Frequently Asked Questions
Contents
Who is Lavolta Press?
What type of books do you publish?
Who uses your books?
Do you publish reprints, or do your books contain
reprints?
Why do the fashion illustrations in The
Voice of Fashion and The Edwardian Modiste not look like modern
fashion illustrations?
Who used the historic patterns during
the period in which they were published?
How are your books produced?
Why don’t you publish full-size patterns?
Are your patterns easy to enlarge?
What are apportioning scales?
I’ve already used a grid/an overhead projector
to enlarge scaled patterns from other publishers’ books. If I use one of
those methods to enlarge your true-scale patterns, do I need to do it any differently?
I’m already
familiar with developing patterns from a sloper/by draping. Can I use my favorite
design method with your patterns?
Are your patterns easy to sew?
I read the hand sewing, garment assembly, or pattern-drafting
instructions, but I didn’t understand them. What should I do?
What are the trade-offs between
using full-size patterns in envelopes, and using the patterns in your books?
Are your books all pattern books?
Are your books all for women?
Why isn’t this book perfect according to my personal standards?
Why don’t you
post your material on the Internet for free?
Why aren’t your
books published by a larger publisher?
What are your employment opportunities?
Do you ever buy antique books and
magazines?
Will you send me
a free copy of the following book or books?
Do you have a bookstore?
Can non-US customers buy and
use your books?
Do you plan to publish more books?
Can you email me when you publish
a new book?
Who is Lavolta Press?
Lavolta Press is an independent book publisher specializing in the
subject “niches” of historic costume, historic needlework, vintage
clothing, and, in a broader context, social history. Our books are
carried by the leading US book wholesalers; are sold by many
bookstores, museum stores, fabric stores, and reenactment resellers;
and are available in many libraries. We have been in business since
1993.
What type of books do you publish?
That question is best answered by our on-line catalog and by answers to
the other questions in this FAQ. Although we publish and will continue
publishing high-quality books in the niches mentioned above, we do not
focus on any one era. Nor do we publish books in chronological order.
We do not have a “line” of books that are identical except for the
years they cover. Each book is a uniquely developed publication.
Who uses your books?
Our readers include film and theater costumers; historic reenactors;
museum curators and docents; professors of costume design and fashion
design; dressmakers of historic and wedding outfits; people who do
historic millinery, knitting, crocheting, tatting, embroidery, and
other needlework; corset makers; vintage clothing collectors and
dealers; doll artists; vintage dancers and musicians; sidesaddle
riders; steampunk enthusiasts; Goths; and historic novelists.
Do you publish reprints, or do your books contain reprints?
No to both questions. A reprint copies previously printed
sources exactly as-is. Those of our books that use previously printed
sources as a starting point (which is not all of them) are meticulously selected and
organized anthologies. They provide an in-depth picture including not only
most garments typically worn during a narrow historic period, but some
that are unusual—at least to modern readers. (For example, the
crocheted and knitted corsets in
Reconstruction Era Fashions.)
Our books all include new material such as substantive introductions
(covering such topics as overviews of the relevant fashion period),
appendices, glossaries, bibliographies, and indexes. Because our goal
is to balance historic authenticity with ease of use, all the original
text in our books has been edited for focus, clarity, consistency, and
technical accuracy. In some cases it has been entirely rewritten—the dressmaking manual in
Volume 2 of Fashions of the Gilded Age
is a seamless rewrite of information from over a dozen different books
and periodicals.
All the original illustrations have been edited to
repair the ravages of time, to eliminate irrelevant portions (such as
figures in a group fashion plate for which no patterns are given), to
redraw missing portions (such as a part of a dress that was overlapped
by something else in a plate) and for greater technical clarity and accuracy.
Where patterns were originally published overlapping each other, we have
separated them out. Where pattern pieces were missing, we have drafted
them from scratch or adapted them from other sources. In the rare cases where errors were
present in the patterns, we have corrected them. A very few of the patterns designed
to be enlarged to true scale were not published at true scale, so we redrew them.
All the interior design and layout—including our laying out all pattern
pieces as they are sewn together—is original to
our books. Some of our books include new translations from foreign
languages, and some include new illustrations by modern artists.
One of the 28 original full-size pattern sheets used
for Reconstruction Era Fashions, before pattern pieces were separated out
Image copyright by Frances Grimble 2001
Why do the fashion illustrations in The Voice of Fashion and The Edwardian
Modiste not look like modern fashion illustrations?
