Geometric Clothing Construction

This is the handout for a class I've taught many times now.  I thought it would be helpful to put this in a more readily accessible location.  Other than the two pieces of statuary at the beginning (and one exception at the end), each of these examples is a surviving garment from the Middle Ages.  All are constructed from simple geometric shapes: rectangles and triangles mostly, sometimes circular or wedge shaped pieces.

I have tried out most of these patterns and it's surprising how well-fitting a garment can be even when it's just built up from simple geometric shapes.  I have a lot of pointers to share about how to get good sizing for these patterns, as well.  Maybe one of these days I will get that written up and posted.

Geometric Cut in Historical Clothing