Fat Friendly Pattern Companies for Beginners

Hello Fat Sewing Club! My name is Alex, a fat sewer you can find as @adifferentstitch over on Instagram where I sporadically post, but story regularly. I’m passionate about an inclusive sewing community for everyone.

With that in mind and with the latest round of pattern exclusivity, I posted a question in my Instagram stories asking for community recommendations for beginner-friendly pattern companies for fat sewers. I got a whopping 89 responses, and 28 different pattern companies were recommended!

After compiling the responses, it was time for a scavenger hunt to find out the maximum measurements each company offers. All but one company had at least one of their body measurements (for chest, waist, or hip), not finished measurements, be 50 inches.* One also has a great size range but isn’t the best for beginners regarding instructions. You can check out the final 26 companies the Instagram highlight I made with them all here OR you can read the list below. It has the company name, their max body measurement in inches and centimeters, and a note about if all their patterns go to that size.

This is not an exhaustive list of all the inclusive or fat-friendly pattern companies. Every company was recommended by my followers as being suitable for beginner sewers.

  • Helen’s Closet
    • Chest: 58 in – 147.5 cm
    • Waist: 48 in – 122 cm
    • Hip: 58 in – 147.5 cm
    • All patterns are offered in this size.
  • Muna & Broad
    • Chest: 64 in – 162 cm
    • Waist: 60 in – 152 cm
    • Hip: 71.5 in – 182 cm
    • All patterns are offered in this size.
    • If you are larger than this measurement, they will draft the pattern in your size at no extra charge.
  • Seamwork
    • Chest: 54 in – 137 cm
    • Waist: 47 in – 119 cm
    • Hip: 58 in – 147 cm
    • All Seamwork patterns are available in this size.
      • All Colette patterns made after 2014 are available in this size. Those made before are available in sizes 0-18.
      • In November 2020, Seamwork introduced overlapping their size ranges to both include size 12-16.
  • Cashmerette
    • Chest: 62 in – 157 cm
    • Waist: 52 in – 132 cm
    • Hip: 62 in – 157 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • They are working to make all their patterns available up to this size (32) but some are still only available up to their size 28. The available sizes are clearly noted on the website before clicking on individual patterns.
  • 100 Acts of Sewing
    • Chest: 53 in – 135 cm
    • Waist: 54 in – 137 cm
    • Hip: 64 in – 163 cm
    • All patterns are available in this size.
  • Friday Pattern Company
    • Chest: 60 in – 152 cm
    • Waist: 53 in – 135 cm
    • Hip: 63 in – 160 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • They are working on updating their older patterns. There is a comprehensive list on their website of which patterns are available in each size band and the pattern sizes are listed clearly before clicking on an individual pattern.
  • Ellie & Mac
    • Chest: 63 in – 160 cm
    • Waist: 60 in – 152.4 cm
    • Hip: 67 in – 170 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Some patterns are in smaller size ranges which are clearly labeled before you click on a pattern. Most appear to go up to their size 5XL which is a 60″ bust 56″ waist.
  • Peppermint Magazine
    • Chest: 53 in – 134 cm
    • Waist: 46 in – 117 cm
    • Hip: 56.3 in – 143 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Patterns are free or by donation.
      • Later designs are in this size, earlier ones are not. You have to download the instructions for each pattern to see their size ranges.
  • Megan Nielsen
    • Chest: 56 in – 142 cm
    • Waist: 48 in – 122 cm
    • Hip: 58 in – 147 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Patterns in this size are found under the Curve range and are easy to find on the website.
  • Sew Liberated
    • Chest: 58.5 in – 147 cm
    • Waist: 52.5 in – 133 cm
    • Hip: 61 in – 155 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • New patterns are all available in this size and they are working through their back catalog.
  • DIBY Club
    • Chest: 63 in – 163 cm
    • Waist: 59.75 in – 160 cm
    • Hip: 67 in – 169 cm
    • All patterns are available in this size.
      • Body measurements are variable by up to 1 inch depending on if the pattern is designed for woven or knit fabrics.
  • All Well Workshop
    • Chest: 62 in – 157 cm
    • Waist: 60 in – 152 cm
    • Hip: 70 in – 177.5 cm
    • All patterns are available in this size.
  • Blank Slate Patterns
    • Chest: 53 in – 135 cm
    • Waist: 48 in – 122 cm
    • Hip: 55 in – 149 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
  • By Hand London
    • Chest: 61.25 in – 155.5 cm
    • Waist: 56.25 in – 143 cm