We used fashion plates from the same original sources as the patterns,
because each illustrates the garment made up from that particular pattern,
including the seam lines,
the trimmings, and the type of hats and accessories worn with it. Some of our books contain
supplementary illustrations of garments, accessories, and hairstyles.
The Edwardian ideal figure
featured a narrow waist, a large but low bust, large hips, a large behind,
and often a comparatively small head. Although some of this look was
achieved with undergarments and posture, it did not reflect the average human body
any better than the extremely tall and thin ideal of today’s modern pattern drawings
reflects the average human body. Many Edwardian women never
achieved the ideal period figure, so the proportions of the patterns themselves
are much more realistic, even by modern standards.
Some patterns are illustrated with what we would call “mixed media”
fashion plates, with a photographed head pasted onto a body rendered in
ink wash, watercolors, charcoals, and/or lithography, depending
on the fashion plate. In fact, on examining the plates greatly
enlarged on a computer screen, it became apparent that some were partly
three-dimensional
constructions of cardboard or stiff paper covered with real fabric. Then
the entire illustration was photographed for the original publication.
Although “mixed media” fashion illustrations seem unusual to some
modern readers, they were common in late 19th- and early 20th-century
pattern magazines and store catalogs.
Who used the historic patterns during the period in which they were published?
Most of the sources we draw from were for amateur dressmakers, who tended to be middle-class women
on a clothing budget that was smaller than they would have liked. However impressive some fashion
plates and patterns may look, most were published in mass-market magazines and newspapers for a
largely middle-class readership. Most of the original publications we use focused primarily on
pattern making and/or sewing.
There are many types of original patterns, and not all are equally easy to use. Apportioning scale
systems were typically marketed as a fast, easy, and economical way to raise amateur skills to a
professional level, because no arithmetic was required and a range of fashionable patterns was
provided in the publications that accompanied the system. This marketing explicitly appealed both
to amateurs trying to avoid dressmakers’ bills, and to would-be dressmakers thrown on the job market
by some circumstance such as widowhood that did not afford them the time or money needed for professional training.
How are your books produced?
We go through the same stages of substantive editing, copy editing,
indexing, cover and interior design, page layout, and proofreading as
any other commercial book publisher. Our books are printed by offset
lithography, by a high-quality book manufacturer, several thousand
copies at each printing. They are printed at 2400 dpi to retain all the
fine lines in the drawings and all the shades of gray in the halftones,
and to make pattern marks easy to read. (For comparison, web resolution
is 72 or 96 dpi.) We do not currently produce print-on-demand books,
CD-ROMs, ebooks, or Internet publications.
Why don’t you publish full-size patterns?
Full-size clothing patterns don’t physically fit into a book (at least,
not more than a few fold-outs). The book format allows us to include a
great many more patterns in any given publication than we could publish
singly. This dramatically lowers the per-pattern price for our readers,
many of whom would otherwise need to buy different patterns for each
item of underclothing and outerwear, and sometimes even for different
garment parts such as a bodice, skirt, and overskirt. And it enables us
to publish many different styles—not just basic silhouettes the
dressmaker must redesign to avoid instant recognition of
the pattern source by everyone familiar with the
limited number of historic reproduction patterns. (We
put far more patterns in one book than most repro pattern companies
will produce in their business’s lifetime.) It also enables us to
include a great deal more supplementary text and illustrations than
there is room for in the typical full-size pattern format.
Finally, the book format enables us to make patterns available to thousands more
readers than we could reach otherwise. Full-size historic patterns from
specialist publishers tend to be carried by a limited number of
reenactment and theatrical suppliers, a few museum stores, and a
handful of fabric stores with a historic bent. Books of historic
patterns are carried by those same suppliers—and also by a great many
mainstream bookstores and libraries who would never buy full-size
patterns. Bookstores and libraries don’t have the right kind of display
space for pattern envelopes, and they’re just not used to that type of
publication.
Bear in mind that the publishing format of a pattern (book versus
envelope) does not inherently make it easier or harder to use.
Are your patterns easy to enlarge?
“Enlarging” is much easier than “designing.” The concepts are sometimes
confused by people unfamiliar with one or both processes. Designing a pattern involves
both creating the style from scratch (not just
smaller creative tasks such as optionally swapping in a different sleeve from
another pattern, or choosing the fabric and trimmings) and creating the
proper proportions for it.
