I feel so badly that this post is coming to you so late! I am forever trying to find the best ways to keep myself on track with blogging, but I always manage to let one post slide for much too long before finishing it up. Which is silly because this post only needed the images completed and those took only 20 minutes to capture and edit! I promise to do better next time!
Anywho, now that we are here, let's chat about adjusting the Bib on your Fleur Pinafore. Because the Fleur is a series of squares and we as humans are... well, not, there may be a bit of a wave or gaping in your Fleur bib, especially at the front near the chest. This is especially common for those who have a larger cup size as the square bib doesn't naturally contour around the curves of the human figure.
But have no fear! there are two simple ways that this can be remedied, possibly even more! For today, though, I will be discussing two options for adjusting your Fleur Pinafore bib so that it better fits your unique frame.
The first is a super simple hack that comes from @Jennisewssomething , one of the awesome testers for the Fleur!
Jenni found that her bib was incredibly wavy when she had reached the end of the testing period. Instead of starting all over, or simply living with the waviness, she decided to try out an idea.. and it worked!
Jenni inserted a line of featherweight boning along the top edge of her bib, encased in a bit of bias tape. It solved all of the wavy issues she was facing, without her having to take her bib apart! neat idea, right?
The second option to adjusting your bib to fit better requires a toile of the Fleur, some measuring tape, tracing paper, and some slashing and spreading. It's actually a super simple adjustment, so let's dive in!
The first step is to sew up a toile of the Fleur if you haven't already done so, or maybe even make a wearable muslin. Either way, a physical garment to try on will help to determine how much of an adjustment needs to be made to your pattern pieces.
Once you have your sample made, go ahead and try it on. If you have read this far, it's most likely because you noticed some gaping in your bib that is bothering you a tad.
Go ahead and pinch out the bit that's bothering you and then measure how much you have pinched.
Once you have your measurement, multiply it by 2 and then write your number down somewhere. You will reference that number later when you start adjusting your bib pattern piece!
If you don't already have a traced copy of your front bib patter piece, I highly recommend tracing one out now. I like to trace all my patterns, especially when I am playing around with adjustments. That way, if I make a mistake, or I don;t like the outcome of a certain set of adjustments, I still have my original pattern piece intact that I can use again and again!
Once you have your pattern piece traced and all the important information marked (Grainline, notches, size, etc.), go ahead and draw a line straight down the Center Front (CF) of your bib.
Now is the time that the measurement you wrote down comes in handy! Say you measured out 1/2" (1.3 cm) of a gap in your sample bib. Multiplied by 2, that means you will be taking out 1" (2.5 cm) from your bib. You will do this by first marking 1/2" (1.3 cm) on either side of your CF line.
Then, you will cut through your CF line from the top of your bib all the way down to the bottom of your bib. If your pattern piece has a border around it, be sure to snip a little bit of the piece from the opposite side. Make sure you go to, not through, the bottom line. You want to be able to pivot your pattern piece without tearing it in two!
And now it is time to pivot your pattern piece! You will want to match up those two little notches you made on either side of your CF line, making sure that one is directly on top of the other. Then you'll tape your pattern piece closed.
Lastly, you need to true up those seams! To do this, simply line up a ruler from one corner to the other of your pattern piece and connect the two together.
Repeat this at the top of your bib and then trim away your excess paper. You should be left with a pattern piece that looks a bit more like a trapezoid! This is your final pattern piece! Wasn't that a breeze?
I'd love to hear how this alteration worked for you, or if you have another method of altering your bib, leave a comment about it below! There are so many ways to get our clothes fitting picture perfect to our bodies which is why I love sewing so much! The possibilities are endless :)