Trace the pattern onto the fabric to make cutting out the pieces less complicated.
Garment patterns often fit multiple sizes on a single pattern piece. So the lines for your size might be in the middle of the pattern piece, preventing you from cutting around the outer edges of the pattern to cut the right piece. When this is the case the simplest solution for cutting an accurate pattern piece is tracing the pattern directly onto the fabric, and then cutting out the piece. Tracing a line in the middle of a pattern piece might seem impossible, but is actually a simple process requiring only a few tools.
Instructions
1. Lay the pattern piece on the fabric according to the layout instructions that came with the pattern. The pattern instructions will tell you whether the pattern piece should lay on the right or wrong side of the fabric, if it should be positioned against a fold, and position it with respect to grain.
2. Weigh down the pattern piece with soup cans. Keep the cans a few inches in from the edge or lined on the pattern you need to trace.
3. Slide the tracing paper under the pattern piece with the colored side down. Trace over the pattern with a tracing wheel. Use a smooth wheel for delicate fabrics like silk and chiffon; use a serrated wheel for the rest. If the tracing paper doesn't cover the entire pattern piece, place it in one area, trace that area, and then move it to the next. Continue tracing and moving to transfer the entire pattern.
4. Transfer pattern symbols, such as notches and dots, by tracing over the symbol with a small stylus.
5. Lift up the edges of the pattern a little at a time to check that the whole pattern transferred. Go over any area that didn't transfer again before removing the soup cans.