    • Hip: 63.25 in – 160.75 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Currently they only have a few patterns available in the full size band, but they are working on updating their older patterns.
  • Closet Core Patterns
    • Chest: 54 in – 137 cm
    • Waist: 51 in – 129.5 cm
    • Hip: 61 in – 155 cm
    • Not all patterns available in this size.
      • You can filter by pattern size range on the website. These measurements correspond with the 14 – 30 size range.
  • Designer Stitch
    • Chest: 56 in – 140 cm
    • Waist: 47.5 in – 120 cm
    • Hip: 58 in – 146 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Most patterns are available in the full size range. Those that are not are available up to a size 54″ bust.
  • Elbe Textiles
    • Chest: 56 in – 142 cm
    • Waist: 50 in – 126 cm
    • Hip: 61.5 in – 157 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Sizes vary by pattern. Pants and shorts have a larger size range than other garments.
      • Size charts are available in the individual pattern listing photos.
  • George + Ginger
    • Chest: 55.5 in – 141 cm
    • Waist: 48 in – 122 cm
    • Hip: 59 in – 149.9 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Some early patterns go up to a size 2x instead of the 5x these measurements correspond with that is their standard now.
  • Love Notions
    • Chest: 57.5 in – 146 cm
    • Waist: 49.5 in – 125.5 cm
    • Hip: 59.5 in – 151 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • New patterns are all in the current size range. I’m not sure if or how frequently they are updating their older designs.
  • Maison Fauve
    • Chest: 53.5 in – 136 cm
    • Waist: 45.6 in – 116 cm
    • Hip: 55.9 in – 143 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • Only some patterns are available in size 56 which corresponds with these measurement.
      • Older patterns only go up to size 46.
      • Their most recent collection (Ballets Russes) only goes up to size 52.
  • Mood Sewciety Blog
    • Chest: 58.5 in – 148.6 cm
    • Waist: 49.5 in – 125.7 cm
    • Hip: 63 in – 160 cm
    • Not all patterns are available in this size.
      • These patterns are free and the instruction quality varies. Patterns are a variety of sizes and that info is found on each pattern blog post.
  • Pattern Scout
    • Chest: 56 in – 142 cm
    • Waist: 48 in – 122 cm
    • Hip: 60 in – 152 cm
    • Not all patterns available in this size.
      • Older patterns go up to a 54 inch bust.
  • RAD Patterns
    • Chest: 77 in – 195.6 cm
    • Waist: 75 in – 190.5 cm
    • Hip: 80 in – 203 cm
    • Not all patterns available in this size.
      • Older patterns are smaller and all size info is found on the pattern pages.
  • Ready to Sew
    • Chest: 54.72 in – 139 cm
    • Waist: 48.8 in – 124 cm
    • Hip: 54.94 in – 151 cm
    • Not all patterns avalable in this size.
      • Older patterns will not be released in this new size band and most are up to a 105 cm bust.
      • Comprehensive size charts are available on the website on the Size Chart tab and on each pattern listing.
  • Sinclair Patterns
    • Chest: 59.8 in – 152 cm
    • Waist: 52.4 in – 133 cm
    • Hip: 63 in – 160 cm
    • Not all patterns available in this size.
      • They have a devoted section of their website for the updated patterns in this size.
  • Untitled Thoughts
    • Chest: 56 in – 142.2 cm
    • Waist: 50 in – 127 cm
    • Hip: 58 in – 147.3 cm
    • All patterns are available in this size range.

Alright, folks, you made it to the end of the community recommended beginner-friendly pattern companies list! If you’ve got more great companies to add, please pop them in the comments, and I’ll add them to the list.**

*All the sizing info is accurate as of December 18, 2020.

**In order to be added to the list, they must have at least one measurement of their maximum body size be 50 inches, and they must be a safe space for all our community members, including BIPOC & LGBTQIA+. If you know of any company on the above list that is not welcoming and safe for all our community, please let me know asap so I can amend the list.

Want more Fat Sewing?

Check out the FatSewing.Club list of fat sewing resources!

By Alex @adifferentstitch

I used to be an artist, by that I mean, I trained in studio art with a focus on fibers and conceptual installation. My work dealt with time, memory, and the space those hold in our lives. Then my life shifted, I ran a gallery and now I'm an educator at an art museum. I spend my professional life teaching others how to look at and have conversations about art from age 4+. During that transition, making art fell by the wayside and I came back to textiles as a sewer. Since 2013 I've been sewing garments for myself pursuing the slow, process-oriented art of taking cloth and turning it into clothing.

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