USER MOTIVATIONS IN PROCEDURAL INSTRUCTION DESIGN: THE CASE OF SEWING PATTERNS
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USER MOTIVATIONS IN PROCEDURAL INSTRUCTION DESIGN: THE CASE OF SEWING PATTERNS Sol Kawage | 2014 Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Information Design, University of Reading, 2014
Transcript of USER MOTIVATIONS IN PROCEDURAL INSTRUCTION DESIGN: THE CASE OF SEWING PATTERNS
USER MOTIVATIONS IN PROCEDURAL INSTRUCTION DESIGN: THE CASE OF SEWING PATTERNS
Sol Kawage | 2014
Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for theMaster of Arts in Information Design, University of Reading, 2014
Formatting and printing by Sol Kawage [InDesign CC].Typeset in Brill and Alto Pro.Images by Sol Kawage unless otherwise stated.Word count: 11,949
Abstract
Sewing patterns as printed instructional devices offer insight into the evolution of information design in technical communication. This dissertation analyses a sample of 12 patterns of different eras and origins to explore the ways in which the design of their procedural instructions tries to solve usability issues. The study is complemented by a parallel look into the sociology of home sewing and the evolving motivations of the users of sewing patterns through the decades. As the users were and are almost always women, the history of the fight for gender equality is taken into account when looking at the pattern samples, in order to discover how social context and a change in the motivations for the practice are reflected in the way patterns are designed. A taxonomy of the different solutions and visual expedients used in the design of the patterns is presented, with the aim that it can be borrowed and applied to other fields. The study shows that when the motivations move away from home economics and closer to self-expression and leisure, the burden of complexity shifts towards the designer and away from the user.
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Contents
Introduction 11
Purpose 13Structure 15
1. Feminist history of home Sewing 17
Birth of the industry 17Early pattern milestones 20Pattern distribution and accessibility 23A competitive market 25Peak and decline 25Third Wave Feminism: the present 26Home sewing and social change: a timeline 28
2. Analysis framework 31
Task analysis 31Burda Style sewing course 34Choice 40Identification 45Appropriation 47Joining 48
3. Information design issues in sewing patterns 51
Choice: finished garment views 52Choice: descriptions 59Choice: schematic diagrams 60Choice: difficulty level 61Choice: size and material requirements 62Identification: singling out the relevant pattern pieces 63Overlay patterns 66Identification: recognising necessary adjustments 70Appropriation: cutting, tracing or copying 71Appropriation: cutting instructions and layouts 72Clothkits 74General instructions and graphic language of the pattern 76Symbols and pictograms 78Joining: procedural sequences and scale of video‑likeness 80Typographic signalling 83
4. Conclusion 85
REFERENCES 87
APPENDIX 89
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List of Figures
Page number
1.1 Title page of Instructions for Cutting out Apparel for the Poor [...]. 10
1.2 Instructions for Cutting out Apparel for the Poor [...]. Fold-out pattern. 12
1.3a Simplicity pattern n.6961 diagrams, New York 1975. 16
1.3b Simplicity pattern n.6961 envelope, New York 1975. 16
1.4 Journal des Demoiselles, Miniature pattern diagrams and embroidery guides. 18
1.5 ‘The suffrage and the switch’ General Electric advertisement, ca. 1923. 19
1.6 Pattern label for a boys’ waist (blouse), with size indication in years of age. Butterick 1864. 20
1.7 Les Patrons Favoris, ca. 1930 Pattern piece. 21
1.8 McCall Pattern 3539, 1924. 22
1.9a Front and back cover La Mode Française, 1890. 23
1.9b Singer sewing machine advertisement. 23
1.10 Auction website ebay.co.uk screenshot. 24
1.11 Very Easy Vogue pattern, V7871. 27
2.1 Burda Style 8/2014 Cover. 34
2.2 Burda Style 8/2014, Overlay pattern sheets. 35
2.3 Burda Style 8/2014, magazine pages. 35
2.4 Burda Style 8/2014, Instruction supplement. 36
2.5 Burda Style 8/2014 Garment overview 37
2.6 Burda Style 8/2014, Sewing Course spread. 39
2.7 Burda Style 8/2014, Pattern contents. 40
2.8 Burda Style 8/2014, Finished garment. 41
2.9 Burda Style 8/2014, Difficulty levels. 42
2.10 Burda Style 8/2014, Size charts. 43
2.11 Burda Style 8/2014, Measurements. 44
2.12 Simplicity 8890, 1970. Sleeve pattern piece 45
2.13 Burda Style 8/2014 overlay pattern look-up system. 45
2.14 Burda Style 8/2014 instruction sheet detail. 46
2.15 Burda Style 8/2014 How to trace the pattern shapes. 46
2.16 Burda Style 8/2014, Instructions supplement, detail. 47
2.17 Burda Style 8/2014 instruction sheet for the ‘sewing course’ feature. 48
2.18 Burda Style 8/2014 instruction supplement detail. 49
3.1 Overlay pattern supplement detail, La Mode Française XVI, 1890. 52
3.2 Les Patrons Favoris Ski suit pattern, ca. 1930. 53
3.3 Burda 2461, Prince, Amadeus pattern. 53
3.4 Australian Home Journal, 1955. 54
3.5 Woman’s Weekly B453 pattern, 1968. 54
3.6 Simplicity pattern 8890, 1970. 55
3.7 Modes et Travaux, 5/1981, pattern view. 55
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Page number
3.8 Burda Moden, 1981, pattern view. 56
3.9 Style pattern 1476, 1988. 56
3.10 Vogue (Very Easy) V7871, 2004. 57
3.11 Ottobre Design 02/2010. 57
3.12 Burda Style 8/2014, dress view. 58
3.13 Les Patrons Favoris ca. 1930, envelope. 59
3.15 Vogue (Very Easy) pattern V7871, 2004. 59
3.14 Burda Style 8/2014, description detail. 59
3.15 Simplicity 8890, 1970. Instruction supplement title panel. 60
3.16 Ottobre 2/2010. General instructions section. 60
3.17 Burda Style 08/2014, Difficulty level system. 61
3.18 Simplicity Jiffy 5536 ca. 1960. 61
3.19 Simplicity Jiffy 6961 1975. ‘Pick-a-knit rule’. 62
3.20 Les Patrons Favoris, ca. 1930 Pattern piece. 63
3.21 Women’s Weekly 453, 1968. Pattern piece with holes and notches. 64
3.22 Australian Home Journal 1955, pattern pieces. 64
3.23 Simplicity 8890, 1970, Blouse sleeve. 65
3.24 Englishwoman’s Domestic, Magazine, 1867 overlay pattern sheet. 66
3.25 La Mode Française, 1890 overlay pattern sheet. 66
3.26 Burda Moden 1/1981 overlay pattern sheet. 67
3.27 Ottobre Design 2/2010 overlay pattern sheet. 68
3.28 Burda Style 8/2014 overlay pattern sheet. 69
3.29 Modes et Travaux, 5/1981 warning detail. 70
3.30 Vogue pattern instruction sheet detail, 2004. 70
3.31 Style Instruction sheet detail, 1988. 71
3.32 Women’s Weekly 1968 Instruction sheet detail. 71
3.33 Les Patrons Favoris 281, ca. 1930, envelope back view. 72
3.34 Australian Home Journal, 1955. Hand-drawn cutting layouts. 72
3.35 Simplicity 1970, Instruction sheet detail. 73
3.36 Modes et Travaux 5/1981 fabric grain indication. 73
3.37 Clothkits 465, 1978, skirt kit, uncut. 73
3.38 Clothkits Instruction booklet, 1978. 75
3.39 Clothkits Instruction booklet, 1978. 75
3.40 ‘How to use your Simplicity Pattern’: instruction sheet section with numbered list. 76
3.41 Simplicity 1970, Dictionary of Sewing Terms. 77
3.42 Clothkits 465, 1978. 77
3.43 Style pattern symbols, 1988. 78
3.44 Burda Moden 1/1981, pattern symbols. 79
3.45 Ottobre Design, pattern symbol glossary. 79
3.46 Scale of video-like quality to the procedures. 80
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Page number
3.47 Modes et Travaux 1981, Film du Travail. 80
3.48 Burda Moden, 1/1981, Instructions. 81
3.49 Les Patrons Favoris ca. 1930, Instructions 81
3.50 Ottobre Design, 2/2010, Procedure. 82
3.51 Simplicity 8890, 1970 Sewing directions. 82
3.52 Modes et Travaux 5/1981, pattern diagrams and directions. 83
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Figure 1.1
Title page of Instructions for Cutting out Apparel for the Poor [...]. J. Walter, London 1789. Reproduced at 75% of actual size.
