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A revolutionary online membership that transforms frustrated sewists into confident dressmakers

Make Dresses,
Confidently

  • Break free from commercial patterns
  • Take the guesswork out of fitting
  • Create your bespoke tailored wardrobe, that is uniquely you

Hi!  I’m Neda Niquie, and I teach the fine art of dressmaking.

I've been sewing and making dresses for over 20 years.

Besides building a high-end bridal brand, and getting published in magazines such as Vogue, Brides, Martha Stewart, and many others, I've also helped hundreds of sewists gain confidence in making dresses that fit perfectly.

I invite you to see our members' works, explore our dress project courses, or read our blog.

Latest Dress Project Courses

Amanda

Brooke

 Amanda Jacket

Vionnet

Sienna

Ashley

Charlie

Diana

Olivia

Diana

Barbara

Corset Draping Course

Debbie

Elena Skirt

Charlie

Ava

Emily

Freya

Debbie

Julia

Hailey

Charlie

Alex Blush

I loved that each class is taught with such meticulous detail that beginners and experienced students could learn.

The custom padded dress form was worth all of the time and the investment in the program.

Since starting the workshop I have not purchased a commercial pattern as it has given me the confidence to create almost anything.
Dana Jones
U.S.A
To this day I still can’t believe after following Neda's instructions that I was able to create beautiful dresses for myself.

What made this even more unbelievable was that I started as a beginner sewer, and now I am able to drape, draft patterns, and sew dresses that fit me perfectly .
Melanie Hoh
Australia
I have learnt a whole new side to fashion and dressmaking that I wouldn’t have had access to without Neda and her amazing course.

Without her patient instructions, I would still be floundering with patterns that don’t fit me and getting frustrated.
Carli Beange
Australia
Neda tutorials take you through each step of the process with such detail you never feel like you are having to guess.

I can honestly say this course has given me the skills and the belief that I can create amazing gowns.
Leah Morris
United Kingdom
I have sewed off and on most of my adult life but only from patterns.

I had always wanted to learn how to make my own patterns but had no idea how to even start.

It always seemed so complicated but after this class with Neda – wow I was well on my way.
Wanda Stewart
U.S.A
I never imagined creating my own clothes from scratch.

During this class I've sewn a corset and just finished my first gown, things I never thought I'd be capable of doing.

This is from a beginner who had only sewn one dress before - from a store pattern.
Tiffany Benson
Finland
I have sewn for over 30 years but I've learned so much more from Neda.

She is on hand to help with any questions and goes above and beyond to help.

I would recommend Draping Society to anyone who wants to create great fitting garments.
Christine Chambers
United Kingdom
I have started as a novice on draping, and now I can make all my dresses to my body measurements!

They fit like gloves and make me feel a million dollars!!

My life changed for the better, I feel like I can do anything now and that’s a wonderful feeling.
Sonia Yabiku
United Kingdom
Neda teaches in a way that everyone can understand, even people that had not sewn clothes before have gained a lot of confidence and made their own dresses.

After Neda's classes, I feel way more confident in what I can do and feel more inspired to continue learning and create my own wardrobe.
Bety Estrella
U.S.A
I am not an experienced seamstress and never attempted any dress making, I only understood one material… cotton-batik for quilting.

Now I can proudly talk about my brocade cocktail dress, my silk dinner dress, my vinyl (yes you read this correct!) corset and my satin crepe evening gown!

I am just blown away!
Pascale Eeckelers
France
Within one month of finishing her course I have designed, draped and constructed my own gown.

I’m certain without Neda’s course and care, it would’ve taken me years to get to where I am now.

She has given me the confidence and motivation to keep pursuing my passion.
Sarah Jones
U.S.A

What is Draping Society?

— “‘I LOVE making dresses, but getting caught in a spin of fitting confusion has sucked the life out of my sewing room.”‘

I hear this a lot from struggling sewists.
Honestly, any sane person would feel that way.

To make a simple, decent & wearable dress:

  • They spend hours/days looking for a pattern
  • Tape together & decode the patterns
  • Then struggle for days & weeks altering patterns to get a proper fit!


But, what if there was an easier way?

Through my 20+ years of sewing professionally, I built an easy system that anyone can follow & make any dress they want, in any size/shape they want.

I call this system, ‘Direct Construction Method’, and it’s what I teach in our dressmaking membership.

Draping Society is a Year-Round Workshop, Where You:

Create Your Own Patterns and Garments From Scratch,

Draping Society is a year-round workshop where you'll be creating well-fitted patterns & turning them into garments from scratch.

You’ll create your bespoke tailored wardrobe, that is uniquely you.

