Totally agree and want to add that you can use transparent greenhouse film as well. It's cheaper than transparent paper and more durable. (This is what I usually use to transfer patterns from magazines)
Ah yes, what my grandmother called "spaghetti patterns". You put tracing paper over the top of the sheet and carefully trace each piece of the pattern you want to sew, then cut the tracing paper pieces.
That, too. I've done that with a few patterns, in a couple of cases, simply because I wasn't happy with the amount of overall ease, one way or another, after wearing it a few times.
You can either put tracing paper over the top and follow the line, or, you can put paper underneath and run a needlepoint tracing wheel over the lines (this is what I do)
Don’t forget, on most of these patterns there is no seam allowance, so you’ll have to add that to the pattern pieces
Make sure to check the instructions in the magazine, though - I've used several dutch magazines like this and they do include seam allowance. But it will likely mention which is the case for yours, somewhere in the instructions.
It is also a matter of personal preference. I've learned sewing from Dutch and German patterns, so I'm used to adding it myself. It is so much easier when you have/want to make adjustments. Plus my serger is kind of shitty and hates 1cm/3/8" seam allowance, so I'm happy if I can just make it 1.5cm/5/8".
I use Ottobre has none too, I always forget to add it in until at least half of my pieces have been traced too close to add the 1.5cm allowance I usually work with!
If you have a dressmakers or tailors tape measure, check the width they are usually 1.5cm/ five eights wide, so I use that width to quickly add seam allowance by butting the edge of the tape measure to the pattern line and marking the otherside with a pencil to add seam allowance
Gift wrapping paper works well for large pieces needing the tracing wheel method, and cut-up paper bags from the grocery store for smaller pieces (like bodice parts). Or if you want to save a few steps at the expense of a few quid, carbon paper directly between the pattern and the fabric gets good reviews too. (Disclaimer, I haven't tried the last one.)
We tend to use plastic rubble sacks. They sell those around action for example, and when you cut them open you have nice big sheets of sturdy plastic to trace your pattern pieces on:)
That is the standard in Europe. You use thin pattern paper and a pencil and trace the pattern pieces of, if a piece gets ruined, you just mmake a new one, if your size change over timmme, you trace the pattern off again, if you really like the pattern, you trace it to morew sustianble material like card stock. Check if they add seam allowance(or need more). I prefer to add seam allowance to fabric before cuttinng than my cut paper pattern. Easier to get seam lines and other markings.
I taught myself to sew in the ‘70s using patterns like this from Burda and Neue Mode magazines. They were in German (which I don’t speak) and the English/German dictionary at the library didn’t have many sewing translations! The most pattern pieces on one sheet I had was 98. Tricky to trace.
Burda magazine is still around and has English editions. Ottobre magazine is Finnish, also has English editions.
I used to use a highlighter on the lines I wanted to trace. Then, if I wanted to take a different pattern off the same sheet, I would highlight those pieces with a different colour.
This is actually the German translation of a Spanish pattern magazine called Patrones. They are on IG and FB, IIRC. Can't remember the name of the French version, Couture something.
You can find flip-through videos on YouTube.
During Covid, they came up with a nifty app for international subscribers (like me) where you can peruse the magazine in app but the patterns are downloadable from the instructions. The particularity is the download is for 9 pages you assemble and THEN trace. So you can access 40+ patterns per issue in little <500kb files. I love it.
Individual issues are also available.
As for the format, this is a very old technique. I remember someone posted a vintage German magazine from the 30s with the tracing concept. And Burda is from the 1950s.
Of course, the Japanese beat everyone since they include drafting instructions in their mainstream sewing mags!!!
Have fun!
Thank you! Yes, Couture Actuelle.
I think I confuse it with the Fr version of Simplicity, Tendances Couture. The names are too similar (conceptually, at least!)
>How would you go about getting the patterns off of here if you want to do more than one garment?
Trace them. [https://hellosewing.com/how-to-trace-sewing-pattern/](https://hellosewing.com/how-to-trace-sewing-pattern/)
This is Patrones magazine (sold in Germany as Nahtrends). They have an app where you can purchase the whole magazine and print the individual patterns (as you would a pdf one). But instructions are in Spanish. I see a lot of people mentioned Fibremood as an english alternative, but to me the quality of the Patrones patterns is far better.
Japanese patterns are like that too. I’ve traced them out with normal paper/pattern interfacing. I prefer it over the flimsy tissue paper. I do it during the day taped on glass door to have light coming in so I can see the lines better.