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INTRODUCTION
Sewing patterns as printed devices offer insight into the evolution of information design in technical communication, in particular in the field of procedural instruction design. The patterns are flat, seemingly abstract shapes that constitute the building blocks of garment construction. When cut out from appropriate material and sewn together, the shapes cease to be abstract and flat, becoming three-dimensional and adapting to – or mimicking – the shape of the human body. It is partly due to their original abstraction, which, to a certain degree, precludes intuitive interaction, that the need for precise instructions on how to cut and assemble them arises. Such instructions were traditionally passed orally from mothers to daughters (usually) in the family or from tailors to apprentices in the trade. However, with increasing levels of literacy since the industrial revolution, oral traditions have given way to procedural instruction using writing and design, ‘allowing people to perform tasks besides the ones their parents performed’ (Harris 1983).
The science of deconstructing the three-dimensional shape of the human body into the flat shapes of the pattern is known as pattern-cutting and was developed by dressmakers in the sixteenth century as looser garment fashions gave way to more fitted designs (Emery 2014). The market for the commercial pattern industry in Europe and the United States emerged when pattern engineering and use trickled down from professional to domestic hands. The earliest examples of cutting patterns for domestic use are found in the 1789 publication Instructions for Cutting out Apparel for the Poor, containing ‘patterns, directions and calculations’ and aimed at even ‘the most inexperienced’ [Figures 1.1 and 1.2].
Garment construction techniques, mostly draping1 and pattern drafting, were originally the prerogative of professional tailors and dressmakers. However, in the nineteenth century, fashion magazines and publications helped disseminate the practice of systematic and rational clothes-making outside of the trade. This is not to imply that no home dressmaking happened before then, but simply that the techniques were rather prosaic in nature. The most common involved picking apart an old garment, copying the flat sections and cutting them out of new material. It is easy to imagine how welcome it would have been to be able to forgo this reverse-engineering process and at the same time have access to the latest fashions. The paper pattern allowed those two things exactly and at a small cost.
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A less common alternative to the use of patterns, draping involves positioning and pinning fabric on a dress form or directly on the body to develop the structure of a garment. After draping, the fabric is removed from the dress form and used to create flat shapes that will be sewn together.
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In its somewhat brief history – roughly 150 years – the paper pattern industry has evolved and spawned a variety of instructional design solutions of increasing complexity and user awareness (Durack 1997a). The devices (the pattern pieces themselves) and their user interfaces (the provided explanations on how to construct the garments they embody) employ text, diagrams, pictures, symbols, hierarchy and gestalt principles of perception, as well as relying on tacit knowledge to instruct the user.
This intrinsic complexity of garment building makes sewing patterns valuable tools for gaining insight into the usability challenges that designers of procedural instructions face. These solutions are also interesting because they straddle a huge paradigm shift in women’s history: an activity that was once productive work has become a leisure activity.
Figure 1.2
Instructions for Cutting out Apparel for the Poor [...]. Directions for shirts and relative fold-out pattern. J. Walter, London 1789. Reproduced at 35% of actual size.
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Purpose
In this dissertation I aim to show that patterns are testament to the fact that the changing motivations of the users affect the design of procedural instructions, and to illustrate that the sociological implications of home sewing also play a role in that design. By studying the history of home sewing and the social changes reflected in the motivations of domestic seamstresses, I aim to define a link between information design and social change, with a special focus on feminism. In doing so I will assume that the motivations for sewing at home were taken into consideration by the designers of the user interfaces of these home-sewing devices. If this is true, the study will show what design features reflect a paradigm shift in social attitudes towards women. The assessment will be based on both the overall visual language and the author’s own evaluation of usability.
The first result of the present analysis will be the extraction of a taxonomy of the different visual implements that solve usability problems in sewing patterns. Conspicuously absent from the theory of technical communication – arguably because technology is traditionally defined in terms of male activities and technologies that fall into the ‘women’s sphere’ have long been considered of negligible relevance (Wajcman, 1991) – these domestic objects are interesting also because of their ephemeral nature, in contrast with their unquestionable sophistication.
Due to the inherent complexity of garment building, sewing patterns – the two parts that generally constitute them being the pattern pieces themselves and the instructions or ‘user interfaces’ that in most cases accompany them – must address a number of usability issues. Although some patterns contain only the pieces and no instructions, and some are simply procedures without the pattern pieces, the same issues apply.
The pieces cut out from the material in the outline of the pattern pieces take the shape of a garment only when they are properly assembled and therefore the seamstress2 needs to follow a specific procedure. The instructional part of the pattern explains this procedure, using text and increasingly pictures and other visual devices as innovations introduced to attract customers by making the process seem more approachable. The issues that come into consideration when assessing the usability of these patterns are connected to the ways in which orality is replaced by textuality; the instructions are attempts to bridge the spatial and temporal disconnect between the designer of the procedure and the person who tries to follow it.
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Hereafter I shall use the term ‘seamstress’ to mean a persona that encompasses women of varying degrees of sewing expertise and ability who regularly or sporadically sew or sewed clothes at home. In specific cases, this persona will be redefined according to the motivations and social implications of home sewing relative to the specific moment in time studied.
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Some of the aspects from which I will distil a model of visual design strategies that address users’ needs in instructional design and ultimately customer satisfaction are:
• sizing and its straightforward calculation or measurement by the seamstress
• choice of difficulty level and ease of construction• eloquent description of fabric and notion requirements• typographic access and signalling • language• paper real estate, paper and print quality• description of intermediate stages of construction • use of diagrams, photographs or illustrations.
The second purpose is to examine the sociological implications and origins of the different visual design innovations and their possible repercussions for other fields of information design, derived from the original analysis of a diverse sample of sewing patterns.
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Structure
The context for the main analysis is illustrated in the first chapter, where I outline a brief history of home sewing, focusing on the evolution of the motivations for the practice, its major milestones – mainly the invention and diffusion of the sewing machine – the effects of the two World Wars, the rise of the clothing industry and the current state of the home sewing world.
Chapter two contains the analytical framework for the pattern sample. Starting with pattern use task analysis and connection to theories of procedural instruction design, I lay out a common set of criteria against which the patterns in the sample are studied. To illustrate this framework, the thorough analysis of one of the patterns is shown in full.
Chapter three presents the original analysis of the pattern sample according to the previously defined issues, for example, measurements, pattern piece identification, cutting layouts, step-by-step sequences, typographic access and signalling.
The final chapter synthesises the findings according to the sociological context, presenting the argument that the changes in audiences and motivations have fuelled the research for new solutions to usability problems, resulting in a useful model of graphic devices in instructional design. The increasing usability of the designs is arguably a consequence of the change in motivations, shifting the burden of complexity from the user onto the procedural instruction designer.
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Limitations and scope of the study
The present study focuses on a small sample of sewing patterns from different publishers and different eras that form the author’s personal collection, with some additions sourced specifically for this analysis. The ultimate goal of a sewing pattern is always unambiguous: to produce a particular garment, as described or illustrated with the pattern instructions. That is not to say that all such garments are identical, since some patterns allow for the construction of more than one garment by combining different pattern pieces [Figures 1.3a and 1.3b], but the user still wants to end up with the garment that the pattern refers to and nothing else. It is thanks to this common characteristic that a comparison between seemingly disparate sewing pattern procedure designs can be meaningful. The sample is diverse and it includes typical cases from different eras and publishers, both mainstream and niche. While it would have been desirable to conduct this analysis with a larger sample of patterns, chosen more systematically, there isn’t a collection that is easily accessible, making it difficult to assemble such a sample within the time-frame available.
Figures 1.3a and 1.3b
Simplicity pattern n.6961, New York 1975. One pattern for two styles: dress with short or long sleeves.
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1. FEMINIST HISTORY OF HOME SEWING
Any discourse that discusses home dressmaking cannot be complete without touching on the sociological implications of the practice. The making of clothes at home (and by extension pattern use) was from the outset an activity performed by women as a subsistence activity ‘compatible with simultaneous child-care responsibilities’ (Brown 1970). Together with child rearing and meal preparation, keeping the members of the family appropriately and adequately clothed was women’s traditional contribution to labour in the typical western family configuration. In this respect, one of the interesting aspects of the history of sewing patterns is that its beginnings coincide with the Second Industrial Revolution, and its developments accompany the history of the fight for gender equality. A parallel study of the progress of sewing pattern design and the evolution of the motivations for sewing – or not sewing – at home is the mainstay of this dissertation.
Birth of the industry
Textile-related activities filled up the hours of women’s days before the invention of the steam engine and the factory machines that it could run (Barber 1994). Spinning, weaving and sewing were such common household activities that the necessary skills were learned in the family and constituted, together with literacy, the ‘cultural capital’ of young women, giving them a certain kind of authority in a patriarchal society (Kortsch 2009). The complexity of fashion, which peaked in the late Victorian era, added value to this cultural capital.
Before commercial sewing patterns, the only guides available for the home-sewer were either the garment pieces obtained by picking apart old clothes
– copied, adapted and modified through trial and error – or miniature diagrams of the pattern shapes without indication of scale or size, or any explanation for the joining of the parts. These first patterns offered new variety in fashion but relied on the users’ pre-existing knowledge in reading and understanding patterns, and sewing skills. Women’s magazines were the vehicles for the dissemination of these early patterns, and the first one recorded was in the Journal des Demoiselles, published in 1833 [Figure 1.4].