Learn Through Detailed, Step-by-Step Dress Projects,

Each design project comes with extended detailed videos on every single step from choosing a design & modifying for your shape, creating the pattern, fitting, choosing the right fabrics, cutting, sewing & high-end finishing.

Develop Custom Base Blocks to Expand Your Design Options,

You'll unlock your creativity by first making your custom-fit blocks, then using them to create finished patterns & create many more design options.

And Get Personal Help & Feedback On Every Step!

You’ll get personal attention & feedback on your projects during our weekly Live Sessions, where all member questions get answered, and new design demonstrations are shared.

Some of our Students' Works

See More

Who is it for?

Draping Society welcomes sewists of all skill levels, from beginners to experts.

Our community includes:

  • Newcomers discovering the joy of sewing
  • Hobbyists improving their craft
  • Experienced makers seeking fresh ideas
  • Boutique owners creating custom garments
  • Designers exploring new creative paths

We're a supportive group that celebrates each step of your sewing journey. Draw on our shared knowledge and experience to help you grow.

Our weekly support & guidance extends beyond the included dress projects.

Feel free to bring us:

  • Your unique design ideas
  • Special commissions
  • Professional challenges


From quiet sewing rooms to busy workshops, Draping Society is where creativity thrives. We value & celebrate every member's artistic journey, every step of the way.

WEEKLY

Workshops

LIVE

Every week, we have Live Sessions where I give feedback to everyone's projects, answer all questions, and do Live Demonstrations for various techniques.

Members either submit their questions in advance, or join us live for a more interactive Q&A session.

All Live Sessions are recorded & available in the archive.

Next live session:

December 13th, Friday @ 3:00 PM GMT
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Live Q&A Session

with Neda Niquie

RECENT LIVE SESSIONS

November 22nd, 2024
2:34:02
Side-Draped Pants Development: Converting Draped Design to Wearable Pattern
In this week's session, I demonstrated how to transform our previous draping experiment into a workable pattern for draped pants. We focused on translating the draped design we created last week into a flat pattern, making technical adjustments and testing the first prototype.
November 15th, 2024
1:54:57
Creating Original Side-Draped Pants Design Using DDM Technique
In today's session, I demonstrated a new pants design featuring an innovative side drape detail that can be adjusted for different effects. I showed how manipulating the drape placement and length dramatically changes the silhouette, working with both jersey and woven fabrics to explore the possibilities.
November 8th, 2024
2:26:49
DDM Draped Sleeve Variations & Techniques
In this session, I demonstrated different ways to create draped sleeve variations using our DDM Creative Draping technique. I explored various sleeve styles, from simple draped designs to more complex versions with pleats and ruching, showing how the same technique can produce dramatically different effects depending on fabric choice and placement.
  • WHAT OUR COMMUNITY SAYS ABOUT US
Helen Madge
United Kingdom

Draping Society is amazing and I have loved seeing its content expanding every week since it started.

The website is great for navigating quickly to the most recent live session or dropping you back on your last visited project. The projects are a good variety with different learning in each one.

The quality of the lessons is amazing in content and production quality. There is so much and each project is covered in so much detail and with the weekly lives any extra questions are answered in-depth if there is anything you need extra help with and these are also all stored for later if needed on the site.

To be honest everything else pales into insignificance compared to what Neda brings (sorry Josh, I know you work really hard on the site and it is amazing).

Neda just exudes warmth, friendliness and so much enthusiasm for what she is doing it is totally infectious. She is a great teacher and knows the subject so well but what really makes the difference is how much she loves the subject and how passionate she is about it. She really wants to help and is so engaged with people in their long lives each week.

The commitment is above and beyond with them finding out what people want and tailoring it going forward with that in mind. The effort they are putting into adding to the site is massive and shows from the quality of the site and its contents.

I would happily stay if it was just a weekly live with Neda but with the website as well with all previous projects and guides you really can’t beat it so I am looking forward to being a long time member.

Ann Larocque
Canada

Hi!! My name is Ann and I am a very happy Draping Society member.

My new goal, after sewing for over 50 years, was to improve my sewing methodology. Fashion and developing my own patterns has been an interest of mine, but I really didn’t know how to go about it.
Sewing… YOU’RE ALWAYS ALONE!!
Until I met Neda Niquie! I started draping the Alexander McQueen Dress. I followed Neda’s draping process, and to my surprise, the dress came together!! Whoa!!

