Think about your favorite t-shirt or dress. How do you feel about the neckline?
Necklines sit front and center on our bodies so if the neckline is too high or low or you
really prefer v-necks to crew necks you might find yourself wearing that garment not quite as
much as you'd like to. Luckily necklines are really easy to adjust. If you find a
pattern that fits you great but you aren't that into the neck all you have to do is change it.
Sometimes you might find that you like the shape or the style of the existing neckline
but you just want to tweak it slightly to your preference.
Maybe you want it to sit a little bit higher or maybe you want it to sit a little lower. To be
honest, raising or lowering a neckline is probably the easiest adjustment to make because you aren't
re-drafting the neckline entirely. Here is how I like to make this pattern change. In
this example, I'm raising the neckline of the Micah pattern, which features a pretty deep v-neckline.
Remove the seam allowance at the shoulder seam and the neckline,
then determine the desired width and depth of your neckline. Want to add a bit at the shoulder for a
better bra coverage, or raise the neckline for your comfort - that's no prob. Hold the cut pattern piece
against your body. Align the center front of the pattern piece with the center line of your body
and then align the shoulder seam along your shoulder. Use a ruler to measure where you want
to adjust the neckline and by how much you want to adjust the neckline. Lay your pattern pieces on
your work surface and tape some pattern paper underneath the existing neckline if necessary.
Use a ruler to mark the desired neckline at the shoulder and at the center front
where you want to reduce or add. Here, I'm raising the neckline by 3 inches.
Then use a curved ruler to redraw the neckline.
Just a note, the Micah pattern has a center front seam but your pattern may not. If your pattern does
have a center front seam make sure you're raising it along the stitch line. If you made any updates
at the shoulder be sure to match that on the back pattern piece. There you have it! It really is
that easy. Note if you're making any significant changes, I might recommend following the v-neck
or crewneck tutorial to account for the chest and shoulder contours. Check out those instructions if
you plan on lowering or raising the neckline by anything more than three or four inches.
While the steps to adjust a neckline shape were the same from knit to woven the necklines themselves
require different finishing methods. Let's take a look at some different neckline finishing options.
Knit neck bands are drafted to be smaller than the opening that they finish.
This ensures a couple of things. 1) that the neckband is flat against the body instead of flipping
out and away and 2) the neckline itself hugs the body and doesn't gape. Drafting a knit neckband
is simply a matter of measuring your neckline and doing a little math. Start by measuring the front
and back neckline of your pattern. Using a flexible tape measure makes this bit a little bit easier.
Take this measurement and multiply it by 0.7. This will give you a neckline ratio of 70%,
which I find works pretty well for a lot of projects. This measurement is your neckband length.
Then decide on your desired neckband width.
A width of between a half inch and one inch is pretty common. Multiply this number by two and
this is your neckband width. Draw a rectangle that is your neckband length by your neckband width,
then add 3/8 inch seam allowance along all edges and cut.
A facing is a great way to finish a woven garment but it also can work
for more stable knits. Using a tracing wheel, trace along the stitch lines of the front neckline,
shoulder seam, and center front of your front pattern piece.
Use your rulers to redraw all the trace lines.
Using a clear ruler, reduce the entire neckline by 1/8 of an inch. This is going to help encourage
the neckline to roll towards the inside so you don't see the facing peeking out.
Draw a line parallel and below the neckline. The distance between this line and the neckline
should be your desired facing width. I like a facing that is no less than two inches wide.
If you're working with a facing for a v-neck, you can square off the bottom of your facing
so that it won't be pointed. Then add seam allowance to the shoulder
seam and neckline and cut it out. Repeat along the back neckline to create a back facing.
A single fold bias tape finish is great for woven projects.
This finish is super easy to draft and it requires very little math - it's simply a matter of measuring
and drawing a rectangle. Start by measuring your front and back neckline on your pattern.
Using a flexible tape measure makes this bit a little bit easier.
This measurement is your bias tape length. Here's a tip - if you're taking measurements on the fold
and you need to double it but you don't want to do the math. After you measure the front
with a soft tape measure fold the tape measure in half and easily, mathlessly calculate double.
Then decide on your desired bias width. A half inch is pretty common. Multiply this number by two.
This is your bias tape width. Note if you want to use double fold bias tape just multiply
this finished width by four instead. Draw a rectangle that is your neckband length by
your neckband width. Add a 3/8 inch seam allowance along the short edge and cut.
With these simple neckline adjustments you can make any pattern work for your style. Once again,
don't skip out on a pattern just because you don't like the neckline.
Instead, draft your dream neckline! Happy sewing!