Draping

Book excerpt: Draping is the art of using cotton muslin to create a fashion design directly on a mannequin. It is an essential skill for fashion designers. In this book, Karolyn Kiisel presents a series of step-by-step projects, creating real garments in classic styles, that are designed to develop skills from the most basic to more advanced techniques. Starting with the basics of choosing and preparing the dress form for draping, the book advances through pinning, trimming and clipping, and creating shape using darts and tucks, to adding volume using pleats and gathers, and handling complex curves. Advanced skills include how to use support elements such as shoulder pads, under layers and petticoats and how to handle bias draping. The book culminates with a chapter on improvisational skills. Each skill and technique throughout the book is explained through specially commissioned step-by-step photographs and line drawings that bring the art of creating womenswear in three dimensions to life.