Sewing 101: How to Read a Sewing Pattern Envelope

The first step of sewing with a pattern is learning how to read the envelope. You see a style that you love and want to make for yourself, but when you look at the back of the envelope, it’s just a whole lot of numbers that can look pretty overwhelming to a beginner. I’ll walk you through each part of the pattern envelope so that you know what you’re getting in the pattern, what fabric and supplies you need, and how to make sure you’re getting the right size.

The elements on the pattern envelope will vary a little bit depending on the brand of sewing pattern you purchased, but most will still have the same basic information. When you know what to look for and how to read the pattern envelope, you’ll be ready to get started on your next (or first!) sewing project.

• Learn more about how to read a sewing pattern (for beginners)

1. The line art and variations of the garments

The first thing you’ll notice on any sewing pattern envelope is the drawings or photos of the designs included in the pattern. This lets you know exactly what to expect when you purchase and create the clothing.

The first thing you’ll notice on any sewing pattern envelope are drawings or examples of what pieces of clothing (or accessories) are actually included. This will include line art of the styles of the pattern enclosed and often highlights a photograph modeling one of the clothing pieces. 

Most of the time, there will be more than one option to choose from. Sometimes it’s the same shirt with different sleeve variations or different lengths for pants and shorts. Other times, you’ll get pattern pieces for multiple types of clothing. The different designs included in the envelope will be labeled with a letter, so you know exactly what’s included. 

The back of the envelope will have more line art along the side or bottom. This will show the back of the designs or styles that are shown on the front.

The front of the pattern envelope will usually include:

• Line art of the clothing designs included
• Photographs modeling the design styles (sometimes only one style is photographed)
• Each design variation is labeled with a letter
• The back of the pattern envelope will usually show the line art of the back side of each of the included design styles.

2. What type of fabric is recommended

Usually, the first section on the back of the envelope will be the fabric recommendations for the design. Sometimes, this section shows up more toward the bottom of the envelope. Look for a section labeled “Suggested Fabric.”

Different clothing styles will need to use different types of fabric in order to achieve the look marketed on the front of the pattern. If you use a type of fabric that’s too stiff, too drapey, doesn’t stretch enough, isn’t heavy or lightweight enough, etc. you’ll end up with a final product that doesn’t look or act as intended.

To prevent you from picking the wrong type of fabric, this section tells you which types of fabric to purchase. Usually, there will be at least three or four options to choose from, sometimes significantly more. It can also tell you the general types of fabric to look for. For example, it may say silky types or sized for stretch knits.

You don’t necessarily have to stick to the fabrics suggested. However, these are the types of fabric that are most likely to work well with the pattern. If you have a fabric with similar characteristics to the ones listed, it will also probably work well. You’ll get better at choosing the right type of fabric to use with a pattern as you sew more and come into contact with a variety of different types of materials.

3. What notions do you need?

Notions are the supplies and tools you need for garments other than the fabric. This is a very wide range of materials and supplies. The simplest patterns will only include thread in this category, or if there is no notions category, then thread is implied. However, most patterns will include instructions for closures too, such as zippers and buttons.

You’ll also notice that the notions are listed according to what’s needed in the different designs. For example, design A might need 2 buttons, while design B needs 4. So you will need to get different supplies based on which variation of the pattern you intend to make.

Notions that you’ll commonly see on sewing pattern envelopes include:

• Thread 
• Zippers (including what type and size zipper to get)
• Buttons (including the size of the buttons)
• Hook and eye (for invisible closures)
• Single or double-fold bias tape, or seam binding
• Elastic (how much in meters or yards, and the width of the elastic)
• Cording or twill tape (for designs that use a drawstring)
• Ribbon (for design or hemming purposes)
• Shoulder pads (for blazers and suit jackets)
• Grommets
• Snaps 
• Buckles 
• Studs
• Anything else specific to your pattern design

4. Sizing of the garment

One of the most important areas to check on the pattern is the size guide. This will be a grid either on the flap of the envelope or on the back (usually right under the fabric suggestions and notions).

The first thing to mention, these sizes are NOT the same as commercial clothing sizes. If you are a size 6 when you buy something from the store, do not automatically make a size 6 in the sewing pattern (it’ll probably be way too small). You have to take your bust, waist, and hip measurements and use the size grid to determine which size to make. Every brand will have its own size guide, it’s not standardized across all sewing patterns.

Now that you’ve got your measurements, it’s time to look at the size chart and determine which size is best for you. It’s pretty normal for some of your body measurements to be a size or two bigger than others. If this is your first time using a sewing pattern, use the biggest size that your measurements put you in. 

If you’ve made a few garments already, you might want to start looking at the finished garment measurements or measuring the pattern pieces yourself to pick the right size. Sometimes the pattern envelope will include the finished garment measurements (sometimes it’s printed directly onto the pattern tissue paper instead). You can use this to see what size the finished clothing will be. (Remember, you generally want the finished garments to be a couple of inches bigger than your body measurements)

• Check out my in-depth guide to help you choose the right size of a sewing pattern (Many patterns run large, so learning how to measure it for yourself can help you get a more perfect fit.)