It has been argued that the paper pattern industry was born in the United States rather than in Europe because the elite’s domination of politics and public life was challenged, spurred by the egalitarian spirit that was gaining
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momentum there. Patterns allowed women who were forced to make their own clothes the chance to look as good as their ‘betters’ (Kidwell 1979). Class differences faded, in part, thanks to the dissemination of fashion that patterns afforded. By the early 1900s the paper pattern industry was operating in a global market, thanks to new production methods and modes of transportation and communication. To reflect this, the specimens studied in this research come from the United States, Australia, England, France and Germany.
The sewing machine
Sewing was done by hand until the appearance of sewing machines – in the homes that could afford them – around the 1860s. Their appearance sanctioned two breakthroughs. The first was the effect of the Industrial Revolution on the home; the sewing machine would be followed by other time-saving machines. The second was a new paradigm of consumption, where desires of women were focused on by producers and marketers (Brandon 1977). Machines for home use were advertised using a wide variety of narratives that offered different perspectives on femininity, family relations and class (Fernandez 1999), and purchased mostly by men for their female relatives, often in instalments (Putnam 1999). Working-class women who went into debt to purchase a machine almost always used it for industrial labour from the home (Coffin 1994).
Figure 1.4
Journal des Demoiselles, Miniature pattern diagrams and embroidery guides. Paris 1840. Reproduced at 35% of actual size.
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Sewing machines were the first major domestic labour-saving device at that time, reducing garment construction times tenfold (Draznin 2001). It is not far-fetched to imagine that this newly found free time had a major impact in the lives of women, who found it possible to occupy their new leisure time with other pursuits besides day-to-day housework – eventually including political activism. (An interesting question for further study is whether the suffragette movement would have existed without the sewing machine [Figure 1.5].) For households at the end of the eighteenth century, acquiring a machine for sewing was essential in maintaining the implicit gendered identity and skill of sewing (Putnam 1999). Not surprisingly, sewing machines also spurred an increase in demand for sewing patterns and were arguably responsible for the industry taking off.
Figure 1.5
The suffrage and the switch, General Electric advertisement, ca. 1923. The narrative in this advertisement acknowledges the connection between political equality and freedom from domestic drudgery. In this instance, this was reinforced by the increasing electrification of American homes half a century after the diffusion of the mechanical sewing machine.
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Figure 1.6
Pattern label for a boys’ waist (blouse), with size indication in years of age. Butterick 1864.9.URI Image courtesy of the Commercial Pattern Archive, University of Rhode Island collection. Estimated date: 1864
Early pattern milestones
Contrary to what some simplified accounts of the history of patterns might suggest (McCall 2014) the American tailor Ebenezer Butterick did not invent the sewing pattern (Adburgham 1964). He did, however, come up with an innovation that gave him a definitive advantage over other pattern sellers, while at the same time providing impetus to the growth of the pattern industry as a whole. In 1863 he started selling full-scale patterns for different sizes of garments [Figure 1.6].
Before then, patterns were usually scaled diagrams, and the seamstress had to enlarge them accordingly. The only full-scale patterns that were available at the time came in one size, and it was up to the seamstress to adapt them. Mme Demorest was until then one of the most prominent pattern producers in America, distributing them in her own magazine The Mirror of Fashion, but her clients were mostly professional dressmakers rather than home seamstresses.
Butterick’s innovation – or rather, his wife’s, who was a home dressmaker – had the effect of making patterns accessible even to those who lacked the skill of modifying the pattern pieces to fit their particular body shape. Soon other publishers followed suit, and as pattern production was relatively lucrative, many other entrepreneurs entered the market. The American model of pattern marketing took hold in other countries.
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Another important innovation came from one of the most successful newcomers: James McCall, a Scottish sewing machine representative who immigrated to New York in 1869. Until 1919 patterns were produced by stacking tissue paper and cutting the pieces through the heft of the stacks, using special drills and implements to punch notches and holes to identify each pattern piece [Figure 1.7].
Figure 1.7
Pattern piece cut and marked with notches and punched out holes. From Les Patrons Favoris, around 1930. This example is a relatively recent one, but older specimens are hard to come by because of their ephemeral nature.
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McCall invented patterns that were printed on sheets of tissue rather than cut, and it was up to the seamstress to cut them out. This allowed the pattern pieces to be more accurate, as printing could be precise in a way that cutting could not. They also had the advantage that details such as markings, notches, indications where to place the patterns on the material, stitching guides and text in other languages could be included on each pattern piece. This level of detail was impossible with the previous method of cutting notches and punching holes, and it would have been too expensive and impractical using the method of stamping each piece (Durack 1997b). McCall’s printed patterns blurred the line between interface and device, as the pattern pieces themselves started to carry more information for the user, which made the patterns more readable [Figure 1.8].
Figure 1.8
McCall Pattern 3539, 1924. The envelope emphasises the fact that the directions for cutting and making are printed on the pattern itself. In addition, the pattern included a patented label or envelope, trademarked as ‘Printo Gravure’, which contained a picture of the garment, cutting directions, and sewing directions on the tissue paper. Image courtesy of the Commercial Pattern Archive, Kevin L. Seligman collection.
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Pattern distribution and accessibility
Patterns were very often part of women’s or fashion magazines, which included dressmaking columns, articles with domestic themes and advertisements for sewing machines [Figures 1.9a and 1.9b].
Figure 1.9a
Front and back cover of an issue of the French magazine La Mode Française, 1890. Among advertisements for beauty products, one for a Singer sewing machine.
Figure 1.9b
This Singer sewing machine advertisement in La Mode Française, 1890, highlights its suitability for families, dressmakers, shoe makers and corset makers, as well as facilitated payment options.
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Figure 1.10
Auction website ebay.co.uk alone features more than 30,000 vintage patterns.
Several academic papers have studied this type of magazine (Hiner 2013), but I will not dwell on this literature, in order to avoid expanding the scope of this study beyond its purpose. Suffice it to say that the history of sewing patterns is closely intertwined with the history of women’s magazines. The basis for this close relationship was twofold: these types of publications allowed a faster and more economical distribution of the patterns, which were seen as added value, diminishing the feeling of frivolity that buying a women’s magazine might have caused. Later on, the printing equipment for patterns was further utilised to print magazines. Some pattern manufacturers, namely Vogue and Pictorial Review, developed and printed publications specifically for promotion of their pattern products (Dickson 1979). In England, patterns were produced by various corporations that commercialised them through third-party magazines (Emery 2014).
In the 1930s, the first patterns to be sold over the counter – that is, not through mail order or magazines – that appeared in local stores throughout the US were Simplicity patterns. Sold this way, patterns were not only cheaper and easier to acquire; there was also an important synergy due to the possible simultaneous purchase of fabric and pattern. The innovation of the Simplicity company, founded in New York, was not limited to the new distribution channels but extended to four-colour printing and free supply of patterns to schools, as aids to teaching teenage girls how to sew.
Nowadays patterns are available within magazines, over the counter in stores, and through internet retailers, with a large secondary market in old (vintage) patterns [Figure 1.10].
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A competitive market
Patterns allowed fashions to disseminate quickly; competition among pattern publishers focused on both the fashions – which could be easily imitated – and the instructional design. As studied by Katherine Durack in the 1997 article ‘Patterns for Success’, the design solutions of the instructions and pattern pieces were regularly copyrighted. Proprietary solutions incentivised the publishers to innovate, and the patent records help trace the early history of the designs. Pattern publishers understood that if they managed to make sewing more accessible by simplifying the dressmaking process, their business would prosper. It will become clear throughout this study that there was a gradual shift in the distribution of complex tasks between user and designer. Early patterns had few instructions and the burden of making sense of the procedures fell entirely on the users, who could be assumed to possess the ‘conceptual models’ (Norman 2010) of garment construction necessary to assemble the different pieces. The competition between pattern companies (together with the changing nature of home sewing, as will be discussed later) moved this burden gradually onto the pattern designers.
Peak and decline
One of the effects of the First World War was that fashions changed with women’s new-found role in society. While the men were at the front, women took on men’s jobs and the convention of a universal sexual division of labour began to vanish. The social change effected by the war was reflected in every aspect of life in Europe and America: suddenly – three years can be considered sudden given the magnitude of the changes – half of the population, until then exclusively confined within domestic walls, became conscious that it was possible to challenge the social system. Young girls and women learned that they could find fulfilment independently, and that they needed the right clothes to do so. The empowerment that women found in work was reflected in the way they used the sewing machine as a tool to attain better social status. The democratisation of fashion enabled by sewing patterns allowed many women to dress better than they could have otherwise afforded. ‘Suddenly every woman had the opportunity to sew the kind of relatively complex, fashionable clothes she couldn’t get at her local store or afford even if they were there.’ (Dorothy Twining Globus, director of the Fashion Institute of Technology Museum, in Owens 1997).
