Sempstress

Print PDF

Now that I’ve got all the photography done, it’s time to pick up where we left off in The Basic Conical Torso Block (Part 1).  We’re completing a basic torso block that we can use for the simplified, conical torsos popular in Renaissance, Elizabethan, Jacobean, Pompadour, Colonial, and all other eras between the Sixteenth and Eighteenth centuries.  (She says, throwing as many keywords into one sentence as humanly possible.)  One block, three hundred years of fashion – how can you lose?

Please note, again, that I am working with a 16″ fashion doll for ease of picture taking (and model time scheduling).  She’s a Tonner/Effanbee Brenda Starr, in case anyone is doll shopping.

Preparing for Fitting

You could simply tape all your little triangles shut, tape a few long strips on to the strap stubs, and try to do the fitting with your nice, floppy piece of paper.  I’d advise against it (even when working with doll sizes) for three simple reasons.  First, all that tape looks a mess.  Secondly, paper is floppy, apt to tear or crease oddly, and generally ill-suited for even the most rudimentary fit-checks.  Thirdly, when we cut out the block, we only cut half of it and didn’t leave any extra for changes to the fit. That will make for some troubles if everything isn’t perfect.  And trust me, things are seldom ever perfect on the first go.  (If I thought it would be, we wouldn’t be talking about fittings, would we?)

You will need the paper block you've been working on, and a large piece of poster board (or some similarly stiff substance).

Draw a horizontal line in the center of the poster board.

Line up the paper block so that the Center Back line is against the horizontal line on the poster board.

Trace around the paper block, and mark the location of the shaping lines. Flip the block over, line it up, and repeat so that you have one whole, fit-able block.

Both sides should be symmetrical, and should line up evenly.

Now, go through and connect the marks you made for the shaping lines. We'll be using these in the future when we alter the block into patterns.

Make certain that the shaping lines are symmetrical on both sides of the block!

Next: Adding the straps…