I am new to Valentina and new in this forum. I am sewing as hobby and curios me started with patternmaking, then I found Valentina. I was looking for a tutorial that describes the workflow for designing a pattern from the scratch in Valentina. I found some videos, but I hate to watch videos when I learn something like a program.
I found some manuals which describe every button in every point of the menu, but that doesn’t help me either.
What I am looking for is a written tutorial (with pics, that’s fine ) that shows me what I do have to do one step after another for drawing for example a basic pattern for a skirt.
I know how to do a pattern on paper; I have a book from a guy named “Guido Hofenbitzer” who basically works with a system influenced by “Müller & Sohn” and some other pattern-design-systems. I do have some basic knowledge in CAD which is not that far from doing patterns (besides that CAD works 3D).
If there doesn’t exist a written tutorial, I’d consider to contribute a bit, but I need to handle that beast first :o.
We’d love to know about the 1st pattern you want to create.
Can you post some of the instructions for a basic block (for bodice or skirt or pants)?
We’ll walk you through it.
I really want to see this “Mueller & Sohn” derivative pattern system!
Hi Monika
i sounds that you are also german. I also work with the yellow books Hofenbitzer and also have the Mueller& Sohn Books, if you like we can chance the adress and have an exchange
best regards
Helga
That would be great I tried to open that lesson file from the thread linked above but it says “Exception: Invalid version. Maximum supported version is 0.4.8” I am using Valentina 0.5 on Ubuntu 16.04, the one that is in the repository.
I wanted to create a block (that is what we call “Grundschnitt”, right?) for a skirt.
First I have to do the frame (I think I got that one), with the measurements
“Hüftweite” (hip circumference + ease)
“Modelllänge” (length of model from waist to seam)
“Hüfttiefe” (distance from waist to hip)
Front and back are done together and after the construction cut apart.
When I make a pattern on paper I use an calc-sheet for the measurements. I have saved the basic measurements without ease and draw the block I want to create with eases according to the table of “Passformklassen” (sorry, I don’t know the English word for it. That’s how loose the piece should fit, like for corsage versus coat for example).
So I tried to do that in Valentina; I filled the tape with hip circumference, waist cirumference and distance waist to hip and made variables in the variables table for model length, “Hüftweite”, “Taillenumfang” and the darts.
I do have a frame and something that looks like a pattern, but I can’t get front and back cut apart and can’t mark a “detail”. So I guess I messed up at some point before.
In the next post I’ll write what I do on paper when I draw a pattern.
Helga, that would be great Yes, I am German and struggling with the English terms, some of them aren’t in the dictionary :)
Ok, but maybe it is of help for others, so I’ll still write what to do:
First I have to draw the frame. For that I go
down perpendicular for the model lenght (seampoint)
mark a point at distance waist - hip (Hüfttiefe)
from first point, Hüfttiefe and seampoint 90° to the right for half the hip circumference plus ease
down perpendicular on half the way of the 90°-lines
Then I calculate the darts - Hüftweite minus Taillenweite makes Taillenausfall, that distributed to Hüftabstich, one dart in the front and two darts in the back. The front dart and the dart closer to the hip are a little bit higher than the waistline, the Hüftabstich is still a little bit higher than the others.
and near the bottom of the thread, @Grace posted a zip file with the files you need for an example.
Do this with both files. It worked for me.
Here are the files zipped up: Aldrich_Lesson_1.zip3 (8.4 KB)
@Grace maybe you can help. I believe that your files can be opened with version 0.5 on ubuntu and that what @moniaqua saw was a warning that would go away after the pattern is opened on her machine then saved.
I apologise for not being more helpful now I am about to take a trip and be with no internet until December
FYI, you can open up .val & .vit files in Notepad (or another pure text editor), and change the version manually. For example, if a file started like this
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<pattern>
<!--Pattern created with Valentina (http://www.valentina-project.org/).-->
<version>0.4.8</version>
<unit>cm</unit>
<author/>
<description/>
<notes/>
<measurements/>
I could change the version to the one I am using as simply as altering version, like so:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<pattern>
<!--Pattern created with Valentina (http://www.valentina-project.org/).-->
<version>0.6.0</version>
<unit>cm</unit>
<author/>
<description/>
<notes/>
<measurements/>
Oh, it’s ok @kmf You really don’t need to apologize for that. With the help in the link to the bodice block and a video I figured out enough that I got a tiled pdf of a skirt, so I’m quite happy at the moment. Have a nice trip!
edit: ah, nice, I can write again xml is not that a problem, thank you @KeithFromCanada. I discovered that the downloaded file is 0.6, so I didn’t want to change it, as my guess is, that some things might not work in 0.5
Sorry that I see this only now. It’s not necessary to ‘cut apart’ in Libre/Valentina. When choosing the details for the front, only select the nodes and curves for the one half of the back or the front. Once you have hit the enter key, an options box will come up, click on OK. Then go to the Detail tab and right click on the pattern you will find there, at Label on the left, give the piece a name. You may add all the other details at this point or you can click on OK again & go and select the nodes and curves for the other half.
If you found the PDF manual, you may click on the Detail link in the index and it will take you to that section. If I recall correctly, the process is pretty well explained there. Also in the tutorial: Bodice Block, Leena’s Patternmaker - Seamly2D (you may want to quickly work through this tutorial since Leena’s method is also based on the Muller & Sohn method) scroll down to near the end, there is a a bit on it where one selects parts to make the different panels.
The main thing is to select the nodes and curves in a clockwise direction and if the arrows on the curve lines show in an anti-clockwise direction, hold down the shift key to reverse the direction to clockwise.
You may want to go and download version 6, the latest test build. It really works very well and all your existing pattern files will work in it as well.
Not necessary… A program version that can open 0.6.0 will open a 0.4.8 pattern, but not the other was around. You do not want to change a 0.6.0 pattern to 0.4.8 and try and open it in an earlier program as all the features added after 0.4.8 will disappear.
NO!!! Wait!
If the pattern uses the new features from the new version, then this won’t work.
v.0.5 won’t have the features from the v.0.6 test versions.
v0.5. software won’t know what to do, it will still crash.
Don’t panic I usually do not downgrade and upgrade is not a problem
I found a lot with the help of the links in this thread here; I didn’t open the examples yet but I guess it wouldn’t help me too much right as I need to learn to handle the software; that’s the way and not the result… Meanwhile I managed to make my skirt with passmarks, seams and labels and the shirt with the back part; front part will come and actually I am looking forward to the sleeve as with Valentina it looks so simple to measure the armhole
cu
Monika
Hi Moniaqua
I’m a newbie and am really just reading through existing discussions, but saw that you didn’t know the English for Passformklassen, so I thought I’d help. The term that one uses for how lose or snug a garment fits is ease. You can find the Butterick chart for ease at https://butterick.mccall.com/size-fit-charts/ease-chart
) that shows me what I do have to do one step after another for drawing for example a basic pattern for a skirt.
xml is not that a problem, thank you 
and all your existing pattern files will work in it as well.
Plus, I found some new things, I’ll discover them tomorrow or so 
I usually do not downgrade and upgrade is not a problem