WANNA BE-Dressmaker's Dummy (the last in a series)

Whenever I’ve seen ads for dressmaker dummies they’re in petite sizes. Sure they have the knob to adjust but I’ve yet to see one that can adjust to my proportions. My bust is one thing, my waist another (not to mention the apron around my middle) and my hips are considered off the chart. (but I love them)
 Sure I can have one custom made but I’m frugal.
Let’s face it people. I wanna be a sewer but so far I’ve just been blowing smoke so why waste money.

I once subscribed to Threads magazine. There was an article titled Clone Yourself a Fitting Assistant. You can find the directions here.

There's also another one here

My niece helped me make mine. Actually, I guess she really did all of the work. I stood there turning periodically while she wrapped me in duct tape. This is a two person job and it takes a couple of hours.
TWO IMPORTANT TIPS1.Get someone to help you that won’t make fun of your cottage cheese thighs.

2. Don’t drink liquids before this project. Pee before you begin.Abbreviated Directions (See the link for the real deal)

* I stripped down to panties and bra (make sure you keep the girls lifted) and put on a clean, old, tee shirt that I would never wear again. (The one with the tomato sauce stains and coffee stains that you couldn’t remove will do fine).
* My niece began tearing off strips of duct tape (I don’t remember the number of rolls or the yardage I purchased) and sticking them to the tee shirt.
* When it comes to the bust area it’s best to use crosswise strips.
* At the neck and arms wrap the areas near the skin with plastic wrap so that the duct tape won’t stick to your flesh. Ouch!

* Once everything was taped, my niece carefully cut the combination tape and tee shirt up the spine and I slipped out of the shell. After being freed from this duct tape prison, I taped the spine area back together with duct tape.
* Next I stuffed it with batting, and taped cardboard under the bottom to keep the batting inside. I put addional tape around the arm holes and neck hole to keep the batting inside.
* I used an old lamp pole from my Dad’s house as a stand. It stood tall until gravity took over and it fell to the bottom.
As you can see the shape is off and the bust has sunken in.
I put the tee shirt on top of the dummy because trying to stick pins in the duct tape is difficult and gummy.  Update: since this post the dummy has been discarded. Who wants mix matched boobs anyway. 11-18-2012

I actually can still use it when I want to get a picture of how a garment will look.

The Threads article also gives directions using materials other than duct tape.

THAT'S IT***