My apologies.....

So, it was my intention to post more regularly than this, and in truth, I have a couple of posts that I am working on (but am not yet satisfied with, so I keep re-writing them), and more ideas in the works, but July has been a busy month.  I should not be surprised by this - July has always been a busy month for me - and yet, it is the end of the month, and I'm scratching my head wondering what has happened.

Anyway, I thought I'd share a discovery that one of my brood made.  Please note that the pictures that appear in this post are taken by this young one.

In our house, there are a number of doll lovers.  We are currently quite happy with the Ever After High dolls, but our favourites (of the modern dolls) are Spin Master's Liv dolls.  Of course, there are also Monster High, Bratzillaz, Moxie Teenz, Disney Fairies and some of the Pullip dolls are really wonderful.  I also really liked the My Scene and Wee Three Friends dolls when they were available.

Getting back to the main reason for this post, however, a discovery that was made.  I like the outfits that the Ever After High girls wear, but they are limited to what they come dressed in, unless you're handy with a needle and thread, and can work with really tiny pattern pieces.

In an attempt to get around this, here is what was placed before me:

EAH Madeline Hatter

I recognised the outfit right away, but for those that may not, it comes from the Tommy doll that was part of the Kelly and Tommy as Alice and the Mad Hatter set from Mattel some years back (I believe it was part of the Storybook Collection).

Maddie giving upside down posing a try

I had to admit, she looked pretty cute in her borrowed duds.  I would never have occurred to me to put her in Kelly sized clothing.

Um, I didn't expect that either

Just a short post to share, until I get the others done.

Dress Pattern for Ever After High dolls

I like it when I can combine my interests, and this post is about dolls and sewing!

Members of my brood expressed interest in the Ever After High dolls when they started to appear last year (2013), and luckily, this happened before birthdays or Christmas, so all went well.  The unfortunate thing about these dolls, the girls anyway, is that their bodies are way slimmer than Barbie or Liv dolls, and healthier looking than Monster High dolls, which means that for the time being, any new clothes will have to be made.  By me.

I have spent some time searching for patterns that I can try (as in free) and tweak to suit my purposes, without much luck.  There are lots for Monster High dolls though (which is fine, as some of those ladies live here too).  And then I found some great measurement information on Requiem Art.  If you click on the link, it will take you to the Doll Clothes and Patterns page - the measurement information is in the Subpages for Doll Clothes and Patterns box to the right.  And yes, I could just buy one of the patterns on this site, but I really want to drive myself to the edge of insanity try it myself first.

This information was useful.  I combined the information into a giant spreadsheet of my own, placing comparable dolls side by side.  With that information, and looking at the pictures that are also available on the site that compare body types, I was able to get a better idea of how I might be able to alter a pattern for Monster High (MH) dolls so that it will fit Ever After High (EAH) dolls.

My first attempt has been to use a pattern I stumbled upon while on Pinterest.  The image of the pattern is here.  Just in case this link is broken, it's on sunlight_neko's photostream on Flickr.

Anyway, I printed the pattern, and traced it, adding 5mm allowance everywhere except the hem (there, I added 10mm).  Then, I decided to extend the lines of the bodice front and back to make a shift dress and sewed it all by hand.  You will notice I did not mention enlarging the pattern.  In order to make this dress fit a MH doll (let alone an EAH doll), you will have to.  If you use it as is, it will fit a La Dee Da doll, which have even skinnier bodies.  Just so that you know that this pattern can fit a variety of dolls : )

So after that little experiment, I enlarged the pattern by 130%, 135%. 140% and 150%.  I figure I might as well have a variety of sizes available.  While studying the pattern, I realised that the area at the bottom of the armhole would probably go around the bust, and I had the bust measurements from the charts above.  The 150% enlargement had a finished bust measurement of 8.9cm, more than enough for and EAH doll.  So I traced, added seam allowance and hand sewed a second sample.  This is what it looks like:

Ashlynn Ella's arms are up to allow for better viewing of the dress.  I doubled the pieces for the bodice because the fabric I used would have frayed too much without it.  The alternative would have been to create facing pieces for the neck and armholes, and that's too small for me!  This picture shows how short the bodice is on an EAH doll...it would be even shorter on an MH doll, and might be better referred to as a yoke.  The waist seam is just below her bust.  So, my thoughts on the next attempt are to lengthen the bodice pieces so that the waist seam is at the waist...or I could make the skirt less flared so that the dress is similar to an Empire style dress.  I guess I have some options.

