Colonial Willamsburg Outfit Finished

The Colonial Williamsburg outfit is done. 

The pattern was well drafted. The instructions were good but I did question how to sew the sleeve seams. I may do that different if I sew the pattern again. 

My choice of fabric was not the best. The homespun frayed if handled not handled with a delicate hand. If I felt the least bit stressed with what I was doing, I had to stop as I could see the fabric fraying under my fingers. 

One of the features I loved was the pleats in the jacket. I didn't press them hard as I wanted soft pleats. 

There are pleats at the side seams also. Overall, I am thrilled with the outfit and it will probably become part of Addy's wardrobe. 

My next two projects are planned. The simple skirt is cut out and the pyjamas are ready to pin onto the fabric and cut out.

I am still talking to myself to sew up the doll's fabric. I need to let go of the old ideas and plans I had and sew to make items for the dolls. I also need to have a lot less fabric in the stash. I am working on it with a plan to sew 2 items each month for the dolls. 

Happy Doll Sewing...................................................................

Working On The Caraco Jacket

 I worked on the Caraco jacket yesterday. I am ready to start on the sleeves. I folded the front extensions back to show the lace. I added the snap placket to the front so I can snap it up and use the lace as a decoration. 

The fabric frays and I have to use a light hand. Once I got the lining prepped, I stopped for the day. I knew I was done.

I did haul out two tubs of the doll's fabric. I wanted to get them consolidated into one tub. Each piece of fabric was taken out and petted. I felt the emotional attachment to the fabrics which is not what I wanted. I wanted ideas floating in my head of what I could use the fabrics for. 

I did leave out 3 fat quarters to make piping for daughter. I sew fat quarters only if I have 2. These are singles. 

Another piece that is a meter in length will be used to line a bag or two. The rest was put back into one tub. 

The emotional ties to this fabric is not one of guilt. It is one of what projects I was going to make out of them. None of those project have materialized nor will many of them happen. This morning, I had one stern talk with myself about letting go of the ideas/projects I had intended to make. Made a bit of progress. I will need a couple of more stern talks to get sew a lot of that fabric. 

While having a talk with myself about the fabric, I also talked about the patterns I have. No, they aren't being purged but they need to become a focus for sewing down the doll's fabric. I can sew up some easy patterns between the harder patterns. I will start with a couple of easy ones. 

With that in mind, I have decided to take one piece of blue dotted fabric and cut out a simple skirt, add a bit of lace to it and knit a sweater to make an outfit. This can be for one of the doll's wardrobe. I will be cutting it out as soon as I finish the jacket I am working on. 

I have also got out a piece of flannel and a pyjama pattern to start sewing pyjamas for the dolls. I seem to have less emotional attachment to the tub of flannel as this was an easy decision to make when I went through that tub a while ago. The pattern is easy to make and will be one I will use for the majority of the pyjamas. 

One piece of the fabric will become a future project. I am going to sew a rabbit and the fabric can become a dress for her to wear. It is sage green with small white daisies on it. Perfect for a rabbit to wear. The left over fabric can be something for the dolls. 

I know there will be some stumbling blocks while sewing down the doll's fabrics. I am trying to sew down the main stash. As it is visible I sew it first. The doll's fabric is stored in the closet so I need to visit those tubs each time I cut out projects and include one to two projects to sew up. 

Happy Doll Sewing.........................................................

Swedish Doll's Outfit Completed

 I finished my version of the outfit I saw in Sweden. It was a very difficult dress to make with godets and ruffles that met at the top of the godets. It took me many tries to get them looking good. Perfect was not accomplished. When I was happy, I finished the dress in good time. 

I enjoyed hand sewing the bias facings around the neck and arms. When done, I admired it and remembered that day I saw the little girl at the soccer game. 