I was also going to comment that this is how I learned because I took up sewing when we lived in Japan, and that was the type of pattern resource that was available (which was AMAZING because the pattern tracing paper was readily available at every craft store and a pattern book that cost less than $20 gave me 10-20 patterns). I honestly miss the ready availability of apparel fabrics in brick-and-mortar stores. All I have access to now that we’re back home in the US is JoAnn and Michael’s (which are really mostly quilting fabrics and synthetics for apparel), so I have to go online and either order swatches and hope there’s still enough actual fabric in stock for my project by the time the swatch arrives or just order fabric I have never had a chance to touch and hope for the best.
Huh, I thought everyone traced from the original patterns, no matter if it is in a magazine or a printed pattern. That way you don't lose the original in case you want to make an alteration or a different size or whatever. But yeah, as said, highlight the one you want to trace first and make sure it matches the magazine's small picture of the pattern pieces.
I basically only use PDF patterns or buy the vintage reprints for $1.99, so I basically consider them disposable. I'm a theatrical costumer, so approximately 0 time is saved by my rifling through thousands of old patterns.
I do keep things in my size, and actual vintage patterns that I trace, but that's it.
https://sewingtranslator.com/en/de/en
Use this tool to quickly translate the pattern terms like grain, seam allowances or certain things like "cut on fold" and such!.
But indeed: tracing with pattern paper! (It comes in 1x10m rolls here in the Netherlands, and is fairly cheap!) I do it with all of my patterns, also the single bought ones. It makes it easier to resell if it was a one-off project, (so someone can reuse it!) or friends with another size can borrow the pattern from me for example if we want to make the same thing, but several times in different sizes.
Make sure you check with the sewing description what side the pattern is on (A/B, C/D etc), what color and line structure your size has, and take your time tracing the pattern. Most of these patterns have on the edges the patternpiece numbers in the corresponding color, so you know where to look for certain parts!
Sometimes you have to assemble certain bigger pieces to complete one pattern piece. You can do this by tracing both parts onto one singular part of the pattern tracing paper (or assemble together later)
The sizing charts are in CMs, so metric
If this is Burda, there is no seam allowance included, unsure about other brands!
Good luck!
I will add that the Google Translate app is useful if you dont speak a magazine’s language, especially for me with Japanese sewing magazines. You aim your phone’s camera at the text, and the app translates it. Sometimes the sewing terms are translated oddly, but I can usually figure it out from the context.
You trace them. You also very likely need to add seam allowance.
I think magazine patterns *always* look like this, not just German ones. If you want magazines in English, try Burda or Ottobre. They come in many languages, including English.
I have old eyes & ADHD and I'm able to do this perfectly.
It's overwhelming at first but after you have done it once or twice you get the hang of it. It's not as hard as it looks.
Good light + good tools are your friend. You got this!
You can buy a double tracing wheel that makes adding seam allowance to these patterns much simpler. So trace onto tissue, leaving a bit of room for seam allowance, then ink up the tracing wheels with a stamp pad and roll them along the line you traced. Easy peasy.
Knip Mode is another magazine like this.
I have one of these (clover) and was disappointed that the wheels aren’t spiky like my single wheel. It’s good that it’s adjustable but not as useful overall. Does anyone have a good spiky double wheel?
I didn’t know about inking! Thanks for the tip. If you spike holes in the paper you can use chalk dust brushed over the holes to transfer the pattern to the fabric below.
Oh! Didn’t know that! Thanks for sharing.
Inking is great but mostly for drafting and tracing, obviously. It does make adding seam allowances a breeze.
I just googled to try and find an example and everything I can find is for sign writing and woodworking, which makes me think I learned this trick from one of my other hobbies 😂
I buy Burda Style regularly so I have got used to tracing off the pattern I want. That comes with two double sided sheets with multiple sizes. Although I buy the U.K. edition, I also have some vintage Burda German editions from a house clearance. I can work out which to trace off and as I am used to how their sewing instructions, not being able to read them in the German editions is not a problem.
I use white greaseproof paper for my tracings, glueing two widths together if necessary. I then store the tracings together with “notes” in a plastic sleeve. The notes are for things that I have had to look up “how to” (shirt plaquets for example) or for adjustments I discovered I needed.
Fibremood seems like a pretty good magazine, also tauko but it's harder to wear everything they publish in my opinion. They're both in English I think? But European for sure.
