Apr 9, 2012

What's Sloper, Moulage or Body Blueprint?


Once you’ve learned something and know the terminology for that particular topic, it’s easy to forget that others, with the same interests as you, often may not know what those terms mean. What am I talking about??

Every now and again, I’m reminded of this when someone asks, ‘What’s a sloper?’  It’s basically a pattern with wearing ease that fits your unique body shape and size.  This can be a bodice sloper, skirt sloper, pants sloper. 

When we first got Sure-Fit Designs™ established in 1982, I wanted to refer to the sloper in a more descriptive manner and came up with the term ‘body blueprint’.  If you think about it, a blueprint in architectural terminology means a layout or plan with specific dimensions of a specific room or rooms.  I thought this was fairly reflective of what we were accomplishing when drawing a personal pattern (sloper) with the Sure-Fit Designs™ master patterns to reflect your particular body shape and size.  And, I’ve referred to it (your sloper) or body blueprint this way ever since.

The SFD body blueprint does include a minimal amount wearing ease.  So when your pattern drawing is complete, you end up with your body shape plus ease.  You may or may not like the amount of wearing ease allowed in each pattern, but in the end analysis, that is personal preference and you can add or subtract ease as you wish.  The instruction books that accompany each of the major SFD kits explain how much wearing ease is offered in each the master patterns.  Here's a short video on ease allowances in the SFD Dress Kit.

Well, if that’s a sloper, then ‘What’s a moulage?’  Technically speaking but keeping this in simple lay terms, it’s your body blueprint without any ease.

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