FITTING: By Hand London 'Anna' muslin/toile with shoulder & erect/short back adjustments (part 3).

Good morning, happy hump day!

Last night I made a bunch of adjustments to Anna muslin number three (muslin number 2 was a complete fail, I stuffed up the shoulder adjustment - inadvertently added 3cm to CB when I was adjusting the shoulder, lets not talk about it).

Reading through all the tweets and comments on my last two posts (part 1, part two), everyone pointed out that I had erect shoulders/posture, a short back, forward shoulders.

CheekyChaCha kindly emailed me info on forward shoulder fitting problems - THANK YOU, THANK YOU THANK YOU, I need to get a copy of that fitting book that you own!! 

I've ticked the problems I am definitely experiencing, the rest of them I am unsure...

• shoulders seams lie behind the shoulder tip ✓
• loose wrinkles form along front armhole
• tighter stress wrinkles form between the back armhole and shoulder blade
• sleeve cap is tight around front of shoulder ✓
• sleeve cap is loose, puffy, over the back of shoulder
• shoulder seam needs to be moved forward ✓
• bodice front needs less fabric width at armhole
• bodice back needs more width at armhole
• front sleeve cap needs to be more rounded
• back sleeve cap needs to be flatter

It was evident from the photos I posted online that my shoulder seams were sitting about 3cms back from centre of my shoulder. Yet to determine if the forward shoulders is causing the waist seam to dip backwards.

My first adjustment was redistributing 3cm from the front shoulder to the back shoulder so the shoulder seam will sit on the centre of my shoulder.

• I drew a line at the seam allowance (SA) of FRONT shoulder, slashed it and removed 3cms. 
• I drew a line at the seam allowance (SA) of BACK shoulder, slashed it and added 3cms. 

Removed 3cms from front bodice shoulder.

Before and after.

Redistributed the 3cms taken from front bodice to back bodice shoulder.

It worked! The should seam now sits centered on my shoulder (blade??). Looks and feels way better than before!

Forward shoulder problem fixed *pops champagne* shoulder seam sitting comfortably, woo hoo!! 

Now for my erect back/posture/short back issue.

I'm not sure if erect shoulders, erect posture, short back are three difference issues; or if they are the same issue with different descriptions.

A lot of people suggested my erect back/posture was the cause of my waist seam dipping back, because my overly erect posture made my centre back length (CBL) decrease between the neck and mid-back... or something. I still don't get this one!!

CheekyChaCha also sent info on erect back fitting problems, again I've ticked the problems I am experiencing, the rest of them I am unsure...

• excess fabric sags into loose horizontal wrinkles across upper back
• flatter contour of the back needs less dart shaping
• bodice back needs less length  ✓ 
• bodice back needs narrower darts 

My next adjustment was to take a wedge out of the centre back (CB) following this tutorial for erect back adjustment.

The waist seam was dipping about 3cm towards the back, so I took a wedge of 3cms out of the centre back. 

I'm not really sure if this was the right fix for me, as I didn't notice much of the fabric riding up my neck to begin with (as per tutorial, fabric riding up is one of the fitting problems). I gave the adjustment a shot anyway.

• I drew a line perpendicular to the grainline, in the upper back
• I cut into the back bodice piece from centre back, stopping before the seam allowance (cut along the line I drew)
• I pivoted the top piece of pattern down to "remove" 3cms from the centre back
• I straightened up the CB and grainline 

Before and after shoulder seam and erect back adjustment.

Here is the result...

Front and back waist seam still not level.
Waist is dipping back/front rising up.

I will do the 'elastic test' tonight as suggested by some ladies on Twitter, however I do prefer my waist seam sitting just above my natural waist.

Should I need to take another wedge out of the lower back at the waist, and then lengthen the front bodice so that the seam will be level?

Bust/neck looks a little gapey in this photo taken last night...  but in the photo below taken this morning, it looks fine.

No more gaping...? I will do the 'bending over test' tonight.

Photo taken last night: I noticed wrinkles in the back, but this morning they disappeared! 

Photo taken this morning, no wrinkles..?
Is the back meant to be this low? Should I make the back neckline higher?

