An all-day pattern cutting course, focusing on the fitted dress, bodice and skirt . Taught by MaryRose McGrath in her Belfast design studio.
BEGINNER PATTERN CUTTING MASTERCLASS: WOMENSWEAR
Learn to Draft Dress, Bodice & Skirt Blocks
Step into an inspirational fashion design studio and learn how to move beyond the limitations of commercial sewing patterns. This one-day masterclass will introduce you to the foundations of womenswear pattern cutting, and is taught by an industry professional with three decades experience in fashion design, pattern cutting and garment construction.
You’ll be guided through drafting a fitted dress block, bodice, and skirt block—using accurate body measurements and techniques taught in fashion degree programmes. Ideal for dressmakers and fashion students , this course is your starting point for creating patterns that fit beautifully and reflect your own design ideas.
About Your Tutor
This masterclass is taught by MaryRose McGrath, a womenswear designer who has created best selling collections for leading UK high street brands including M&S, Debenhams, House of Fraser & Oasis. After working in the London fashion industry for over a decade, she returned to Belfast to establish her own studio, where she now designs couture bridal gowns, chic womenswear and luxury communion dresses. MaryRose has also taught fashion design at degree level and brings that same clarity, precision, and industry insight to her studio courses. This is a rare opportunity to learn professional pattern cutting in a creative and expertly guided fashion studio setting.
What Will I Learn in This Course?
This full-day course focuses on the foundations of pattern cutting, with a deep dive into creating the fitted dress block, bodice block, and skirt block. You’ll learn how to take professional body measurements, how to understand a womenswear size chart, and how to use measurements to draft accurate, flat paper patterns.
Forget trawling through commercial pattern books—this course gives you the technical skills to start creating your own designs, just as it’s taught in the fashion industry.
You will be taught how to:
Take accurate body measurements:
Learn the professional method of measuring the body, including posture and stance considerations.
Draft blocks from scratch
— Understand how to apply basic measurements to create flat patterns, using simple tools and clear step-by-step processes. No need to worry if you’re not confident with maths, everything is explained in an easy to understand way.
Construct the bodice, dress, and skirt blocks
— Using paper, pencil, and ruler, you’ll follow degree-level techniques taught in fashion design courses.
Add shaping through darts
— Discover how to apply suppression for a fitted shape, and why dart size and placement varies by body type.
Add seam allowances
— Learn which seam allowances to add, why they matter, and how they differ depending on garment style and construction.
Create a toile
— Understand how to construct a calico toile to test the fit and structure of your block patterns—an essential step used in professional design studios before garment production.
Who Is This Course Suitable For?
This course is ideal for those who have experience in using commercial sewing patterns and are ready to explore the art of pattern drafting and gain a deeper understanding of womenswear sizing.
It’s an excellent foundation for dressmakers, fashion students, aspiring designers, and costume makers looking to strengthen their technical pattern-cutting skills using industry-standard methods.
Location
The course takes place in MaryRose’s design studio in Conway Mill.
Address:
Conway Mill, 5–7 Conway Street, Belfast BT13 2DE
What’s Included:
6 hours of expert, in-depth pattern-cutting tuition
Use of all necessary pattern-cutting tools and equipment provided in the studio
Your completed blocks to take home
A set of technical handouts to support your learning and refer back to after the course
Do I Need to Bring a Sewing Machine?
No sewing machine is needed for this course, as it focuses entirely on pattern drafting. All work is done using paper, measurements, and drafting tools.
Age Requirement
Students must be
18 years or over
to attend this course.
What do I Bring to class?
Please bring a notebook, a pen, and your reading glasses if you use them. All pattern paper, measuring tools, and technical equipment will be provided for you in the studio.
Course Fee
The full-day course is £125 per student.
How to Book
You can book your place in this course in one of two ways:
1. Through Eventbrite –
Book online via Eventbrite using PayPal. Online booking fee applies.
2. Book Directly with the Studio (No booking fee)
Please email
info@maryrosemcgrath.com
, and we will be in touch to book your space.
Where to meet on the day:
The studio is closed before class starts.
MaryRose will collect all students from Conway Mill reception on the ground floor at 9.30 am
and will take you to the studio. Please do not try and find the studio as you could get lost in the mill.
Other questions are answered in the
FAQ section below.
Terms and conditions of booking:
1.
Non-attendance:
Due to the small number of students in each class and the specialist nature of this course, if a student does not attend for any reason, we are unable to offer a place on a Pattern Cutting course on another date, a refund, class credit note or class voucher.
This includes, but is not limited to, non-attendance due to illness, injury, unexpected circumstances, personal circumstances, transport issues, weather conditions or any other reason.
2: Transfer your booking:
If you are unable to attend the course, you may transfer your booking to another person. To arrange this, you must email the studio with the new attendee’s name no later than two working days before the course begins. Transfer requests received after this deadline cannot be accommodated.
Please email
info@maryrosemcgrath.com
, ensuring your request is received during our office hours, Monday to Friday, 9.00am–5.00pm.
All name changes must be made by email. Requests sent via social media cannot be accepted.
The person receiving the transferred booking must meet the skill level required for the course. Refunds, class credit notes or class vouchers will not be provided if the transferred student does not meet the required skill level.
3.Late arrivals:
There is a considerable amount of teaching to cover during the full-day course, and it is essential that all students arrive on time so that the class can begin promptly and the teaching schedule is not disrupted.
Students arriving 15 minutes or more after the class has begun will not be admitted. By this point, too much course content will have been covered for the tutor to recap without disrupting the teaching and the experience of the other students.
Refunds, class credits, vouchers or a place on another course will not be provided where a student is unable to participate due to late arrival.
4. Speed of learning: Progress and speed of learning depends on each student’s natural abilities during class.
5. A minimum number of students are required for this course to take place.
6.
Please check the course date, course content and eligibility requirements carefully before booking. Bookings made in error, including booking the incorrect course or date, are non-refundable.
7.
Course cancellation: On rare occasions, classes may have to be cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances. We will inform students immediately by e-mailing & calling. You will be offered a refund, a transfer to another date, or a class credit note. Please note we are not liable for any costs incurred.
This clause applies only to cancellations made by the class organiser MaryRose McGrath Design. For cancellations due to circumstances beyond our control (see Force Majeure), please refer to Section 8.
8.
Force Majeure:
If the class is unable to take place due to circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including but not limited to severe weather, flooding, fire, power failure, transport disruption, venue closure, public health restrictions or other force majeure events, every effort will be made to reschedule the class to a later date.
If rescheduling is not possible, students will be contacted directly with the options available to them.