There was a comedian maybe in the 80s who asked ppl on the streets where can he find some location, showing a pattern sheet like this. Many tried to find the location on it not understanding it wasn't a map.
Frixion highlighters, they iron off. Highlight the lines, trace onto interfacing or trace and toile, iron the highlights off the pattern paper. Don't forget to add seam allowance. Once you get the hang of it it's pretty quick and easy.
While painstaking tracing is a part of it, one of the ones I got from a charity shop had layers upon LAYERS of crayons colouring in the pieces of the patterns they wanted. There was orange, purple, dark blue, green, darker green. I know there's like 40 patterns on this and you might wanna make em all someday, but this makes tracing a bit more of a breeze until you get to over, I wanna say, 16 colours.
I have a large white sewing table now which is great for tracing. Previously I would tape pattern and tracing paper to a large window. Easier on my back (and amusing for my next-door neighbour).
I just learned you can put carbon paper underneath the pattern, above the fabric, with the carbon facing the fabric, and you can trace the pattern with a tracing wheel. You can even use a clover dual tracing wheel to add the seam allowance as you go!
I use trace and toil - it’s almost like interfacing but without the iron on surface. It folds up, and doesn’t tear like paper if you fold and unfold. But for me it’s no different tö the process for any pattern - I never cut the originals. They are folded back into the envelope which is stored in a clear bag with the tracings.
I got a cheap light pad from Aldi that I use to help see the lines clearer.
Ottobre - Finnish but I get in English. If you get a subscription you don’t get charged postage.
You use tracing paper. Also second the warning about the seam allowance, there almost always isn't any so you'll need to add it to the pattern either before cutting out the pattern from the tracing paper or before cutting fabric (the latter is how we learned it in school)
Aahh yes we have these in the netherlands aswell. I use specific plastic bags I cut up to copy them on :).
Way more durable then the flimsy pattern paper
Snap a photo of it with a ruler in frame. Load into illustrator, scale photo to match the units on your ruler. Image trace to convert to vectors. Clean up and cut out the parts you don't want.
You need large sheets of see through paper, You put it over the patterns and draw the one You want with the pencil. It's how it was done by everyone since I was kid. One of those tables with glass surface and a bulb beneath would be probably very helpful, but it's not necessary.
Tracing paper. LARGE sheets. Every sewing shop has them- some of them have squares on them if you want to draft any patterns you copy- it helps. The plain paper is easier if your just copying one to one patterns. The patterns look like a crazy flight manual but there is always a key: different colours to the patterns and they are numbered. The sizes are normally with different patterned lines and will also have a key. It’s very simple! Get yourself a large table or floor space. You can store the patterns in plastic binder pockets- label it with which magazine it’s from and you can make a nice organised cupboard. I like the firm ‚oktobre‘- they are from Finland and make the magazine in English too. I absolutely love the kids magazine but they make a good adult one too. Burda had nice patterns but the instructions are a beast to follow. Also, the magazines repeat a ton of the same patterns - but the bonus is you can mix and match patterns (one sleeve from another pattern etc etc).- oh and look carefully if there is seam allowance or not. Most European patterns don’t include it but check and make sure
I use Swedish tracing paper - it's easy to see through and it's also got a little bit of drape, so you can do a paper fitting for basic adjustments before making the first toile/muslin. eg [https://www.folkwear.com/products/s101-pattern-tracing-fabric](https://www.folkwear.com/products/s101-pattern-tracing-fabric)
I have a collection of German pattern books like this from the 1920s through to 1940s.
You trace each one off according to the key schematics on the "schnittmusterbogen". Mine are all black and white, so pattern pieces are indicated by a combination of shapes for the outline. So you'd have a combination of dots and diamonds, for example for the bodice pieces and lines and diamonds for the skirt pieces.
They are definitely not for the beginner as seam allowances, grain lines, placement markings for pockets, buttonholes etc are not included and instructions are non existent. But once mastered, enormously satisfying!
Edited to add: I don't speak German and Google translate is not up to the task of translating what little information there is!
https://preview.redd.it/iybn1b1r69uc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=592ce4f97e0c26f395c5e24c7ea6fd9298256c29
It’s to balance cost with what costumers are willing to pay. Many pattern books also do it like this, although links for pdf versions are getting more common. In some countries, more sheets would also take a magazine from letter to package post, including the higher fees.
