1, 2, and 3 are variations on how you can blend that adjustment to the neckline, depending on the look you’re going for. When adjusting the shoulders on a blouse like this, you will be changing the style line at the neck just a touch, so please note that as you decide how much to bring in the shoulder.

Notice line 3. Line 3 blends roughly one inch away from the center front seam, which is cut on fold with this pattern. You want to make sure that you leave about an inch or so of the regular neckline, just to make sure the center of your neckline looks smooth, with no interruption or abrupt weird curves.

The arm scythe area definitely needs a little bit of blending.

Please note: The arm scythe adjustments in this tutorial are for View C, without the sleeves attached. If you’re working on View A, measure the armhole size, and adjust the sleeve piece accordingly.

The black pencil line is the curve after completing the FBA, where you can see that the curve is all jagged and weird. Depending on how much of an adjustment you had to complete, this area might be all choppy and weird.

Use your French Curve to find a smooth transition along the sharpest area of change (line 1.) And then, if your bra is still peaking out slightly, you can add extra width to that area to make sure everything is covered as you find most comfortable.

I hope you found this tutorial on fitting Simplicity 1364 useful to your project!

Are you thinking of making this blouse? Do you want to make the short sleeve or long sleeve version? Do you have any other questions about fitting Simplicity 1364?

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