Drafting Center Front Darts or Tucks


Manipulating your bodice darts to the center front creates a look that subtly emphasizes the bust, while maintaining the fit of the original bodice pattern. 

sketch of woman wearing striped dress with center front darts


The technique is really quite simple, but it can result in a number of different aesthetic choices. 

I've shown a dress in a striped fabric - notice how the direction of the stripes changes from the shoulder area to the waist. The darts not only draw in the excess fabric that shapes around the bust, they also change the grainline between the upper and lower areas of the bodice - which would not be noticeable in a solid color, but is highlighted with stripes.  

In this case, the stripes, and their changing direction, become part of the aesthetic design of the dress! (I'll demonstrate that a bit more, later).

Manipulating Bodice Darts to the Center Front



To begin, slash your traced pattern from the shoulder to the tip of the waist dart, and close the side bust dart.


This will open a new dart at the shoulder
sketch of pattern draft - 1st step of CF darts
sketch of pattern draft - 2nd step for CF darts


Draw 3 lines from the center front to the existing darts.

You can do more than 3 lines, or fewer - it’s up to you and how you want your bodice to look. But 3 is a good place to start.


Then, close both the shoulder dart and the waist dart, opening the darts at the center front.


Tape the other darts closed and distribute the fullness evenly at the new center front darts.
sketch of pattern draft - step 3 of CF darts
final pattern for bodice with center front darts

Your final pattern will look something like this.


Because the center front is not straight in this pattern, I’ve drawn 2 different grainlines; you can choose whichever configuration you’d like, depending on the fabric you’re using.


To demonstrate, I'll show you 2 versions of the bodice, using each grainline. 

First, I've made a single pattern piece for each version - you do not need a center front seam throughout the  bodice, unless you choose to use one.  You can make a one-piece bodice, with a split to accommodate the darts. 

I've also made the neckline a "V-neck", per the original sketch.  The center front darts do NOT cause the neckline to pull down into a V shape, although it can look that way. This is simply a design choice, but I think it works well with the front darts. 

In the first option, below, I've joined the pattern below the darts, maintaining the straight of grain in the waist area. The split for the darts is at the upper bodice, above the darts.

This results in horizontal stripes in the waist area, below the darts.  The grainline and stripes above the darts are distorted, creating stripes that are at an angle that somewhat mimics the neckline. 

sketch of bodice with horizontal stripes below the bust, and diagonal stripes above the bust.
pattern piece for bodice with center front darts and horizontal stripes below the bust

In the second option, I have joined the bodice into one pattern above the darts, keeping the split below the darts.  I've maintained the straight of grain above the darts, in the shoulder area.  

This results in horizontal stripes across the upper bust and shoulders, while the grainline below the bust is distorted due to the split.  The stripes below the bust are then diagonal, meeting in a chevron pattern at the center seam below the bust. 


pattern piece for bodice with CF darts, grainline straight above bust
sketch of striped bodice with CF darts, stripes are horizontal above bust


This video demonstrates the drafting technique:




In either case, the stripes around the bust itself slowly change from horizontal to diagonal, and the effect can be a subtle, lady-like emphasis on the curves of the bust. 

There is no right or wrong here - these are simply design choices.

This dart technique offers the opportunity to experiment with fabrics and patterns and make the fabric selection a key component of your design.  Use plaids or checks as well as stripes, and see which grainline direction gives you the most interesting effect. 

Or, stitch tucks instead of darts (using the marks for the "legs" of the darts to create the tucks).  In a soft, more fluid fabric, the tucks can still be the star of the bodice, but the result will be softer and less structured.

There are so many options! 

Other Examples for Using Basic Pattern Techniques

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