I hunted for the wooden buttons and the store has discontinued them. I found 3 in the stash and sewed them on the sweater to go with this outfit. The little girl had on a navy sweater with cables down the front. Mine has a textured stitch as I could not find a pattern with cables using the size wool I had. 

I have started the Colonial Williamsburg outfit. I am using a homespun fabric and it frays. I have to handle it carefully. The back seam is curved so I did a Hong Kong finish on it. The hem was serged. I hand sewed the waistband down and it is done to the snap on the waistband. 

I am ready to begin the top which is a solid green. I know I can't sew for hours on it as I will handle it too roughly when my stress level goes up. 

My goal when I have to stop sewing the top, is to start going through the doll's fabric stash. I need to see if I can empty one tub for the doll quilts I am making. I have no where to store them so this is my solution. 

I have a piece of flannel ready to cut out a pair of pyjamas for one doll. They are going on to my to do list for this month as I need to get ready to cut out more projects. I may also add a top pattern that I want to cut on the straight of grain first and then on the bias. 

Happy Doll Sewing............................................................... 

Sewing On The Bias

 I really enjoyed this month learning about sewing on the bias. I did make the dress. I learned a lot. The fabric I chose was a chambray and I could see the grain lines. Bonus to understanding more on the bias. 

I did cut out a facing for the dress and cut it on the grain. What I didn't realize was -- I should have lowered the neckline. I put in a 5" zipper and it is hard to get on the doll. I will do that adjustment before putting the pattern away. 

I sewed the dress using a tiny zig zag stitch (called lightening stitch) on the seams that needed some stretch. Seams like the shoulder seams were done in a straight stitch to stabilize them. The back seam was straight stitched where the zipper was inserted and lightening stitched below it. I even did the lightening stitch for the hem. 

When I put the dress on the doll, it looked boxy. My first thought was "all that work for a boxy dress". I walked away and looked at it the next day. The fabric was relaxing and the dress had a bit more shape to it. 

I sprayed the dress with water while on the doll and left it once again for a couple of days. I then measured the hem, cut it even and stitched it up. I still need to take a picture of the finished dress. Will do that today. 

I also started working on the Swedish dress. I measured down what I thought was 1/4" at the top of the godet. It was 3/8". First mistake. I fought with the godets in the front as they wouldn't lay properly. The tops bulged out when I sewed the seam. But wait, I wasn't to sew the seam. Oops!! I set the front aside in sheer frustration and worked on the back. Much better results following the written instruction. 

My last job was to unpick all the seams. Straight stitches and zig zag. I did it telling myself to own up to my mistake. I did it and gave all the pieces a good pressing. I was very careful as the godet sides are cut on the bias. 

I will start again on the front today. If all goes well, I hope to add the ruffle that goes from the top of the front godet to the top of the back godet. I promise I will read the instructions carefully. 

September's Sewing With Cinnamon's topic was a great one. I learned a lot about sewing on the bias by watching the videos and digging deeper into why you cut patterns on the bias the way you do. My free pattern is going to be this one.

I can cut it on the bias or the straight of grain. I know I will use this pattern a lot when sewing for the dolls. Not only the top but the dress length also. 

October's topic is All Things Barbie. I will watch and collect all the videos but am not sure what I will sew. I do have to finish the Swedish dress and do the Colonial Williamsburg outfit before the end of October. 

Happy Doll Sewing.............................................................................

Learning About Sewing On The Bias

 September is Sewing On The Bias with Sewing With Cinnamon. My main sewing on the bias is making piping for daughter or following the layout on a doll's dress that calls for a piece or two cut on the bias. 

When Shari Fuller did lesson 1 I thought it wasn't going to be an exciting month. Just do a pattern or 2 on the bias. But no. She started to talk about the layout of the pattern pieces in lesson 2. Balance of the pieces when you lay them out. She designed a pattern for this project. It is a simple dress with cap sleeves. It really isn't about the dress, it is about the layout. 

