Pandemic Sewing--11 New Doll Dresses

Anybody else doing pandemic sewing?  I can't imagine I'm the only one!  With all of this time at home and no outside commitments, I've been able to spend more time in my sewing room.  I had the best laid plans to get things deep cleaned and organized...but then I got sidetracked with all of my pretty fabric and suddenly I found myself sewing 11 new doll dresses!

They are all the same style except for the one in the center front.

I was complaining to my myself about a month ago how I hadn't seen any Journey Girl dolls in the thrift stores in a long time.  And then, in the matter of a couple of weeks, I found five, all on separate days and locations!  And all different!  Of course, they were all naked and had stains and messed up hair, but I'm a glutton for punishment, I suppose.  I also came across an 18" Gotz Pottery Barn doll, and an American Girl Lanie.  So I brought them home and gave them each a spa day.  

Journey Girls, left to right:  Meredith, Kelsey, Callie, Dana, & Chavonne

I've always thought that the Journey Girls have such pretty faces.  The older ones are my favorites, with their slightly more innocent looking face molds.  The newer ones also tend to have joint issues.  Thankfully, I didn't have to repair any of the joints on these girls.  Just some hair styling and stain removal from their vinyl.  The dress is just a simple, sleeveless bodice with a gathered skirt.  I added some trim at the waist to match the hemband.  I think they turned out really sweet.  I tried to pick colors that would compliment the doll's coloring.  Callie and Dana have silky, straight, long hair.  Meredith and Kelsey had their long hair set on rollers so they now have some pretty curls.  Chavonne has naturally curly hair and just needed a wash.

American Girl Lanie (2010 doll of the year) and a Gotz Pottery Barn doll (She had a red hair bow in the group picture, but then I switched it to a blue one here to match her dress).  I haven't been able to figure out her name.  I've seen plenty of these dolls with the brunette/brown eyes combo, or blonde hair/blue eyes, but none with brunette/blue eyes.  I guess I'll have to keep looking.  I found Lanie at an antique store back around Christmas.  I wish I would have taken a "before picture", because she was so pathetic looking.  She had black ink stains all up and down her legs.  Her hair was a tangled, frizzy mess.  I had no clue who she was until I got her home and started researching.  That's when I discovered that she was Lanie, American Girl's 2010 doll of the year.  I paid $15 for her because I knew I could probably save her.  After two months of treatment with 10% benzoyl peroxide cream on her vinyl, I finally got nearly all of the black stains removed from her legs.  I gave her hair some pretty curls back with sponge rollers.

Here dress is a similar style to all of the other dresses, but I had to make the bodice a wee bit larger because American Girl dolls are chubbier than Journey Girls.  I also added big pockets to the skirt and cute, little capped sleeves.  I just love the fabric and how it turned out!

Isn't she sweet?  I fully intended on selling her, but now I've sort of fallen in love with her!  (Darn it, that seems to happen every time!)  I will probably still try selling her in the future, but just enjoy her a bit for now.  Besides, with this whole pandemic thing going on right now, eBay sales have really hit a standstill.  So I probably won't list any dolls until things have returned back to normal.  Hopefully soon.  Although I can honestly say that I have enjoyed having to stay home.  I've only ventured out twice in the past two weeks, and those were both to just pick up some fresh produce at the neighborhood grocery store.  Lucky for me, I have a fabric/sewing stash that could last me for years before I run out!

These are the remaining four dresses that will fit Journey Girls or other slender, 18" dolls.  I was going to list these in my Etsy store, but with the ways things are going right now, maybe I should wait?  Are any of you having any luck with sales right now?  I suppose many people don't have jobs right now, or are waiting to see what happens with our economy before they make frivolous purchases again.  I'm really hoping things go back to normal soon.  I feel so bad for all of the small businesses that may not survive this storm, and everyone who may be struggling to make ends meet.  So far, my husband is still working because as a truck driver, his job is considered "essential".  Although, he drives for a lumber company, and our state has now shut down all business and residential construction.  He delivers to other states, though, so hopefully this won't affect him.  In the meanwhile, I will try not to worry and keep myself distracted with sewing and gardening.  

