I have been psyching myself up to do this post. I have done a croquis of my body as suggested in the Colette Handbook. I did this by taking a photo of myself in tight fitting clothing and drawing my true outline.
A few other people have done it around the blogisphere too and I applaud their bravery!
Although this is not an easy thing to do, I think it is a massive step in understanding your own body and helping you to see how the clothes you make will fit and suit you.
I think this will prevent me from making quite a few mistakes!
So, lets talk about this picture above...
My first thought was that I was horrified and struck by how short I am. But the more I look at it, the better things get. I'm 2inches off hourglass and I am very lucky that my body is fairly balanced. My legs are more normal that I imagined them to be but I have very narrow shoulders.
This is my main fitting issue along with a small waist and wide hips.
Overall its not so bad!
I started drawing out a few patterns I want to make to see how they would work on my body,
I really like the Colette Parfait,
Would you ever make your own Croquis?
I am petrified of making my own croquis, but posts like yours make me warmer to the idea. You and all the other croquis sharing bloggers out there are amazing and ever so brave. This exercise really does seem like it's very helpful and I too love you in the Parfait!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great croquis! I love how different it looks with the outfits. I still have to figure out how to put some outfits on mine! :-) You've done super work and I think it will be very helpful to you. I've made (and posted on) the Lady Grey which I did as part of Gertie's sew along last year. My version was tailored, which upped the ante quite considerably. I don't think I'd make it again under any circumstances, even if I did an untailored jacket version. It was too much work for the finished product (which has a tendency to look a bit clownish on small and narrow frames - Consider your fabric and interfacing carefully.) From your sketch, it does seem like it will be flattering on you.
ReplyDeleteLove this! I love the idea of seeing your own shape. I think after seeing this around the blogosphere I'm going to have to try it out. The parfait is an awesome pattern btw, I think it's an incredibly flattering dress.
ReplyDeleteSuch a good activity, right? That Parfait will look amazing on you!
ReplyDeleteI actually think your figure looks lovely in your croqui! Classic hourglass - perfect. Yes, it's a very brave step doing these things. I got Ian to take photos of me and he made some sort of computer generated croqui, but I'm not happy with it. I'm going to have another go!
ReplyDeleteI've been fascinated to see the croquis appearing on the blogosphere. I agree it's such a perfect way of understanding your own body and what suits it. Bravo for going for it Stevie.
ReplyDeleteI'd be worried at how short a croqui would reveal me to be too! Maybe I'll give it a go after a few babychams! x
That's a brilliant idea. I've missed out on this one, must be a load more blogs out there that I've not discovered yet.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to get the courage to do this myself..... maybe......
ReplyDeleteReally inspiring, I got the colette for christmas so this is on the list to do. and I really will now because one thing really stands out is the parfeit dress is totally your dress shape and you must must make it! so if you can tell instantley from a drawing away I go!!
ReplyDeleteThis has been on my list of things to do for about a year. I love that you did this, it's like your own personal paper doll!
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit scared of doing my croquis but I think it's an awesome and very practical idea! It is in the plans for the next few weeks...
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize so many women were afraid of the croquis. . .I use mine for all my outfits and I find it really helpful. We're not all one size nor are we meant to be. Glad to see others have posted theirs! I guess I should post mine too!
ReplyDeleteThankyou to everyone who's posted a comment up here and in Sew Weekly. I'm glad people are feeling more up for trying out a croquis now!
ReplyDelete@K line, all I did to get a blank figure was scan and print my croquis then used a fineliner to make the lines dark enough to trace then used ordinary paper.
@ Charlotte, Lisa Jane and Marie, Your all so sweet! I will definitely make the parfait closer to Springtime! I have quite a bit of quilting cotton and I think two of them would be perfect!
I think I am going to have to do this after seeing them on various blogs, esp as my body shape has changed quite a lot this year.
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