Enlarging a pattern is taking a pattern
whose style has already been designed and whose proportions have
already been defined, but which has been printed at a small scale,
and making it human size. You do not need design skills; and for our patterns,
no mathematical skills. Enlarged patterns often require some fitting skill—but unless you’re one of
the rare people with “perfect” proportions, so does every pattern.
All our books include detailed step-by-step instructions for enlarging the
patterns, by all methods appropriate for the patterns in that book. For
many patterns, you can choose among several methods.
For patterns sized down at true scale, these include both using a grid and
using an overhead projector. For patterns that use apportioning scales,
they include full sets of scales, “executive summary” instructions, and
then step-by-step instructions. Some apportioning scale patterns can also be
gridded or projected.
Note that, if you are not used to using
apportioning scales, you will probably need to read the instructions
all the way through. Many readers find that merely reading
the instructions is not enough; they need to work through the sample bodice
pattern given with the instructions, or another simple pattern from the book,
before enlarging a pattern with more pieces. Jen Thompson has posted a
video tutorial on her
blog Festive Attyre.
Enlarging a pattern is merely a copying process, not a design or mathematical process.
What are apportioning scales?
Apportioning scales are special rulers for enlarging patterns from
publications explicitly designed to be used with those rulers.The patterns for one system cannot
be accurately enlarged with the scales for a different system; with some,
even the same manufacturer’s system of a different date. For example, the publishers of the
Voice of Fashion magazine changed their apportioning scales in 1895, so the scales in our books
Bustle Fashions 1885–1887
and
The Voice of Fashion have differently sized units. The
printed patterns to be used with apportioning scales have numbers on them. Instead of standard imperial or metric units, the rulers have graded units, smaller units for smaller sizes and larger units for
larger ones. You choose the ruler for your body size, and we have labeled each size for both imperial and metric measurements. Then enlarge “by the
numbers” to get a pattern accurately graded to that size without doing any
arithmetic. The systems work for every size, from queen size to doll size. Apportioning scale systems were originally developed for women who were assumed to be “not good with numbers” (unlike most
professional tailoring systems, which required many calculations).
Every apportioning scale system had differently sized units and applied
them in slightly different ways, but the basic principle is the same.
We have reconstructed four different apportioning
scale systems for, respectively,
Fashions of the Gilded Age, Bustle Fashions 1885–1887, The Voice of Fashion, and
The Edwardian Modiste.
We know our scales are accurate because we have the wooden or cardboard originals for each system, for comparison.
Our set of antique tools originally used with the patterns that we included in The Edwardian Modiste.
Three of the 29 apportioning scales reconstructed
for The Edwardian Modiste.
Copyright by Frances Grimble 1997
Original rulers measured against the rulers we reconstructed for The Edwardian Modiste. Because most rulers were longer than the book page, we created second “halves” of five more units and added tabs of 1/2 unit to use in gluing them together.
I’ve already used a grid/an overhead projector to enlarge scaled patterns
from other publishers’ books. If I use one of these methods to enlarge
your true-scale patterns, do I need to do it any differently?
No.
I’m already familiar with developing patterns from a sloper/by draping.
Can I use my favorite design method with your patterns?
Yes. Some theatrical costumers prefer to use the basic pattern
shapes in our books as guidelines for flat pattern development or for
draping. Additionally, both volumes of
Fashions of the Gilded Age include
instructions for flat pattern techniques.
Bustle Fashions 1885–1887 and
Directoire Revival Fashions 1888–1889 contain illustrations and descriptions
of styles that can be developed from specific patterns by sewers who
are already familiar with flat pattern techniques.
Pattern pieces for skirt drapery from Volume 2 of Fashions of the Gilded Age (after being redrawn from a
sheet of overlapping patterns like the one shown above)
Copyright by Frances Grimble 2004
Are your patterns easy to sew?
As a general rule, Victorian and Edwardian styles (the eras for which
we have published pattern books so far) are inherently more complicated
than modern ones. Whether you’re using a pattern from one of our books
or one from another pattern or book publisher, if it is authentic you
are seldom looking at a “make it tonight” project. (The publishing
format has no connection to the complexity of the style.) The simplest styles
tend to be for underclothing and loose outerwear, and our books include a good selection of
both. However, we have also included as many basic dresses as were available in our sources,
in addition to more complicated ones. Readers can choose patterns that they
feel are appropriate to their needs and skill levels.
