Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Book Review: The Perfect Fit

Update:  Okay, so I made a mistake and published three book reviews on the same day. I meant to space these out, but I forgot to go back and check when they were scheduled to publish. Oh well. Enjoi!

Of my many alteration books, this is the one of two that has a no-dart FBA.  That's worth five stars by itself.  (The other no-dart method uses the pivot and slide technique.)The instructions in this book are very clear.  It isn't a comprehensive guide to every alteration, but the ones it does include are covered well.  Very clear pictures detail the steps.  For each alteration, there are instructions for a minor and major adjustment. What I love most about this book is that it tells you the max amount of length or width you can add for some of the alterations. Seems like few other authors thought this was important.  I just realized this is a revised edition of the old Singer Sewing Reference Library books, which explains why it's so easy to understand.

The Analyzing Your Shape section is okay.  I don't agree with all of the "fitting goals."   For example, if you have a small waist *one hand raised as I type* the fitting goal is, "Unless hips are full and out of proportion to small waist, draw attention to the waist." Puh-lease. I am a very pear-y black woman.  I'm required to draw attention to my small waist.  My goal is to create a closet full of A-line halter dresses with midriff rouching :-) When will the world become more inclusive when it comes to fashion and figures?

Here's what's covered:
  • Sloping shoulders
  • Square shoulders
  • Narrow shoulders
  • Broad shoulders
  • Forward thrust shoulders
  • Neckline too high
  • Neckline too low
  • Neckline too wide
  • Neckline too narrow
  • High bust
  • Full bust
  • Gaping Armhole
  • Small bust
  • Narrow back
  • Broad back
  • Rounded back + Extremely high rounded back
  • Full upper arm
  • Thin upper arm
  • Sleeve length adjustments
  • Small waist
  • Large waist
  • Prominent abdomen
  • Flat abdomen
  • Swayback (skirts)
  • Waist & Hip adjustments on gored skirts
  • Full hips
  • Small hips
  • One high hip
  • Full abdomen (pants)
  • Swayback (pants)
  • Full seat (pants)
  • Flat seat (pants)
  • Full thighs (pants)
  • Full inner thighs (pants)
  • Full outer thighs (pants) 
  • Thin thighs
  • Pants length adjustments

The last chapter is about fine tuning the fit of pleats, darts, shoulder pads and scooping curved seams.

The pictures are a bit dated, but the info is timeless. I have no regrets about the purchase.

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