Shola's Holiday Swim

Shola decided the cold for the holidays was overwhelming. 

So she packed up her red swimsuit with white trim and headed to warmer weather for her holiday vacation.

Shola's swimsuit is modified from the Liberty Jane swimsuit for BFC Inc. dolls to fit her smaller size.

Watch for pictures on Flickr and at sewdolledup.blogspot.com.

Laura in Plaid

Christmas Plaid Look 6 is Laura's look.

For her Christmas plaid dress, Laura picked a 40s style.

The skirt is accented with a red ribbon.

The bodice is accented with a red sequin trim.

The puff sleeves are cut on the bias and so are the matching ties.

Laura accessorizes the look with a pair of black mary janes.

Watch sewdolledup.blogspot.com and Flickr for pictures of Laura.

Plaid for Zelia

Christmas Plaid Look 5 is an a-line dress for #HeartsForHeartsGirls Zelia.

Zelia chose an a-line dress pattern for her Christmas look.

The dress is a sleeveless a-line style with a plaid ruffle at the hem.

The neckline is accented with a green and gold glitter ribbon.

The waist is accented with a green ribbon.

The ruffle at the hem is a mixture of the plaid and the green ribbon.  The ruffle is accented with the green and gold glitter ribbon.

Over her dress, Zelia is wearing an green velvet crop jacket lined in the matching plaid.

Watch for this look on sewdolledup.blogspot.com and more pictures on Flickr.

Plaid for Shola

Plaid for Christmas look 4 is a plaid skirt with a red t-shirt.

#HeartsForHeartsGirls Shola picked out a full plaid skirt as her look for Christmas.  She is pairing it with a red t-shirt.

The skirt has a yoke of the plaid cut on the bias.

There is an under layer of red glitter tulle gathered under the skirt.

The hem of the skirt is accented with a red and gold glitter ribbon.

Watch for this look on sewdolledup.blogspot.com and more pictures on Flickr.

Plaid for Samantha

Samantha chose a long sleeved style for her plaid dress.

The bodice has red and green cording in a vertical pattern down the middle front.

The yoke between the bodice and skirt  and the sleeve cuffs were cut on the diagonal.

The yoke, cuffs and collar are accented with a green ribbon. And the skirt is knife pleated.

Samantha finished her look off with black tights and shoes and a plaid hair ribbon.

Watch for pictures on Sewdolledup.blogspot.com and Flickr.

1850s Plaid for Anna

As look two in the Christmas collection, Anna is wearing an 1850s style dress in the plaid.

This look is based on view C of Simplicty pattern #1391.

Two bands of a green cording is sewn around the hem of the skirt and the lower sleeve.

The waist is encircled with a belt of braided red and green cording.

Anna is accessorizing with red trimmed lacy bloomers and black shoes.

Watch for pictures of Anna in this look at sewdolledup.blogspot.com and Flickr.

Plaid for Caroline

The first piece in my Christmas collection is a regency style dress for Caroline.

Using the plaid fabric, I cut out a square neck empire waist bodice.  The sleeves were cut out using American Girl Josephina's Christmas dress pattern.  Then I just measured out the skirt to get the right look.

Three bands of red cording were sewn around the hem of the skirt and the hem of each sleeve.

The empire waist is accented with a red ribbon.

Caroline plans to accent the look with a plaid band in her hair, which she is piling on top of her head.  She is adding a red velvet ribbon choker necklace and black shoes.

Watch for the pictures on sewdolleup.blogspot.com and Flickr.

Plaid for Christmas

Earlier this year, I was inspired online by a picture from a museum in Scotland of three historical garments made from the same plaid.

So for my Christmas collection this year, I decided to get a few yards of a red and green plaid.  Each garment in the collection will be made from the same fabric, but will represent a different clothing era.

The collection is still in the early development stages, but watch for a dress from the 1810s, the 1850s, the early 1900s and possibly even the 1970s. 

The goal is to have each of my models representing a different era in their Christmas plaid.

Think Pink 2014

Its October, National Breast Cancer Awareness month.

To show her support, Shola put together this pink outfit.

Her pink t-shirt sports a pink ribbon.

Her skirt is a pink and white houndstooth print and box pleated.

Shola has accessorized the look with a belt of pink ribbons and pearls.

For her hair, she braided it around her face like a headband.

Check out more images on Flickr.

See the look at sewdolledup.blogspot.com

T-shirt Dresses

Each of the dresses started with the Liberty Jane T-shirt pattern in a printed knit. 

To the t-shirt a matching handkerchief hem skirt was added.

For the #AmericanGirlDoll look being rocked by Anna, a collar was added to the look.

For the #Hearts4HeartsGirl look being rocked by Zelia, a sequin trim was added at the waistline.

Anna added a touch of sparkle to her look through her shoes.