This dress has been on my mind 24/7 since last Thursday, I'm exhausted but I really want to get the fit perfect. Even though I'm super frustrated that I haven't cut into my beautiful fabric yet, I'm enjoying the challenge. 

Thank you guys soooooooo sooooo much for helping me with the shoulder seams. I'm so happy that I've at least knocked out one fitting problem.

Now I need your helpful suggestions on the next lot of fitting problems:

• how do level the waist seam?
• should be concerned about those wrinkles on the back bodice that come and go?
• shoulder I make the back neckline higher?

Please comment below, tweet me @sewmelove or email me :)

Thanking you in advance!!

PS. After posting this, I found this document on the internet which I found helpful.
It describes my problem - "Too much fabric at the back waist causing a puff at the centre back, 
wrinkles under the waistband, pants seat is stretched, side seams swing forward and hemlines are longer in the back" - their diagnosis is "swayback or down sloping waistline".

My side seams definitely swing forward! Down sloping waistline, that's a new one! Thoughts?

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FITTING: By Hand London 'Anna' muslin/toile, adjustments for my erect shoulders (part 2).

Huh??? What is an erect shoulder??? I googled to find out more in order to accurately diagnose my sewing issue, and the results page was mortifying to view.
Advice: don't google the words "erect" and "back" in the same sentence.

Thank you to every one on Twitter and those that commented on my last blog post with advice. Without you guys I'd either throw out the Anna and give up on sewing completely or I'd hem the dress shorter at the back and live with the dipping waist seam. Every one has said that my shoulder seam sits too far back therefore causing the front bodice to ride up.

So it seems I have erect shoulders. Not sure if this is a good thing or not?? I always try to stand tall with my shoulders back. The trainers at my gym have drilled into my head the importance of standing tall ("chest out, butt out, sternum *something-something*") so I guess this is proof that I have alright posture?

I don't understand, if erect posture is a good thing, why don't RTW clothes and pattern companies design patterns to accommodate this? I feel like I'm being punished for having "good" posture.

I tried on a RTW dress and noticed that the shoulder seams also sit back (about 1.5cm). I pulled the seam forward to straighten the waist seam and marked on my shoulders where the seam should sit to achieve a straight waist seam.

I've taken some more photos to explain the issue. The waist seam is sitting above the yellow measuring tape. The markings on my door strongly confirm that the issue is my front bodice is riding up.

LEFT PIC: How the waist seam/dress sits naturally on my body.
RIGHT PIC: How the waist seam/dress sits after I pull the shoulder seams forward.

Hopefully you can see the shoulder seam clearly in this photo.
Pen mark on my shoulder is where seam should sit to achieve a straight waist seam.
Left shoulder seams sits 3cm back from mark.
Right shoulder sits 2cm back from mark (could be due to my right boob being the smaller one).

I should point point out that I have had this issue ever since I started sewing so I don't think it is the design of Anna. I used to assume it was because I drafted my own skirts or because I didn't have a Kim Kardashian butt. I also suspected I had a sway back.

Fitting issue:

• Shoulder seams sitting too far back - 3cm back on left shoulder, 2cm on right shoulder. Difference could be due to my right boob being smaller than the left?)

Which has resulted in:

• Waist seam/front bodice is riding up at the front
• The waist seam appearing like it's dipping/tilting towards the back (but in actual fact it's just riding up at the front, as per photos)
• Dress hem is longer at the back

How to fix:
I've been told that I simply add the 3cm on to the back shoulder seam.
But I also saw somewhere on the internet that I need to then subtract 3cm from the front shoulder seam.
There was also an "erect back tutorial" that advised to take a wedge out. Thanks for linking me to the tutorial Sew Little Time!

I'm still trying to get my head around there being such thing as "erect shoulders" so may keep pondering (aka tweeting about it, googling 'erect back', sighing every time I walk pass my sewing room). When I fully understand the logistics behind the fix I will cut out another bodice muslin.

How do I make the add length to the shoulder seams without affecting the neckline and armholes, as they fit well right now.

If anyone knows how to fix this issue, please comment :)
I'm sure after I fix this erect shoulder issue, I'll run into some more fitting issues. Oh the joys of sewing, always keeping me on my toes!

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