Big Mama Smurf

Guess what? I get to be a small Roxi!

I guess it all depends on who's doing the selling.

This is Big Mama Smurf, my new dress form. It is a size small in Dritz's new Simple Fit forms. I hadn't even considered this one, because Amazon doesn't stock it. I happened to be in Jo-Ann Fabrics a couple of days ago, using my 40% off coupon to buy a quilting ruler, when I saw that they had these dress forms on sale at $100 off regular retail. But I had already seen a Dritz product up close and wasn't impressed. It was an older Dritz My Double form offered on Craigslist for $30. It was incredibly flimsy, which was what the online reviews had warned. I made up my mind to order that red Singer form from Amazon. And I nearly did. Until I saw that Amazon was going to charge me sales tax on it. And I'd still have to wait a week or more for it to arrive. What if it was damaged in transit? That would be a hassle to deal with. And I was never overly enthused about the red color. Besides, I would have to buy a size medium in the Singer (and lose at least an inch for it to work). The measurements on the small Simple Fit from Dritz work better for me. I still have to crank it all the way open but it sounds better, psychologically, to be a large SMALL rather than a large MEDIUM.

I couldn't find any reviews on this particular form but decided to go ahead and buy one from Jo-Anns. If I didn't like it, I could take it back. But I have to say, I love it. This new incarnation of the Dritz form feels much more substantial. I don't find it a bit wobbly. The center pole has 2 wing nuts that hold it securely. It adjusts for length at the waist and also has 12 dials for adjusting the waist, bust and hips. There is a little pin cushion on top, and a hem marker below. It even came with a lint brush. One of the complaints on the Dritz forms was that they didn't have enough padding to pin to. This one is still not overly padded but I can definitely pin to it. Perhaps Dritz has listened to their customers and fixed the issues. I think this is a very nice dress form for the money, especially if you get it on sale. Just an FYI, Jo-Anns, by the Tacoma Mall has them in stock (and on sale) right now.