From Patterns to Profits: Grading Rules and Manual Techniques for Dog Wear

Jill Bartlett Author

Sep 28, 2024 |

Learn how to grade dog wear patterns for different breeds and sizes. Start mastering manual grading techniques for your dog wear business today!

I Have No Idea What I'm Doing

Or at least that's how I felt at the time. Someone had just admired the coat I'd made for Scout and asked if I could make one for their dog. I confidently said, "Sure." Then it hit me—I had no idea what I was doing!

• I never went to fashion school.
  
• I was completely self-taught.
• My sewing skills were far from "professional."

I suddenly felt like a complete phony!

A friend kindly suggested I just needed to "grade" Scout’s pattern to fit this new dog. Grade?? I had no clue what she meant. Was she asking me to rate my pattern from A to F? I was too embarrassed to ask.

But being resourceful, I dove into the internet and figured it out. It wasn’t easy—there was so much on grading for humans but nothing for dogs. I scoured dog size charts and decided to measure this new dog in the three areas most mentioned:

I made the coat for my neighbour’s dog, and to my surprise—it fit perfectly. I NAILED IT! 

I felt ready to conquer the dog wear world.

Or so I thought…

Fast forward 8 years, and I've realized that making coats for dogs is far more complex than just measuring those three points. Dogs come in all shapes and sizes, and certain breeds—like French Bulldogs with their broad chests, Doberman Pinschers with their deep chests and narrow waists, and Whippets with their lean bodies—completely threw me off at first. These challenges taught me that I couldn't just scale a pattern up or down proportionally for different sizes. One size definitely does not fit all! I had to adapt my approach to accommodate each dog’s unique body shape.

To refine my process, I went beyond the basic measurements and introduced a 4th Critical Area: Neck to Withers. This addition was a game changer for me, especially when working with breeds like Whippets and Dobermans, which have unique body structures. Below, I’ll walk you through how this measurement—and others—help address the challenges of grading for different body shapes.

So, it turns out grading isn’t about giving dog wear patterns a "score"—it’s the secret to scaling a pattern up or down so it fits perfectly in all the right places. Whether you’re just starting out or have some experience, learning to grade will help you create a size chart and patterns that fit every dog, from tiny Chihuahuas to large Labradors.

Why Grading Matters in Dog Wear Design

When you consider how different breeds are built—short, long, stocky, lean—it’s clear why grading is essential. Without it, scaling a pattern that fits a medium-sized dog could end up pinching the underarms of a large dog or dragging on the ground for a smaller one.

And trust me, I learned this the hard way! Without the right measurements, the designs I worked so hard on just didn’t translate across sizes. It was frustrating. But once I mastered some key grading rules, everything changed.

Key Grading Rules to Keep in Mind

Before we get into manual grading, there are a few basic rules that have helped me time and time again:

• Proportional Scaling: Just like in human pattern grading, every part of your dog wear pattern needs to scale proportionally. This means adjusting not just the length and width, but considering the overall shape of the dog. For example, increasing the chest size may also require adjusting the neckline or leg openings. Dogs, like humans, don’t increase proportionally across all areas, so it’s important to evaluate each area individually as you scale up or down.
• Maintaining Design Integrity: When grading for dogs, it’s crucial to preserve the details and features of your original design. Whether it’s a specific seam, dart, or design element, these should remain consistent across all sizes—just as you would for human patterns. This ensures the style and functionality of the coat or garment are preserved for all dogs, from Chihuahuas to Great Danes.
• Adjusting for Breed-Specific Needs: Not all dogs have the same body proportions, which is similar to the variation you find in human body types. Breeds like French Bulldogs or Whippets require special attention because of their unique shapes. You’ll need to add specific tweaks to accommodate breed-specific measurements, such as Neck to Withers, Chest Circumference, and Neck to Tail. These adjustments ensure that the coat or garment fits comfortably and doesn’t restrict movement, much like how adjustments are made for curvier or more muscular human body types.
• Key Grading Points: Just like in human patterns, dog wear designs have critical areas—such as the neckline, chest, and leg openings—that need adjusting for a proper fit. Dogs with different body shapes may require tweaks to ensure comfort. Adding elastic or Velcro to these critical areas allows the pattern to accommodate a wider range of breeds or size fluctuations. It’s similar to adding elastic to the waistband of a woman’s pants or skirt.
• Provide Lengthen/Shorten Lines: Just as human patterns offer lengthen/shorten lines to allow for custom adjustments, it’s essential to include these in dog patterns as well. Clearly marking where the length or width can be adjusted allows makers to easily modify the pattern for custom measurements, especially for dogs with longer torsos or shorter legs. This flexibility ensures that your pattern can be adapted to fit dogs of various sizes and body shapes without distorting the original design.