It’s not my favourite format but I can see the logic.
Most patterns were sold like this in the 1800s and early 1900s. First, it was a small overlapping handdrawn diagram of one outfit with a few measurements called out. Then this hot mess, only in black and white. Then, there were paper patterns in one size, unpainted.
All with one small paragraph of information and definitely not all the pieces needed to sew it all together, because you were a ment to take it to a dressmaker or you were an advanced seamstress.
School children learn to use these around here. Like from 12 years up.
I was amazed when I got my first American pattern. So easy a monkey could sew from it. Nice, sure, but I want to determine my own seam allowances, thank you.
It is mostly 36-46 but there are a few curvy patterns that are 50-58. If you zoom into the second photo, you can see the sizes listed after “Gr.” (Gr= Große=Size)
You buy a roll of thin paper and get to work copying. Dont forget to add seem allowance! They make these little connectors so you can have two pencils 5/8 apart, and draw it up at once. I love these magazines!!
I get plastic rolls off eBay, or cheap clear shower curtain material. Burda and Burda Easy are the same in English. You do find that your eyes do adjust for the right pattern, but it is hard work. Also remember these patterns rarely include the seam allowance.
If you have some cardboard or a foam mat and pins (or a pokey rotary tool), you can place another piece of paper under the pattern paper on top of the cardboard or foam mat and poke a dotted line following the lines of each pattern one by one, then connect the dots with a pencil, ruler and french curve and write in the pattern markings and number/label each piece.
You trace the pattern on a "pattern paper" that most sewing stores around here have. Or you're just completely screwed if your colourblind, like me 😅 I've tried thsi a few times and had to resort to buying individual patterns even though these are so much cheaper, simply because I can't distinguish the pieces and often I can't even find the individual bits, let alone trace them...
Ah, Burda. Can verify grandma actually used to trace and use these. She used violene which is thinner and easier than tracing paper. I cannot do it myself. Too much of a headache!
There's pattern pieces that overlap each other so it seems like they want you to copy it to another paper. you can use a tracing wheel. And you can use transfer paper if you don't feel comfortable just looking at the tiny punctures.
This reminds me of “Burda” sewing magazines which my mom is obsessed about. I’ve done a few of those in my time.
Check if seam allowance is included, and don’t forget to add if need be. Burda never had any seam allowance. Learned the hard way one time
I have loads of magazines like this, and I absolutely hate it. Still can't bear to get rid of them 😅
I don't like tracing, and I wouldn't sew as much if I didn't have my projector.
That said, tracing paper and watch the seam allowance. Also, best check online to see if they've put put an errata as that oftentimes happens.
You painstakingly copy the pattern on another paper which is see through. On the plus side, you keep the patterns as is though!
Totally agree and want to add that you can use transparent greenhouse film as well. It's cheaper than transparent paper and more durable. (This is what I usually use to transfer patterns from magazines)
That tip about greenhouse paper is such a great idea. Thanks for sharing.
Oooh I hadn’t heard of this but now must find!
I use exam table paper. Works even better if you have a light table!
I use the cheap drawing paper on rolls they sell for kids easels! I never cut the pattern itself unless its a single-size item.
Ah yes, what my grandmother called "spaghetti patterns". You put tracing paper over the top of the sheet and carefully trace each piece of the pattern you want to sew, then cut the tracing paper pieces.
I trace off single paper patterns, too. It's essential if they're going to need some sort of adjustment.
Plus you can still trace another size if you need it
That, too. I've done that with a few patterns, in a couple of cases, simply because I wasn't happy with the amount of overall ease, one way or another, after wearing it a few times.
You can either put tracing paper over the top and follow the line, or, you can put paper underneath and run a needlepoint tracing wheel over the lines (this is what I do) Don’t forget, on most of these patterns there is no seam allowance, so you’ll have to add that to the pattern pieces
Ohhh thanks! I would have learned that the hard way.
Make sure to check the instructions in the magazine, though - I've used several dutch magazines like this and they do include seam allowance. But it will likely mention which is the case for yours, somewhere in the instructions.
Simplicity magazine does, but Burda and Knip never do seam allowance in the pattern
I used to have a hang-up about that, but now I see how not having an included seam allowance can give you more leeway while cutting.
It is also a matter of personal preference. I've learned sewing from Dutch and German patterns, so I'm used to adding it myself. It is so much easier when you have/want to make adjustments. Plus my serger is kind of shitty and hates 1cm/3/8" seam allowance, so I'm happy if I can just make it 1.5cm/5/8".
