[Louise]

Hello,

My waist (slightly) and hips measurements fall outside the pattern body measurements.

Should I grade up from the lengthening/shortening line? Has anybody tried to grade up the pattern?

Any help/suggestions would be most welcome! I bought the pattern ages ago but not sure how to tackle the grading issue😦

Many thanks

[Lightning McStitch]

Louise I’d be very surprised if you needed to. Assuming your upper body (bust, shoulders) fit in a size then the garment is so drapey and loose you probably wouldn’t need any more down below.
One other way you could add some extra swinging width would be to cut the centre back a little in from the fold and make the pleat deeper. The stitched, pleated neckline would be the same, but then there would be slightly more fabric across the back (and butt) below that point.
Go for it. I’ll bet it fits without any extra width anyway.

[Louise]

Thanks very much @lightningmcstitch 😊

The bust fits. However I have *very* wide lower hips, this makes fitting an absolute nightmare as patterns are generally not designed for bodies like mine😁 Extra width is mandatory for me.

I didn’t think about making the pleat deeper. I’ll give it a try. Thank you x

[Liesl Gibson]

If you have a copy of the Building Block Dress book I explain how to draft an A-line from the bodice. You could certainly do something like that for this style if you’re certain you need extra room through the hips. Otherwise I’d suggest gently blending between sizes starting someplace between the bust and waist so you can get an easy curve. I hope that helps!