Chapter 10 Summary

          Chapter 10 summarizes the alternations to mannequins. A form  is a three-dimensional representation of a part of the human anatomy, such as the torso, the bust, or the area from shoulder to waist or from hips to ankles. A body trunk or trunk form is a male form that starts at the diaphragm and continues to just below the knees. Shorter forms, however, will be cut at mid thigh. It is used to show shorts, underwear, swimwear, and so on. A bra form is a headless, armless form that ends just below a defined bust line, with or without shoulders. The forms are usually scaled to wear a size 34B. Junior bra forms are proportioned for a size 32A bust. The soft sculpted figure is a European favorite that is making inroads into the United States display scene. These life-size figures are based on the small wooden miniatures used by artists and designers to get correct anatomical proportions and poses for figure drawing when a live model is not available. Some stores use cutout forms that are almost cubist in order to dehumanize the forms even further. Flying is a display technique whereby the merchandise is pulled, stretched, and manipulated by means of almost invisible fishing line or very fine piano wire. The wire is attached to the hem, sleeve, shoulder, and so on, of the garment and then pulled back and secured by pinning or nailing it into the ceiling, the floor, a sidewall, or the back wall.