We have included all the sewing instructions that were originally supplied with each
pattern. These were rewritten for clarity and technical accuracy by an editor familiar with
historic clothing reproduction, who made paper and/or muslin mock-ups
whenever necessary for fully understanding the construction. The
instructions are often written step by step, even if the steps are not
set off by numbers as in modern patterns. We have also included as much
additional information on construction, materials, and trimmings as we
could possibly fit in. Some books include over 100 pages of such
additional information, and/or separate, illustrated dressmaking manuals.
The fashion plates are also more informative than most modern fashion
photos. They clearly show as much of the garment as possible (sometimes
at several angles and/or separate close-ups), and the placement of seam
lines, trimmings, and other construction details. Readers were expected
to refer to these fashion plates for information while sewing (not just
be inspired to go to a department store and buy ready-to-wear).
Instructions for one pattern
in Volume 1 of Fashions of the Gilded Age
Copyright by Frances Grimble 2004
I read the hand sewing, garment assembly, or pattern-drafting instructions, but I didn’t understand them.
What should I do?
Most people do not fully comprehend step-by-step instructions for drafting,
sewing, and many other things, merely by reading them. Instructions describe
an ongoing process. If you’re not executing the process, you’ll likely get lost
somewhere along the way. If you are, understandably, reluctant to spoil good
drafting paper or good fabric, work through the instructions with scraps. Mentally
learning and physically practicing new techniques is always work—but the
time you spend now will be amply repaid later. You’ll feel more confident, make
fewer mistakes, work faster, and get more polished results.
If you’ve previously made garments for other historic periods, remember that techniques and terminology change,
sometimes within a short time frame. They are not uniform even among original sources for the same period,
or among modern sources that describe garments of that period.
What are the trade-offs between using full-size patterns in envelopes,
and using the patterns in your books?
If the pattern is full size, you omit the one (simple) step of enlarging it.
On the other hand, because we fit many scaled patterns into each book, your
cost per pattern is much lower. Especially since most outfits require several
patterns, and some people require a number of outfits. Full-size patterns
repeat many instructions that are the same for most garments. Our patterns
all have instructions, and these are supplemented by excerpts from period
sewing manuals (see above). However, it is best that you either already have
beginning knowledge of sewing, or be willing to acquire it. Our patterns were all originally intended for period users.
They are entirely authentic, whereas some modern patterns have been modernized
and/or “dumbed down.” The large variety of patterns in our books enables you
to exercise more choice and creativity. You’ll never sew a new outfit for an event,
only to discover that many other people used exactly the same pattern.
Are your books all pattern books?
No, and it is not our goal to produce only pattern books. Our title
After a Fashion
contains no patterns. It contains information not only on working with
historically styled patterns (both originals and those from modern
pattern companies) but on buying, restoring, and altering vintage
clothing. Although
The Lady’s Stratagem contains sewing, embroidery, millinery, and
knitting patterns, it is not primarily a pattern book.
Are your books all for women?
Most of them focus on women’s clothing (which is not exactly the same
thing as focusing on female readers). However,
After a Fashion is equally
devoted to men’s and women’s clothing. We have no specific charter
to publish only books for women.
Why isn’t this book perfect according to my personal standards?
It contains useful information, but not all of it is precisely targeted to my specific needs.
I’m a beginning sewer, and this book is too advanced. I’m an advanced
sewer, and this book is too beginning. This book contains some patterns that
I want, but not all of them. This book is too long, why didn’t you just
leave out the information I don’t need? This book contains illustrations
and instructions, but I want more of them. This book contains lots of illustrations
and instructions, but I want the instructions written differently, or a different
kind of illustration.
Every author and publisher (and every other business as well) works under
genuine constraints of time, money, available information, and other resources.
Given ours, we produce the best books possible to appeal to the greatest number
of readers. Every author and publisher also has their own goals for a book,
which may not be identical to yours. We cannot custom publish a book just for
you. Nor can we produce the same book you personally would have produced.
Why don’t you post your material on the Internet for free?
Because we’re professional publishers. We’re neither hobbyists, nor
beginning writers desperate for any kind of publication credit.
Being professional means our business incurs significant expenses. Even though we run a small
press, we’ve spent hundreds of thousands of dollars doing it. It means
we need to make a profit to stay in business—which we’ve done for over 19
years.
More important to our buyers, being professional means we have
the expertise to publish books that are well worth their cover prices.
The business owner has worked full time in publishing for 28 years, the
first 10 for larger publishers. That means all Lavolta Press books
adhere to mainstream publishing industry standards through all stages
of research, writing, editing, design, and production. Any tasks not done
in-house are hired out to seasoned freelancers.
