Claire-Louise Hardie shares her top tips for successful solo fitting

For many of us, sewing and dressmaking is a rather solitary hobby, and unless you have a local fit buddy who understands how to pin, you are probably fitting solo most of the time – this is something I’m always asked about for tips, so here’s my guide to getting better results when fitting solo.

Always try your garment or toile on with the right side out first to get an overall impression without seam allowances sticking out. Then if you need to make adjustments, try on with the garment wrong side out, so it’s easier to mark new stitch lines. If you have a very asymmetrical body, then do not fit the wrong side out as your left and right sides will be flipped.

To look at the back of your garment, stand in front of a full-length mirror, and then hold a handheld mirror in front of yourself. You can move the handheld mirror to look at the back of your garment. When positioning the handheld mirror, try to avoid raising your arms too high or too far outside of the body as this will create draglines that are nothing to do with the fit and give a “false fitting diagnosis”. I try and keep my elbows at their natural height, tucked close to the body (see photo above).