The twentieth century saw the rapid rise of home sewing followed by its rapid decline, precipitated by the fading of its former economic imperative
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and by the increasing popularity of egalitarian fashion: jeans and t-shirts (Smith 2003). This decline was reflected in the pattern industry by the concentration of the market, with the three major companies, McCall’s, Butterick (Vogue) and Simplicity (Burda), acquiring their competitors.
Third Wave Feminism: the present
Now described as ‘domestic arts’, activities such as sewing or knitting had long been seen as running directly counter to feminism. As previously noted, these activities were part of a female domestic realm. Home sewing was often a financial necessity, and sometimes a ‘proper’ and desirable feminine activity.
By the 1960s, home sewing was considered so ‘resolutely unmodern as to be an affront to the freedom of women. It was archaic, time consuming and fraught with economic distinctions: the poor sewed, the rich bought’ (Owens 1997). In the past two decades there has been a resurgence of interest in craft, although in some instances the traditional domestic associations still exist. The difference, however, is the all-important element of choice. On the whole, women no longer partake in these activities because they must, or even because it is expected of them. They do so because they choose to. Indeed, not only does such a choice no longer conform to societal expectations of women, it runs counter to them. As a part of Third Wave Feminism, women are reclaiming and reconnecting with the undervalued domestic sphere as an act of subversion (Krolokke 2005). Pattern buyers have other reasons to keep on sewing at home: to produce clothes that fit better, to exercise creativity, as a leisure activity in itself, and to gain self-confidence, for example. I argue in the last chapter that these changing motivations affect the procedural design of the pattern. The seamstress who saw sewing as a chore and needed to save money, dressing herself and her family for less, has given way to those who see it as an empowering act of self-expression, a relaxing and fun hobby, and the satisfying notion that one can make clothes of a certain quality for less than the cost of equivalent shop-bought ones [Figure 1.11].
The analysis in this study aims to discover what design solutions are introduced in order to simplify and streamline the clothes-making process, making it accessible to those who would do it for pleasure rather than necessity, and to attract new customers who would otherwise be put off by the complexity of the task. The paper pattern producers needed their product to become accessible in order to survive, and some developed interesting procedural instruction design solutions as a result.
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Figure 1.11
Very Easy Vogue, V7871, 2004 McCall Pattern Company. A pattern for an expensive-looking dress, which is economical and easy to make.
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Home sewing and social change: a timeline
The key dates in the history of feminism, major historical events, and important pattern industry milestones are shown below. The timeline also shows the female labour participation rate for the time period between the invention of the steam engine and the present. The patterns which constitute the sample analysed in this study are shown at the relevant date, with indication of the place of publication. The nature of the patterns makes it difficult to find earlier examples, so most of the specimens studied are concentrated in the twentieth century.
France 1890
SteamEngine
Commercialisation of the sewing machine for
domestic use
1st Wave Feminism(Fighting for the
right to vote)
2nd Wave Feminism(Fighting for sexual and reproductive
rights)
3nd Wave Feminism
(Challenge of gender stereotypes
through mimicry and subversion)
Butterick’s sized pattern
WW1 WW2
Women get the vote inGermany
Popularisation of Jeans and t-shirts
Women get the vote in
England
Women get the vote in
USA
Women get the vote in
France
McCall patents the printed
pattern
First Burda publication
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
Female labour participation rate, % Europe, Japan & United States average.
Source: OECD, The Economist.
France ca. 1930
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SteamEngine
Commercialisation of the sewing machine for
domestic use
1st Wave Feminism(Fighting for the
right to vote)
2nd Wave Feminism(Fighting for sexual and reproductive
rights)
3nd Wave Feminism
(Challenge of gender stereotypes
through mimicry and subversion)
Butterick’s sized pattern
WW1 WW2
Women get the vote inGermany
Popularisation of Jeans and t-shirts
Women get the vote in
England
Women get the vote in
USA
Women get the vote in
France
McCall patents the printed
pattern
First Burda publication
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
Female labour participation rate, % Europe, Japan & United States average.
Source: OECD, The Economist.
Australia 1955 USA 1970
UK 1968 UK 1978 Germany 1981
France 1980 Finland 2010
USA 2004 Germany 2014
USA 1988
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2. ANALYSIS FRAMEWORK
Before analysing the pattern sample in the next chapter according to usability issues, it is necessary to establish a common framework to allow a meaningful comparison between the different specimens in the sample set. This section contains an overview of the process that the user needs to follow in making a garment using a sewing pattern, in order to clarify the usability issues that arise. The first part of the process is particular to the pattern use – acquiring the right size3, sourcing the materials most suitable for the particular pattern and in the right quantities, identifying the pattern pieces, and transferring them onto the material – while the second part concerns joining the pieces to construct the garment. This last part would be the same whether the pieces have been obtained with a pattern, by draping, or by using an existing garment. However, the actual joining procedure and the way it is designed are the most distinctive parts of a commercial pattern. For this reason the analysis studies the whole process from start to finish.
Task analysis
The process of building a garment using a sewing pattern can be split into the following sequence of tasks:
1. Choice of model
This can be done by determining first the kind of garment that one needs or wants and then finding a suitable pattern, or by browsing pattern collections or magazines and choosing a pattern that looks interesting. There are some factors that influence the choice besides the mere look of the finished garment:
• Size: whether the garment is available in the size required• Type of material: different patterns are suited for different materials,
which vary in terms of fibre, texture, structure, weight, weave, nap, pattern, etc.
• Amount of material required: this is linked to cost and availability.• Skills: some patterns are more complicated than others. The level of
difficulty is an important factor, especially for beginner seamstresses.
3
Acquiring the right size can mean either buying a graded pattern in the correct size from a standard system, tracing the desired size from an overlay, or cutting the pattern at the desired size from a multi-size pattern.
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2. Exploration of the pattern
Once the pattern is chosen and acquired, the user needs to open the pattern (if it comes in an envelope), or find the instruction section (if it comes from a magazine) and read the instructions in order to:
• Establish the working order. The user needs to have an idea of the steps required. The mental model of the steps depends on experience. Beginners’ mental models of the steps can be quite complex, including every task, like unfolding the pattern pieces, placing them on the material or the tracing paper, copying, cutting, and so on. For advanced users this mental step-by-step process is quite streamlined, for example: assemble sleeves, assemble bodice, assemble collar, join. For less experienced users, the mental sequence of steps is more detailed, because for beginners each task has a larger cognitive load (Paas 2003).
• Identify the pattern pieces. Map the procedure steps to the corresponding pattern pieces and in some cases choose which pieces to trace or what size to use, in the case of multi-size patterns.
• Identify seam allowances. Some patterns are provided without the edges that will be sewn (seam allowances), so the pattern pieces need to be transferred onto the material, and then an offset contour must be added before cutting.
• Study the cutting layouts. Patterns usually include one or more cutting layout diagrams, namely instructions on how to place the pattern pieces on the material prior to cutting. These diagrams depend on the original width of the material.
3. Source the required materials and notions
This step can follow the purchase of the pattern, but sometimes it can precede it. In fact, seamstresses are known to collect fabrics and save them until a suitable pattern is found. 4. Transfer of the pattern shape onto the material
• Following cutting layout diagrams or considering the grain of the fabric.
• Using various transfer methods: chalk, stitches, tracing paper.• Transferring not only the outlines but also the notches and other
markings.• Since errors at this stage can be expensive (for example cutting a
pattern piece too small makes that part of the material unusable),
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it is sometimes advisable to make the garment out of a cheap fabric or muslin, make the necessary adjustments, and then proceed with the intended fabric.
• Identifying the cut pieces (for example, front pieces v. back pieces, or right and left pieces for legs and sleeves).
5. Joining the pieces in the right order
There are roughly three degrees of precision in the fitting. Some users might sew the pieces together and keep the resulting garment; some might choose to baste first and check the fit before final stitching. The more precise seamstress might construct the garment using muslin or other cheap fabric, try this on, make adjustments, and then take apart the muslin and use those parts as a pattern for the real thing.
The usability issues distilled from the task analysis will be grouped in the following four categories:
» Choice: finished models, whether photographs, illustrations, or schematic drawings; difficulty level; size.
» Identification: how the pattern pieces are identified, be it in a cut pattern, a printed pattern, or a pattern overlay (mapping).
» Appropriation: how the pattern pieces are traced or cut, and then transferred onto the material. Herein belong the issues of fabric grain, cutting layouts, and correct side up, as well as transferring markings for notches, buttonholes, gathers, darts, etc. onto the fabric.
» Joining: once the material has been cut according to the pattern shapes, the order in which the pieces are sewn together is explained: step-by-step instructions, tasks broken down into smaller tasks, intermediate result diagrams, etc.
