A bad buy!

Hi everyone,

it’s not really a bad buy in the sense that I bought the wrong thing. But the product I bought is defective. I only just noticed that, though.

When I bought the Styrofoam dress form, it had a deep black fabric cover. So I couldn’t see the defect. After just a short time of use, the black fabric has now become extremely see-through—and lo and behold, the problem becomes visible.

When I saw my sewn dresses on the mannequin, I first thought, uh, that looks weird. Had I sewn the bust darts wrong? But no, the dress fit me; everything was in the right place. The problem was the dress form.

At some point, when it was standing there all naked, I noticed the mistake. Well, what am I supposed to do with it now? I can’t send it back anymore, and I can’t file a complaint either. I can’t even burn the thing. And I can’t carve it down to fix it either. Grrrh. At least it can serve as a warning to you all.

Best regards, Ina

Oh, that’s so annoying!

Yeah, that’s really annoying. I’d correct the differences in the bust with thin strips of Styrofoam and then somehow re-cover the top with wafer-thin fabric that you can secure well or maybe even glue on—so it’s invisible from the back. Then the bust will certainly be a bit bigger, but the proportions would be right again.

Thanks, rusalki01, for your suggestion. Maybe I’ll try out your tip—it can’t do any more harm.

Best regards, Ina

Looks like someone’s vision was a little off.

I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Rusalki’s tip works.

Hi Ina,
when did you buy the mannequin? You usually have a 2-year warranty on new merchandise (both for personal and B2B purchases).

If filing a complaint isn’t an option, I’d cut off the black fabric, trim the misaligned breast with a hot knife (or hot wire—works great on Styropur), then glue it into the correct position, and finally re-cover the doll with a stretchy fabric (maybe viscose jersey).

Good luck!

The idea is great, too—I’m sure it could be done.

Dear Ina

I totally understand your frustration. It’s really annoying when you spend money on something and then this happens. On the other hand, I had to smile quite a bit when I saw your mannequin. Usually, these tailor’s/dress forms have a figure that hardly any real woman could ever achieve. This one, with all its imperfections, is actually really endearing 😉 Even if, admittedly, that does make it less useful for its intended purpose 😅 I’m keeping my fingers crossed that you’ll be able to exchange it under warranty.

Best regards
Sonja