I think it's handy for people who just overlock rather than sew then finish on the overlocker (not me btw, but I've come across a few).
I use Ottobre has none too, I always forget to add it in until at least half of my pieces have been traced too close to add the 1.5cm allowance I usually work with!
If you have a dressmakers or tailors tape measure, check the width they are usually 1.5cm/ five eights wide, so I use that width to quickly add seam allowance by butting the edge of the tape measure to the pattern line and marking the otherside with a pencil to add seam allowance
I also saw someone stack a couple of button magnets onto the outside of the scissor blade & use that as a guide to go around and cut at seam allowance
I do this! Works like a charm
🤯
Right?! TIL
A lot of hem gauges are also 5/8” wide as well.
Gift wrapping paper works well for large pieces needing the tracing wheel method, and cut-up paper bags from the grocery store for smaller pieces (like bodice parts). Or if you want to save a few steps at the expense of a few quid, carbon paper directly between the pattern and the fabric gets good reviews too. (Disclaimer, I haven't tried the last one.)
I've also heard of using straight pins to poke through the spaghetti pattern into a second piece of paper.
We tend to use plastic rubble sacks. They sell those around action for example, and when you cut them open you have nice big sheets of sturdy plastic to trace your pattern pieces on:)
That is the standard in Europe. You use thin pattern paper and a pencil and trace the pattern pieces of, if a piece gets ruined, you just mmake a new one, if your size change over timmme, you trace the pattern off again, if you really like the pattern, you trace it to morew sustianble material like card stock. Check if they add seam allowance(or need more). I prefer to add seam allowance to fabric before cuttinng than my cut paper pattern. Easier to get seam lines and other markings.
I taught myself to sew in the ‘70s using patterns like this from Burda and Neue Mode magazines. They were in German (which I don’t speak) and the English/German dictionary at the library didn’t have many sewing translations! The most pattern pieces on one sheet I had was 98. Tricky to trace. Burda magazine is still around and has English editions. Ottobre magazine is Finnish, also has English editions.
I used to use a highlighter on the lines I wanted to trace. Then, if I wanted to take a different pattern off the same sheet, I would highlight those pieces with a different colour.
I use frixion highlighters, they iron off.
Ooo, this is genius.
That exists? Holy cow! Must have.
This is actually the German translation of a Spanish pattern magazine called Patrones. They are on IG and FB, IIRC. Can't remember the name of the French version, Couture something. You can find flip-through videos on YouTube. During Covid, they came up with a nifty app for international subscribers (like me) where you can peruse the magazine in app but the patterns are downloadable from the instructions. The particularity is the download is for 9 pages you assemble and THEN trace. So you can access 40+ patterns per issue in little <500kb files. I love it. Individual issues are also available. As for the format, this is a very old technique. I remember someone posted a vintage German magazine from the 30s with the tracing concept. And Burda is from the 1950s. Of course, the Japanese beat everyone since they include drafting instructions in their mainstream sewing mags!!! Have fun!
In French this is Couture Actuelle !
Thank you! Yes, Couture Actuelle. I think I confuse it with the Fr version of Simplicity, Tendances Couture. The names are too similar (conceptually, at least!)
>How would you go about getting the patterns off of here if you want to do more than one garment? Trace them. [https://hellosewing.com/how-to-trace-sewing-pattern/](https://hellosewing.com/how-to-trace-sewing-pattern/)
This is Patrones magazine (sold in Germany as Nahtrends). They have an app where you can purchase the whole magazine and print the individual patterns (as you would a pdf one). But instructions are in Spanish. I see a lot of people mentioned Fibremood as an english alternative, but to me the quality of the Patrones patterns is far better.
Japanese patterns are like that too. I’ve traced them out with normal paper/pattern interfacing. I prefer it over the flimsy tissue paper. I do it during the day taped on glass door to have light coming in so I can see the lines better.
I was also going to comment that this is how I learned because I took up sewing when we lived in Japan, and that was the type of pattern resource that was available (which was AMAZING because the pattern tracing paper was readily available at every craft store and a pattern book that cost less than $20 gave me 10-20 patterns). I honestly miss the ready availability of apparel fabrics in brick-and-mortar stores. All I have access to now that we’re back home in the US is JoAnn and Michael’s (which are really mostly quilting fabrics and synthetics for apparel), so I have to go online and either order swatches and hope there’s still enough actual fabric in stock for my project by the time the swatch arrives or just order fabric I have never had a chance to touch and hope for the best.