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Figure 2.1
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda GmbH. Aimed at women who seek channels for self-expression and creativity, who are also fashion-conscious and want a good fit that often store-bought clothes don’t afford. Moreover, every issue tries to attract new customers with accessible instructions and easy models for beginners.
Burda Style sewing course
To illustrate how the framework was applied in the analysis of the whole sample, this section contains a thorough perusal of the most recent, most sophisticated specimen examined in this study. Burda Style magazine [Figure 2.1] is a pattern magazine published in Germany and translated into different languages. This study examines the August 2014 issue. It contains 17 patterns in overlay sheets [Figure 2.2], fashion photographs of the models [Figure 2.3], and a separate sewing instruction supplement with procedures for all the garments and their variations [Figure 2.4].
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Figure 2.2
Overlay pattern sheets make good use of paper real-estate but add one level of complexity to the procedure, as the user needs to find the right pattern pieces and sizes. Reproduced at 15% of actual size.
Figure 2.3
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda GmbH. The glossy pages of the magazine contain fashion shots of the garments with references to the instruction supplement.
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I have chosen to showcase one particular pattern from this publication in higher detail not only because it is the most recent, but also because its instructions are aimed at novice seamstresses and are very sophisticated. This is not to say that the pattern is an easy one. In fact it has the second highest level of difficulty for the publisher’s standard [Figure 2.5]. The peculiarity of this pattern is that it is placed in a feature of the magazine called ‘sewing course’ [Figure 2.6]. The level of detail and the way each task is broken down and illustrated makes it an ideal benchmark against which to study the other specimens.
Figure 2.4
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda GmbH. The instruction supplement is stapled at the centrefold of the glossy outer section. Its procedures and graphic language are entirely self-contained: in theory, no previous pattern-reading knowledge is required.
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Figure 2.5
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda GmbH. The different garments that is possible to make in the issue are shown in an overview, divided by garment type and with an indication of the difficulty level, sizes, and location of the instructions within the supplement.
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39
Figure 2.6
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda. Sewing Course spread. One garment in every issue of the magazine is explained in detail in a feature called sewing course. Here the instructions are broken down into small tasks, and diagrams accompany the steps. Typographically, bold type is used as an access structure to enable more experienced users to skip superfluous explanations and for beginners to get their bearings within the procedure.
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Choice
The information design solutions that address the choice of pattern (the first category of a user’s needs) are illustrated below.
» Finished garment depictionsThe finished depiction of the garment is the very first impression that a pattern makes, and it determines whether the pattern will be purchased. In the shift from producing practical garments out of economic necessity to recreational sewing, the look of the finished garment acquires a new role as packaging, with the purpose of making a garment appear desirable through mood, age of model, styling, etc. In the case of single patterns, an illustration or a photograph of the garment and its alternative ‘views’ (the different versions of a garment contained in a single pattern are commonly referred to as views, e.g. long dress v. short,
Figure 2.7
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda. Pattern contents of the magazine, grouped into fashion features with different themes.
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sleeves v. no sleeves, etc.) are on the front cover of the envelope, usually together with sizing information (when available), a description or title, and brand. In the case of pattern magazines, the finished view is contained in the magazine pages worn by fashion models [Figure 2.7].
» DescriptionsTextual descriptions provide additional information about the garment or details about its construction [Figure 2.8].
» Schematic diagramsThese diagrams are miniature technical drawings that aim to show the garment in a simplified way, sometimes from both front and back. In spite of being very basic line drawings, they provide information about the garments by including all the details, such as buttons, major seams, darts, pockets, etc [Figure 2.8].
Figure 2.8
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda. The finished garment is shown in a fashion photograph, accompanied by all the information required to find the corresponding pattern. Size, description, and schematic diagram complete the set of choice variables shown.
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» Difficulty levelAnother element that can influence the choice of a pattern is the difficulty level. Although not important for very experienced seamstresses, for others whose skill is below expert level, difficulty might preclude certain patterns; where some users might be up for a challenge, others might be wary of patterns above their skill level for fear of wasting time and material in a failed project [Figure 2.9].
» Fabric requirements – typeDifferent garments may be suited to different kinds of materials, according to weight, structure, softness, shine, stretch factor, etc. With this information, the user can form a better idea of what the finished garment will be like beyond the mere shape of it [Figure 2.9].
» Fabric requirements – quantityAccording to size or ‘view’ chosen, each pattern requires an exact amount of material. This information is crucial to the success of the process, so avoiding errors in the measurements and calculations in this phase is critical. The fabric requirement depends nearly always on the size [Figure 2.9].
Figure 2.9
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda. The dots represent the difficulty level. The materials listed are for the particular dress shown in the magazine, but recommended fabrics are also described in case the user wants to change.
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» SizeDespite attempts from different governments, there is no real sizing standard in use today. Since people have become larger on average, standard sizes have shifted so that a size 8 pattern from the 1950s will fit a size 2 of today. The only accurate way to determine size is by taking body measurements and mapping them against the pattern’s indications. For this reason, patterns often include tables with different body measurements and the corresponding size for that particular instance [Figure 2.10]. The Burda Style sewing guide includes instructions for how to take the measurements in an accurate way [Figure 2.11].
Figure 2.10
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda. The magazine aims to be entirely self contained, so size charts and their corresponding measurements are shown in comprehensive tables. Women’s sizes are shown in regular heights and petites.
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Figure 2.11
Burda Style 8/2014, Verlag Aenne Burda. Instructions on how to take measurements.
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Figure 2.12
Simplicity 8890, Simplicity Patterns, 1970. Sleeve pattern piece with identifying letter ‘L’ and label in English, French, and Spanish.
Figure 2.13
Burda Style 8/2014 overlay pattern sheet: The reference numbers to find the pieces required are mapped on the edge of each sheet.
Identification
Once the pattern has been chosen and the material sourced, the seamstress is ready to begin. The pattern pieces need to be properly identified. As mentioned in the introduction, the pattern shapes are flat and seemingly abstract: a pattern piece for a sleeve, for instance, does not look like an actual sleeve, and so the need to identify each part of the pattern arises. If patterns are printed, they are usually labelled with this information, explicitly or by means of a number or letter [Figure 2.12].
Cut patterns can have numbers drilled out or be individually stamped with the name of the piece they represent. In the patterns that are printed in an overlay sheet like the Burda Style patterns, the user needs to find the relevant outlines, depending on size and model, and trace them [Figure 2.13].
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Something else to consider during the identification phase is seam allowances. The pattern shapes may or may not include the contour offset necessary for the joining process called ‘seam allowances’. It needs to be made clear to the user whether the contours can be taken as cutting guides as they come or whether they need to be augmented, as in the case of the Burda Style patterns [Figures 2.14 and 2.15].
Figure 2.14
Burda Style 8/2014 instruction sheet detail: the pattern pieces need to be modified before cutting, in order to add seam allowances. There is a trade-off between simplicity and precision. If the seam allowances were already included, expert seamstresses would need to modify them to make them smaller.
Figure 2.15
Burda Style 8/2014 instruction sheet detail: how to trace the pattern shapes from the overlay sheet and onto the material.
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Figure 2.16
Burda Style 8/2014 Instructions supplement, detail. Large square bullets signal the paragraphs with relevant indications for the appropriation phase.
Appropriation
According to this study’s original task analysis and categorisation, the seamstress appropriates the pattern once it has been cut and is ready to be joined. It ceases being a pattern, ultimately becoming the intended garment when the parts are sewn together.
Once the necessary pattern pieces have been identified, the material needs to be cut accordingly. For this purpose, the pattern pieces are traced, cut, or transferred directly onto the material. Relevant information during this step includes:
• the direction of the fabric grain• the number of times the same pattern piece needs to be cut• optimal cutting layouts, which are set to fit the previously
recommended yardage• correct side up, to avoid ending up with two right sleeves, for example• the need to interface some pattern pieces, such as waistbands and
shirt collars, that are cut additionally from a thick and semi-rigid material
• markings for notches, pleats, gathers, buttonholes, darts, etc.
The patterns in the Burda Style magazine, being self-contained, include information on how to copy the pattern shapes onto the material; they recommend using specialised carbon paper and then hand-basting the outlines to make them visible on both sides of the material [Figure 2.16].
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Joining
Once the material has been cut according to the pattern shapes, the resulting pieces need to be sewn together in a specific order. Depending on the complexity of the garment at hand, the construction sequence can be broken down into intermediate results in order to alleviate the cognitive load and help the user focus on smaller tasks. The signalling of such intermediate results is achieved with different segmentation cues (Lorch 1989). The construction instructions in the Burda Style pattern are usually textual only, but in the case considered for this analysis, the more detailed example is considered. In it, illustrations accompany the different steps and are referenced at the relevant point in the text [Figure 2.17]. The seamstress’s level of expertise is beyond the control of the procedure designer, so the need arises for two kinds of access systems: one that follows the natural sequentiality of the task at hand, and one that can be freely accessed by the reader (Waller 1987). To address this need, the Burda Style instruction supplement includes a glossary of sewing terms in the last page [Figure 2.18].
