Basic Pant Sloper and Jean Draft

In this hands-on course, you’ll learn how to draft and fit a custom pant pattern from your own measurements. Guided step-by-step, you’ll discover how to translate numbers into a basic pant sloper that reflects your unique shape and style.

Starting with how to take accurate body measurements, you’ll move on to drafting the front and back pant patterns, sewing a muslin test garment, and mastering the art of fit adjustments. You’ll learn to recognize balance lines, refine proportions, and make precise changes that transform a basic pattern into a beautifully fitted garment.

Recommended Text: Building Patterns by Suzy Furrer (optional)

Bodice Sloper With Sleeve (Moulage)

The student will learn how to draft a pattern from measurements that fits the figure exactly. This is the moulage - no wearing ease added. Upon completion of the draft, the student will make a muslin test garment to check and adjust the fit. The student then creates a pattern, based upon that moulage, that includes wearing ease. This is the bodice sloper or bodice block and can be used as a starting point to create blouses, dresses, jackets, and coats. Once you have the bodice sloper, you will create an accompanying sleeve sloper. The sloper with sleeve will be sewn up in muslin and fitted as well.

Couture Dressmaking Techniques

Ever wondered what separates a handmade dress from a truly extraordinary one? Drawing from her book, The Dressmaker's Handbook of Couture Sewing Techniques, Lynda Maynard will guide you through the insider techniques that make all the difference, from "Baby French" facings and flat-lying V-necks to scalloped welt edgings, flange closures, and a multitude of beautiful hemming methods. Whether you sew a complete garment or simply build your technique vocabulary, you'll walk away with skills you'll use for a lifetime.

Drafting a Jacket / Coat Foundation

Ready to create jackets and coats that fit like they were made for you — because they were? Starting from your personal sloper, you'll draft a complete jacket and coat pattern from scratch, fit a muslin to your body, and progress through advanced techniques including a three-panel jacket, two-piece fitted sleeve, notched and tailored collars, and all the internal structure that gives a garment its shape and longevity. Whether your goal is a classic blazer or a sweeping coat, you'll finish this class with a personalized pattern system that will serve as your foundation for years of beautiful outerwear.

Drafting Pants: Pleated, Palazzo and More

Learn to draft a wide range of pants—from pleated trousers and palazzos to shorts and casual styles. Master waistbands, pockets, closures, and professional details in this 8-week live Zoom class, finishing with a virtual showcase of your creations!

Finish
It!

Got a garment that's been sitting unfinished? Finish It! is your dedicated time and space to finally get it done. Each week, bring whatever you're working on and get personalized guidance from Lynda, access to curated video resources, and the energy of a small, focused group. Whether you need a specific technique answered, a structured block of time, or just the motivation that comes from working alongside other sewists — this is the class for you. No syllabus, no pressure. Just progress.

Knits: Bodice Sloper with Sleeve

This hands-on course guides students through the process of drafting a custom knit bodice sloper with sleeve from personal measurements. Beginning with an introduction to knit fabrics and proper measurement techniques, students will construct a fitted bodice sloper and sleeve, make test garments, evaluate fit, and transfer any adjustments back to their patterns. Students will then grade their finished slopers across all four stretch categories — minimal, moderate, very stretchy, super stretchy (four-way stretch) — creating a comprehensive personal pattern library that serves as the foundation for designing tops, dresses, jackets, and sweaters.