My family is passionate about large, funky prints. My son, who is a pilot and aeronautical engineer, enjoys shirts constructed from flight-themed fabrics, while my husband, a college professor who teaches microbiology and physiology, likes his shirts with microbes and viruses. Even my niece gets into the “Ms. Frizzle” look, with music-themed dresses for her elementary music classes’ concerts.

Large print challenges

All these garments involve fabrics with large prints. However, large prints pose a number of challenges to garment sewists. You want to place motifs in the most advantageous way and, more importantly, you don’t want to break any of the fun elements into unreadable fragments. I’ll answer common questions about pattern-matching and show you foolproof ways to create the perfect garment with your large-scale print fabric. 

Why match prints?

Why do we bother to match prints at all? Matched patterns provide the viewer with a cohesive image. Matched patterns tame large prints that would overwhelm the viewer if they were left unmatched. Carefully matched motifs also showcase the sewist’s skill and provide a quality contrast to mismatched ready-to-wear fashion. However, whether or not you match your prints depends on a number of factors. I’ll show you how the fabric, the garment design, the garment size, and your budget can affect your ability and willingness to make that perfect match.

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Palmer/Pletsch certified instructor Elizabeth Vana Bryant teaches and blogs about garment fitting and construction. FitSewBeautiful.com