Check out these looks on sewdolledup.blogspot.com.

Check out Flickr for more pictures.

Little Red Hoodie

While Christmas shopping at my local Target store, I had a fun find of #HeartsforHeartsgirls Dell.  The picture of Dell on the box reminds me of my niece, so of course its like perfect for Christmas.

Last year, I made her #AmericanGirlDoll Kaylie a red fleece hoodie jacket so she could stay warm.

So I was thinking that if Dell is about to become Kaylie's little sister (don't tell - Christmas surprise), then perhaps she also needed a red hoodie jacket.

Since Dell is a smaller doll, I used a red felt.  I resized the pattern from the original jacket and then played with fit until I had it right.

In the center back between the hood and the jacket, I left part of the seam undone and instead finished the edges to form an opening for the dolls hair to slip between, so that the hood could be worn and fit properly.  This was not an issue for Kaylie as she has short hair, but Dell's is longer. 

Since Dell is a present and I'm not opening the box, Zelia is modeling the look for me. 

Check out the pictures at sewdolledup.blogspot.com and Flickr.

Butterflies and a Handerchief Hem

I've been envisioning a 20s look for a while -- handkerchief hem and all.

Finally I sat down and did the math to make it work.  I calculated my circle and then the square of fabric I needed around the circle to achieve the hem.

Using a butterfly print charmeuse, I cut out all the pieces.

The bodice is low-waisted coming down to the skirt with a handkerchief hem. The short sleeves are a fitted style.

The waistline of the dress is accented with a black lace belt.

The look is finished off with a pair of black mary janes.

To see pictures of this look check out sewdolledup.blogspot.com or Flickr.

Shola in Chevron

Shola and I were inspired by a chevron print fabric we found.

For the hemline, we followed the angles to create a pointed hem.

The skirt was then pleated with the chevrons lining up.

The neckline of the bodice was also pointed by following the lines of the chevron.

The end result.....a cute end of summer look.

See the results at sewdolledup.blogspot.com and more views on Flickr.

Ready to Disco?

Caroline saw a printed fabric which made her think of #AmericanGirlDoll Julie. 

She picked out a sleeveless mini-dress pattern for her look.

The dress and facings were cut out of the circle print fabric. 

While the dress was being assembled, Caroline hunted out a pair of flat mary janes, some white tights and fixed her hair with a purple ribbon.

Caroline adds the dress to finish her look. 

Now she feels ready to step back into the 70s.  Maybe she'll go visit Julie...

Blue Hydrangea

This blue hydrangea print dress has a natural waist with a full knee length skirt. 

The bodice has banded puffed sleeves and the neckline comes to a slight v. 

Along the hem of the skirt, is a double row of light blue ribbon.

Zelia has belted the skirt with a blue ribbon.   The colors match the color of her butterfly earrings.

Watch for the picture on sewdollup.blogspot.com and for more pictures on Flickr.

Purple Regency Inspired

The purple fabric spoke to a regency style dress.  In order to modernize the look, I went for a knee length dress.

The bodice has a square neck and an empire waist length.  There are five vertical stripes down the bodice in a white organza ribbon for a hint of sparkle.

The skirt is knee length and gathered to the bodice.

The dress is belted at the empire waist with a wide organza ribbon.

Anna accessorized the look with purple shoes and a necklace.

Check out sewdolledup.blogspot.com for a picture of this look and Flickr for more views.

Monkey Redux

After studying the look from Monkeying Around, I decided that it didn't fully capture the inspiration.

So I cut the skirt away from the bodice.  Then cut the skirt in half lengthwise.  Using the extra fabric leftover from the first project, I cut a yoke for the skirt.  I cut the original skirt pieces so that it got a slightly gathered ruffled look.  Then I added elastic in the yoke and stitched green ribbon over the seam lines.

Then out of the extra fabric, I cut a tank style crop top.  Along the bottom edge of the top, I added a green ribbon.

When paired together, the top and the skirt allow just a little hint of skin to show between.  This gives it a little more grown up and modern look that the other dress was missing.

I think Hailey is going to like it much better this way.

Watch sewdollup.blogspot.com for a picture of this look and Flickr for more views.

Welcome Back Samantha

The release of the new "Beforever" line by American Girl and Samantha being released from the archives got me inspired.

Using a purple fabric with a subtle print,  I cut out my pieces.

Three rows of 1/8" ribbon were sewn centered on the bodice front.

Then the dress was put together.

The dress has a low waist and puff sleeves.  The skirt is simply gathered and sewn on.

Watch sewdolledup.blogspot.com and Flickr for pictures of this look.

Monkeying Around

A piece of monkey fabric at the store brought back another memory of the trip to the amusement park.  On our girls trip, one of the girls won a stuffed monkey.

Since the fabric brought the memory back, it inspired me to make a dress. 