Don’t forget to check the front of the envelope to see which sizes are included in the pattern. Often it’s split to make it less confusing and bulky when cutting and tracing pattern pieces.

5. Figure out how much fabric you need

After you use the pattern envelope to determine what size you are, you can use the grid on the back to determine how much fabric you need. The basic idea is to slide over to the size you fall under, then look down that column until you see which design you intend to make. This will let you know how much fabric to get.

Usually, there will be two numbers listed for each design. One amount for 45 and one amount for 60. Most fabric comes on bolts that are about 45” or 60” wide (115cm or 150cm for those who use metric). You will need more fabric if you are using a type of material that is the shorter 45” wide, so you always want to check this when purchasing your fabric.

In this section, you will also see the amount of fabric you’ll need for any contrast materials (if you are using a different color or type of fabric), and for interfacing needed (used to strengthen and stiffen collars, cuffs, waistbands, etc.). 

• Check out my more detailed guide for knowing how much fabric to get for your pattern

6. Knit vs woven

Another thing you’ll need to pay attention to on your pattern envelope is whether it was made for knit or woven fabrics. These are the two main categories of fabric you’ll use for apparel. Knit fabrics usually have some amount of stretch, while woven fabrics do not (the differences are more complicated than that, but that’s a whole other topic). If you try to make a knit pattern with woven fabric, it probably won’t fit because knit patterns take the stretch of the fabric into account.

By default, most patterns are made for woven fabrics. Patterns made for knits will typically be labeled as such on the front of the pattern envelope. It will say something like ‘made for knits’ or ‘sized for knits.’

However, not all patterns are so plainly labeled. Check the fabric suggestions to get a better idea of whether the pattern is made for knit fabrics or not. Patterns made for knits will include something along the lines of ‘stretch knits only’ at the beginning of the recommended fabrics.

You will also want to take a look at the stretch guide included with the pattern. Almost all knit patterns will include a little ruler that lets you know how stretchy your fabric needs to be (Burda patterns are the exception to this, they do not include a stretch guide). You will need to be able to stretch your fabric across the guide for it to work with the enclosed pattern.

7. Other information of the pattern envelope

There is some other information on the pattern envelope as well. These are things that are important to take note of, but they are fairly standard or they only show up on some pattern envelopes.

These other aspects include:

• The pattern number. This is just a way to categorize the patterns and is usually more useful to the manufacturers than home sewists. I usually use these for organizing purposes and arrange the patterns in numerical order.
• Sizes included in the pattern. Some patterns are separated into two different size categories (usually 8 to 14 and 16 to 22). Always check this to be sure you’re purchasing the correct size.
• The difficulty rating of the pattern. Some patterns will let you know if it’s easy, average, or difficult to make. Take these ratings with a grain of salt, since they are not always accurate. The difficulty of a pattern will depend on the parts of sewing you personally have experience with.
• The silhouettes that the pattern is ideal for. Some brands include little symbols telling you what body type the pattern is best for. Vogue sewing patterns are most known for including this little tidbit of information.

How to determine if a sewing pattern is easy

Now that you know how to read the pattern envelope and where to find the most relevant information, let’s talk about how to choose easy patterns to start with. If you’re reading this guide, it probably means you have limited experience working with sewing patterns, or maybe you’re new to sewing altogether. 

Sewing patterns are not always great learning tools. They assume you know at least the basics of sewing, and generally won’t go into every detail. In general, a loose-fitting shirt, an A-line skirt, or a simple pair of pants with an elastic waist are good first projects. Use these tips to help you choose a pattern that is not too complicated for you to start with:

1. Don’t always trust patterns labeled ‘easy.’ Patterns labeled easy are not always easy for beginners. Usually, this means that the pattern only uses a few pieces to make, so it does not have a complicated construction. However, if it uses a type of fabric you’re not used to using (stretch fabrics, flowy fabrics, thick fabrics, and sheer fabrics are quite difficult for beginners), or construction methods you don’t know, you may find it’s still a difficult pattern for you. Instead of blindly trusting the ‘easy’ label, check to see what skills will be necessary to sew the design and whether or not you’ve ever done them before. 
2. Avoid knit patterns, to begin with. Knit fabrics are my favorite to wear because they are so much more comfortable (to me). However, they can be a pain to sew with because the fabric stretches. Eventually, you should absolutely pick up some knit patterns and make wonderful things, but they are not the best sewing patterns to start with.
3. What skills are required to make the pattern? The more complex the pattern the more skills are going to be required when you make it. Try to choose one that uses a limited number of new skills and slowly add another skill to your repertoire with each new pattern you make.
4. Loose-fitting clothes are easier than tight-fitting clothes. The tighter the clothing is meant to be, the more important it is to get the body measurements just right. Since this is a difficult skill to master, you’ll have more success starting with some loose-fitting garments to start with, or clothing that uses elastic instead of exact measurements.