Thursday, March 27, 2008

Meet Polly

I long for long, willowy legs; alas, it is never to be. I occasionally mention that I have the bone structure of a brontosaurus - think Dino Flintstone - and people assume I'm kidding.

I. Kid. You. Not.

Yes, my legs are disproportionately heavy and, unfortunately, it’s not because they are fat. I don’t mean to say that I couldn’t stand to lose a few pounds, but excess fat is not the reason my legs are so large. If it were, it would give me hope that their appearance could be improved through hard work and determination. Not so.

Which brings me to the point of this post.

Project Runway Croquis I got an e-mail newsletter from Simplicity Patterns today, touting their Project Runway patterns and the included “Designer Croquis Kit.” Check out the length of the legs on that figure. Honestly, is anything going to look bad when drawn over that form? If my torso/leg ratio was the same as that of the figure in the Croquis Kit, I believe I would be somewhere around 5’10” rather than 5’4”. Maybe even taller.

I wonder if Simplicity believes that people will be encouraged to buy more patterns after the disappointment they may certainly feel when their completed garment doesn’t look as good on them as it did on the croquis?

I had actually seen the Croquis Kit before, as I own one of the Project Runway patterns. I think the concept is good, so I made my own croquis. Please meet Polly, my alter ego. As you can see, she is far less inhibited than I, being willing to pose on the internet in her undies, whereas I feel the need to wear a cami under a linen blouse.

I believe she is a fairly accurate representation of my basic shape, having been created from a photograph. She may be a tad heavier than I am…I say this because her head looks a little small compared to her body, and I have a rather large head.

I share Polly with you today because I plan on posting the results - some of which are quite eye-opening - of some of my croquis sketches in future posts and I think they’ll be more more interesting if you’ve seen Polly au naturel. I think it will be especially interesting for people whose shapes may be similar to my own.

12 comments:

Meg said...

Love this! Will be eagerly following this topic. If you drew a basic rectangle you would have my Polly.

Paula Gardner said...

That's pretty much my Polly, too, from shoulders to ankles. :-(

Kat said...

Very interesting post! Can't wait to see what you come up with. I'm like Lindsay and would be a rectangle.

Dawn said...

Paula, When I saw the Simplicity newsletter I had a good chuckle too. I was thinking, "Wowza, she'd look hot in a toga with no hair!" I have the same feeling as you. Are people going to by the image and hope the pattern transforms them? I used to buy things that showed people with full bosoms and a titch of cleavage. Hoping maybe that my A cups would suddenly blossom? Um, yeah, it never happened. I have wanted to make my own croquis for some time since seeing apost on patternreview.com. Perhaps it will happen now with your posting. Yikes, sorry to be so long-winded!

Paula Gardner said...

Seriously, Dawn, and I mean this sincerely, I can't imagine why you would feel like you need a croquis. Your figure is fabulous and you look absolutely adorable in everything you put on!

Dawn said...

Slim people have to figure out what looks nice on them too. We can't wear evrything. You'll never see me in a deep V-neck top to showcase the chest. I would look like someone from a third-world country. Flattering skirt height is also easier to see with an outline.

I'm more the inverted triangle shape.

Thank you for the compliment! It means that so far I'm picking out good clothing for my shape.

Paula Gardner said...

My youngest daughter is an inverted triangle, too, except she's a C cup so she can wear those deep vees. As a former pear who has become a rectangle with age, it me a case of the grass being greener (but more likely it's from seeing thousands of competitive swimmers over the years), but I love the inverted triangle shape. I think it looks amazing.

Dawn said...

Oh wait, tee hee. I don't mean INVERTED triange, I just mean regular triangle!!! I should have said pear-shaped. LOL. I get wider as you go down, not smaller. That's funny.

Paula Gardner said...

Well, I still think you look great!

Anonymous said...

lol. Some of us just have good strong bones in our lower extremities. ;)

Your Polly looks like a perfect cross between my sister and me. Well, except that gravity LAW has hit me way worse than your Polly.

Thanks for the post. Maybe I'll get courageous enough to do something similar eventually...

Paula Gardner said...

Good strong bones in our extremities! LOL! There's an understatement! :-)

Anonymous said...

I created a croquis using the same technique you did. However, mine is considerably more embarrassing than yours. In fact, I wouldn't dream of posting it on the internet--it might frighten animals and small children. It's really helped me see what fits on my body and what doesn't, though. I highly recommend it for those willing to brave the unvarnished truth.