Aaaaahhhh yes… the dreaded FBA! Today for the Chelsea Party Dress sewalong we will be covering how to do a full bust adjustment on a garment with a princess seam. More specifically how it applies to the Chelsea Party Dress! However, you will find this tutorial helpful on any garment with a princess seam.
As discussed in my previous post about fit, you will know you need to to an FBA if your breasts are spilling out of the cups in the center front and under the arms.
Additionally, if you know yourself to be above a C cup, you are most likely going to need an FBA, as this pattern is currently drafted for a B cup. (More cup sizes to come!) You can save yourself the time of doing a muslin to figure it out!
Lastly, it’s no secret that this dress is extra on cleavage. If that’s not your style, and you prefer something a little less boob-a-licious (technical term) I will be sharing a modesty hack for raising the center front point later on in the sewalong.
Now without further delay, watch the video below for the full tutorial on doing a full bust adjustment to the Chelsea Party Dress!
EDIT:
The above video misses a crucial step in moving forward with your FBA. The same amount you added to the bust for the FBA must be removed from the side seam in order for the pattern piece to fit into the waistband. This step can be seen in this updated FBA video:
I want to quickly add that another adjustment some of my fuller busted testers found helpful was lowering the apex. This adjustment moves the fullest part of the cup down, which can be particularly helpful in a fitted garment like this where you won’t necessarily be wearing a bra. A tutorial for this adjustment can be found in the Closet Case Files free princess seam fitting ebook I linked yesterday.
I hope you found that tutorial helpful and are on your way to getting a perfectly fitting Chelsea Party Dress!!
Stay tuned tomorrow for the modesty hack.
Happy Sewing,
Hailey says
You would need to do an FBA for both the lining and the front pieces, correct? Or are they pretty similar, so you could just use the adjusted pieces for both lining and front?
amy Powell says
Yes you would need to do the adjustment on both. Typically the lining is 1/8″ smaller around the edges, to help the fabric turn in better. If you are cutting the lining in the same fabric you could just do the adjustment on the outer pieces and cut the same for the lining as it wouldn’t matter if a bit peaks out. In addition, you could just do the adjustment on the outer pieces, make a copy of them and trim 1/8″ off the outer edge seam allowance (around armhole openings, necklines, etc.) to save you having to make the adjustment twice.