Stay safe, everyone, and fill your hours with things that bring you joy!

It's Been Too Long! and Sewing for Dolls

I can't believe it's been 10 months since my last post!  Funny how fast time can go by.  I don't really have any excuses, either!  However, I did have another back surgery (a lower lumbar fusion in my L4-5) in December, so that did keep me lying low for awhile.  But I'm pretty much back to normal, minus extreme bending or heavy lifting, so that's good.  I didn't sew for at least month after my surgery, and that was really hard.  I'm so happy to be back in my sewing room and playing with my dolls again!

Recently, my laptop died, so until it gets fixed, I have to make-do with my phone.  I tried several times to write a post on my phone, but just couldn't do it.  So now I am borrowing my teenager's laptop just so I can get a quick post written.

I have a huge pile of dolls that I've been stockpiling to sell on Ebay.  Many of them are naked, because that's how I find them at the thrift stores.  I hate selling them that way, so I decided to start with a group of Journey Girls and make them some basic dresses.  That is Callie above, an Asian Journey Girl.  She is actually a part of my collection and not for sale.  I have always loved her face mold so much.

I finally figured out how to add flutter sleeves to my basic dresses, and I think it looks so cute!

Callie looks so pretty in everything she models.

This blue fabric has been in my stash for quite awhile.

I came across this ballerina fabric not too long ago, and hesitated on buying it.  The colors are not your usual "girly" fabrics, but I really liked the yellow.  Once I paired it with the brown, I really liked how it turned out.

After I had Callie model a few of these dresses, I started wondering if they would fit any of my other slim-bodied dolls.  To my delight, I discovered that my all-vinyl Gotz dolls, as well as my Magic Attic Heather had similar measurements to the Journey Girls and could also wear them!

I just LOVE this Mickey/Minnie fabric on Heather.  I think I bought 2 yards of it, so I should be able to get quite a few more doll outfits out of it.

I made sure to "fussy cut" the print so that I could have one of the images centered nicely on front of the bodice.

I use an ultra thin Velcro which I cut in half lengthwise to close the back openings.

Two more dresses which fit the Gotz girls.  That umbrella fabric was from JoAnn's.  It was part of their 1930's prints last year, and I wish I would have bought more.  I've never seen it again.  But isn't it adorable?

Gotz Happy Kidz Charlotte on the left, and Gotz Hannah on the right

This is my BFC Ink doll, Yuko.  She stands about 18" and is jointed in all the usual places, as well as elbows, wrists, knees, ankles, and torso.  She has a more slender, teenager type body.  There seems to be quite a following for these dolls on Ebay, so whenever I find one at the thrift store, I snap them up and set about making them pretty again.  That usually involves making them a new dress, since like I stated above, they're usually naked when I find them.  I had to outfit three of these dolls, so I made 4 dresses, just so I would have one to keep.  Yuko is not for sale--again, she has such a pretty face (I'm really drawn to Asian dolls) so she is staying in my collection.  

I drafted the pattern for these dolls several years ago.  The bodice has two, vertical darts in both the front and the back so it fits nicely on her slightly, developed body.

And last but not least, these are the other cuties I've been sewing for.  

These 16" Disney Animators are just so cute.  Rapunzel is my favorite.  I think I may have at least three of them!

I designed this simple A-line dress for them with a center pleat.

I made this one with a contrast pleat.  

Another pretty fabric from JoAnn's.  I have become a little more impressed with JoAnn's recently.  I never used to buy fabric there because I felt the quality was so inferior.  But lately, they have introduced premium cottons (with a premium price!) which I really like.  I always use a coupon, though.  Or wait for it to go on sale.  JoAnn's always has something I like that's on sale!

How cute is this?!?  I've wanted to make something besides a dress for these cuties for quite awhile, and when I came across this pattern from Oh Sew Kat for her Backyard Bibs overalls, I bought it.  I probably could have drafted them myself, but I just didn't want to make the effort.  That said, I did end up making these twice, since the first pair just didn't fit the way I wanted them too.  The bib part showed too much skin on the side (so I raised that up), and then the straps were too long, so I shortened those.  I also ended up adding another 1/2" to the top of the shorts since they seemed to fit too tightly in the crotch and it was a little difficult to pull them on.  I loved how the second pair turned out, though!  The buttons are purely decorative since the whole outfit opens in the back with Velcro.