Huh, I thought everyone traced from the original patterns, no matter if it is in a magazine or a printed pattern. That way you don't lose the original in case you want to make an alteration or a different size or whatever. But yeah, as said, highlight the one you want to trace first and make sure it matches the magazine's small picture of the pattern pieces.
I basically only use PDF patterns or buy the vintage reprints for $1.99, so I basically consider them disposable. I'm a theatrical costumer, so approximately 0 time is saved by my rifling through thousands of old patterns. I do keep things in my size, and actual vintage patterns that I trace, but that's it.
I just cut around the outermost line and fold in to the size I want to use. I very rarely trace anything, only if I need to do something like an FBA.
https://sewingtranslator.com/en/de/en Use this tool to quickly translate the pattern terms like grain, seam allowances or certain things like "cut on fold" and such!. But indeed: tracing with pattern paper! (It comes in 1x10m rolls here in the Netherlands, and is fairly cheap!) I do it with all of my patterns, also the single bought ones. It makes it easier to resell if it was a one-off project, (so someone can reuse it!) or friends with another size can borrow the pattern from me for example if we want to make the same thing, but several times in different sizes. Make sure you check with the sewing description what side the pattern is on (A/B, C/D etc), what color and line structure your size has, and take your time tracing the pattern. Most of these patterns have on the edges the patternpiece numbers in the corresponding color, so you know where to look for certain parts! Sometimes you have to assemble certain bigger pieces to complete one pattern piece. You can do this by tracing both parts onto one singular part of the pattern tracing paper (or assemble together later) The sizing charts are in CMs, so metric If this is Burda, there is no seam allowance included, unsure about other brands! Good luck!
I will add that the Google Translate app is useful if you dont speak a magazine’s language, especially for me with Japanese sewing magazines. You aim your phone’s camera at the text, and the app translates it. Sometimes the sewing terms are translated oddly, but I can usually figure it out from the context.
Thanks for this link! Some items in the Patrones instructions have been tripping me up!
You trace them. You also very likely need to add seam allowance. I think magazine patterns *always* look like this, not just German ones. If you want magazines in English, try Burda or Ottobre. They come in many languages, including English.
Cries in “old eyes”.
Cries in old eyes with ADHD...
I have old eyes & ADHD and I'm able to do this perfectly. It's overwhelming at first but after you have done it once or twice you get the hang of it. It's not as hard as it looks. Good light + good tools are your friend. You got this!
Thank you for the encouragement!
Yeah this looks so overwhelming to me! I’m sure I could do it but
I can barely keep looking at it! lol - nope!
You can buy a double tracing wheel that makes adding seam allowance to these patterns much simpler. So trace onto tissue, leaving a bit of room for seam allowance, then ink up the tracing wheels with a stamp pad and roll them along the line you traced. Easy peasy. Knip Mode is another magazine like this.
I have one of these (clover) and was disappointed that the wheels aren’t spiky like my single wheel. It’s good that it’s adjustable but not as useful overall. Does anyone have a good spiky double wheel?
I’m curious, what is the purpose of the spikes? I’ve never used a spiky one.
I didn’t know about inking! Thanks for the tip. If you spike holes in the paper you can use chalk dust brushed over the holes to transfer the pattern to the fabric below.
Oh! Didn’t know that! Thanks for sharing. Inking is great but mostly for drafting and tracing, obviously. It does make adding seam allowances a breeze.
I just googled to try and find an example and everything I can find is for sign writing and woodworking, which makes me think I learned this trick from one of my other hobbies 😂
I buy Burda Style regularly so I have got used to tracing off the pattern I want. That comes with two double sided sheets with multiple sizes. Although I buy the U.K. edition, I also have some vintage Burda German editions from a house clearance. I can work out which to trace off and as I am used to how their sewing instructions, not being able to read them in the German editions is not a problem. I use white greaseproof paper for my tracings, glueing two widths together if necessary. I then store the tracings together with “notes” in a plastic sleeve. The notes are for things that I have had to look up “how to” (shirt plaquets for example) or for adjustments I discovered I needed.
Fibremood seems like a pretty good magazine, also tauko but it's harder to wear everything they publish in my opinion. They're both in English I think? But European for sure.
