The Palmer/Pletsch Complete Guide to Fitting

This review was published in the August 2018 Loose Threads publication of American Sewing Guild’s Los Angeles Chapter. Used by permission of the author. The Palmer/Pletsch Complete Guide to Fitting by Patti Palmer and Marta Alto is an update to Patti and Marta’s book Fit for Real People, and — oh! — what an update! Fit for Real People, first published in 1998, walked the reader through the Palmer/Pletsch tissue fitting method, teaching a generation of sewers to fit clothing properly. This new book takes lessons learned by Patti and Marta during their last forty-plus years of teaching, and lays out a clear, stepwise method of fitting any body. Full disclosure: while I’ve been sewing as long as Patti and Marta have been teaching, I avoided the Palmer/Pletsch method for years, mostly because the folks who had learned it were such enthusiasts. I have a difficult-to-fit figure and a (more than healthy) sense of skepticism, so I was convinced that nothing could measure up to such hype. Almost a decade ago, after many frustrating forays into other fitting methods, I finally succumbed to Patti and Marta’s books and videos. And, guess what? It’s true. The Palmer/Pletsch fitting method really does work, for any pattern and for any body! Since then, I’ve used this method to fit a number of private clients as well as members of ASGLA Couture group. One complaint I had of Patti and Marta’s earlier books is that they seemed disorganized. Fit for Real People contained a ton of information, but I had to know what I was looking for, in order to find it. Thankfully, The Palmer/Pletsch Complete Guide to Fitting is much better organized. Although I still find myself flipping around to find things, the book is much better about giving page number references for where I need to go. The book starts with a section overviewing the history of Palmer/Pletsch, pattern sizing, and fit. The next section, “Getting Started” covers personal pattern issues: pattern sizing, grading, ease and body analysis. The book then suggests creating a “body map” by fitting a sheath dress; it’s an excellent exercise for someone who has never used the method. Unfortunately, the summary of the order of alterations is back in Chapter 1 — I think it ought to be repeated here — however, the body map instructions do follow the order from Chapter 1 (e.g. adjust armhole and waist length, broad/narrow back, high/low curved back before adjusting for shoulder heights or bust width.) Each possible alteration is briefly described, with page number references for detailed alteration instructions. Later chapters are dedicated to alterations for specific body parts: back, bust, shoulders, etc. The book’s final chapters discuss analysing wrinkles as indicators of fit, and a discussion of sewing techniques that affect fit. One of my favorite parts of Fit for Real People was its wonderful body-positive photographs of real people — petite, plus-sized, full-busted women, small-busted women, etc. — shot through an entire fitting process. The reader can clearly see what a poor fit looks like, and how the fit improves with each alteration. The Palmer/Pletsch Complete Guide to Fitting contains updated pictures, although they have retained the older ones that make specific points. If I had one wish, I’d wish that Patti and Marta had insisted that the garments photographed be constructed in light, solid colors. Prints visually distort the seam lines, and the seam lines completely disappear in the black and navy garments. It is hard to evaluate fit with these distractions. That said, the photos are still useful. The line drawings, diagrams for pattern alterations, and instructions are all very clear. In all, I believe The Palmer/Pletsch Complete Guide to Fitting is a foundational book for any sewist’s library. For those who learn better by watching videos, I recommend using Palmer/Pletsch videos to learn the method, and using this book as a reference guide. Other folks in the sewing community may entice you with “easy” fitting solutions, but these methods often only address a small subset of figure issues. In my experience, these other methods do not have consistent or reliable results. The Palmer/Pletsch method may seem long and occasionally tedious, but its results are repeatable and reliable for every body that I’ve tried to fit. As Patti and Marta’s subtitle reads: “Sew Great Clothes for EVERY Body. Fit ANY Fashion Pattern.” You can! -Elizabeth Vana Bryant ASGLA Couture Group Leader Palmer Pletsch Certified Sewing Instructor