Sewing Bras: Construction & Fit

Overview

Beverly Johnson Teaches Sewing Bras Construction Fit Craftsy

Create custom-fit bras with your home sewing machine alongside expert instructor Beverly Johnson. Choose the perfect fabric, pattern and size. Use stretch to your advantage as you cut out your pattern pieces. Then, create the cups, add the straps, sew the side seams and attach the cups to the bra’s frame. Learn professional techniques for applying elastic to the bottom bands, top bands and neckline for greater comfort. Build structure with an optional underwire and keep it in place with bar tacks. Finish your bra beautifully with topstitched channeling, adjustable back straps and a hook-and-eye closure. Along the way, learn to personalize patterns for your unique curves: Adjust strap length, fix a gaping or too-snug band, alter the bridge between cups and fit cups perfectly by adjusting their size and shape. Upgrade from ready-to-wear’s generic fit — sew flawless bras personalized for you!

Click here to order this class!

Sewing Bras: Construction & Fit

Make the most supportive, comfortable bras you’ve ever owned. Get step-by-step guidance for sewing bras with a flawless fit, as Beverly Johnson Teaches Sewing Bras Construction Fit Craftsy.

see Overview |  see FAQs | see Info |

see Required Materials | see Lesson Plan

BUY class now
  • 7 HD video lessons with anytime, anywhere access
  • Class materials, including guidelines for choosing bra sizes, fabric and notions
  • Hours of close-up instruction
  • Answers from Beverly in our virtual classroom

Intermediate – you should be comfortable with your machine, and be able to insert a sleeve into a garment (it is the same technique!)

Enhance your sewing repertoire with detailed techniques, from classic to innovative, with your own Fairy Bra Mother, Beverly Johnson.

Lesson Plan

Meet your “fairy bra mother,” Beverly Johnson, and learn about the construction of a classic, full-band bra suitable for all bust sizes. Beverly will show you how to measure yourself to choose the correct size, what to look for in a pattern and the best fabrics to start with.

Get started with your bra sewing by laying out your pattern pieces and cutting out your fabric according to the direction of greatest stretch. Beverly shares tips for marking the pieces, then shows how to sew the cups, attach the straps, sew the side seams, attach the cups to the frame and add channeling for optional underwires.

Elastic is the key to your bra’s effectiveness in providing comfortable support. Beverly walks you through the application of elastic to the bottom and top bands and demonstrates how to add trim to the neckline. You’ll also learn how to add bar tacks to the end of the channeling to keep an underwire in place and away from the skin.

Finish up your bra with topstitched channeling, back straps with sliders, and a hook-and-eye closure. Beverly discusses underwire options and shows how to insert them. Your new bra is ready to wear or be used as a fitting model so you can adjust your pattern.

You can make your bras fit your unique curves smoothly and comfortably with Beverly’s simple instructions for tweaking your pattern. You’ll learn how to adjust strap length, fix a gaping or too-snug band and alter the bridge between the cups.

Cup fit issues are the trickiest part of bra making, so once you get your pattern adjusted with Beverly’s guidance, you’ll have a pattern that fits you just the way you want. Learn about adjusting the strap position or altering the neckline to get a better cup fit, and see how to round the cup crown, shift the apex or fix a too-flat lower cup. You’ll be amazed by how even a tiny adjustment will create just the right fit.

With a basic bra in your repertoire, you can start branching out with fun embellishments such as ribbons and lace. Beverly explains how to choose lace and shows you how to make a stunning butterfly bra or add lace to the sides and back of your bra. Feast your eyes on the endless possibilities for embellishment as Beverly shares samples from her collection of beautiful bras. You’ll be inspired to get sewing and round out your own collection!

More Info

What materials are used in this class?

  • Recommended pattern to use with this class: Unpadded full-band bra pattern (e.g., Pin-Up Girls Classic, Elan B645, Kwik Sew K2374)
  • Cup, frame and strap fabric: Stable knit with less than 20 percent stretch
  • Band fabric: Stretch knit or mesh with 25-40 percent stretch
  • Upper cup lace fabric or trim (optional)
  • Neckline edge trim
  • Bottom band elastic: 1/2″-3/4″ (13 mm–19 mm) wide
  • Top band elastic: 3/8″ (9 mm) wide
  • Strap elastic: Any width
  • Strap tape: Same width as strap elastic
  • Slider and ring set: Same width as strap elastic
  • 2 x 3 or 3 x 3 hook-and-eye set
  • Neckline stabilizer: Stay tape or twill tape (optional)
  • Channelling/wire casing
  • Underwire pair (optional)

FAQs

No, it doesn’t, because you’ll need to know how to measure your bra size correctly.  Beverly gives you all the measuring information you’ll need in the first lesson of this class. Then you can order the Classic Bra pattern or the Craftsy kit right here from Bra-makers Supply!

As long as you need! Your access never expires, so you can come back again and again.

Whenever you’re ready! The lessons are available online any time, and your access to the class never expires.

Ask your questions in our online classroom and you’ll receive instructor feedback. Your fellow students are also likely to jump in and offer advice from their experiences.

Actually, you’ll be surprised at how simple bra construction is! Beverly walks you through a standard full-band bra pattern and encourages you not to worry about perfection on your first try. Use that first bra to get a feel for the process and then to check and adjust your fit. When you see the many ways you can embellish your custom-fit bra, you’ll be inspired to make a whole line just for yourself!

Other available classes

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Sew You Want To Make A Bra – Bra Types by Fit2Sew

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