Wild Ginger Fail, Fail, Fail, Fail, Fail, and FAIL

I have been eyeing the Wild Ginger Pattern Master program for years.

The idea of it! Put your measurements in, and it will draw up patterns that fit you perfectly. Choose from a veritable host of designs--including historical styles! Mix and match design elements. Create your own details and adjustments.

The price was never out of reach, but the uncertainty surrounding the program's true ease of use and quality of output made the investment unjustifiable. 

Recently, I have been at such a point of frustration and disappointment with my sewing. Most knit garments turn out fine, but I was not happy with my fit skills when it came to wovens. I had tried and tried to learn to fit things, but I was never content with the outcome. I have to work in fits and starts because of work and family and other demands on my time. Maybe I never gave enough focused attention to learning the skill of fitting or maybe I never gave enough time to any one method. 

I have looked at

• Joy Mahon's method on Craftsy and in her book. It makes intellectual sense, but I never really understood how to go from taking my measurements to adjusting the patterns.
• Pati Palmer and Marla Alto's Fit for Real People. I've spent the most time with this method and I just find it tedious.
• Nancy Zieman's pivot and slide method (Fitting Finesse). I have read this book but never tried the method. This is the one I think I will return to next.  
• Drafting slopers from my measurements. I did this in a class with local sewing teacher Karen Day, who is awesome. The slopers fit well [update: used to!]...but I am not sure what to do with them! How do I use them to make the mountain of commercial patterns I own fit me? How do I turn the slopers into actual garments?

About the Pattern Master program I was most held back by concern that it would not really work in practice. One piece of counter evidence I would return to in my mind when reconsidering the purchase is that about 1o or 15 years ago I had found a company online offering a similar service. You entered your measurements, picked a pattern, and it drafted the pattern. The dress I made fit well, though some elements were the sort to hide fit flaws (a gathered neckline, for example). I haven't seen a trace of that company anywhere recently.

Well about a month and a half ago, I gave in and bought the program. I bought both the program for wovens and the program for knits. They were on sale and buying both was the same as the one when not on sale.

Thus began my Wild Ginger Wild Goose Chase.

Fit Garment: Mockup 1

As soon as I downloaded the program, I hastily measured myself and typed the results in. I wasn't careful. The resulting fit garment did not fit. My bad. I sent in the photos and the measurements and a reply came back lighting fast. This during the COVID-19 lockdown. I was impressed. A couple tweaks were recommended. 

Fit Garment: Mockup 2

I adjusted the pattern as instructed but the results were still bad.

Fit Garment: Mockup 3

I took better measurements. I made another mockup. No hunchback, but still not a good fit. I sent in these pictures and these measurements and got a quick reply with new suggested tweaks. Now we were starting to get into adjustments in default settings and such and I was getting more apprehensive.  I made these changes and another mockup. Nyooop.

Fit Garment: Mockup 4

All this time I had been selecting from the basic settings a D cup. That's my bra size. But the excess in the bust on these mockups was just not going away, even with reducing bust ease in the default settings. So I made a new mockup with a C cup and remeasured myself so very carefully and made another mockup. This was better but still not great. I sent it in and was told to add two more front darts.

Fit Garment: Mockup 4 x 2

....which I did. And it seemed to be on an improving trajectory. I sent these photos in and was told to reduce the front and back length. 

Fit Garment: Mockup 5 for REALS

Again, which I did. Now, this wasn't perfect but it was so better that I thought it could work.

Frankly, I was very tired of sewing fit garments!!! Not only did I have to tape PDF pattern pieces together, cut out new pieces, trace all the markings, and sew the damn things together, I only had one zipper so every time I made a new mockup, I had to rip out the zipper from the previous one. 

​So I decided to proceed with making a dress. This I did in spite of a couple concerns. The fit dress is very tight under my arms. You can see the all the drag lines. I probably could have take more out of the back bodice length too. I asked the Wild Ginger support person and she said the fit dress was supposed to be tight and if the armhole on a garment was too tight I could do x or y.

​I forget because at that point I wasn't paying attention. I bought this program because I was supposed to. be. able. to. type. in. my. measurements. and. have. it. draft. a. pattern. that. fit. me. perfectly. I wasn't supposed to have to tweak default settings, adjust my bra, and make up test armholes and then... what? I don't know. Anyway, I decided to take a chance and generate a real dress pattern using the mockup 5 settings.   ​

And finally a dress. Very sad.

Well, I am done. For a long while at any rate. W.T.F.?