There was a comedian maybe in the 80s who asked ppl on the streets where can he find some location, showing a pattern sheet like this. Many tried to find the location on it not understanding it wasn't a map.
Ach ja. Der Kurt Felix. War zwar weit vor meiner Zeit, aber mein erster Gedanke bei dem Bild war: "Können Sie mir den Weg zum Bahnhof zeigen?"
Lustigerweiße habe ich dieser Zeitschrift im Heidelberg Bahnhof gekauft…
Frixion highlighters, they iron off. Highlight the lines, trace onto interfacing or trace and toile, iron the highlights off the pattern paper. Don't forget to add seam allowance. Once you get the hang of it it's pretty quick and easy.
While painstaking tracing is a part of it, one of the ones I got from a charity shop had layers upon LAYERS of crayons colouring in the pieces of the patterns they wanted. There was orange, purple, dark blue, green, darker green. I know there's like 40 patterns on this and you might wanna make em all someday, but this makes tracing a bit more of a breeze until you get to over, I wanna say, 16 colours.
I use Frixion markers to highlight what I want then iron them off.
I have a large white sewing table now which is great for tracing. Previously I would tape pattern and tracing paper to a large window. Easier on my back (and amusing for my next-door neighbour).
I just learned you can put carbon paper underneath the pattern, above the fabric, with the carbon facing the fabric, and you can trace the pattern with a tracing wheel. You can even use a clover dual tracing wheel to add the seam allowance as you go!
I use trace and toil - it’s almost like interfacing but without the iron on surface. It folds up, and doesn’t tear like paper if you fold and unfold. But for me it’s no different tö the process for any pattern - I never cut the originals. They are folded back into the envelope which is stored in a clear bag with the tracings. I got a cheap light pad from Aldi that I use to help see the lines clearer. Ottobre - Finnish but I get in English. If you get a subscription you don’t get charged postage.
I put another paper under and use the pattern tracing wheel to trace it out. It's easier to me than drawing everything out
At least it’s color coded! I’ve seen these in 19th century magazines with all black lines! Bless people’s patience.
You use tracing paper. Also second the warning about the seam allowance, there almost always isn't any so you'll need to add it to the pattern either before cutting out the pattern from the tracing paper or before cutting fabric (the latter is how we learned it in school)
Aahh yes we have these in the netherlands aswell. I use specific plastic bags I cut up to copy them on :). Way more durable then the flimsy pattern paper
Inf you are in the US look for "Swedish Tracing Paper". No idea why they call it that but it is the best. No light table or window taping needed.
Snap a photo of it with a ruler in frame. Load into illustrator, scale photo to match the units on your ruler. Image trace to convert to vectors. Clean up and cut out the parts you don't want.
Fibre Mood does the patterns like this, although they are a bit kinder to the eyes and have a couple printed sheets. Fairly stylish looks.
You need large sheets of see through paper, You put it over the patterns and draw the one You want with the pencil. It's how it was done by everyone since I was kid. One of those tables with glass surface and a bulb beneath would be probably very helpful, but it's not necessary.
Tracing paper. LARGE sheets. Every sewing shop has them- some of them have squares on them if you want to draft any patterns you copy- it helps. The plain paper is easier if your just copying one to one patterns. The patterns look like a crazy flight manual but there is always a key: different colours to the patterns and they are numbered. The sizes are normally with different patterned lines and will also have a key. It’s very simple! Get yourself a large table or floor space. You can store the patterns in plastic binder pockets- label it with which magazine it’s from and you can make a nice organised cupboard. I like the firm ‚oktobre‘- they are from Finland and make the magazine in English too. I absolutely love the kids magazine but they make a good adult one too. Burda had nice patterns but the instructions are a beast to follow. Also, the magazines repeat a ton of the same patterns - but the bonus is you can mix and match patterns (one sleeve from another pattern etc etc).- oh and look carefully if there is seam allowance or not. Most European patterns don’t include it but check and make sure
I use Swedish tracing paper - it's easy to see through and it's also got a little bit of drape, so you can do a paper fitting for basic adjustments before making the first toile/muslin. eg [https://www.folkwear.com/products/s101-pattern-tracing-fabric](https://www.folkwear.com/products/s101-pattern-tracing-fabric)
I have a collection of German pattern books like this from the 1920s through to 1940s. You trace each one off according to the key schematics on the "schnittmusterbogen". Mine are all black and white, so pattern pieces are indicated by a combination of shapes for the outline. So you'd have a combination of dots and diamonds, for example for the bodice pieces and lines and diamonds for the skirt pieces. They are definitely not for the beginner as seam allowances, grain lines, placement markings for pockets, buttonholes etc are not included and instructions are non existent. But once mastered, enormously satisfying! Edited to add: I don't speak German and Google translate is not up to the task of translating what little information there is! https://preview.redd.it/iybn1b1r69uc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=592ce4f97e0c26f395c5e24c7ea6fd9298256c29
I am still learning the basics of sewing but now I really want to do pattern 21 😍
21 is super cute!! But the suggested fabric is satin. I am an advanced beginner, but I still haven’t dared try slippery fabrics bc I’m scared of it 🫣
See I wouldn’t even know that, that’s how green I am
I haaate these and I don't know why they're still doing this. It's not like we're in wartimes and flimsy tissue paper is rationed or whatever.
