Call me!

[msmcknittington]

I really want to order my dressmaker's dummy. I'm prepared; I have the funds. I finally got a newsletter from All Brands, and I'm ready to use my discount code. Five dollars off! That's like a quarter of the shipping charges.

But Uniquely You won't return my phone calls, and apparently they don't have a website. I called them on Thursday before noon and left a message on their answering machine, thinking they'd call me back on Monday. Only they didn't. So I called again on Tuesday. Still no response. People, this is no way to run a business. Seriously, phone calls should be returned within two days.

Since I'd like to have my dummy before May, so I can set the skirt of my kirtle on it and think of a clever name for her, I'm turning to my friends list to figure out what size I should pick. I know at least a couple of you have Uniquely You dummies.

So the sitch is this: I'm between sizes on the chart at All Brands. My hips currently measure 41 inches, which tells me to select a size Medium form, but my bust measurement is 43 inches, which pushes me up a form size. Unfortunately, my waist measurement is currently 31 inches, and that's too small for a Medium-Large sized form.

Apart from the challenge of being shaped like an egg-timer, I also need to consider corsetry, since I'd like to use this for historic costuming, too. My Tudorbethan stuff take about an inch off my waist, but my Victorian corset (which languishes as muslin), gives me a waist measurement of 27 inches, no problem. I could get smaller, but it laces closed at this point. Should I just write off being able to match my corseted measurements with a Uniquely You dummy and just keep my duct tape double around for that?

Right now, I think I'll order a Medium dummy with a size 9 cover. Does that sound like the best choice to everyone? Am I overthinking this?

_{P.S. tattycat I've named the icon I'm using with this post "Hoof Hearted." *immature giggle storm*}

Comments

[bklynwebgrrl.livejournal.com]

I have no idea. I hate when they only give you medium or large... like people can fit in one.

My grandmother has one where you dial the size. It has a spring of five inches so you can alter it per project depending. She sews for multiple people sometimes so she needed flexibility.

I would go with the waist and maybe pad the other parts with batting and cover with muslin to compensate...

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

I decided against a dialed form because they don't handle extreme differences between bust/hip and waist measurements very well. I think the number that most people found it stopped being useful was a difference of about 8 inches, and my difference is more like 13 inches.

Also, the Uniquely You form is cheaper and has better reviews. So score!

[h0taru.livejournal.com]

Thank you for telling me (well, us) that! I'm not really a sewer YET but the dial-a-form seemed really cool. My hip to waist ratio is a difference of 14" though. Glad to have not wasted my money yet.

(8 inches? That's IT? I mean, it's not like 8 inches is small :: snerk snerk ::, but a LOT of women have a bigger difference than that).

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I thought it was kind of poorly thought out, as well. I think I first read about it in the comments section on Joann.com. From what I read about dials popping off, springs wearing out, and difficulty in getting it to remotely resemble a human form, I decided my money was better spent on a UY form.