These rules are the foundation for grading dog wear patterns, ensuring that the fit, style, and functionality are preserved as you adapt your designs for different breeds. If you're ready to dive deeper and master these techniques across a wider range of designs, my upcoming course will provide hands-on guidance and detailed tutorials. With these guidelines—and the additional support in the course—you’ll be able to create patterns that not only fit well but also look great on every dog.

Manual Grading Techniques

Manual grading was a breakthrough for me, giving me the control and insight to understand how my patterns would change when scaled up or down. Once I mastered this, I was able to move on to digital grading (which I’ll cover in the following blog post).

Here’s how I approach manual grading:

• Start with a Base Pattern: I always use the medium-sized Cozy Coat as my base pattern. It’s the most versatile and can be scaled up or down more easily. (See below for how to get the Cozy Coat pattern to practice with).
• Mark Incremental Adjustments: I use grading rulers or even a simple ruler to mark the increments where I’ll adjust the width and length. These increments depend on the size—sometimes you’ll increase by ½ inch, other times it’s smaller.
• Adjust Curves: Using French Curves for areas like the neckline or leg openings ensures a smooth transition between the original size and the graded size.
• Check Symmetry: Symmetry is key—make sure your changes on one side match the other so everything stays balanced.

If you’re just starting out, my Medium Sized Cozy Coat pattern provides a great opportunity to practice your grading skills. It’s designed to help you get comfortable with pattern adjustments. 

You can download it with a 50% off coupon—just use code Cozy50 at checkout.

Your Manual Grading Toolbox

Must-Haves for Perfect Fit:

• French Curves: For adjusting curved areas.

• Grading Rulers: To mark precise measurements.

• Pattern Notcher: For marking alignment points.

You can purchase this full set of tools using my affiliate Amazon link, which not only helps you get started but also supports me in creating more helpful blog posts - like this one 🙂

Applying Grading Techniques to Your Designs

Once you’ve mastered the key grading rules and manual techniques, it’s time to apply them to your designs. Whether you’re working on a winter coat or a rain jacket, these principles of grading will help you create patterns that are marketable and versatile across different breeds.

In my course, "From Patterns to Profits: Digitize, Grade, & Market Your Dog Wear Designs," I’ll teach you how to go beyond basic grading techniques by creating a customized size chart for your designs. You’ll discover the critical measurements for different breeds and learn how to transform your manual skills into digital tools, ensuring your patterns are professional and production-ready. This course is designed to equip you with everything you need to confidently create and sell patterns that fit a wide variety of dog breeds.

What’s Next?

So far, we’ve explored trends and niches in the dog wear business, how to measure dogs, and choosing the right fabrics. This post on grading builds on that by helping you create patterns that fit a variety of breeds.

If you're ready for the next step, my next post covers "Digitizing Your Dog Wear Patterns." In this post, I guide you through the tools and techniques to transform your designs from paper to digital formats, making your patterns more precise and scalable.

After digitizing, we’ll move on to launching and marketing your patterns, with a special focus on overcoming the common challenge of Imposter Syndrome that many creatives face.

Stay tuned for more insights—there’s much more to come!

Categories: : Grading, Sewing