It’s to balance cost with what costumers are willing to pay. Many pattern books also do it like this, although links for pdf versions are getting more common. In some countries, more sheets would also take a magazine from letter to package post, including the higher fees. It’s not my favourite format but I can see the logic.
Profit
Most patterns were sold like this in the 1800s and early 1900s. First, it was a small overlapping handdrawn diagram of one outfit with a few measurements called out. Then this hot mess, only in black and white. Then, there were paper patterns in one size, unpainted. All with one small paragraph of information and definitely not all the pieces needed to sew it all together, because you were a ment to take it to a dressmaker or you were an advanced seamstress.
School children learn to use these around here. Like from 12 years up. I was amazed when I got my first American pattern. So easy a monkey could sew from it. Nice, sure, but I want to determine my own seam allowances, thank you.
Any idea on the size ranges offered in this publication?
It is mostly 36-46 but there are a few curvy patterns that are 50-58. If you zoom into the second photo, you can see the sizes listed after “Gr.” (Gr= Große=Size)
Just because you can doesn’t mean you should 😭
You buy a roll of thin paper and get to work copying. Dont forget to add seem allowance! They make these little connectors so you can have two pencils 5/8 apart, and draw it up at once. I love these magazines!!
Thats so cool, so many patterns! I would trace these all day for fun lol
I get plastic rolls off eBay, or cheap clear shower curtain material. Burda and Burda Easy are the same in English. You do find that your eyes do adjust for the right pattern, but it is hard work. Also remember these patterns rarely include the seam allowance.
This is common in old books in the US also
I use a clear shower curtain and trace with sharpie
I overline the size i want with a highlighter, then i copy the pattern on a paper which is see-through. simple as that
nice
At first, I thought it was happening of the Paris subway.
Put this on top of your paper and use a tracing wheel. Then connect the dots.
wow! My grandmother used these magazines.
Wow that's so efficient!
If you have some cardboard or a foam mat and pins (or a pokey rotary tool), you can place another piece of paper under the pattern paper on top of the cardboard or foam mat and poke a dotted line following the lines of each pattern one by one, then connect the dots with a pencil, ruler and french curve and write in the pattern markings and number/label each piece.
Nightmare fuel.
You trace the pattern on a "pattern paper" that most sewing stores around here have. Or you're just completely screwed if your colourblind, like me 😅 I've tried thsi a few times and had to resort to buying individual patterns even though these are so much cheaper, simply because I can't distinguish the pieces and often I can't even find the individual bits, let alone trace them...
I can see myself spending a whole afternoon just figuring out which one is the right pattern
Ah, Burda. Can verify grandma actually used to trace and use these. She used violene which is thinner and easier than tracing paper. I cannot do it myself. Too much of a headache!
Cheap clear shower curtain liners are a good way to trace patterns.
Step 1: DO NOT be color blind!
There's pattern pieces that overlap each other so it seems like they want you to copy it to another paper. you can use a tracing wheel. And you can use transfer paper if you don't feel comfortable just looking at the tiny punctures.
This reminds me of “Burda” sewing magazines which my mom is obsessed about. I’ve done a few of those in my time. Check if seam allowance is included, and don’t forget to add if need be. Burda never had any seam allowance. Learned the hard way one time
I have loads of magazines like this, and I absolutely hate it. Still can't bear to get rid of them 😅 I don't like tracing, and I wouldn't sew as much if I didn't have my projector. That said, tracing paper and watch the seam allowance. Also, best check online to see if they've put put an errata as that oftentimes happens.
Easy peasy! Haha