When you buy a Lavolta
Press book, you’re not getting a disorganized website full of dubious
facts and typos—laid out with such poor background contrast you can
barely find them—and small, low-resolution graphics with invisible
details. You’re getting a real book.
You’re also getting a large one,
from around 350 pages to around 755 (depending on the book). That is an
enormous size compared to most websites. Typically websites are more like a magazine
(a small collection of short articles, and often intrusive ads) than a book.
And unlike a website, your printed book won’t suddenly vanish because
it became too time consuming and expensive to maintain, or because the
author lost interest.
There are good reasons why many website owners
believe no one would pay them anything for their expertise, time, work,
or expenses. Our buyers find out that they get what they pay for.
So the other answer is: We charge for our books because thousands of readers are happy to pay us for them.
Why aren’t your books published by a larger publisher?
There is a widespread misconception that books published by
independent presses are thus published because their quality
is unsuitable for large publishers. However, most niche books—books for
a comparatively small, well-defined audience—are produced by comparatively small,
to very small publishers. What megapublishers look for isn’t just a good manuscript
(although they do indeed publish many excellent books). What they look for is a huge
audience and correspondingly huge revenues; in other words mainstream topics.
Most topics related to historic clothing are not considered mainstream.
These are the market domain of independent and midsize publishers—most
of the latter being significantly smaller than megapublishers. Midsize
publishers include many university presses, museum presses, and specialized
crafts and how-to publishers.
Some midsize publisher probably would publish our material—we’ve
had offers for certain books. However, they probably wouldn’t be exactly the same books, there would be fewer of them, and they’d be published many years apart.
Most midsize publishers can only afford to pay their authors small advances
and royalties—not nearly enough to support full-time work on a book. Some
publishers also expect their authors to do (and/or pay other people to do)
significant editorial, production, and marketing tasks in addition to writing.
These scheduling and financial issues often force their authors to create shorter
books, or lower-quality books, or take many years to complete one book
because they have to support themselves with another, full-time job.
In addition, publishing any book is a financial risk. The larger the publisher,
the more people must approve that risk. This tends to inhibit not only expenditure
(and therefore possibly quality and/or length) but innovative topics and
approaches. Midsize publishers and their authors produce many fine books;
but we couldn’t create our books under those circumstances.
On the other hand, because we do have full control over our publishing decisions,
book quality, schedules, and finances: We can. And we can make our books available
to audiences that most publishers consider too small, but that need and value
the information we provide.
What are your employment opportunities?
We sometimes hire freelancers for translations, editorial work, and
production. However, when we need someone we advertise in the relevant
publishing venue. We don’t save unsolicited resumes.
Do you ever buy antique books and magazines?
We already have a massive collection of rare source material.
Nonetheless, we are always buying more. If you have some pre-1930
original clothing-related publications that you want to sell,
feel free to contact us. We do need originals. Photocopies, microfilms,
and other second-generation copies are not suitable for offset book production.
Will you send me a free copy of the following book or books?
Because our books are expensive to produce, it is our standard policy not to provide
any complimentary copies to instructors, nor to journalists using our
books for research. Retailers who wish to examine our books are advised
to place a small first order and if they are satisfied, to then order more.
Do you have a bookstore, or do you ever sell at reenactment events or costuming conventions?
No, and never. We prefer to deal in higher-volume sales than single copies to individuals. At reenactment and costuming events there is often some retailer
selling books and/or patterns. If you see one who does not carry our books, we’d
be glad if you gave them our contact information or vice versa.
Can non-US customers buy and use your books?
Of course, and a fair number do. All our books are designed for
use both by people who are most familiar with the imperial system, and
those most familiar with the metric system.
We recommend that all overseas customers buy our books from one of the large online bookstores.
Unlike them, we cannot negotiate special rates with carriers, therefore our shipping charges are
always significantly higher.
Do you plan to publish more books?
Of course. As soon as we finish one book
we start another one; often we work on more than one at a time.
However, it is our standard policy not to discuss our books until they
are available for sale. We do welcome email suggestions for future books.
Can you email me when you publish a new book?
Yes, and you are welcome to send your contact information. We prefer to
get as much of this as is available (a postal address and URL in
addition to email) so we can still reach you if you change email
addresses. We will email you only when we have a new book, or if you
were not previously entered in our marketing database. We do not share
our database with any other companies, we do not publish a newsletter,
and we have no plans to do either.
sales@lavoltapress.com
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