[NFB-Blind-Crafters] Sewing class (was DIY dress form)
Ramona Walhof
walhoframona at gmail.com
Sat Aug 15 17:40:25 UTC 2026
Zoom is fine with me.
Ramona
________________________________
From: NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org> on behalf of Tracy Carcione via NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, August 15, 2026 5:03 PM
To: 'List for Blind Crafters and Artists' <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>
Cc: carcione at access.net <carcione at access.net>
Subject: [NFB-Blind-Crafters] Sewing class (was DIY dress form)
Hi Ramona.
Sounds exciting! Guess I better get busy and figure out how to thread my little sewing machine.
The dates you said sound fine to me.
We could do it on Zoom, or Cindy can arrange some phone chats. Do you have a preference?
Cindy has notes on what we discussed before as sewing topics we’re interested in.
I want to make a dress or skirt, as I said.
I think other people are interested, and I hope they will speak up. If it’s just me, maybe you and I could just have a long conversation.
Tracy
From: NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Ramona Walhof via NFB-Blind-Crafters
Sent: Friday, August 14, 2026 5:21 PM
To: List for Blind Crafters and Artists <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Ramona Walhof <walhoframona at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [NFB-Blind-Crafters] DIY Dress Form Project
I started to describe how to make a skirt, but I decided it's too long for one email. I have not taught a class for quite a while, so please tell me what I need to do. In struction would probably take 2 or 3 one-hour classes, depending on how many people are involved. Sunday ev at 6:00 pm mountain timemight work. That's 8:00 pm eastern. September 20, 27, and October 4 would be my suggestion. I seem to have more stuff scheduled during the week than I like. Supplies would be fabric, scissors, tape measure, and needle and thread or sewing machine. Sewing machine recommended. Amount of fabric probably should be decided after I talk to each student about what he/she really wants to do. For example, skirt can have pockets or nnot. Wasteband can be elastic or button or hooked. Fabric can be knit and stretchy or woven. Width of fabric also makes a difference. Let's not start with wool..
Let me know what else you need orif it is better to ask for interested people before planning a class. If these dates don't work, it would be November. And January is a good time.
Here WalMart is carrying more fabric than while Joann's was open. Hobby Lobby still has some.
I have not purchased fabric online, but I am sure you can. You just can't feel it online.
Best,
Ramona
________________________________
From: NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org>> on behalf of Tracy Carcione via NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>>
Sent: Friday, August 14, 2026 3:30 PM
To: 'List for Blind Crafters and Artists' <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>>
Cc: carcione at access.net<mailto:carcione at access.net> <carcione at access.net<mailto:carcione at access.net>>
Subject: Re: [NFB-Blind-Crafters] DIY Dress Form Project
Hi Ramona.
I would love a class on how to make a gathered skirt. It’s my favorite kind, and, if it’s easy, even better.
The dress I want is a comfortable summer dress, midi-length, sleeveless but with straps wide enough so I don’t have to worry about my bra showing, scoop neck, A-line or other wide skirt, and, very important, pockets.
I have a dress that’s close to what I want, except I’ve gotten too big. And I have a couple others that fit, but don’t have pockets. So I could use one of them as a template, if I’m careful while cutting.
And I have to figure out where to buy fabric, now Joanne’s is gone.
Tracy
From: NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org>> On Behalf Of Ramona Walhof via NFB-Blind-Crafters
Sent: Thursday, August 13, 2026 11:34 PM
To: List for Blind Crafters and Artists <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>>
Cc: Ramona Walhof <walhoframona at gmail.com<mailto:walhoframona at gmail.com>>
Subject: Re: [NFB-Blind-Crafters] DIY Dress Form Project
Tracie, what kind of a dress do you want? Have you looked at pattern books? I believe that more people are wearing dresses and skirts recently.
Ramona
________________________________
From: NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org>> on behalf of Tracy Carcione via NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>>
Sent: Thursday, August 13, 2026 11:48 PM
To: 'List for Blind Crafters and Artists' <nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>>
Cc: carcione at access.net<mailto:carcione at access.net> <carcione at access.net<mailto:carcione at access.net>>
Subject: Re: [NFB-Blind-Crafters] DIY Dress Form Project
Kit, this is brilliant! And you’re a beginner sewer? Wow!
I want to make a dress myself. I’ve looked around the shops, and haven’t seen what I want. It never occurred to me that a dress form would be good to have, though my mother had one. She was an excellent seamstress, and so is my sister.
I’d be very interested to hear how this project progresses.
You’re inspiring me to give my theoretical dress project more serious thought.
