while i was stalking craigslist for bookshelves, i came across this dress form…
for only $10! so i snatched it up. and by "snatched it up" i mean i harassed the lady via email and then drove to another town to pick it up. the lady told me the measurements beforehand, but i thought i could make it work. i thought wrong. she's adjustable. but at her smallest, she's still too large! argh!! Her bust is 39" at the smallest. mine is not.
here she is from the side. she doesn't have a stand but there is a place where you could screw one in. so right now she's just relaxing in my sewing space, not doing any work at all! lazy Tallia! i've started calling her Tallia because it says "taille" around her waist. which i've now figured out…
so Tallia will be going back on craigslist. and i'll have to keep looking. $10 was too good to be true. (but i did find 3 great bookcases at a steal!)
do you have a dress form you love? tell me about it!
Bummer, but at least she was only $10! I have a dress form who's a bit too big for me, but I make it work. I still really just use the "pin it on my body" method that I learned in my high school years....despite years of working in a costume shop and being forced to use dress forms ;)
ReplyDeleteWorking in a costume shop sounds like fun! But maybe when it's "work," it sucks the joy out of it?
DeleteI never had home ec in high school, and my college didn't have anything remotely sewing related. I did sign up for a class called "Textiles" (i needed more elective credits and they only let you take jogging and aerobics so many times), and then i went to the first day of class and learned that it was only about home decor fabrics (no sewing whatsoever). The interior design students looked at me like i was insane - "why is this non-interior design student in our class and doesn't she know this class is super difficult and the books are ridiculously expensive?" I didn't go to the second day of that class. (Luckily a spot opened up in a photography class that I was on a wait-list for.)
Hehe, I used to have one just like that, but it must have been a smaller size! Then I had one custom made but the bust is still a bit too big! Good luck with your search for a new one! A dress form that fits is a huge bonus.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your lovely comment on my blog :)
I'm wondering if there was ever an easy fix you came up with for the bust being too big? I got mine at an auction and she is 2 inches larger in the chest than I am, but that's my only complaint!
DeleteHi lsmith! If you fitted a bodice very tightly to your form, that would give you 2 inches of ease, which might work? I actually never got rid of the dressform in this post, but recently found a smaller singer dressform secondhand. I've also been looking at some nicer ones that Roxy Display sells on amazon that are around $220 if I wanted to spend a little more, but still not as pricey as the fancy Wolf or PGM forms.
DeleteCustom would be nice! I've heard of Andy's and Wolf, but they're more than I want to spend right now since I'm just a beginner. I looked at some adjustable ones by Dritz or Singer. I wonder if one of those brands is better than the other? Or if there is a different brand I should consider? (less than $200) I'll keep stalking craigslist for now and hope i get lucky!
ReplyDelete$10?! That's awesome! I love dress forms, and I really want one, one day :)
ReplyDelete♥ Naomi {Starry Eyes + Coffee Cups}
If the size will work for you and you want to come pick her up, she's all yours, just $10! Sadly I'm too small in the chest area for her to work for me. I'm going to keep looking.
DeleteThat's too bad! My dress form is like having an extra set of hands. Although I don't absolutely love it. It's too lightweight and gets knocked over a lot when I'm working on it. I wish I had one of the nicer, more substantial dress forms but they are EXPENSIVE! Keep looking on Craigslist!
ReplyDeleteWhat type did you buy? Some of the nice ones are around $800 (and up!!) and i'm not ready to splurge like that =) I might be able to spend up to around $200 tops.
DeleteIf i'm going to spend more than that, I'd be tempted to spend the money on a serger (ohh maybe i can find one of those on craigslist too, but then it's a risk if it's in good working order or not. and threading one intimidates me.)
Wait for a sale at the fabric store - they usually go on sale for Christmas and Mother's Day for around $100. =)
ReplyDeleteI have a whole "family" of dress forms. Just look for one with four legs because 3-legs tend to tip over easily. I'm pretty happy with the Dritz form I have in my size. (Singer is good too but I prefer a grey or neutral cover to the red that most modern Singer brand forms are.)
Someday, maybe I will splurge on an expensive Wolfe brand, but a real body is still better than any dress form out there. Good luck in your search!
Why not try to preform a "breast reduction" on her. For only ten dollars I'd at least see if it is do-able. :)
ReplyDelete