Changing a French Dart to A Regular Bust Dart (on Vogue 1313)

If you follow SewPassionista by Diana, you know I've just finished V1313 by Ann Klein.
It turned out well (with a reservation or two) but I did make one important change to the pattern because of the striped front panel. I new a regular bust dart would distort the stripes less than a French dart which was on the pattern.

This post is to explain how to change a French dart to a regular bust dart.

Here's what I did.

Step 1. I traced the  upper bodice center pattern piece.

Step 2. I drew a line from the side seam to the bust point about 4" below the underarm..

Step 3. I cut a line through the center of the French dart, to but not through the new  bust line.

Step 4. I then closed the French dart . This  opened up the new bust dart.

If you don't need to do a Full Bust Adjustment, you're done  .

However I do need an FBA ,so this is what I did.

Step 5. I cut through the bust point and through the center front.

Step 6. I added paper underneath ,closed the dart ( no picture)to shape the outside of the dart  .

Step 7. ( Only if you did an FBA) .On the side front pattern piece,I cut to but not through to the side seam and spread the pattern the amount I added for my FBA  like this.

That's all I did. BTW, I got this info from Peggy Sager's video "Darts Are a Girl's Best Friend"

This worked very well for me  and I'm glad I gave it a try.

To see more about this garment, please visit Sew Passionista by Diana. I'll leave you with a couple of outdoor shots my DH  took this morning before I left for church.

More later from