Figure 2.17
Burda Style 8/2014 instruction sheet for the ‘sewing course’ feature: every step includes relevant diagrams of intermediate results.
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Figure 2.18
Burda Style 8/2014 instruction supplement detail: less experienced seamstresses can look up the meanings of certain specialist terms. The fact that these are not defined in the text at the moment they are mentioned is to accommodate more skilled users, whose instruction-following process would be interrupted by such definitions.
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3. INFORMATION DESIGN ISSUES IN SEWING PATTERNS
This chapter contains the core of the sample analysis, organised by usability issues. Within the issues, the samples are presented in chronological order. This is to allow the correlation between the evolution of home-sewing motivations and that of the procedural design to shine through. However, it must be noted that the evolution of the motivations is not strictly chronological. Interesting innovations in the procedural instruction design happened not only in recent times to counter the decline in home-sewing, but also during the peak of the industry, brought about by fierce competition between pattern producers.
Choice
» Finished garment views » Descriptions » Schematic diagrams » Difficulty level » Fabric requirements – type » Fabric requirements – quantity » Size
Identification
» Identification of pattern piece » Identification of necessary adjustments
Appropriation
» Cutting, tracing, or copying » Cutting instructions and layouts » Other markings
Joining
» Procedural sequences » Typographic signalling » Use of text and diagrams » Task breakdown
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Choice: finished garment views
The look of the finished garment represents the promise that the pattern producer makes to the seamstress: if the instructions are followed correctly, the pattern will yield that piece of clothing, with all its implications [Figure 3.1]. Whether it is something expensive looking that provides the appearance of a higher social status, an original design not available off-the-peg, or a custom-fitted garment for an unconventional body type, the potential contained in the pattern packet is communicated through the photograph or illustration of a finished garment. The sample patterns in this section are presented in chronological order, with the exception of patterns that, not being part of the analysis sample, are included to illustrate points made [Figure 3.3]. A list of the sample patterns is in the appendix.
Figure 3.1
Overlay pattern supplement detail from La Mode Française XVI, 1890. Cropped engravings of the various garments are inlaid among the pattern outlines. The choice is limited to 6 garments, 4 for women and 2 for children. This limited choice reveals the authoritative position of the magazine at the time. After all, “The French Fashion” could not be positioned as other than an authority in fashion, dictating trends. There is an element of trust that runs between pattern producers and users, playing a role in the decision process.
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Figure 3.2
Les Patrons Favoris Ski suit pattern for child ca. 1930. For some patterns it is not so much the look, as the type of garment that determines the choice. This was true in the past, when off-the-peg clothes choice was limited, and in the present can be true in the case of clothing for theatrical productions when a look from a different era is required.
Figure 3.3
Burda 2461, Prince, Amadeus pattern (not included in the analysis sample). This pattern is a good example of a contemporary pattern that is chosen for reasons other than fashion. An increasing number of patterns is produced for home-made child and adult costumes.
The look and depiction of the garment on the pattern envelope or magazine determines the choice in different ways. Sometimes the choice is made solely on aesthetic grounds, but sometimes the kind of garment needed for sports, dancing, theatrical productions, or special occasions has to be made ‘to order’. [Figure 3.2 and 3.3]
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Figure 3.4
Australian Home Journal, 1955. The illustrations on the cover of this Australian magazine highlight the intention of the three frocks: glamorous dresses for special occasions. When making day-to-day wear started to become less appealing due to the availability of off-the-peg clothing of increasingly good quality, patterns still offered an economical alternative to more fancy attires. Brain Watkins House Museum, Tauranga, New Zealand. Photograph by Tom Rieke.
Figure 3.5
Woman’s Weekly B453, 1968. Several newspapers and non-fashion magazines were used to including sewing patterns to make their publications more attractive to a female audience. The patterns were syndicated, produced, that is, by a third party, and sold this way since at least the 1880s. However, after the Second World War women were like never before in possession of disposable income so competition increased with these marketing tactics. These designs were never high-style for a more ‘lasting appeal’ (Emery 2014).
As mentioned in the introduction, patterns are ephemeral by nature. This bears clarification: the tissue paper they are normally printed on is fragile, and once they’ve been used they become even more so: just unfolding them can cause crumpling and tearing; then pinning, cutting, adjusting shows heavily on the gossamer paper. However, unused patterns, not unlike books, have a long shelf-life. For this reason, some producers try to publish patterns whose fashions will stand the test of time, in order to stay current in the longer term and take advantage of economies of scale. On the other hand, periodical publications have tended towards modish designs, given their rapid publishing cycles. The graphic language of the cover designs often reflects this contrast [Figures 3.4 and 3.5].
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Figure 3.6
Simplicity 8890, 1970. More is more: similar garments share pattern pieces and construction techniques. In order to appeal to younger, less affluent demographics, some patterns included several variations in the same envelope.
Figure 3.7
Modes et Travaux, 5/1981. Pattern included in a French crafting magazine, which has a very defined target audience of hobbyists who are already familiar with sewing skills, or users who are motivated to take up sewing (and knitting, crocheting, etc) as a hobby.
In some patterns, the finished view or pattern cover reflected marketing tactics. They are, after all, the packaging of a product in a once competitive market [Figure 3.6]. Eventually, the garments started being photographed instead of illustrated [Figure 3.7].
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Figure 3.8
Burda Moden, 1981. Dress patterns in patterned materials emphasise the possibility of a truly unique wardrobe through home-sewing.
Figure 3.9
Style 1476, 1988. The photographed view uses white material, suggesting a blank canvas for the user to choose any material and colour she prefers. The freedom of choice beyond what is available in stores is a powerful motivator for seamstresses.
Patterns allow the creation of garments that have a better fit, but also the choice of material for a truly unique look. Nowadays fabrics and notions are more expensive than in the past and there is less choice. This is a result of the rationalised and advanced global market for off-the-peg garments, which virtually eliminated the economic incentive from home sewing. Up to the 1990s, however, it was more the dissatisfaction with the quality of bought garments, rather than simply economics, that drove home sewing (Johnson 1991). This can explain the use of photographs in the pattern envelopes showing either outlandish patterns or neutral, solid colours [Figures 3.8 and 3.9].
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Figure 3.10
Vogue (Very Easy) V7871, 2004 The choice of illustrations in this case is meant to highlight the high-fashion connotation that similar fashion illustrations carry. The choice of one such pattern is still in some ways economic, in that is promises an expensive look for a few pounds, plus cost of material.
Figure 3.11
Ottobre Design 02/2010 The Finnish specimen in the analysis sample highlights the good fit at any age and with any body type. The depictions are designed to highlight the fun aspect of sewing.
The motivations that individual users have for making clothes at home are diverse and have been schematised as follows (Schofield-Tomschin 1999): economy, quality, fit, creativity, leisure, and relaxation. Except for economy, which is now less of an issue [Figure 3.10], contemporary pattern producers cater for these motivations [Figure 3.11 and 3.12]; by looking at their covers, it is possible to extract a genre from their graphic attributes and connect them to a model of motivations for sewing (Van der Meij 2003).
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Figure 3.12
Burda Style 8/2014 The high-fashion connotation in this dress view is given by the photo styling, reminiscent of fashion magazines.
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Figure 3.13
Les Patrons Favoris ca. 1930 In this pattern the description is limited to the use of the garment (ski suit) and the recipient (young boy).
Figure 3.14
Burda Style 8/2014 This description seems to be written to sell the pattern with its flamboyant language.
Figure 3.15
Vogue (Very Easy) V7871, 2004
The description in this pattern gives a great deal of information about the construction of the dress: ‘Semi-fitted’ refers to the ease included in the pattern; zipper, type of sleeves, shape of skirt, etc.
Choice: descriptions
Descriptions of the garments give information about the construction, the materials and the mood or fashion style. Descriptions can accompany and sometimes even replace a ‘how-to’ explanation (Harris 1983). In some cases, the way in which the descriptions are written evokes a specific narrative. Earlier patterns describe the type of garment in few words: skirt, frock, blouse, etc. when they describe them at all [Figure 3.13], whereas later examples are more likely to give valuable clues that clarify what may appear distorted or not obvious in the illustration or photograph [Figure 3.14 and 3.15].
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Choice: schematic diagrams
Photographs or illustrations of the garments can carry too much ‘noise’, so schematic line drawings of the different views can provide more information about them in spite or because of their simplicity. Schematic diagrams (usually front and back views) are technically accurate, drawn to scale, and show details like pocket placement, darts and major seams. Reminiscent of technical drawings, these illustrations are useful because they create a mental link between the more figurative photograph or garment illustration and the instructions when the two are in separate physical objects (for instance, the magazine pages and the instruction supplement, or the pattern envelope and the pattern instruction sheet) [Figures 3.15 and 3.16].
Figure 3.16
Ottobre Design 2/2010. General instructions section. In this magazine the schematic drawings are shaded and in some cases include a hint to the prints on the materials used in the magazine. These contrast with the standard diagrams in most patterns and denote a friendlier, less technical tone.