Tracy
From: NFB-Blind-Crafters <nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters-bounces at nfbnet.org>> On Behalf Of Kit Aronoff via NFB-Blind-Crafters
Sent: Thursday, August 13, 2026 5:09 PM
To: nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-blind-crafters at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Kit Aronoff <kit.aronoff at gmail.com<mailto:kit.aronoff at gmail.com>>
Subject: [NFB-Blind-Crafters] DIY Dress Form Project
Just wanted to share! My dad and I have been working on a project for a few days. I really needed a dress form as I’m learning to sew, because it makes it much easier to feel what I’m doing when putting pieces together. But especially for mock-ups of garments, being able to feel where it’s not fitting and run my hand along the form to feel for the tension points and such? Just… really helpful.
However, I’m a plus-sized lady, and don’t really have the budget for a proper dress form. So I did some research and found various tutorials for making a dress form with duck tape. Since we’re a community of blind crafters, and some of you might be in need of such a thing, I wanted to share the whole process I used. Not sure if we’re allowed to add pictures with descriptions for anyone who who has vision to see the form. But we’ll see.
I named the dress form Dorothy, because my dad and I made this together. We’ve been watching Ted Lasso and I thought it would be funny since the character is from Kansas.
This really was a blast to put together! Highly recommend for something fun and useful. I thought it would be more complicated than it was. The hardest part, honestly, was doing the math to get the piece lengths together. The special tools you need are very minimal. I wrote the directions with as much detail as possible, so it’s a bit verbose. Which makes this look more intense than it is. The frame you can honestly do by yourself. The only part you need another person for is the duck tape form, since…you know, you’re being duck taped.
Just a heads up: There’s some compression that happens. And you need to be prepared to be able to stand for at least an hour to two hours depending on how quickly you work. By the end I found the compression from all sides to be slightly uncomfortable. Definitely use the bathroom before doing this haha. And have scissors nearby in case of an emergency. And have some water your friend can give you, just in case.
Dorothy dress form Image Description
Dress form made of duck tape. It has two white PVC feet at the bottom. A loose white skirt hides the PVC stand underneath. Masking tape marks specific points on the body that is peeking out behind a patterned homemade blouse. The form is outside in front of a door of a house. With grass to the left and a “home” door mat on the right.
BELOW IS INSTRUCTIONS FOR HOW THIS WAS MADE. There is no additional social commentary beyond this point. (Essentially if you don’t want to see how I made this, you can stop reading here!)
Materials:
* Duck tape (I used 2 full rolls for the entire project)
* PVC piping 1" diameter for the frame (although we're still working out frame kinks so I'll make an update when we've worked that out.) We used four 5' long PVC pipes that we then cut down.
* PVC cutter
* PVC glue, although we used gorilla hot glue... It's not the best. Just what we had.
* Cardboard
* Joint pieces, 2 elbows, 10 T shaped pieces
* T-shirt you don't mind destroying (it needs to be however long you want the form. I used a skirt and a t-shirt because I wanted my buttocks accurate)
* Scissors
* 1 Friend (you can't do this alone)
Process:
Bust Form
1. I started by having my friend duck tape important sections first. The under bust, bust, waist, upper and lower hip.
2. We did a harness like strap. Coming diagonally to the middle of my bust over my shoulders, and down the back. That secured the top tape strips.
3. Vertical lines were made to connect the waist to lower-hip strips. There were 4 of these. Two at the front and two at the back.
4. From there, continued to fill out. Starting with the bust, we did the front chest. Then the back. All horizontal strips.
5. Then the waist (and belly). Like the bust, you want to be careful not to squish. Especially for plus-sized folks. Just to avoid inaccuracy.
6. The lower back, then buttocks.
7. Once that's done, you will have a duck tape tunic. So sleeves are next. We did two vertical strips. Now, I went to just above my elbow because most of what I wear is 3/4 sleeves and I wanted the entire upper bicep. But you can do whatever.
8. After the vertical, then start using horizontal circles. At the shoulder, you want to be careful. More specifically at the shoulder join. Make sure it's really reinforced.
9. Layer two was all up and down strips to add strength. Just, all over.
10. Feel around for any exposed fabric. Cover those bits up with tape.
11. When finished, cut straight up the center back. Once out, seal the back up with duck tape. Make sure not to overlap the edges. This part was fiddly.
12. Hang your bust up on a coat hanger. I put her on a curtain rod.
Frame
Just a warning, the dress form will be top heavy. The frame we built isn't totally stable at the bottom. So I'll fill out this section when I've found a stable frame. At the moment it has a rectangle shape in there, with two cross-bars to maintain its structure. So if anyone wants to replicate the frame we built, just note you’ll want to add more weight to the bottom. We’re actually about to zip tie some roller things that came with this rolling Christmas tree stand I got.
Description:
Four pieces of PVC are connected to T shaped pieces. This makes the two legs, with the remaining 3rd side of the T piece pointed skyward.
