Elsa's Tailoring

The was a time when people took their cloths to a tailor to have them repaired or have new cloths made. You don’t see that much anymore.

Sure, tailor shops still exist but most tend to be high-end and high-cost establishments. I remember when tailor shops were a common sight.

I used to go with my mom when I was young to a neighborhood tailor shop. Entering the shop a small bell would sound notifying the owner that someone had arrived.

The store smelled like fabric, clothing dust filled the air and everywhere I looked there were racks of cloth, rollers of fabric, sewing spools of thread, needles and other cloths making paraphernalia. The light was low and dark and shadowy corners melded into the dark. It was kind of spooky and yet comforting.

The shop owner would listen to our needs-either for new clothing or repairs to much loved and worn clothing and would quote mom a price, when the cloths would be done and issue a cloths’ claim ticket.

In a day or two we would go back and pick up our cloths. That was part of life in a small home town.

Rolife presents Elsa’s Tailoring all packaged up in a flip-lid box and partially wrapped with a slip-on sleeve. A full-color photo of Elsa’s Tailoring Shop decorates the front of the slip cover along with a couple of close-up photos. Also listed are the recommended age level to complete the kit (14+), the number of pieces (266), a DIY symbol and a LED light symbol (battery pack included).

On the back of the slip cover are other stats including material used (plywood, paper, plastic), battery instructions and assembly recommendations.

Ten part slats, three part bags (shop miniatures, furniture parts, electrical components and tweezers and a Phillips head screwdriver), an instruction booklet (parts are numbered coinciding with slats, bags and other components) Icon Illustration, stickers, paper assembly sheet, safety instructions, and material list.

Take a moment to look over the bags' components that include various 3D printed objects such as a sewing machine, a dress mannequin, beads, material and more-all of which are perfect miniatures of real objects.

The Elsa’s Tailoring Shop is open on three sides and looks just as cluttered as the tailor shop my mom and I often visited.

The back wall slightly curves and wraps around the contents of the shop. It is decorated in floral wallpaper, a large purple accented Elsa’s Tailoring sign, a full-length gold-trim mirror, oval framed photos of a woman's face, a curved/pointed door with a debossed Art Nouveau decor and a small wooden document holder all sitting on a wooden parquet floor with an Eternal Grace sign on its front.

The shop is lit by a decorative wall sconce of gold and molded/frosted glass shade.

Against the back wall is a large multi-alcove and drawer cabinet filled with fabrics, ribbon, a fancy hat with flowers and bric-a-brac.

To its right is a lace on spools display, an upright open top cabinet with ribbons, buttons and tape measures. 

On its right is a sewing table with an antique red sewing machine, a flower in a clear vase, fabric, scissors, more ribbon and contents, and a small white chair with a pink stripped seat sitting in front of the sewing table’s iron works legs and support. On the floor is a beige and white basket with folded and rolled fabric.

In the font of the shop is a mannequin dressed in a white dress with a floral design, lace and a large pink bow. A table display sits to its right with a glass enclosed front and twin drawers on its lower front.

The display contains gift boxes and its top are a bouquet in a vase, crystal, a necklace display, broaches and a small brown wooden display box of ribbon spools.

Assembling Elsa’s Tailoring kit is very much like sewing together a fine piece of clothing. Each component is carefully selected. Each part has a specific purpose and function. Separate parts combine to make the completed kit.

Words are inadequate to describe how fancy, realistic, colorful and charming Elsa’s Tailoring Shop is.

Like tailoring it takes time, requires patience, methodical planning, sequential assembly, the proper tools, precise instructions and careful assembly to complete the kit.

As always I recommend you take your time, read over the instructions completely (especially the electrical set-up), check to make sure all the parts are there, use a small flathead screwdriver to pop out the tabbed pieces, tweezers are a must along with a sharp pointed tool, an X-Acto blade and handle, liquid glue with a brush, a magnifier, good lighting and patience.

Picture yourself looking through the fabrics, taking in the warm charm of Elsa’s Tailoring Shop and enjoying the building process.

For more photos and a video of Elsa’s Tailoring click here. For more Rolife products visit this link and for even more DIY products check out Robotime’s website.

Ephesians 4:29 - Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.