I have an adjustable dress form that is not adjustable to my size (my bottom is too large). I was ok with that because I could use it for smaller standard sizes. However, some of the internal workings have broken so the vertical adjustment is no longer working properly.
Because I can no longer use the full functionality of the adjustment, I decided to fix the form into one size and add padding where necessary to match my body size! This way I can finally use it to make clothes for myself.
I wish I could claim credit for the BBL joke, but I saw it in the ‘Stitch Happens by Tamaria’ video where she upgraded her dress form to her size. I watched this video to get an idea of how I could achieve this upgrade. In the end, I used a slightly different approach because I don’t have some of the material she uses.
The issue with the dress form was the vertical adjustment: the lower body can be lowered to increase the torso length but the mechanism had gotten worn so the lower body would drop down to the lowest point instead of stay in place at any other vertical point. At each of the four openings (front, back, and sides) I used metal wire to tie the lower body to the upper body:
I then cut furniture stuffing (it’s not quite like foam but it’s also not the loose kind of wadding you see in decorative cushions or stuffed animals) to go around the bum area as well as the sides and stitched it onto the fabric of the dress form to keep it in place:
After creating a fabric shell, I realised that the tummy area as well as the lower back/upper bum area were a bit flat, so I added some wadding there too:
The shell is made from a non-stretch fabric I had lying around. I basically made a mini skirt (without a waist band) and with a double-layer flap for the back. I created a tunnel at the bottom for elastic cord, and I handstitched the back closed onto the dress form. This way the shell is secured in place but I can still remove it if I need to adjust the dress form when I lose/gain weight.
I hope this inspires you to adjust your dress form to fit you if you have a non-standard or larger size. I am now ready to start making the active-wear trousers I recently designed. I will share the process in a future blog post!
