Book Description

Excerpt from Garment Cutting in the Twentieth Century: Consisting a Series of Articles on Garment Cutting and Making, With Illustrations by Diagrams, Showing the Commencing Point at the Center of a Circle in General, and Radiating on Especial Angles of 135, 120, 90, 60, 45, 30, 22, 15, 10, 7 1-2, 5, 2 1-2, Et Nothing is claimed in the book pertaining ti Styles of Fashions. It is true the fashionable parts of all I the diagrams are taken from the latest Fashion Reports; but these will not last, and consequently the J 1 fashionable part is of little value. What I claim of my own work is the Bases, which must be considered permanent, and from which all changes must be made for different styles, or for abnormal forms. The principle laid down in this work, is: To fit, like form of men, working the change of fashions to conform to the fit. The Bases I have adopted are new, in the science of Garment-Cutting, and all calculations are based upon horizontal, perpendicular and parallel measures and lines. The slope of each shoulder, as 22 i deg., is taken as a Base for a garment worn around the neck and shoulders, and the garments built downward from that Base. All Bases are clearly defined by illustrations and description; and all gores cut out, or wedges put in, either natural or artificial, are minutely described according to the spreads or hollows of the body. The illustrations or diagrams are given both from a corner of a square, and from the center of a circle, with the same result. I know that, after the publication of this work, some men will hew off some rough corners, and give it more polish; but this is the case with all inventions and new things, and I do not expect to be exempt from that rule. In fact, I know that this work is incomplete; but I can leave it to future time, either through myself or others, to take up the thread where I leave it at present, to unravel any mysteries that may yet be hidden. But the Bases and their application will remain, and will be so used in the twentieth century and thereafter, as long as clothing is worn and men retain their present general form. Some will no doubt say that certain of my methods cost extra study, all of which I admit; but cutting and making garments have been, are now, and always will be, a study; and so far, no mans life has been long enough, and likely no mans life hereafter will be long enough, to complete it. This work indicates the right direction for study, and does not allow the cutters nor the tailors brain to become dormant. My experience is this: Better study one extra hour over a garment than spend a whole day in altering it. The Merchant Tailors success depends upon one thing only, viz: How he succeeds in pleasing his customers. Some cutters will ask for something definite in the shape of a new system; something that requires no study nor constant watching. To such let me say this: Whenever an infallible system of garment-cutting is to be invented, it must be something like a machine, which always does the same thing with the same result. Such an invention cannot be acceptable so long as the fashions and the styles are constantly changing. If, however, such a machine could become acceptable, the occupation of Custom Cutters would be forever lost. Nothing of this kind is claimed in this work, but this I do claim: that it is better and more practical, and far more comprehensive, than anything heretofore known. Neither do I claim that it will work equally well in the hands of every cutter, because no machine will work well unless directed and supervised by a skillful operator one who knows every detail of its construction, and attends to it carefully. I call this work a scientific calculation within both the square and compass. But I do not claim any knowledge of science, nor even of geometry, except perhaps what may be called home-made. What little I know about geometry, I learned after I became forty-five years of age, find had begun .