3” pipe stands vertically from there with another T shaped piece. This time the 3rd opening will face inward of the frame (on both sides, each side mirrors each other).
A pipe that’s just under the smallest section of the bust (either the waist or shoulders most likely) connects the two facing 3rd T openers. This gives stability to the feet.
There’s a pipe that goes up to where a second cross pole will sit. You want that to hit a few inches above the bottom of the form.
A third crossbar is connected using two elbow pieces around the shoulders.
Measurements:
1. Measure the height of your shoulders first. You need to know how high off the ground this thing will be. (56” for me)
2. Measure the distance from shoulders to about 2” above where the bust itself ends. (25” for me)
3. The T pieces connecting we used had the bit that inserts into the pipe, then the outer metal sitting between the two pipes. The metal piece in between for us was 1”. But you need to measure whatever you’re using. There are 2 pairs of T shapes that will add height. So for us, there was 4” of height coming from those pieces in total.
4. Subtract the 4” from the total height you want the dress form to be off the ground. We needed 56” off the ground. So that brought it down to 52". That’s how much PVC pipe length in total you’ll need. But don’t start cutting yet. Just keep these numbers in mind.
5. Subtract the measurement from step 2 (bottom of the bust to the shoulders) and subtract it from the measurement in step one (how height you want the shoulders to be from the ground). For me that’s 31”. For my pieces, again, there was a single 1” section of metal adding height between the bottom of the form and the shoulders. So subtract that. For me this was 30”.
6. So, now take the number from step 4, where you calculated the total length of vertical pipe. For me that number was 52. Now subtract the calculation from the previous step (30” for me) from the number in step four. 52”-30"=22”.
7. Now, you need to account for the 3” of pipe that sticks up from the bottom. 21”-3”=18”.
8. What you have are that you need two lengths of pipe that are 18” (for my form), another two pipe pieces that are 30”.
9. You’ll need 3 pipes that are equal to the distance of the smallest point of the interior dress form. (Diameter, not the circumference).
10. Two 3” pieces of pipe.
TL;DR Measurements you need:
A. Shoulders to ground.
B. 2” above bottom of form to shoulders.
C. Distance between the smallest point of the form (diameter)
D. Metal bit between the two pieces that go into the pipes. (Probably about 1”), multiply this by 3.
E. Just be aware of the 3” height added by the stand stabilizer.
Using that, here is the quick version of how to figure out how much pipe you need:
3” for the stand stabilizer
A-B = pipe length for shoulders to the middle bar.
A-3”-D-(above number)=total pipe from middle bar, to stabilizer.
4 pieces of about 20” for the feet of the stand.
4 bars equal to measurement C.
Putting the frame together:
1. Make two long pieces for the feet of the frame, using a T joint. Do this again for the second foot. Use the PVC glue to hold it together.
2. 3” pipe pieces go into the T joint, facing skyward.
3. One of the cross bars attaches to the T joints. This is what provides stability.
4. Bottom shaft on each side, on top put another T joint.
5. Middle bar goes here.
6. The top shaft gets added.
7. Elbow joints at the top.
8. Final cross bar goes in.
9. Add weight to the bottom. You can use sand bags. We’re experimenting with adding metal wheel things that I pulled from a rolling Christmas tree stand.
Finishing Up
1. Once you have the frame done, you want to plug up the arm holes and the bottom. I made duck tape circles. So you lay the duck tape sticky side up in strips on a surface. Then overlay it with sticky side down so you basically. make duck tape fabric. Then cut it to size and duck tape the seams to the arm holes.
2. The bottom I made a cardboard oval that matched my lower hip area, cut out notches for the frame poles, and stuck it into the bottom. Trimmed to shape. Then duck taped that in place.
3. Stuff it. Mine needed a little under 5lbs of poly fiber.
4. Seal up the neck the same way you did the arms.
Optional
I wanted to be able to pin pieces of fabric to the thing. So I used a blouse that was meant to be form-fitting, and had princess seams, then put that over the body. It worked great because it was already sewn to hug my body anyway.
The shirt is the Harrison Shirt from Cashmerette, if anyone is interested. This was my practice one so it has some oddities in the collar and cuffs. I think the photo accidentally has one sleeve rolled up and one down haha But IRL they match fine.
Image Description: Dress form made of duck tape. It has two white PVC feet at the bottom. A loose white skirt hides the PVC stand underneath. Masking tape marks specific points on the body that is peeking out behind a patterned homemade blouse. The form is outside in front of a door of a house. With grass to the left and a “home” door mat on the right.
[cid:image001.jpg at 01DD2CB6.733EFA00]
Kit Aronoff
kit.aronoff at gmail.com<mailto:kit.aronoff at gmail.com>
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