More About Croquis

I picked up the Spring, 2008 issue of Sew Stylish at my local Barnes & Noble yesterday and was pleasantly surprised to see, on Page 19, "Design by Proportion; Figure-flattering garments are just a sketch away," which is an article on...croquis! The article includes instructions for making your own croquis and how to use it to choose patterns that will be flattering to your figure.

The actual text portion of the article is quite short, just 2/3 of a page (and part of that is a rather large headline), but the remainder of the article is lot of pictures showing how make your own croquis and how to use it to try out different silhouettes on your body shape. The illustrations include detailed captions.

If you have considered making your own croquis, I highly recommend picking up a copy of this magazine to help you get started.

Paper Dolls

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite activities was to make clothes for my paper dolls. I would lay my doll on a piece of "typing paper," then carefully draw the outline of a dress around her shape. Using crayons or colored pencils (this was in the days before watercolor markers) I would draw in the fashion details, add tabs, cut it out and - voila! A new dress. One of the the most thoughtful gifts I ever received was a folder of 8-1/2 x 11 inch papers printed to look like different fabrics and trims, which were designed to be used with paper dolls. Quite the thing in the mid-60s.

Today I played paper dolls again, with the help of my croquis, Polly. She was a good sport, and tried on as many skirts as I asked and helpfully offered her opinion on the best length for me.



For those of you who read my earlier introduction to Polly, it may come as no surprise when I say that my first instinct when choosing a dress or skirt would be to select the longest possible length, like the skirt on the far right. Looking at the skirt on Polly, however, I can see that it's actually a little too long. Probably 2 to three inches shorter would be more flattering.

Looking at the next two skirts, I think it's fairly clear that mid-calf length is out, but looking at the fuller skirt, I can see that if it were just a touch shorter, just below knee length, it might be okay.

But the most surprising to me are the three short skirts. It would never have occurred to me that a short skirt could be at all flattering, but of all the looks included in the picture, the short a-line and pencil skirts are my favorites.

The paper doll exercise is part of my preparation for the PatternReview Mini-wardrobe Contest. I don't intend, at this point, to toss out the pattern selections I've already made, but I will definitely take a second look at the lengths I've chosen. A trip to the mall for some snoop shopping may be in order.

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.

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.