UPDATE - Making my own Dress Form / Continuation of:
Post #4
Hi ladies!
Woof! I'm finally done! Before we get to that let's take a step back, again I'm following along with Kelly Hogaboom and I'm on Post #4: Inner Support, Stuffing and Mounting.
KH direct link:
https://kelly.hogaboom.org/2017/08/bootstrap-dress-form-tutorial-inner-support-stuffing-mounting/
As previously stated, I sewed up the armhole and covered it now it's time to use pattern piece Armhole Cardboard #18 (instead hubby cut two 1/4" thick wooden armhole plates) and Armhole Cover Stabilizer #9. As seen below adding the stabilizer can be tricky no matter what sewing foot you use. Some found it easier to hand sew the cover on and I'm one of them.
The following images are from Kelly's website!
Through my research I found if you took the time to hand baste the armhole cover and hand sew the stabilizer it will prevent unevenness and puckers. This is key as it's very visible. Oh, I'll get to the
Red Arrow soon! Stay focused on the unevenness and puckers.
INNER SUPPORT – What makes this pattern remarkable is BootStrap Fashions included an internal support system that is attached to the inside of the front and back seams which in turn acts like a stabilizer helping maintain your actual body shape. However, it is very confusing to construct as many have reported. According to CCCouture at Pattern Review dot com, she states:
“On the Front INNER SUPPORT Stabilizer pattern piece, the pattern piece was a little confusing as to what should be the cut line. Refer to the INNER SUPPORT Section Page 27 of the Instructions (Photo Step 1), and you will see that the Seam Allowance is about 3/4 inch rather than the 3/8.”
Hmm. Looking at the photos on pages 27 and 28 I would have to agree. The seam allowance deviation actually occurs on pattern pieces Front Inner Support Stabilizer #14 and Back Inner Support Stabilizer #15, have a look see:
Going through many reviews and tutorials CCCoutour is the only person to point this out which I found very interesting, I missed it too.
Many who have posted their review have repeated the same “do not over stuff” well considering this just added 3/4'" to your overall dimension it's something to keep in mind.
At this point and far too along, I used the seam allowance set on the pattern. I do plan on making another dress form and if I find this discrepancy to be true I’ll adjust my pattern then.
Having sewn the support on the inside of the form I'm now ready to cut my sponge. Fair warning, this is a bit wonky! In referring to the instructions on page 34, it shows an image of pattern piece
Neck Top #13 however there is NO pattern #13 on my pdf. I fervently believe it doesn’t exist but that's okay we can use Neck Top #11.
In a video tutorial by Stephanie Farrell she uses pattern Neck Top #11
with the 3/8” seam allowance intact. But by doing so she has now added more to her neck circumference.
Stephanie's video tutorial:
Watch out, she's absolutely adorable!
I used the same pattern but removed the seam allowance. K.H. used an electric carving knife to cut her foam. I used a serrated bread knife to cut mine and then stuffed the sponge inside the neck channel and measured a perfect 13”. Easy!
Do you see that
red arrow and remember the double one before Inner Support? Many believe the rod will support the neck, this is not true. There is a gap between the lower neck line and the top of the supporting rod anywhere from 1.5" to 2.5" it was too difficult to get a proper measurement but I solved this by stuffing this area
firmly.
Installing the dress form to the base. There are three things I did differently here. My base is 1/2" thick ply wood not cardboard. I used snaps instead of cutting two zippers and I added tabs with the intentions of adding a DIY metal hemming cage. I'll sew snaps there so I can remove it and add another style if needed. Having a removable hemming cage is important to me as is the ability to raise and lower my dress form. For this project I used an expandable shower curtain rod. All you do is turn the rod to expand or in my case raise or lower the dress form.
My Mini Me
Cheers!
PS. I forget to add, I wanted a wood base to staple the fringes rather than gluing them. If I need to add more poly or make minor tweaks I can do so without damaging anything.