Figure 3.15
Simplicity 8890, 1970. Instruction supplement title panel. The garments are shown in both a representational and a schematic way to make it clear what combinations of length, sleeve and collar can be made.
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Choice: difficulty level
The skill level of each seamstress is a variable beyond the procedural instruction designer’s control. Adding a difficulty rating can be a way to make the users self-select so that a certain level of prior knowledge can be safely assumed. Patterns that make this self-selection process simple and accurate can minimise bad experiences where the frustration and waste of material can deter the user from trying to sew from a pattern again. Not all patterns have this indication, and while some pattern makers achieve it through graphic cues [Figure 3.17], others make the ease of use a selling point on the envelope [Figure 3.18].
Figure 3.18
Simplicity Jiffy 5536 ca. 1960. Patterns like Very Easy Vogue and Simplicity Jiffy were part of special series that highlighted ease of use with few pattern pieces and simple designs.
Figure 3.17
Burda Style 08/2014 Difficulty rating system uses moons and half moons and the ratings are explained.
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Choice: size and material requirements
Ever since Butterick invented graded patterns, the need for an international sizing standard has been felt. Clothing manufacturers have their own size charts, and the only way to be sure of choosing the right the size is to take accurate body measurements of the person for whom the garment is intended. Patterns started including size charts in the 1920s (Emery 2014), and these serve two purposes: reduce errors in the choice of the right pattern size, and ascertain the required amount of material with ease.
The choice of a pattern can occur before the seamstress has decided what material to use, and in such cases she can closely follow the fabric recommendations listed on the pattern instructions. However, the opposite is also common, where the purchase of the material precedes that of the pattern. Tables with measurements and sizes facilitate the choice process and allow the user to make sure the amount of fabric will be curtailed to the needs of the pattern.
Some patterns include useful graphic tools on the envelope, for example to test the stretch of a knit fabric to test its suitability [Figure 3.19].
Figure 3.19
Simplicity Jiffy 6961 1975. ‘Pick-a-knit rule’: stretch knit tester on the pattern envelope.
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Identification: singling out the relevant pattern pieces
The patterns and their user interfaces are usually two different physical objects. One of the main usability issues that a non-expert seamstress struggles with is the correct identification of the pattern pieces. In fact, in order to understand the joining procedure, the user needs to match the physical pieces to the steps in the instructions. The type of pattern – cut, printed, overlay – determines different ways in which the identification process is enabled. One of the first usability problems encountered regarded pattern piece identification, since early cut patterns had notches and holes but nothing to distinguish similar pieces from one another (Durack 1997b) [Figure 3.20].
Figure 3.20
Les Patrons Favoris Pattern piece with holes and notches, without identification system.
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Figure 3.21
Women’s Weekly 453, 1968. Pattern piece with holes and notches, with drilled numbers to identify each piece.
Figure 3.22
Australian Home Journal Pattern pieces are cut and stamped to help identify them.
The problem was first addressed by labelling the pieces by drilling tiny holes to write identifying numbers [Figure 3.21]. Another solution adopted was to stamp each piece with the information [Figure 3.22].
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Figure 3.23
Simplicity 8890, 1970, Blouse sleeve. Printed patterns are more easily identified and the labels are usually found in different languages, so the same pattern can be sold in different countries.
When McCall patented the printed pattern, many usability problems were solved: identifying the pattern piece, having more precise outlines and markings, as well as making the patterns more readable in general. The market was global and multi-language labelling was used from the beginning. Printed patterns became a standard when McCall’s patent expired in 1936 (Durack 1997b), but cut patterns were still used for a long time afterward [Figure 3.23].
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Overlay patterns
Overlay pattern sheets were the first non-scaled commercial patterns that appeared in the 1860s, and their design was driven by the need to economise paper, at the time a very pricey commodity [Figure 3.24]. Overlay patterns are still produced today, the reason being practical, more than economic, and different solutions have been found to deal with pattern piece identification in these cases [Figures 3.25 – 3.28].
Figure 3.24
Englishwoman’s Domestic, Magazine, 1867 The pattern pieces are sparse and well signalled. The overlay is simple and it contains pieces for one garment only (jacket ‘a la Militaire’).
Figure 3.25
La Mode Française, 1890. Pattern pieces for six different garments are found in one single sheet. The outlines of each pattern piece are drawn with a unique stroke style to minimise disorientation.
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Figure 3.26
Burda Moden 1/1981. 114 single-size pattern pieces in one single sheet. The look up and identification process follows a coordinate system slightly simplified by the use of two colours. These kinds of overlays are a good example of the perceived complexity of home-sewing that kept many women away from the practice.
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Figure 3.27
Ottobre Design 2/2010. 4-colour printing and thick stroke width allows the pattern pieces to be colour coded by garment, so the user knows what pattern sheet and what colour of outlines to look for. Few pattern pieces per sheet also makes the identification process easier, while white paper increases the contrast needed for tracing.
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Figure 3.28
Burda Style 8/2014. Compared to the previous Burda overlay (Figure 3.26, p. 67), the most recent pattern sheets from that publisher come with 4-colour printing and fewer pattern pieces per sheet, which makes them more usable and less daunting. The pattern pieces are available in a range of sizes.
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Identification: recognising necessary adjustments
When the pattern pieces need to be modified, be it to add seam allowances, correct the length of sleeves or skirts, or to make more complex adjustments like bust sizes, different visual and typographic aids are used. The inclusion or lack of seam allowances is the most important at this stage, because if by error the pattern is cut without them, the cut pieces of fabric become unusable [Figures 3.29 and 3.30]. Bullet lists, all caps, underlining and bold type are all used in order to convey the critical nature of these adjustments.
Figure 3.29
Modes et Travaux, 5/1981 Warning: indication of necessary steps to take before cutting the material: make sure you have the necessary pattern pieces; try on the pattern pieces against the body and make the necessary adjustments; place the pieces on the material according to the cutting layout and add seam allowances.
Figure 3.30
Vogue Instruction sheet detail, 2004. All the relevant information for the adjustments and precautions at the stage before tracing are contained in a boxed paragraph, where symbols and definitions are presented somewhat chaotically.
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Appropriation: cutting, tracing or copying
Once the pattern pieces have been identified, they need to be transferred to the material. Tracing paper and chalk are common alternatives, while some patterns advise the use of ‘tailor’s tacks’ to transfer the markings and perforations [Figures 3.31 and 3.32].
Figure 3.31
Style Instruction sheet detail, 1988. All the relevant information for the adjustments and precautions at the stage before tracing are contained in a boxed paragraph like the previous example. This one is an earlier specimen but it seems to have better access structures, titles and typographic signalling.
Figure 3.32
Women’s Weekly, 1968 Instruction sheet detail. Diagram and explanation for tailor’s tacks.
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Appropriation: cutting instructions and layouts
Cutting layouts are schematic diagrams showing the optimal placement of the pattern pieces on the material in order to cut the pieces minimising waste. This optimal layout depends on the width of the material and the size of the pattern. Some producers include cutting layouts for several common widths, while some include only one and it is up to the seamstress to find the best way to place the pieces [Figures 3.33 – 3.35]. Beyond economising on material, the important aspect of correct pattern placement is the fabric grain. ‘Garments that are not cut and sewn according to the fabric grain can stretch in places they should not, have sagging hems and be uncomfortable to wear. Patterns are specifically designed with grain in mind so that the body can take advantage of the amount of stretch or lack of give in the fabric’ (Hackler 2006). A double-pointed arrow on the pattern pieces is the conventional symbol meaning fabric grain [Figure 3.36].
Figure 3.33
Les Patrons Favoris 281, ca. 1930. Especially when economy was the principal motivation for home sewing, cutting layouts were necessary in that they solved an economic problem: optimal use of material. The pattern pieces are shown reversed (white-on-black) for better legibility.
Figure 3.34
Australian Home Journal, 1955. Hand-drawn cutting layouts that do not use colour differentiation are slightly harder to read.
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Figure 3.35
Simplicity 1970, Instruction sheet detail with cutting layouts for different kinds and different widths of material and different sizes. The pattern designer takes the responsiblity of removing the guesswork, making the instructions more complete. The user in this case needs to make use of selective reading strategies in order to find the relevant instructions for her particular case.
Figure 3.36
Modes et Travaux 5/1981. Cutting layouts are not provided but the pattern pieces are clearly marked with fabric grain arrows.
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Clothkits
Although not strictly sewing patterns, Clothkits are a special case that deserve a mention in this study because these kits for home sewing solve several usability issues and show the trade-off that exists between complexity and personalisation. Instead of relying on paper patterns, the fabric itself is printed with cutting lines so that the processes of identifying, adjusting and tracing the pattern to suitable and sufficient material are not required. They have been produced in the United Kingdom since 1969 [Figure 3.37].
