Marta Alto - Pants for Real People: Fit and Sew for Any Body

Without our students, we wouldnt have had a living research laboratory. Thanks to them we have evolved from determining alterations from measurements and premade gingham pants in our days teaching at Meier & Frank department store, now Macys, to tissue-fitting todays students.

We also thank those who graciously volunteered to be models for this book in hopes of sharing their challenges so you could benefit. Some of our models are Certified Palmer/Pletsch Instructors who were taking workshops here in Portland and offered to be in the book. Models are Marta Alto, Jean Baxter, Connie Hamilton, Sue Neall, Alicia Panetta, and Melissa Watson. On the cover left to right are Susie Brown, Nancy Seifert, Melissa Watson, Verna Day, and Ethel Harms.

Also, a special thank you to former Palmer/Pletsch traveling associates Lynn Raasch, Karen Dillon, Leslie Wood, Kathleen Spike, and Barbara Weiland, who contributed to ideas for our books over the years.

The pattern companies have always been open to our opinions, such as putting the finished garment measurements on the pattern envelope. We have loved the connection. Thanks to Bob Hermann, Sidney Tepper, Carl LaLumia, Kathleen Len, and Nancy DiCocco from McCalls and to Karen Burkhart, now with Simplicity, whom we worked with on our very first pant pattern for Vogue and then at McCalls.

Also, a special thanks to the technical people at McCalls, who have helped build fit information into the tissue and guidesheets and, on occassion, know our techniques so well, they just do the patterns: Benhaz Livian, Charlotte Schulze, Christine Carballeira, Pamyla Brooks, Ruby Madraswala, and Stacy Wood.

Without our talented production team and their long, intense hours of work, this book would not exist. Our artists, some of whom weve worked with for 25 years, often even made samples to test the instructions. Our most sincere thanks to Linda Wisner, Jeannette Schilling, Kate Pryka and Theresa OConnell. Also, several people read the book one or more times during its re-creation including Connie Hamilton.

Thanks to all Palmer/Pletsch teachers worldwide who are spreading their fashion sewing passion. This also includes Sue Neall, who flew to Portland, Oregon, from Sydney, Australia, to give us that much needed push and motivation to finish in less than four years.

Lastly, thanks to our families whove been so supportive over the years and especially during the final production of this book, including Melissa Watson, Cleo Cummings, Anastasia, Jerry and Chris Alto, and Paul Tucker. At our warehouse, for support while we were away writing, a thanks to Jeff Watson and George Palmer.

Pati Palmer and Marta Alto have been teaching intense four-day pant fitting workshops for the nine years since this book was first published. The refinements they have made to their fitting and sewing techniques have been added to this Second Edition, including a chapter on fitting and sewing jeans. See the back cover for what is new in this edition.

Pants for Real People, Second Edition copyright 2012 by Palmer/Pletsch Incorporated; First Edition copyright 2003 The first edition of Pants for Real People was the fourth revised and expanded edition of Pants for Any Body:

Pants for Any Body First Edition copyright 1973 by Pati Palmer. Revised edition copyright 1976 by Pati Palmer and Susan Pletsch. Revised expanded edition copyright 1982 by Pati Palmer and Susan Pletsch. Fourteenth printing 1999.

Published by Palmer/Pletsch Incorporated, 1801 N.W. Upshur Street, Suite 100, Portland, OR 97209. U.S.A.

Fashion illustrations on pages created by Patty Andersen for the original Pants for Any Body.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in review. Educators may copy portions of this book for use in teaching, but must include publishers name and website on each page used as a handout.

ISBN 978-0-935278-96-5

Flattering Styles. Flattering Fabrics, Colors. Building a Pant Wardrobe.

Fabric Choices. How Can I Tell If It Will Make Nice Pants? Fabric Drape. What Should I Use for My First Pair? Preshrink the Fabric.

Rules for Measuring. The Pattern Doesnt Come in My Size. Ease. Finished Garment Measurements. Multisize Patterns. Palmer/Pletsch Pant Patterns. Body Shape and Age.

Try on the Tissue. 5 Steps for Tissue-Fitting Pants on Yourself. Common Adjustments. Mark the Tissue. Your Body Map Pattern Alteration Worksheet.

Fit the Fabric. Mark the Changes. Sewing Order. Crotch Oddities.

Susie. Melissa. Marta. Connie. Melissa in Low-Rise Pants. Alicia. Verna.

Trousers Are Easy. An Illusion Trick. Tissue-Fitting Trousers. Get the Tissue Ready. Check for Accuracy. Cutting and Marking Trouser Fabric. Sewing Order at a Glance. Direction of Pleats. Crease Front Legs before Sewing.

Sue. Jean. Marta.

Quick TipsCutting. Quick Tips Marking. Cut n Press Board. Quick TipsSewing. Easy Seam Finishes. Press As You Sew. Creasing Pants.

Fitting Darts. Sewing Pucker-Free Darts.

Zipper Length. Centered Zipper. Lapped Zipper. Fly Front Zipper for Women. Invisible Zippers Are Back.

Tissue-Fit. Cut Out Fabric. Sew. Wrapped Seam Allowance Waistband. Shaped Non-roll Waistband.

Elastic Waistband in Zippered Pant. Non-roll Waistband Combined with Elastic. Elastic-Gathered Back.

Cut-on Casing. Sew-on Casing. Sew-on Casing for Lightweight Fabrics. Drawstring Pants. Drawcord Sport Elastic. No-Side-Seams Pull-on Pants.

Faced Waistline. Finishing a Faced Waistline With an Invisible Zipper. Fitting Contour Waistlines. Sewing Contour Waistlines.

Simple Side Seam Pockets. Sporty Designer Side Seam Pockets. Single-layer Topstitched Pockets. Traditional Patch Pockets. Pocket Flap. Cargo Pockets. Zippered Patch Pockets.

Front Stay. Sewing Trouser Pockets. Sporty Topstitched Trouser Pockets.

Fake Double Welt. Vertical Double-Welt Front Pockets. Vertical Single-Welt Pockets. Sporty Single-Welt Topstitched Pocket. Double-Welt Back Pocket. Horizontal Single-Welt Pockets. Zipper Welt Pocket.

Leg Width and Pant Length. Four Rules for an Invisible Hem. Types of Hems. Tapered Hems. Side Slit. Deep Side Slits. Cuffs. Stirrups.

Why Use? Fabrics. Glue and Fold Method of Underlining. Pro Tips for Linings.

Why Sew Jeans. Dont Let All The Pockets Scare You. A Little About Jeans Fit. Marta Fits and Sews Jeans. Martas Efficiency Sewing Order When Using Topstitching Thread. Hems. Fabrics and Preshrinking. Thread. Interfacing and Pocket Lining. Rivets. Flat-Felled and Mock Flat-Felled Seams. Fly Protector. More Fit Issues. Pocket Designs. Bias Jeans.

Altering What You Have Sewn. Altering Ready-to-Wear. Maternity.

The previous editions of this book included co-author Susan (Pletsch) Foster, Patis former business partner. Before computers, Pati typed, Susan drew, and everything was carefully pasted up by the team and sent to the printer. After Susan retired into a blissful marriage, Marta picked up where Susan left off, though not in drawingnot her fortebut in sewing. Marta is an R & D sewer, always testing new and better techniques. She also did all of the sewing for the REAL PEOPLE sections in this book. Here is a little more about Marta and Pati.