Mannequin!

Mannequin heaven!
A friend of a friend was going to get rid of this, to think they’re worth hundreds!
And now it is mine
😀
 

 

 

 

 

It’s definitely a good start to use for draping, compared to my hand-made dress forms.

But there are some cons – so i remain unconvinced to fork out for a new adjustable model.

Most vintage dress forms on ebay have wheelie adjusters – this has wing nuts which are difficult to move, think 2 people + a bit of cursing. 

There is no separation between bust, waist and hips, it’s all one long panel. This means you can’t lengthen or shorten the waist.

When pinning fabric on you have to pin sideways as there’s no foam layer.

When moving parts out to make her bigger, you create gaps which can’t be pinned into, and some parts don’t line up smoothly.

The newer forms have come a long way, there are heaps of styles and prices.

The Singer 150 is about $230, it has a few not so good reviews online, it’s is very light, plasticky and difficult to pin into.

$500-$2500. Hanging models are ideal as they have legs and arms and don’t have a pole that gets in the way of putting trousers on.

$250 – $350. This site offers a good review. http://sewaholic.net/lets-talk-dress-forms-again/

$400-$500 these are what i use at tafe. I like that they’re nice and solid. It doesn’t matter that they’re not adjustable because i’m going to learn how to grade patterns. And you can always pad out areas with batting to be close to your size.

A great review http://www.serioussewing.com/2010/09/dressmakers-dummy-adjustable-dress-forms/

At least having spent the year with other seamstresses i realise i’m not the only one obsessed with mannequins. My house is slowly filling up with them though. And she’s all i have to talk to now that my housemate has moved out…