Figure 3.37
Clothkits 465, 1978. The pattern is screen-printed onto the material and the tasks left for the user are limited to the joining phase.
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Figure 3.38
Clothkits Instruction booklet, 1978. Directions and indications are subdivided into small categories, signalled by tables or text boxes. Diagrams accompany all the stages and the kits are self contained, not only in terms of the directions but also in the contents of the kits: thread, buttons, and zippers are all included.
Figure 3.39
Clothkits Instruction booklet, 1978. Careful typographic signalling is applied in order to facilitate different reading strategies.
The instruction booklet in the Clothkits kits is structured like a sewing course [Figures 3.38 and 3.39], with explanations relevant to the cutting stage. These non-patterns are a good device for learners, who can experience the joining phase of home-dressmaking first, and then move on to the more challenging phase of following a proper pattern.
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General instructions and graphic language of the pattern
General instructions, graphic language, symbols, and conventions are standardised in many cases, especially when it comes to ‘the Big Four’ – Simplicity, Vogue, Butterick and McCall’s [Figure 3.40]. However, there are and have been also independent pattern producers that have come up with different systems. Since pattern producers realised – from early on – that pre-existing knowledge cannot be relied on, the inclusion of general pattern-reading and sewing instructions became commonplace. While sewing instructions may be universal [Figures 3.41 and 3.42], pattern-reading instructions are often useful only in that particular instance.
Figure 3.40
How to use your Simplicity Pattern: instruction sheet section with numbered list, prominent headings and accompanying diagrams.
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Figure 3.41Simplicity 1970, Dictionary of Sewing Terms
Figure 3.42
Women’s Weekly Instruction Details. Indications for different procedures are shown in the page, boxed to highlight their independence.
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Symbols and pictograms
Even in the presence of a hypothetical global standard in pattern symbols, these need to be defined, in order to be accessible to the first-time user. The way these are defined shows different approaches to usability [Figures 3.43 –
3.45].
Figure 3.43
Style pattern symbols, 1988. In French and English, the definitions include also additional pattern-reading information.
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Figure 3.44
Burda Moden 1/1981. The pattern symbols are defined in bold type and explained in regular type. Two access levels to cater to different ability levels.
Figure 3.45
Ottobre Design, pattern symbol glossary. Different languages in different typefaces to simplify the look-up of the definitions.
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Joining: procedural sequences and scale of video-likeness
In order to analyse the procedural sequences, it is necessary to acknowledge the current trend of video tutorials for virtually any task that can be found online. For this reason, I devised a scale of video-likeness [Figure 3.46]. The concept stems from the Modes et Travaux instruction sheet [Figure 3.47], where the diagrams that accompany the procedure are gathered under the title ‘Film du Travail’ (film of the task). It is interesting to note that the most video-like procedures pre-date the online tutorial phenomenon. Moreover, examples like the Ottobre Design [Figure 3.50] are low on the scale
Figure 3.47
Modes et Travaux 1981, Film du Travail. The text and the diagrams are in different locations on the sheet. An advanced seamstress would be able to construct the garment by glancing at the diagram box. Score=4.
Text only: Single paragraphs
without access structures.
Text only: Single paragraphs with
headings for intermediate tasks
Text with access structures and
diagrams only for tricky steps.
Text with access structures and
diagrams only for tricky steps at a
different location, like a general
instruction section.
Text broken down into sub-tasks with diagrams at every
step.
Text and diagrams for every step in different page
locations.
Video: step-by-step
film of someone performing the
tasks.
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Figure 3.46
Scale of video-like quality to the procedures. Zero is prose, six is a proper video tutorial.
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Figure 3.48
Burda Moden, 1/1981. The procedures are under the heading ‘Verarbeitung’ (manufacture): even without reading German it is evident that the procedure could benefit from task subdivision and some sort of typographic signalling. Score=0.
Figure 3.49
Les Patrons Favoris ca. 1930. The references to the diagrams help divide the tasks at least subtly. The proximity of the text and the diagrams helps, too. Score=3.5.
but nonetheless very clear and accessible, as opposed to other examples with low scores [Figures 3.48 and 3.49]. The choice of a procedure with a high score on the scale is nowadays not essential, because if it is true that pre-existing knowledge cannot be assumed, users in need can turn to video tutorials and blogs to gain better understanding [Figure 3.51].
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Figure 3.50
Ottobre Design, 2/2010. This procedure in entirely textual, but makes use of bold headings and paragraph spacing in order to facilitate access and reduce the cognitive load. Score=1.
Figure 3.51Simplicity 8890, 1970 Sewing directions. Diagrams accompany every single step of the process, making this procedure the closest to video tutorials, which shows the attention of the producer to education and instruction when home-sewing was beginning to lose its appeal thanks to the advent of blue jeans and t-shirts. Score=5.
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Typographic signalling
Typographic devices are used in the sample specimens to create differential salience in the instructions (Wright 1981). According to Bateman (2001), typographic segmentation of a page of goal-based information into more or less closely related visual units can be achieved through different decisions that should be functionally motivated (Schriver 1996). When assessing the handling of macrotypography in sewing pattern instructions, it is important to consider the typesetting and printing technology at the designers’ disposal [Figure 3.52].
Figure 3.52
Modes et Travaux 5/1981 The layout of this pattern sheet is a collage of different sources and typesetting technologies.
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4. CONCLUSION
Cheap mass-produced clothing and the diffusion of feminist movements freed women from the chore of producing clothing for the family. As we began to enter the workforce in increasing numbers, economic incentives to acquire the ability to make our own clothes disappeared. However, the practice of home sewing did not. A time-consuming activity – stripped from its compulsory character – survives because it remains a relaxing, creative pursuit that grants a sense of accomplishment, self-confidence, and independence (Schofield-Tomschin 1999).
The patterns left behind over these 150 years make it possible to learn about the evolution of the design of procedures and the increasing attention to ergonomics as the users’ motivations changed gradually from home economics to leisure and free time. The shift is from a disempowered user, driven to make clothes for themselves or others due to economic necessity at a time when off-the-peg garments were too expensive, to an empowered user who is very much a consumer of patterns, and having the resources and leisure time to make their own clothes is a luxury and a more expensive option than buying mass-produced garments.
This is especially interesting in the case of sewing patterns compared with other sets of instructions. Consumer instructions, which make interesting case studies for changes in the design of sequential procedures, are typically supplied alongside a consumer product. Sewing patterns are distinctive, as they are a consumer product in themselves (and secondarily a means of acquisition of another product). For this reason, the visual design innovations in the field are relevant and have a lot to teach to procedural instruction designers.
Pattern businesses realised that the barrier of complexity needed to be knocked down for potential new users starting out in home dressmaking if the industry was to survive in the long term (Dickson 1976). Many innovations in the design of procedural instructions have managed in part to dispel the common belief that home sewing is beyond most people’s abilities. Third-wave feminism, with its message of self-reliance and D.I.Y., has given oxygen to the practice of home-sewing, making the patterns relevant again.
Computer-aided pattern drafting software enables producers to easily create patterns to customers’ body measurements, enhancing the home-sewing motivation of attaining a better fit. Independent pattern companies continue thriving in their niche markets, fuelling a ‘sewing renaissance’ (Foreman 2013).
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Effective information design in technical communication does not come about without regard for the audience’s motivations. The case of sewing patterns, placed within the great paradigm shift in women’s status in society, is a great source of lessons for procedural instruction designers. While this study only scratches the surface, the parallel look at the usability aspects of sewing patterns and their sociological context offers a multidisciplinary perspective to our job as designers of clarity and understanding.
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APPENDIXPattern sample and primary sources
Australian Home Journal, September 1955, Sydney, Australia.
Burda Moden magazine, January 1981, Germany.
Burda Pattern 2461, Prince, Amadeus. Germany.
Burda Style magazine, August 2014, Germany, UK Edition.
Clothkits, skirt kit 465, Winter 1978, Lewes, UK.
Englishwoman’s Domestic Magazine, January 1867.
Instructions for Cutting Out Apparel for the Poor; Principally Intended for the Assistance of the Patronesses of Sunday Schools,... Containing Patterns, Directions, and Calculations,... Published for the Benefit of the Sunday School Children at Hertingfordbury. J. Walter, 1789, London.
Journal des Demoiselles 1840, No. I., Paris, France.
La Mode Française No. 9, XVI, March 1890, Paris, France.
Les Patrons Favoris 281C, ca. 1930, Paris, France.
Modes et Travaux, May 1981, Paris, France.
Ottobre Design, Summer 2010, Rovaniemi, Finland.
Simplicity no. 8890, 1970, New York, USA.
Style pattern no. 1476, 1988, London, UK.
Vogue Very Easy pattern no. V7871, 2004, New York, USA.
Women’s Weekly B453, 1968, London, UK.
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Special thanks to all those who expressed curiosity and enthusiasm for this project and supplied me with their sewing stories, old patterns, magazines, and ideas.
The Oxford comma is used throughout this work.
