Dressmaking without a dummy... is it possible?

[workwoes123]

I'd love to start dressmaking - tops mostly, as I have big boobs / broad back and it's so difficult to find a good fit off the shelf. But I live in a 2 bed flat with DH and two teens... we really don't have room for a dressmaking dummy to sit out all the time! I can just about create a pack-away-able sewing set up, but I don't want anything sitting out permanently.

What do you think?

My mum is a keen dressmaker but she currently has a double bedroom filled with all her equipment and heaps of space. Is it doable on less?

Yes it is possible. I have a dressmaker's dummy now, but didn't for many years. I remember setting in sleeves on the back of a dining chair. Just keep trying it on! And if you can bear it, make a toile out of cheap fabric first so you can faff about with that and do your learning where it doesn't matter.

Of course it is! I make loads of clothes and no longer have a dressmakers dummy. Just work to your measurements and then keep trying it on as pp says. Go for it OP!

I've been dressmaking for 30+ years and have never used a dummy.

I sew all the time and have never used a dummy, wouldn't know where to begin, I'd like one for my sewing space but only as an ornament

No dummy here either - and I fit a very nice sleeve if I say so myself .

Yep no problem. I make most of my clothes and don’t have one. I hang off hangers or drape on a chair back.

Yes perfectly possible. As pp says just keep trying it on.
Warning - As space is an issue you'll need to keep each piece of fabric in a sealed bag in a locked draw in a different room - otherwise they will breed the minute your back is turned. It's the only explanation for every dressmaker's ever growing stash!

I do have one but can manage without it. I mostly use it as somewhere to keep projects I'm in the middle of which could easily be replaced with a coat hanger.

My top tip would be a magnetic pin holder and be very very strict with yourself about how much room you have for patterns and fabric.

Wow thanks for all the encouragement! I’m definitely going to give it a go.

And for the warning ;-) I’m usually quite good at decluttering but fabrics are so lovely…

I’ve been a seamstress for years and have just sold my dummy on ebay as I didn’t use it enough! I have blocks which I made to my measurements so can pretty much adjust or make patterns to fit perfectly. I suggest you go to a clothes making class or look up on You tube about how to make full bust adjustments to patterns and make an initial block pattern out of calico or an old sheet and learn how to get it to fit,. A class is the most useful as sometimes it helps to have someone else pin the fabric to your body and show you where to cut and alter the pattern.

A shift dress is one of the most useful garments to make to learn about fitting and making adjustments - once you have got that right you havre got the bust, waist and hips perfectly sized and in the right places for you. The big pattern companies like McCalls and Simplicity sell a fit pattern shift dress which is often used in clothesmaking classes to teach students how to measure and fit a garment.

Warning - As space is an issue you'll need to keep each piece of fabric in a sealed bag in a locked draw in a different room - otherwise they will breed the minute your back is turned. It's the only explanation for every dressmaker's ever growing stash!*

Absolutely correct. I swear I have a very strict rule about not buying fabric unless I’ve completed all project plans with existing fabric. And yet it appears somehow.