Thanks to Steam Ingenious for the initial tutorial on how to make a cravat which I ammended. Visit the site here to see detailed images to make the pattern. I modified the original pattern slightly and changed the way the centre is shown as you can see in my youtube tutorial above.

Pattern instructions from Steam ingenious:

The first thing you’ll need is your neck measurement. Subtract 1/2-1 inch from that measurement. One of the differences between a cravat and a normal necktie is that you tie your knot in the wide part of the tie, not the thin part. You also need to know how long you want the tie to be. Cravats are meant to be worn with a vest or waistcoat, and are only long enough to be tucked in to that. So ideally, if you have the vest you plan to wear it with, put it on and measure from your neck to the top of the vest. Add at least 3 inches to that measurement to allow you to tie it. Err on the side of length, because a cravat that doesn’t tuck is nearly useless. (Ask me how I know!)

Once you have your measurements, you want to make your paper pattern. Decide how thick you’d like the skinny part of the cravat to be. For a pretty thin neck, I used 2 inches, and for a fuller look, 3 1/2″. With your paper folded in half lengthwise, measure out a line 1/2 of your desired width from the fold. Make a line equal in length to 1/2(your neck measurement minus 1 inch). Then move up and draw a line 3 1/2 inches from your fold. Connect these two lines with a diagonal.

You’ll notice I had to add more length to the thick part of the cravat. I’d make the length of the cravat about 12 inches + 1/2(your neck measurement). Hold your pattern up to your vest, to make sure it’s long enough, but remember you need extra length to tie it. Remember to include or add a seam allowance, or this is going to be significantly thinner and shorter than you intend.

It makes more sense with pictures, watch the vid or visit the steamingenious site for more.

I’ve always wanted to make my own dressmakers dummy so found this tutorial:

http://www.threadsmagazine.com/item/3659/clone-yourself-a-fitting-assistant

And four hours later… voila!

dressmakers dummy in my proportions

What I found out:

• Using strong tape keeps the form better so I used gaffa tape instead of duct tape
• I used a LOT of tape. About 3 -4 rolls to be safe
• I used some expandable foam at the base but it was just unnecessarily messy. I should have stuck with just soft pillow stuffing
• I ended up getting two other people to help at points (Thanks parents!)
• I definitely found doing the top half of me first was a good idea so I could sit down halfway through