When you purchase a new sewing pattern you should have three things: a tissue paper pattern, a direction sheet for cutting the pattern pieces out, and the sewing instructions. The most important being the sheet of pattern pieces. Each piece will be identified by a name and number printed directly on it. Depending on the type of garment you are making, there may be a front and back section. Most articles of clothing will be identical on both the right and left sides, therefore your pattern pieces may only look like half a garment.

The tissue pattern may seem a little flimsy, but its actually quite sturdy. You may need to iron out the creases on the pattern, use a warm iron without any steam. You will need to cut each pattern piece out following the cutting line. The cutting line will be a dark, bolded line around the outer sections. If the pattern has different sizes, youll see a slightly lighter line on the inside. There should be a size number along the lines.

Pin the pattern pieces to your chosen fabric following the cutting guide provided. There will be several different layouts, choose the best one for your fabric. Before cutting, pay close attention to all of the markings on the tissue. There will be a seamline which is a broken line 5/8 of an inch inside of the cutting line. Small arrows are sometimes used to indicate the direction you should be stitching in. Notches are diamond shaped and are used to line up two pieces (ex: front to back). Tiny circles, triangles, or squares are also used to line up two sections evenly. Broken lines or stitching lines called darts will travel towards the inside of a pattern piece meeting at a point. There are other symbols as well, but the previous ones are the most common.

Before you remove the tissue pattern from the fabric, transfer the pattern markings and symbols using your preferred method. Dressmaking tracing paper or tailor tacks work well.

After that you only need to follow the sewing instructions provided to complete your project.