I received this book as a Christmas gift and I just can't believe something like this actually got past the editors and was published. Full disclosure: I've been sewing for about 30 years - since I was a child. I made my formal dresses in high school and college, made my wedding dress and the dresses of my bridesmaids, and I've made 2 gowns to wear to military balls. I know about dresses and while I'm not an expert, I've got a lot of experience. I was hoping that this book would allow me to use that expertise to recreate some movie dresses but I don't think I'll get much use out of it other than inspiration. I give it 2 stars because there are a couple of good points but mostly it fails to live up to its own hype Here's why:
The first problem with this book is that it purports to be geared for sewers of all skill levels but the included patterns are only in one size. This means that you have to know your body well enough to be able to alter the pattern pieces to fit your specific body shape before you even think about starting the dress. Many people new to sewing don't know how to do this, as they haven't been fitting themselves for very long (if at all) and many won't have someone to help them with the fit, or have a dress form to fit the garments on. Nowhere does it say what size the base pattern is or what the base cup size is - only to measure the pattern to get the base measurements. The section on taking accurate measurements is good because it has a detailed schematic showing where each measurement should be taken on the body, and includes such measurements as back width, high bust, bicep, and rise - all really necessary for finding a good fit for any sewing pattern. However, the directions for using the measurements to grade the pattern to fit the individual are sorely lacking. There is a camera icon in the instructions which means that you should look for the video for it online, and the web address for the video is given in the book's intro. I haven't checked these to see how detailed they are, but there is no mention of full or small bust adjustments in the book - only lengthening and shortening skirts, and using the cut-and-spread method to make the bodice bigger. So, while the book claims that, "With the help of clear instructions, a comprehensive techniques guide, and helpful online tutorials, however, anyone with a sewing machine will be able to produce a stunning Hollywood frock using this book." (p. 8), I feel that the author doesn't give the reader the best foundation for making these dresses if one is a beginning sewer.
The second problem is the dresses themselves. While I understand that the patterns are simplified for home sewer, many of these patterns are very poor imitations of the dresses they want to copy. There are some patterns that do a fairly good job of replicating the originals. They are: the brown and white polka dot dress from "Pretty Woman" (though it should be noted that the author refers to it as the 'Racing Day' dress and anyone who has seen the film knows that it was a polo match, not a horse race); the black cocktail dress with the feathered trim from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (though, as some other reviewers point out, that dress is less iconic than the full-length dress from the beginning and in this book the author has styled the finished dress as though it is the long dress, with pearls. When Hepburn wore the shorter dress she wore a hat.); the pink dress from "Dirty Dancing" (though the drop-waist is eliminated); the black flapper dress from "Chicago" (though it does have its issues); the black column gown from "Gilda"; and the beige coat-dress from the original version of "The Thomas Crown Affair" (though the final product in the book has major issues regarding fit, fabric choice and terrible 'covered buttons'). All of these patterns seem basically successful at replicating the silhouette of their dresses, despite the simplifications.
The other patterns are enormous let-downs in terms of their finished product as shown in the book. The "Seven Year Itch" dress, made famous by Marilyn Monroe is so poorly conceived that the finished dress on the model makes her look as though she has terribly saggy breasts, in spite of the fact that she's not big-chested at all. Further, the design is just cheap-looking. Essentially, it is a triangle bra top with a band at the bottom which is sewn to the skirt portion, then wrapped around to supply the needed fit at the waistline. The major problems here are that the top pieces are not wide enough to extend around the ribcage to the back as the original did, giving the wearer a definite risk of what is known as 'side boob'. Marilyn couldn't have worn this dress. Further, because this is a backless dress, no bra can be worn and cups should be sewn into it. They certainly would have been in Marilyn's dress. For this you would need to have a lining or underlining of the bodice and the author makes no mention of it. To make a good version of this dress, I would recommend using the Folkwear Pattern's "Blond Bombshell" as a jumping-off point, rather than using this pattern, and only use the waist ties from this book's version for the authenticity. I maintain that there was actually a midriff piece whose seams are concealed by the ties, otherwise there would be no way to maintain the narrow waist - the excess fabric would bunch up. The fabric itself is pre-pleated in the original, so the pleated effect doesn't need to come directly from the skirt. In the original the top portion appears to be made of pleated fabric that has been gathered, though its difficult to tell.
The other dresses that are wildly unsuccessful are the copies of the green dress from "Atonement" and the blue dress from "To Catch a Thief". The green dress absolutely requires silk or silk chiffon in order to achieve the wrapped and knotted effect at the back - nothing else is thin enough and that is evident in the poorly-knotted imitation. This dress is not going to be easy to copy without some draping skills, and most home sewers don't have those skills or a good dress form on which to drape. The blue dress worn by Grace Kelly in "To Catch a Thief" is a beautiful couture gown designed by the famous Edith Head and which most certainly had a sewn-in foundation. It was made of iridescent silk chiffon which was draped on the foundation and then sewn in place. This is a dress that had probably 20 or more patterns pieces when it was made. The replica pattern has 7 pattern pieces and no sewn-in foundation. The instructions for the dress touch briefly on draping, but 4 short paragraphs don't really teach someone how to drape a gown such as this and the book doesn't address the challenges of working with slippery, sheer fabrics such as silk chiffon, other than to make sure one's hands are clean so that they don't leave smudges. The whole design of this copy dress is sloppy and boxy, rather than draped and fitted. No one is going to look like Grace Kelly in this dress. Finally, the "Titanic" dress makes a good attempt to copy the original, but again, the original is much more fitted than the copy, particularly in the overdress. It probably has some sort of foundation sewn into it in order to achieve the fit. Also, the choice of fabric for the copy just looks cheap and doesn't give the same flow of the original. The original fits well because the overdress is sequined and beaded, giving it a degree of weight and therefore allowing it to hang closer to the body. The copy is made of a cheap-looking lace which is much lighter, causing the overdress to stand away from the body and making the wearer look as though the dress is boxy and too big. One would be better served to buy a commercial pattern from one of the 4 major companies and use that to make a dress similar to this. The result is almost certain to be better.
The last 2 major problems with this book deal with the execution and photography of the finished garments. Many of the finished garments are wrinkled and poorly fitting. Most notably, the coat-dress from "The Thomas Crown Affair" shows the dress with self-covered buttons, and then discusses the proper technique using a close-up of the finished garment to illustrate them. First, the finished garment was made in a satin that shows every wrinkle and pucker - never mind that the original is made in cashmere, possibly a crepe. Second, the buttons resemble cotton balls which have been covered with satin and then sewn on haphazardly; the close-up shows just how poorly they are made. How did this ever get past the editors? How can anyone claim that they are making a "stunning Hollywood frock" with such poor execution? No self-respecting dressmaker would allow this garment out of her workroom, let alone show it to a client or have it published! Even my husband, who has no sewing experience whatsoever, commented on how terrible this garment looked. Yes, it's a successful pattern in terms of copying the dress, but the final execution should be perfect if it's going to be published.
I plan to use this book only as a means of inspiration to recreate the dresses, with heavy tweaking of the patterns to make them fit better and be more authentic. While I'm sure this author knows her stuff, I'm not sure that the editor does. It seems as though a lot of technique and instructions were chopped out for the sake of having the product at an affordable price point. There seems to be a push right now for books that recreate famous looks for home sewers but there doesn't seem to be any that are of consistently high quality in terms of overall content. The film history of the dresses in this book is probably the most interesting part, but that won't help you make a "stunning frock".
