One of the biggest problems we home seamsters face is unintended gapping at the neckline of a garment. Luckily for the readers of the Feb/Mar 2017 issue of Sew News magazine, columnist and sewing maven Joi Mahon wrote a fabulous article, including drawings, on dealing with gapping on the neckline of a garment without adding a new seam down the center front of the garment entitled ‘Closing the Gap.’
Unfortunately for people who were not able to get this issue before it was taken off newsstands and still want to read it, Sew News did not see fit to include the article on their website. So I will do my best to not plagiarize the whole article, though I will have to for some bits. I will also be including the drawings included in the article for clarification.
How often have you worn a dress or a blouse that gapped. It probably wasn't too bad if it was a jewel neckline and close to the neck. But anything lower and you risk overexposing the Girls. While some might not mind a little cleavage showing, others among us are more modest and would be mortified showing anything more than the upper chest. The only choice in Ready-to-wear (RTW) is to not buy the garment.
But we're all seamsters here so we can make garments that don't gap! Right? Well, most of the time. There are some women who can pick up a pattern, chose their size, and stitch up a garment that fits perfectly without any adjustments. I know these women exist. I just haven't met any. The rest of us have to muddle through making a mock-up, otherwise known as a muslin or toile, of the pattern and fitting it to our bodies. This fitting process is the hardest when you don't have a friend to help, but I digress.
So why do you have gapping at the neckline? Part of the problem is our breasts. Those two lumps of flesh on our chest that distinguish us from the male of the species. Depending on genetics they range from barely discernible mounds to way bigger than should be possible, yet there they are and how are you able to stand. Because of them the garment needs a wider width between the breasts to accommodate them as apposed to the narrower width need at the neckline and waist. Most people looking at the problem believe it to be a complicated change to the pattern. Fortunately, it's quite an easy fix.
The main area of fit in any bodice pattern is the bust. So first you need to make sure this part fits the body well. Once you've done that the gapping will make itself known and it will be easily corrected once the rest of the pattern fits the body.
Before starting this pattern change, trace out the pattern. I use Pellon® 830. It's similar to to Swedish Tracing Paper, but you can purchase it at your local fabric store and it comes in 45” widths. However the price is about the same period square foot. Both are easily marked with ball point pen or pencil. However, I don't recommend using a Sharpie. It will bleed onto whatever surface you're working on.
First: Make a muslin fitting sample being sure to mark the center front of the sample. A sample is made from a pattern to refine it's fit before cutting into your more expensive fashion fabric. You don't want to fit from the pattern tissue because it won't drape like fabric, it has no give like fabric, and it's subject to tearing. Professionals always make a fit sample of their design because it better reflects the actual finished product. Fit samples are often cut from a fabric similar in drape to the fabric you will use as your final garment.
Second: Try on the fit sample. A gapping neckline will look like it's straight across the front. It's not. It needs to be pinned out. To do that you gently pull the fabric away and pin a wedge going down the center front that should take out the excess and gradually taper it down to the waist or slightly above the waist (1). It will look like a long dart down the front, but it's not. Nor is it a seam. The pins are just a marking that will be removed. If, however, there is a center seam down the front, the seam can be contoured to remove the gap.
Three: Remove the fit sample and mark both sides of the wedge at the pins. Then remove the pins. Make sure you've marked the original center front. Take apart the sample, including any darts, and, using a ruler, draw a new center line connecting the markings from the pins (2). Cut away the wedge shape (3). The new center front line needs to be straight, so be sure the line from neckline to waist is straight.
Be sure to transfer these changes to your pattern pieces. If the garment is cut on the fold there's no need for a seam allowance. The new line is now the center front. If there is a center seam. be sure to add seam allowance. And you'll need additional space at the center front for any button-closure overlap and/or a collar.
Remember, any changes to the neckline also necessitates changes to facings, collars, and neckline markings.
One thing about removing the wedge. After you do it will look like the pattern piece is now off kilter. Don't worry, it's not. It's fine. The center front is now the straight of grain. Yeah, there will be some shifting of the grain at other points of the pattern but remember, no pattern is 100% on grain over the whole pattern. You're fitting a flat piece of fabric onto a three dimensional body. What is important is that the center front is still on grain.
In some cases it will be necessary to take out a much larger amount of fabric at the center front if the bust and torso have been fitted correctly. And then sometimes the gapping is caused by the shoulders sloping and rolling forward. In these cases another solution is to look at the shoulders. It's possible to open the shoulder seam and reposition the front shoulder seam fabric higher onto shoulder. If there is still too much fabric to take out, explore decorative darts and seams to absorb the excess (4). Whatever it takes to get the look the designer intended. 