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It's official - Sempstress has been around long enough to have a Frequently Asked Questions file. Herein lies a listing of the questions that I am most often emailed or asked. I'm not trying to discourage anyone from emailing or asking, I'm putting these out for people who want to know, but don't want to email (or ask). They are listed roughly by the frequency with which I recieve the question.
I get this one often enough that it's getting it's own section, Advice to Beginners.
I have a school project....I believe you also have a library card.... The Sempstress actually is a teacher (web development, oddly enough) and would consider herself entirely remiss in her professional duties if she took to doing other people's homework for them. If you have a specific question about an area of your research which requires clarification, or some request that makes it clear that you have put some time and effort into your project already, I will be happy to help if I can. If you are simply hoping to get your homework done for you with a minimum of fuss, I am the wrong person to contact.
Is anything in the Gallery for sale?No. They costumes in the Gallery are not for sale. They are either commissioned pieces (thus not mine to sell), gifts (thus not mine to sell), or mine (thus not for sale). If you frequent Bristol, you might see one of the gowns running around on someone who is not me. It is probably on loan to a trusted friend, or my sister. I am perfectly happy to work for people on commission. I make one-of-a-kind items. Please mail me if you are interested.
Where can I get a pattern for a dress from the Gallery?I draft all of my patterns. They are not avaliabe from stores. Technically, you can find the pattern for most anything in the gallery (and a number of thigns that aren't) in my pattern folders, but that's not much help unless you are planning on tracking down my apartment and breaking in. The technique I use for pattern drafting (assuming you don't have a dress dummy) is detailed in the pattern drafting instructions section.
What kind of dress dummy do you have?Lady Jane Beige (the dummy in question) is a Uniquely You dress form. She is made of some sort of polyfoam, and comes with a little beige jumper that you are supposed to tailor to your precise size/proportions/bumps/etc (hence the name). I am terrifically happy with the Uniquely You line for two reasons. The first is that the polyfoam body of the dummy is compressabe, thus corsettable (warning: you will need a damn sturdy corset for this - the dummy is compressable only with extreme persuasion....). The second reason is that the extraordinarily kind folks at uniquely you are the only people on the planet who think that I'm a size 8. Uniquely You dress forms can be special ordered through most fabric stores (Hancock and JoAnne's fabrics will both do it if you are in IL. JoAnne's occassionally runs sales on the dress dummy lines they carry, but the price advertized is not the price you will pay, as they add a shipping and stocking fee. (Because they are evil and annoying, that's why.)) I'm fairly sure Uniquely You also has a web site or something.
Are you hot in that?Depends on the weather. Now, could someone tell me what posesses an otherwise sane, and possibly intellegent, adult, who is sweating in shorts and a tank top, to walk up to a woman in a 50lb velvet dress and ask, in prefect honesty, "Are you hot in that?" I will never understand this phenomonon.
I've never worn a hoopskirt before. How do I ... You know ... I've really gotta go!(I usually don't get this one via email.) Ok, here we go. First off, use the handicapped stall/portapotty. Use one leg to kick and hold the bottom-most hoop up in back, so that you can grab it with your hands. Shake all the overskirts down so that they are contained by the hoopskirt. Pull the bottom hoop up so that you can hold it under your arms. Now your hands are free. You're on your own from here. This one is worth practicing at home, btw.