Please note, the area of the pattern that I measured is just above an EAH doll bust, and the bottom of the bodice, in the enlarged state without alteration, will be just below.  I also realized that I can use the 140% enlargement for these dolls as the pattern measured 8.1cm and would make a closer fitting bodice.  And I would recommend adding the seam allowance to the pattern, rather than enlarging it enough to include it, but if you decide to go the second route, please let me know how it worked out for you!  I should finally add that I have not yet tried to make the socks included with this pattern...I might get to that after I'm happy with the dress.

Please also note that this dress will be longer on Madeline Hatter as she is shorter than most of the girls, and shorter on Cerise Hood as she is taller, although I'm sure that many EAH enthusiasts are already aware of that.

Hopefully, my next attempts will be better!

P.S.  I'm still working on the Skipper post too - I've decided to rewrite it from scratch because it was getting too long and rambling!

A diversion - some doll finds!

Okay, it was my intention that the next thing I posted was going to be about my Teen Skipper dolls, but a decision to go out and get some fresh air yesterday changed that.

There is a lot of interesting retail in the vicinity of my workplace, and by interesting, I mean places that cater to my varied likes (such as the tea shop, the fabric store, the second hand shops).  My brief trip out found me going to the closest second hand store, as I had not been there for a while.  The target of this trip was the toy section.....because you never know what interesting dolls might turn up (see this post from my other blog as an example)!  As an aside, it's also a great place to find playscale accessories like furniture, but those are usually unintentional finds for me.

Anyway, they had loads of new stock.  It appears that someone is clearing out their collection of late 1970's and 1980's Barbies, because there were a slew to choose from.  There were also a lot of Hannah Montana and My Scene dolls.  It looked like a great day to find something interesting!

So what did I find?  Well, two Monster High dolls (one I recognize as Cleo de Nile, but the other, I'm not sure); a Liv Sophie with wig, clothes and shoes; some Barbie Mini Kingdom dolls; four mystery dolls and an original Skipper doll (1963 head mold).  I also snagged some clothes and shoes, and will have to go through them to determine what dolls they are for.

I'm really happy about finding Sophie, as Liv dolls are my favourite fashion dolls, and second hand shops are the best way for me to find them.  I'm also excited about the Skipper doll, not only because she's a vintage doll that appears to be in pretty good shape, but because she's not like the typical Skipper of that period.

I will have to go through all of my finds and will start to share as I get them sorted.  Until then, I'll get back to work on the Teen Skipper post.

An Introduction

I'm not a regular blogger.  I just don't have time.  I thought I would give it a try with my other page, Ramblings on the Run, but I'm running more than I'm rambling.

I am, however, trying to make more time for my hobbies, which include baking, sewing, dolls and photography.  Not easy, seeing as I work outside my home and have children.  So, posts to either blog may be spotty at best.

The idea for this blog came from a discovery while starting the spring cleaning.  My fabric inventory needs to be (better) organized, and while doing that, I remembered my collection of Teen Skipper dolls.  I started buying them as I had purchased one as a gift for the daughter of a friend, and discovered that there was little available in the way of clothing for this doll and practically no commercial patterns to be found anywhere (please keep in mind that this was before so many crafty people started sharing online).  My first Teen Skipper was bought so that I could make clothing for this friend.  In fact, that doll started my now, er, large collection of fashion dolls, which is, in itself, a post for another day.

Anyway, I found the box where I have my Teen Skippers and spent some time with them, marvelling over their hair, faces, clothing and accessories.  Mattel doesn't make this particular doll any more - Skipper has been modified and modernized with a new head mold, body and hair colour.

Spending time with Teen Skipper made me think I should find a way to document my collection, hence this blog.  It is my hope to be able to post information about the various dolls I've collected, and hopefully learn more about them.

So that is my introduction.  How long it will be before I can make my next post is a mystery to me, but I'll try to make it soon.