So here is 33-year old Dorothy you will be seeing a lot of her on this blog. Over the years she has acquired a bit of a lean but otherwise is good as new. She certainly is a big help in the sewing room.
I managed to get her to nearly body double status with the help of a bra stuffed with kapok and a bit of quilt batting to replicate the fluffy bits. All covered by a cheap t-shirt to help the padding stay in place.
Here is Dorothy modelling the pattern piece for an Issey Miyake blouse Vogue 2056 copyrighted 1988. I am trying to work out how to make the hips wider and shoulders a bit less 80's looking and then it may become an actual garment.
Dorothy is named after my mum who was also a sewer but more importantly she always wished she had my boobs. So she got her wish as my dressmakers dummy.
Mum had her own body double which was plastic coated wire mesh that you squished to the body then took off and put on the stand. My dad and I spent many a happy hour fitting me into the wire mesh but we could never get it off and have it still resemble me. It also bent out of shape when you accidentally banged into it. So armed with my accumulated monthly clothing allowance off I went to the local Singer shop to purchase my Venus "turn and lock" dressmakers dummy. Luckily Dad learnt quickly that a monthly clothing allowance was the easiest way to keep his teenage daughter clothed and I learnt that I could get more of the clothes I wanted if I made them myself.
Dorothy has had other modelling assignments over the years but luckily seems to like it best sitting quietly in the sewing room. Although she did look very smart in her nurses uniform. Amazing what happens when people realise you sew.
It's impressive that Dorothy has been in service so long and she is quite well travelled as well :-)
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