This pattern comes with the variation to make the outfit with different bottoms:  shorts, capris, an A-line skirt, or a gathered skirt. 

That's a real pocket on the bibs!  I need to find something cute to stick inside it.

This pattern goes together really quickly, and there aren't very many pieces.  I highly recommend it for its versatility and ease in sewing.  The first one I made was nice, but because it had less coverage on the sides than I liked, I pulled the straps too tight which then made the crotch too high.  So really, those fitting issues were my fault and not the pattern designer's.  If you're interested in purchasing this or one of her other cute patterns, here is her website:  www.ohsewkat.wordpress.com  

Okay, that's it for now!  I have lots of other sewing/doll projects in the works, so I promise to be back soon!

Simplicity 8314--Four, New Doll Dresses!

Most of the dolls I find at the local thrift stores are naked.  I bring them home, give them a spa treatment, and sew them a pretty, new dress.  Lately, I've been wanting to try making a simpler dress other than my standard go-to, which is sleeveless sundress with a full, gathered skirt.  While I think it's very pretty and feminine, it does take a lot of time to gather and sew the skirt, make the placket, and add the hem band trimmed with rick rack.  And since I always have an over-abundance of naked dolls on hand and limited sewing time, I decided it's time to maybe find a simpler dress.  Enter Simplicity 8314:

 

When I first saw this pattern, I knew I wanted to give it a shot.  The short pantsuit and geometric block dress in the big picture did nothing for me, but the sleeved blue dress and white dress with red contrast looked really cute!

 

Now, I am a child of the late 60's to early 70's, and I cringe when I look at the photos showing what my mother used to dress me in back then.  So. much. polyester.  And bold, floral prints.  Not all of it was bad, but that time period is not my favorite for fashion!  However, I could tell that this pattern had great potential.

 

I promptly pulled out several coordinating prints from my never-ending stash of fabric and whipped out these, four dresses:

 

Didn't they turn out so sweet?  Simple yet feminine.  I chose to make View C (bottom right corner).  I omitted the sleeves to make it even simpler.  Other changes I made were to lengthen the dress by 1", omit the facings and instead completely line the dress, and hem the bottom with bias tape.  I hate neckline/armhole facings, so completely lining the dress made perfect sense to me.  Plus, it gives the dress a nicer weight and feel, and hides all of the exposed edges.  Since the front of the dress is made up of a center front and then side panels, I constructed the front first, ironed it nicely, and then used this as a pattern for my front lining piece.

 

18" Madame Alexander modeling the adorable owl print on an orange background.  She happens to also be wearing a white blouse underneath the dress which makes it look like this dress has sleeves and collar.  But it doesn't.

 

Close-up of the fabric:

 

18" Madame Alexander ethnic doll.  I love this blue and yellow combination.

 

Another 18" Madame Alexander with probably my favorite of the four dresses.  I just think the brown and pink combination is so pretty.

 

The back of these dresses is nice and simple.  I closed them with Velcro.  If I was making these dresses for my own dolls, I would either make buttonholes or use snaps.  But since I'm trying to keep them simple, Velcro was a good choice.

 

18" Our Generation "Hair to There" Doll.  This is a special edition Target doll, because she has hair that reaches the ground and a knob in her back which can let out or retract the three braids that come out of the top of her head.   While I think that some of these dolls are pretty, I don't like the way their upper arms are shaped.  They remind me of body builders!  But they are a nice alternative for little girls who may want an 18" doll, but aren't quite mature enough for an expensive American Girl.

 

This dress, the way I made it, has only 4 pattern pieces:  The center front panel, side panels, back, and front tab.  Very simple.  I hid the hem stitching with rick rack sewn on top.  In conclusion, I highly recommend this pattern!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Generation "It Seams Perfect" set and a New Gotz Girl!