I knew that to cut out pattern pieces on the bias you needed to cut them out in a single layer. What I didn't realize was the how and why of laying them out. She showed the pattern pieces cut out in this picture. 

She shows the two back pieces cut at 90 degrees to each other with one at the same angle as the front piece. She called it balancing the pieces. That got me thinking and researching as she stated that balancing it doesn't let the garment twist.

Bias has two directions. That is important to know. The Pattern Place shows it in this diagram. 

The author states that the garment’s bias grainlines must meet in opposite directions. This is to avoid twisting on the body and have a balanced result. 

More researching took me to Seamwork's web page. She explained balance in a similar way. If you cut both the pieces in the same direction, the piece has a tendency to twist around the body. Turning the pieces opposite direction tends to avoid the fabric twisting. With two authors saying the same thing, I totally understood the why. 

The grainlines need to meet in the opposite directions. Shari showed this in her post. 

I went searching for a simple shift dress I could make on the bias. I finally found one at Phoebe and Egg. I will be using the basic dress and making my own front and back facings for it. It doesn't need to be fancy when learning to sew on the bias. It needs to be a pattern I can learn the how and why techniques on. 

Next comes choosing the fabric. Threads Magazine talks about using a fabric with a tooth (grabs each other) rather than a slippery fabric when starting out. I will be looking in the doll's stash for a lighter weight cotton for my first try. I don't think I have the right weight of linen but will look and use it if I do. Both have a tooth which will be good for the first time. 

The two pattern pieces I need are printed out I once I find the right fabric, I will start to lay out the fabric and give it a try. 

Happy Doll Sewing..........................................................................

Strawberry Shortcake Is Finished

 Strawberry Shortcake's outfit is completed. The outer dress was very fiddly to sew. I pinned and hand basted the fiddly parts before sewing them. I didn't want to deal with a pile of pins which usually fall out or poke me when sewing in tight spaces. It worked well. 

I was worried about the button holes but they went in beautifully. Though the buttons are a bit big, the colour is perfect for the dress. 

I have to say the pattern is well drafted and fits the doll perfectly. I did not put the darts into the back bodice as this doll is chunky. The instructions are well written but some of the pictures are hard to decipher as the fabric used matches so well it is hard to see the pieces. But I figured it out. 

I made the petal hat again for the outfit. It is an easy sew but care needs to be taken to make sure all the seams line up at the top. I chose the strawberry fabric for the lining as it frames the doll's face. 

The next two outfits are chosen to be made. One is the Colonial Williamsburg and the other is the little outfit I saw in Sweden. They will be started once I finish projects I have on my to-do list. They are cut out ready for me to sew. 

I also want to do my take on Strawberry Shortcake using one of the Gotz doll's and a pair of overalls I made a few years ago. I am still thinking about the top. Yellow, the red print I have lots of. The red print would be the best as I can use up the fabric I have on hand. 

The next Strawberry Shortcake character I want to make later on is Blueberry Muffin. I have started to collect pictures and have fabric in the doll's stash to use. I have no idea what pattern I will use for that outfit. It is still coming together in my mind. 

Happy Doll Sewing...................................................................

Under Dress Successfully Sewn

 I have finished the under dress for the Strawberry Shortcake outfit. The instructions are well written and easy to follow. For me the hardest part was the button holes which ended up being a no issue. The button holes are put in before you start on the skirt. 

The dress fits well and will be cute peaking out from underneath the over dress. 

The over dress is cut out and ready for me to sew when I have some spare time. 

I also have the hat lining and 2 pieces of the outer hat fabric cut out. 

I have more of the red fabric which I will cut out the remaining pieces when I lay out the next hat I need to make for the Gotz rendition of Strawberry Shortcake. 

At the moment I have to sew two bags for auctions. They need to be shipped in the next 10-14 days so I am focusing on them at the moment. Once done, I can get back to sewing the outer dress and hat. 

Happy Doll Sewing.............................................................