Thank you Fran! That helps a lot. You've confirmed some of what I had concluded from my own studies, and given me what I need to be able to move ahead with this project. In reality, I won't get exactly the fit I want, regardless of whether I use the right scales for the system. I'll still need to make a muslin and fit and alter, but I can live with that. I'm going to play with using the Voice of Fashion scales that I have, together with the Thompson draft that suits my project. Worst come to worst, it will be a learning opportunity.
And thanks for the heads-up on finding scale on e-bay. I'll definitely do that. Laurie T. -----Original Message----- From: h-costume-boun...@indra.com [mailto:h-costume-boun...@indra.com] On Behalf Of Lavolta Press Sent: Saturday, June 23, 2012 9:36 PM To: Historical Costume Subject: Re: [h-cost] Thompson, Voice of Fashion pattern books There is quite a number of 19th- and early 20th-century apportioning scale systems, and they were used in countries other than the US. The earliest sets I have date to the 1840s; one is French and goes with a women's magazine, and one is German and goes with a men's tailoring book. I have references for French systems dating to the 1820s, but have not yet located those systems. Generally the units are different for each system, and sometimes for the same system of a different date. There are also differences in how scales are selected and used to draft different parts of a garment. So sure, you can use the scales for any system to draft the patterns for any other system. But in most cases, you won't get the intended fit. I think some people have been accidentally misled by the fact that the scales for the American Modiste magazine, which I used in my book The Edwardian Modiste, have the same size units as the scales for my book Voice of Fashion, which contains 1900-1906 patterns for the magazine of the same name. That does not mean all apportioning scales are the same. In fact, before I published my more recent books Bustle Fashions 1885-1887 and Directoire Revival Fashions 1888-1889, I found out that the owner of the Voice of Fashion magazine started with one set of scales, then switched to scales with different units in the mid 1890s. There is no technical reason for him to have done this, no change in convenience for the pattern drafter. He went through several different business partners and my guess is the one who owned rights to the original system left the firm. I recommend that anyone anxious to get a set of scales for Thompson's system or any other keep an eye on eBay, the Font of All Stuff. That's where I've bought many of my sets of scales and patterns that use them. Fran Lavolta Press www.lavoltapress.com www.facebook.com/LavoltaPress On 6/23/2012 8:11 PM, Laurie Taylor wrote: > Good evening, > > Has anyone here used Mrs. Thompson's or the Voice of Fashion pattern > books to produce patterns from the late 1890'2, early 1900's? All of > these pattern systems require the use of scales to draft to the > desired size. The reprinted Voice of Fashion book has the scales in > the back of the book, so that the user can photocopy them and put them > on a durable product (plastic or oaktag) for use when drafting from the book. > > I've never been able to find any of the scales for Mrs. Thompson's > pattern system. I don't have any idea how close the Voice of Fashion > scales would be to Mrs. Thompson's. Have any of you seen a set of scales for Mrs. > Thompson's, or used one system's scales to draft from another system? > > The Keystone Cutter for jackets does not use scales, but rather uses > the intended wearer's actual measurements, much like many of the > menswear drafting systems of the late 19th C. I really want to try > the scale systems though, and particularly Mrs. Thompson's, since one > of her books contains the designs that I want for a 1903 outfit. > > Thank you! > > Laurie T. > Phoenix > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > h-costume mailing list > h-costume@mail.indra.com > http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume > > _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
