This is a question I’ve gotten a lot over the years since I started this blog. Originally, I started it to catalog my own collection of various official Lolita patterns in the Gothic and Lolita Bibles, Gosu Rori, and Otome no Sewing and it became a reference for others as well.
You need a particular pattern? Don’t know which of those books have it? I made a searchable database you could use before you went to buy the exact volume you needed. I realize that the database for the GLBs is incomplete (scanning takes a long time, guys).
No Patterns Though?
I started sharing select diagram pages from the Gosu Rori and Otome no Sewing books as well. Those are the patterns. I can’t very well scan the pattern sheets themselves, since they are too big and would need to be scaled correctly if they were to be printed.
Instead, I offered what the published books already have: the diagrams. I teach how to draft the patterns using the measurements (all those multitude of numbers!) in metric. I have videos on what tools you need, and the essentials on how to do it.
But Pattern Drafting is hard!
Pattern drafting isn’t as hard as you might think. Doing it from scratch might prove difficult, but the diagrams in all those pattern books are telling you exactly where and how long to measure lines. You can do this with one tool to start. It’s about $20 at Joann’s. You need wide format paper, found at Staples (banner paper 30″ wide, $7). You need pencils.
The moment you begin this process, you realize it becomes easier as you go. EGL patterns are hard to come by, and a lot of the first run of the Otome no Sewing books are no longer available. You could find them on ebay if drafting from the diagrams is not something your interested or comfortable in trying. Still, it’s what I offer on this site and hope that it’s useful for some.
I hope this answers some questions some of you may have had, and I’ll try to answer more as they come in.
Happy sewing!