The Little Bodice Book: A Workbook on Period Bodices (Ambrose, Bonnie Holt, Little Costume Workbooks.)

Rating:
Summary: excellent for amateur costumers
Review: Covers basic bodice construction thoroughly with enough detail in the instruction to support basic theater or festival-type needs. Shows in b/w hand-drawn diagrams how to modify the basic pattern to depict different classes of bodices, in the eras of 1600 (Elizabethan), 1650 (Restoration), 1770 (Rococo), and Victorian. A simple size and measurement chart and pattern dimensions for a basic size 8 bodice simplify the decision of how big to cut the pieces. Detailing info includes making/using covered cording, grommets, size-adjustable bodices, placket openings, sleeve and cuff variations, sleeve cap additions, and boning placement. Emphasis is on construction, not historical reference, and the author has obviously gone through many bodices step-by step. Professionals will not find much here to get excited about, but if you're just trying to build yourself a costume without hiring a dressmaker, or are a wardrobe volunteer for community theater, this itty bitty workbook will be just the thing you need to walk you through the process. If you've looked in catalogs for period patterns, you know they're about three times the cost of this book (when they're available), and their instructions tend to be hit or miss. Save yourself the long wait for pattern shipment and be guided through the bodice-building process with no pain and lots of confidence-boosting diagrams. Caveat: brand new sewers shouldn't start here - instead take a basic class or enlist a talented friend to do the sewing. This book doesn't have an elementary glossary or substitute for a rudimentary knowledge of sewing, but intermediate sewers will do fine. And it's small enough to tuck into your purse when you head to the fabric store, so your fabric requirements are right there handy. All in all, well written and drawn. This would be the book I'd lend to a friend about to make her first period bodice.

Rating:
Summary: The Little Bodice Book
Review: The Little Bodice Book shows how to take a mid-20th century bodice pattern with bust darts and decorate it to give the impression of historical style. This is a fine book for school and community theater. It should be especially helpful for the novice seamstress who wants a Halloween or party costume. Re-enactors and others who need histoically correct construction and reproduction techniques should seek elsewhere.

Rating:
Summary: A Concise reference for the Theatrical Costumer
Review: This book is great for the person limited on time and space for costumes. It shows how to transform a basic shape into several different looks depending on the details. Elizabethan, Rococo, Restoration and some Victorian are all covered briefly. Don't be shocked about how small it is. There is a lot compacted into this little reference guide.