Draping is an art and forms an important aspect of designing. When a garment is draped on a structure, it must express fall, fluidity and fold.
Draping is the art of clothing arrangement loosely or casually on or around dress form. In fashion designing, fashion draping is the main part of garment design. Fashion draping is the process of positioning and pinning fabric on a dress form to develop a clothing design into a three-dimensional form.
Draping certainly adds an element of interest to any garment. Every designer must know the art of draping a garment to bring out the best design. If you want to highlight a particular area of a garment, then you can add pleats, gathers or tucks.
With draping, you can effortlessly transform a simple garment into an elegant one. Learn the art of draping so you too can add a twist of style.

Draping offers an alternative method of creating a pattern by working directly on the stand with fabric. It offers immediate results but requires a level of dexterity and manipulative skills, which can be taught and developed with practice. For some designers this is a more intuitive process; one that can help to confirm the visualization process needed to realize a three-dimensional form.

Draping does not reflect usual methods of production in industry but does offer a designer the creative experience of exploring the relationship between shape and fit. It can be readily applied to a variety of woven and knitted fabrics and used to create fitted shapes as well as to drape fullness around the body. It is more usually applied to womenswear than to menswear; in particular, bias cut styles, eveningwear, bridalwear and experimental shapes where immediate results can be obtained.
Fashion draping is otherwise known as toiling or modelling. Fashion draping is the manipulation of two-dimensional fabrics on a three-dimensional torso or body form to get a perfect fit. The dress form generally used for draping is a muslin padded dress form, positioned in an adjustable stand that duplicates the human body structure. The dress form should be firm, yet resilient and should not resist pins.

Best Fabrics used for Draping

Mostly soft fabrics such as satin, silk, chiffon, georgette and lycra are best suited for draping. The reason being that these fabrics are soft and thus has a great fall. Other fabrics such as jute, linen and knitted fabrics are stiff and hence lack fluidity. Therefore, most evening gowns, ballroom dresses, etc. are cut from soft fabric that has a smooth fall.

Types of Drapes

Draping can be a tricky part of designing a garment but when appropriately applied it can bring out the best. There are numerous ways of achieving drapes in a garment. Some of the best examples of drapes are gathers, pleats, tucks and ruching. In a subject such as fashion designing, learning how to create different drapes can add immense beauty and style to a finished outfit.

Blog By:-
Ms. Ritu Sharma Soni
HOD – Department of Fashion Designing
Biyani Institute of Skill Development