There were shouts and exclamations of delight as Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon told the 53 men and women at a demonstration of the Lutterloh method of garment pattern-making that the ministry would be giving each of them the full system, valued at $950 each.
Gopee-Scoon made the announcement at the beginning of the tenth class in the method at the Jimmy Aboud store on Henry Street, Port of Spain, on Wednesday.
The classes were led out by Frank T Lutterloh, grandson of the originators of the method. They were held on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, with four hour-long classes each day, and 50 participants per class. Lutterloh said 100 people turned up to the first class on Monday, so the class had to be split in two.
At least 600 people turned up in total over the three days.
Lutterloh said his grandmother developed the method in 1935, and his family had been using it to develop patterns for all sizes and body types, including putting out fashion lines four to five times a year. Currently he and his three siblings run it, and they are looking to pass it to a fourth generation.
He said it is based on the golden rule, and the fact that parts of the body are proportionate to each other. For example, the width of the outstretched arms is equal to the height of the body, and the measurement between the elbow and the wrist is equal to the length of the foot.
The system uses bust and hip measurements, together with a special tape measure, to create a dressmaking pattern.
Lutterloh showed participants how to draw a vest pattern using their personal measurements and the specially developed sizing scale, how to connect the dots using a tailor's curve, how to add darts and buttons using the special ruler which comes with the system, and how to amend the pattern depending on the person’s height or lack thereof, and their figure.
The full system kit comes with the tape measure, rulers, pins, and over 280 patterns developed by the Lutterloh family.
Before the first class on Wednesday, Lutterloh demonstrated the system using Gopee-Scoon’s own measurements. She was in awe of how simple it was, and told Newsday she intended to get someone to make the vest for her.
Jimmy Aboud Textiles director Gregory Aboud said the course had been going on for more than 15 years pre-covid19.
“Mr Lutterloh said TT always surprises him by the interest, because the people are more interested in sewing and the system than any of the other 17 countries he goes to in Central America, South America and all other Caribbean islands.
"TT beats itself up a lot, complaining about each other. We start thinking we are different peoples living in one country instead of one people with differences.
“(But) every person in this room, especially the women we see as our customers, comes with one mission in mind, whether it’s to save money or to look good for an event, or to improve themselves or their lives, or to sew something for somebody else, and it
