Effigy pattern confusion.
It is nice to have a draped sloper that actually fits my body (when I wear the proper supportive bra). I now trust that my dress form is fairly close to actual me.
However, for the effigy pair of bodies, I am wondering if I am doing something wrong, or if I hit on doing something right. Anyone have any helpful advice?
My pattern fits the body pretty well. I don't have an ace bandage to flatten the boobs, but what I have done is match the front darts together, as well as extend the amount of the upper dart past the center front line about 1.5", as it appears that is what went on in the effigy info of Arnold's. I am having problems with the armhole area, as I am a little wider than my body double, so anything near the armhole area will be off.
Being lazy, and not sure how to close the darts without making a shaped garment (as in modern patterns), I noted that both upper and lower darts were about the same size, so I folded on the bust line the amount of the dart to close it while allowing it to remain flat. The back I left pretty much alone, using the back dart lines for the two edges of the back & side back portions (the side back is redrawn onto the front pattern as is).
Well, the upshot of doing all that is that the pattern is about 1.5" smaller in the front, which is 1/2 of the amount I had planned to take in of 3" total (this seems good). The back is not taken in at all really. Having never done this particular method, which I will admit I am doing from the book "Waisted Efforts" and not fully following his note of matching darts (that's all he says, and I think I overdid the dart matching, but I am not sure). Hmmm... I just read the book some more, and I think after dinner I will adjust the taking in, to take some in at the sides and back, too, and less up front. Still not sure what he means by his dart matching diagram. And it is hard to tell if he does any sort of compression, as he doesn't mention it for the 16th c. example of his (which is the Dorothea stays).
Oh, and in good news, I've found a variety of silk dupionni in my stash to use as the fabric, along with some pretty cotton/silk blend damasks that were large samplers - I should be able to work around the grommet in them. Not sure which I will use, but all are pretty. Deep royal blue, bright purple, or the damasks which are creams with red, med. blue, or light blue. Still not sure what to bind the stays with, tho'.
However, for the effigy pair of bodies, I am wondering if I am doing something wrong, or if I hit on doing something right. Anyone have any helpful advice?
My pattern fits the body pretty well. I don't have an ace bandage to flatten the boobs, but what I have done is match the front darts together, as well as extend the amount of the upper dart past the center front line about 1.5", as it appears that is what went on in the effigy info of Arnold's. I am having problems with the armhole area, as I am a little wider than my body double, so anything near the armhole area will be off.
Being lazy, and not sure how to close the darts without making a shaped garment (as in modern patterns), I noted that both upper and lower darts were about the same size, so I folded on the bust line the amount of the dart to close it while allowing it to remain flat. The back I left pretty much alone, using the back dart lines for the two edges of the back & side back portions (the side back is redrawn onto the front pattern as is).
Well, the upshot of doing all that is that the pattern is about 1.5" smaller in the front, which is 1/2 of the amount I had planned to take in of 3" total (this seems good). The back is not taken in at all really. Having never done this particular method, which I will admit I am doing from the book "Waisted Efforts" and not fully following his note of matching darts (that's all he says, and I think I overdid the dart matching, but I am not sure). Hmmm... I just read the book some more, and I think after dinner I will adjust the taking in, to take some in at the sides and back, too, and less up front. Still not sure what he means by his dart matching diagram. And it is hard to tell if he does any sort of compression, as he doesn't mention it for the 16th c. example of his (which is the Dorothea stays).
Oh, and in good news, I've found a variety of silk dupionni in my stash to use as the fabric, along with some pretty cotton/silk blend damasks that were large samplers - I should be able to work around the grommet in them. Not sure which I will use, but all are pretty. Deep royal blue, bright purple, or the damasks which are creams with red, med. blue, or light blue. Still not sure what to bind the stays with, tho'.