The online course way exceeded my expectations.
I was NO LONGER ALONE!! I’ve made an effort to get involved by sewing every presented project and attending Live Q&A’s (when possible, otherwise watching the video later) and communicating to the other Draping Society members. Neda makes an effort to acknowledge YOU during Live Q&A’s, which makes me feel present in her class! I feel like I’m important to her. She quickly responds to any issues or questions you have.

I’m so happy I discovered Neda and hope to one day meet her and Josh in person. Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks!!! Thanks Neda and Josh!!

Christine Bywater
United Kingdom

I am so happy I joined Draping Society, Neda's teaching is so clear.
She is on hand to help with any questions and goes above and beyond to help.

I have sewn for over 30 years but I've learned so much more from Neda.

From Neda's teachings I draped and created a beautiful dress and jacket for my stepdaughters wedding.
Josh is a great technical help with the website too. Nothing seems too much trouble.
I would recommend Draping Society to anyone who wants to create great fitting garments. Thank you Neda and Josh.

Nicola Smith
United Kingdom

Although I’ve been sewing prolifically for 40 years I’m still learning every moment on the Draping Society.

The videos are clear and precise and the regular Q/A livestreams are invaluable to ask questions and to get your work checked. It’s also a wonderful supportive community so you can ask questions from within the group.

You can be as active or as passive as you like depending on what’s going on in your life.
You can learn by just watching the work of others or you can keep up with draping and making plan, and be productive.

From beginners to experienced you can set your own learning speed and develop at your own pace. Neda is a genius and Josh is a tech wizard. Together they are priceless.

I hesitated for 6 months but now I’m in, I don’t regret a penny. Do it!

Karen Avery
U.S.A

Draping Society membership has opened up my sewing creativity!

I've gained much needed skills and the confidence to make clothing that fits my body shape. The Direct Construction Method (DCM) allows me to start from a dress form padded to represent me. Then move to make and adjust my pattern to assure I can sew the pieces together correctly.
Yes we make patterns!

The added bonus are the technical skill sets from understanding fabric differences, to drafting difficult pieces such as sleeves and collars. Neda shows us how. Her tutorials are easy to follow. Watch as often as needed. Yeah!

The best part, I can learn at my pace while having access to a 'Draping Expert.'
The professional website is easy to use.

Please know Neda doesn't teach us how to sew. She's teaching us DCM; a skill set that opens up a whole new world!

Dawn Hoff
United Kingdom

I am so glad I joined the Draping Society! I love the projects so far and using my draping skills from your DCM Masterclass keeps me fresh and on my toes with my skills.

My "Amanda" dress fits me perfectly.
I look forward to more fun projects!

Heather Brown
U.S.A

I have been with Neda since August of 2021. I also joined as a Founding Member in Draping Society.

The classes are informative and easy to follow as Neda and Josh include the members in everything.
Their honesty and kindness and patience in teaching and running these classes is wonderful.

If not for their knowledge and help in every aspect of clothing design, I would have given up.
Although they don't see me very much. I am here learning and creating lovely cloths for myself and my granddaughters.

If you are considering joining, I would highly recommend it to you and wish you all the best in your journey with us.

Join our family!

More Than Just Courses, We're a Community of Dressmaking Enthusiasts

The 'Draping Society' Facebook Group is our community forum that's going to connect you with hundreds of other dressmakers just like you.

STUDENTS' WORKS

OUR MEMBERSHIP INCLUDES:

VAST COURSE LIBRARY

Access 100+ hours of amazing, in-depth dressmaking lessons including hours of step-by-step instruction, and Demo Sessions covering various techniques.

DRESSMAKERS' PATH

The ultimate step-by-step learning system for dressmakers. Transform your dressmaking skills through structured, accountable learning. Eight specific levels from super beginner to finishing a complete dress project.

So you know exactly how much progress you've made and exactly where to go next.

WEEKLY LIVE-STREAM SEMINARS

Each week we do a Live Session where Neda answers everyone's questions, provides feedback on their progress & their work, and also does Live Demos for various specific techniques.

These all get recorded for future reference within our archive.

DIRECT FEEDBACK AND DIRECTION

Get direct feedback and answers to all your burning questions from Neda herself, and your fellow members through our Live Sessions, community group, or by contacting our support team directly.

AWESOME COMMUNITY

Connect with fellow sewists from around the world who are just like you in our community group. Our members are focused on getting their dressmaking to the next level, but also on helping other students around them. They’ll be there for you 24/7.

COURSE RESOURCES

Each course is accompanied by detailed PDFs that include a project overview, materials information, and muslin preparation steps.

Join our family!

More Than Just Courses, We're a Community of Dressmaking Enthusiasts

The 'Draping Society' Facebook Group is our community forum that's going to connect you with hundreds of other dressmakers just like you.