A couple of months ago, I received this very, special gift from one of my sewing students:

 

Can you believe it?  It's the ever-desirable, always elusive "It Seams Perfect" sewing set from Our Generation!  I have drooled over this on the internet and haunted all my local Targets, but had resigned myself that acquiring a set of my own was not to be.  And then, out of nowhere, my wonderful, little sewing student happened upon it one day and wanted to get it for me.  How awesome is that?!?

 

Back of the box

 

Close up of once I figured out how to remove the outer part of the box, but before tackling that horrible, molded plastic...

 

Okay, so this photo has nothing at all to do with unboxing my new sewing set, other than the fact that while I was struggling with all that horrible plastic, my 10 year old decided to visit my sewing room with our favorite chicken.  Yes, we have a favorite, and yes, sometimes they come into the house.  And in case you're wondering, her name is Stella.

 

Okay, on to the "It Seams Perfect" set...

 

There's a real, actual pattern to make an 18" doll sundress!  How cute is that?  There's also a roll of fabric included, but I probably won't use it.  On second thought, my 7 year old is really bugging to learn how to sew, so maybe I'll start her out with this pattern.  It looks simple enough.

 

Here are all of the darling, little accessories.  There's a real, 18" tape measure just like the life-sized ones, a wooden ruler (maybe it's plastic, but it feels like wood), two wood spools with thread, a marking pencil, a plastic thimble, 4 buttons, a buttonhole marker, scissors that actually open and close, a wristband pincushion, and a delightful, round box with a lid to hold it all.  Some of the accessories are really well made, like the scissors, ruler, tape measure, spools, and box.  A couple leave a little to be desired, like the wristband pincushion (it's molded plastic and doesn't actually fit on the doll's wrist) and the plastic thimble which doesn't have much detail.  It would have been really cool if the scissors actually cut, but all in all, I think these accessories are so cute.

 

I think it was smart thinking on OG's part to make a box to contain all the items.  Plus, how adorable is that antique sewing machine graphic on the lid?!

 

Rebecca was our resident seamstress today.  Here we see how she can sit on the little chair, surrounded by everything she needs to create something special.  The extension on the sewing table folds out, and the sewing machine sits down in a recessed area.  I didn't take a close-up photo of the sewing machine, but the presser foot actually lifts up and down, as does the needle!  With all of this attention to detail, I'm wondering why OG didn't include a foot pedal?!?  Oh well, I guess we will have to use our imaginations on this one.

 

I slipped a little dress over the dress form...how adorable!

 

All set to sew.

 

Love the scissors!

 

Just as Rebecca was getting ready to thread a bobbin, in walked a complete stranger.  "Oh!  Hello...who are you?"

 

"I'm new here.  My new mama rescued me from the Goodwill where I was just tossed up on a shelf with all kinds of scary toys.  Some were loud and made all sorts of noise, and some were broken.  I'm so glad she brought me here!"

 

"I don't have any clothes.  Do you think you could make me something to wear?  My favorite color is pink."

 

"Well, it just so happens that our mama likes pink, too!  Here are some bolts of fabric.  Pick one, and I'll make you a dress."

 

"But before we get started, I'll need to take your measurements."

 

"It would be helpful if you could hand me things while I sew.  Then I'll have this dress done in no time!"

 

"Let me button the back for you..."

 

Cuteness overload!

 

Admiring the vintage angel at the top of the tree.

 

I couldn't believe my good fortune when I found this beautiful, little girl at the Goodwill.  Nice dolls are getting harder and harder to find, probably because most of what's available in stores is cheap and low quality.  All I seem to happen across anymore are the Disney toddlers and 18" OGs.  This little darling is a 16" Gotz.  I don't know her name.  Unfortunately, Gotz dolls are hard to find in the USA--not many stores carry them.  Which is really a shame, since they are such excellent quality play things.  I know that Pottery Barn carries a line of Gotz dolls, but beyond that, I'm not sure where you would go to buy this little cutie here in the states.  European shops sell them, and I've ordered several Gotz dolls from www.petalina.com. 

 

This doll is all vinyl.  She can stand on her own and hold many poses.  Her rooted hair is thick and a beautiful quality.  She has stationary, blue eyes and just the sweetest expression.  I'm so glad I decided to stop in at that Goodwill on that particular day.  And yes, I think she looks adorable in pink!