Pattern Markings & Annotations
Every production pattern uses a standard set of marks: notches, alignment marks, directional symbols and measurements. As the pattern drafter, you get to decide what markings and annotations go on your designs. For those of you reselling your patterns, reliable, accurate, easy-to-understand markings help you build your brand and set it apart from others.
They matter just as much to whoever sews the pattern next, whether that is a customer making it for the first time or you coming back to the project a year from now. Clear markings are what make cutting and sewing go smoothly.
Notches and Alignment Marks
Notches and alignment marks show where pieces match, so they are joined without stretching or shifting.
Notches
Notches are small marks on the edge of a pattern piece. Measure them along the seamline and draw them perpendicular to it.
| Notch | Where It Goes |
|---|---|
| Single | Front pieces. Also the waistline, the end of a zipper, and the spacing for darts, pleats, tucks and shirring. |
| Double | Back pieces. |
| Triple | Sometimes used for center back, or for the back of a crotch seam. |
A single notch never matches a double one. That is the point of the convention: a 1-front, 2-back rule keeps you from sewing a sleeve in backward, because sleeve caps and side seams often differ in curve depth.
A sleeve cap also gets one more notch: a single notch or marker at the top of the cap, which matches the shoulder seam.
Hems, pleats, darts and the foldlines of facings need notches or markers too. These foldline marks show where to fold.
Always measure and place notches along the internal seamline, never along the cut edge.
PatternMaker Pro: Add Notch tool
Walking Seams
It is really frustrating when you cut out your fabric and go to pin seams and they don’t align. A back shoulder seam is longer than the front, or the front and back side seams are different lengths.
To literally “walk a seam” you’ll match one pattern to another at the bottom of the seam and then “walk” one pattern up the line on the other until you get to the top. They should be the same length. This is a bit tedious and you can achieve the same thing by just measuring both of them to make sure they are the same length. In PatternMaker Pro use the Compare Line/Curve tool.
Comparing the Length of the Side Seam
If you have really long seams, like the outseam on pants, it is beneficial to add marks a measured distance down both patterns. Then you can match these marks as you’re pinning to avoid stretching as you go.
Alignment Markers on Side Seam
Alignment Marks
- Long Seams (Pant Outseams, Gored Skirts): A long seam tends to feed unevenly under the presser foot. Add marks along it as checkpoints, at reference levels like the knee and hip, or about every 15" (38 cm). That is roughly how much fabric one pair of hands can manage between marks.
- Match Points: Circles where several seams meet. Number them when more than one shares a seam, so each pair is easy to find. Other patterns may use different dots or symbols.
PatternMaker Pro: Alignment Markers tool
Clips and Wedges
Relief marks in the seam allowance show the sewer where to trim so a curve turns and presses flat. (See Seam Allowances for why curves need them.)
- Clips: A straight slit from the cut edge toward the seamline. Mark them on inward (concave) curves, such as necklines, armholes and waist contours, and at sharp inside corners, such as square necklines, sailor collar corners and gusset insets.
- Wedges: A shallow V pointing toward the seamline. Mark them on outward (convex) curves, such as outer collar edges, curved hems and princess seams over the bust.
Never cut relief marks all the way to the stitching. Stop 1/8" (3 mm) short of the seamline so the edge does not fray or the seam give way under tension.
PatternMaker Pro: Add Curve Marks tool
Direction, Layout and Cutting Marks
These marks tell the sewer which way the fabric runs, where to cut, and where to make internal slits.
| Mark | What It Looks Like | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| Grainline | Straight line | Place the piece parallel to the selvage (the warp threads). |
| Cut on Fold | Bracketed line with outward-pointing arrows along a straight edge | Used at center front or center back. Align the edge with the fabric fold so the piece is cut as one symmetrical unit, with no center seam. |
| Stitching Direction | Line with arrows along a seamline | Sew in this direction (hem to waist, or neckline out to the shoulder) so the fabric does not twist along the bias. |
| Cut Marker | Small scissors symbols or a point | Marks an internal cut, such as a pocket opening, a bound buttonhole slit or a slash-and-spread pivot. |
PatternMaker Pro:
Measurements and Sleeve Ease
Drafts can carry measurements right on the pattern, so you can check them without a tape.
- Measurement Text: Shows the length of a line or curve, such as
Neckline 18.25" / 46.4 cm. It lets you check that joining pieces match, such as a collar stand and a neckline, without measuring again. - Sleeve Cap Ease: Shows the difference between the sleeve cap seamline and the bodice armhole seamline (front plus back). See Ease Considerations for how much to expect.
PatternMaker Pro:
Volume and Fabric Manipulation
Gathers, tucks, pleats and other ways of managing fabric need clear start, stop and fold marks, so the drafted volume becomes the finished garment. Mark them clearly and say how to form them.
- Gathers
- Tucks
- Ease
- Shirring
- Knife pleats
- Accordion pleats
- Box pleats
- Inverted box pleats
PatternMaker Pro: Add Construction Detail tool
The Pattern Label
Every pattern piece should carry a full label in a standard format:
- Pattern Name and Style Number: Identifies the project or design.
- Piece Name: The part, such as Front Bodice, Back Bodice, Collar Stand or Sleeve.
- Size or Client: The graded size, or the client's name if you drafted from custom measurements.
- Cutting Instructions: How many to cut, and from which fabric. The industry uses short words such as self (the main fabric) and lining so it does not have to write out each fabric's name:
Cut 2 SelfCut 1 on Fold SelfCut 2 LiningCut 2 Interfacing
- Date or Version: When you drafted or revised the pattern. It helps you track fit changes over time.
PatternMaker Pro: