Fatlady Tailors Dummy

June 1, 2007 4:36 PM

I need to make myself a full-size tailors dummy - suggestions for material and construction please?

I make a lot of my own clothes because I'm a big woman and rather oddly shaped. However, I'm a bit tired of having to put projects on hold until I can take them to my mother so that she can help me measure and pin things on. (Have you ever tried to make an even hem when you've got a huge butt?? It's not as easy as you think!)

A tailors dummy would solve the problem BUT I can't find one in my size (about a 24) NOR can I afford the $150-and-very-much-upwards price tag that comes with even the most basic affair.

Ideally, I'd like to mock up a manniquin with my measurements in something that can be pinned to without bursting, is firm enough to hang things off and which is soft enough to be wrestled in and out of fitted items.

I was thinking of using some sort of high-density foam on a stand, but was trying to think of an alternative to whittling the foam into the right dimensions.

Any brilliant suggestions, Hive Mind?

posted by ninazer0 to clothing, beauty, & fashion (7 comments total)

These methods?
posted by amber_dale at 4:47 PM on June 1, 2007

There is an article on the duct tape method with lots of step-by-step photos here.
posted by amber_dale at 4:52 PM on June 1, 2007

Many serious home sewers consider a duct tape dummy better than the store bought kind anyway, given that they are about as close as you can get to capturing your every measurement.
posted by slow graffiti at 5:41 PM on June 1, 2007

This article has a method:
http://www.taunton.com/threads/pages/t00002.asp
posted by np312 at 7:19 PM on June 1, 2007

Brilliant! The duct tape dummy is exactly what I'm after. My husband is going to have some fun with this, methinks!
posted by ninazer0 at 12:10 AM on June 2, 2007

A few extra tips on making a dummy: The process goes much quicker if your helper preps a bunch of the tape strips in advance. (Or recruit a third helper to do nothing but cut tape.) If you've got a pile of plastic grocery bags collecting somewhere, use 'em for dummy stuffing. It's cheaper than batting by a long shot. You'll also want to reinforce the bust area while stuffing, otherwise it'll cave in. I recommend getting a 4-5" styrofoam ball at a craft store, sawing it in half, and taping the halves in.
posted by Vervain at 10:04 AM on June 2, 2007

My sister and my mom did this for my sister, except I believe they were using paper mache. It ended up being one of those long, hysterical stories that ended with her waddling sideways down our front steps (because the dummy part went to mid-thigh) and across the street to get to our neighbor's hair dryer so that she could dry herself out in a hurry and get on with her plans that night.

Obviously, this has lost something in the retelling. Such is life.

So, yes, your husband will have fun with it. My mom was in tears when she was telling me the story.
posted by natabat at 11:56 AM on June 4, 2007