The dress is a simple sleeveless dress with a gathered skirt.  The waist and the hem are accented with a green ribbon accenting the vines the monkeys are hanging on in the print. 

Hopefully when Hailey sees the dress it will remind her of the monkey she won at the amusement park.

Watch sewdolledup.blogspot.com and Flickr for pictures of this look.

Cupcake Cutie

A few weeks ago we had a girls trip to the amusement park.  One of the girls wore a t-shirt with the words Cute Cupcakes on it and then pictures of making cupcakes. 

Then last week, at the fabric store there was this cute fabric covered in cupcakes, which brought back the memory of the day we spent together at the amusement park.

So now that the other projects are out of the way, we tried to figure out what to use the cupcake fabric for.  Finally it was decided to make a cute top with it.

So patterns were shuffled around and finally the decision was to use several and merge them into a cute ruffled top.

Kaylie's going to love this and perhaps every time she wears it, she too will remember our trip to the amusement park.

Shola Back to School

Shola is trying on a multi-colored butterfly dress for back to school.

The empire waist bodice has a square neckline and is lined. 

The sleeves are from the summer sew along patterns.  They are banded puff sleeves.

The skirt is knife pleated with a simple hem.  The length of the skirt falls just below the knee.

The waistline is accented with a yellow ribbon.

Check out the pictures at sewdollup.blogspot.com or on Flickr.

Wedding Dress Alterations

Finally the alterations are complete on the wedding dress I've been working on.

I had to release some of the lace and bead work as it had been sewn on the dress all the way through the lining so that it caused the lining to wrinkle underneath.  So I had to take that section of stitching out and then re-stitch the lace down and the beads back on. 

I was also adding a blue ribbon along the bodice to bring in as an accent the wedding colors.

The biggest thing I've learned through this project is that ordering your wedding dress online is a huge risk.  This dress had a lot of loose lace and beads all over the skirt.  And it had been shipped to the bride in a mailing envelope.....so it needs steamed badly.  It was so wrinkled from shipping it was actually a little difficult to tell which wrinkles were stitched in and which ones would steam out.

Now that I have the dress altered for the bride, its time to start working on re-creating the look on Barbie. 

Matching Strawberry Shortcake Dresses

The request from the little girl was matching dresses in a Strawberry Shortcake fabric.

 The project started with several yards of Strawberry Shortcake fabric and McCalls 5796 in a size 8. 

Then a doll sized dress was cut to match.  The bodice was cut using the Liberty Jane Maxi Dress pattern.  Then the three layers of ruffles were cut.

The end result matching Strawberry Shortcake dresses.

Watch for the pictures at sewdolledup.blogspot.com.

Ruffled Red Maxi Dress

To try my doll dress concept out for a girl and doll look, I used a couple red print fat quarters.

The bodice is from the Liberty Jane Maxi Dress pattern.  Then for the skirt I cut three pieces of fabric five inches tall and each piece was five inches longer than the previous piece.

Then I hemmed the bottom piece and sewed gathering stitches at the top of each skirt piece.  I gathered the bottom ruffle to the middle ruffle and then the middle ruffle to the top skirt.  I then topstitched down each seamline.

Following the instructions for the bodice, I put it together and then attached my skirt.

When Caroline saw the dress, she decided it would be perfect with red flower shaped sequin scattered over the dress. 

Now Caroline's not sure she's willing to share this dress with Kaylie.

While the dress turned out to be a really cute maxi dress, I'm going to have to cut shorter ruffle pieces to get the look I'm going for on the original concept dress. 

New Model - Hearts for Hearts Shola

Our family of doll models has recently expanded to include Hearts for Hearts Shola.

Here she is wearing a purple dress with low waist and a ruffled skirt.  The neckline and each layer of ruffles are accented with a purple ribbon.  She also has a purple ribbon belt. 

Shola has accessorized the look with her purple flats and purple bracelet.

Summer Sew Along Week 5

And we've made it to the final week of the Summer Sew Along with Wren Feathers.

This week's pattern was for a jumper with a contrasting circle yoke. 

I went off in my own direction with it this week.  The fabric for the main jumper is a purple printed cotton and the yoke is a solid purple.

Instead of making a dress style jumper this week, I adjusted it to make wide leg shorts.

The waist is accented with a lavender ribbon. 

The end result is Zelia in a cute purple romper.

Simplicity 1391 View B

Samantha has been waiting to try out the new Simplicity pattern #1391 created by Keepers Dolly Duds.  And she's finally gotten her opportunity.

She chose the view B dress from the pattern and we cut it out in a green fabric with a flowered print.

A pink lace encircles the collar pieces.  Pink soutache braid was stitched along the style lines on the pattern. 

The dress was put together following the instructions provided.  The belt was cut from a pink grosgrain ribbon instead of fabric and has a rhinestone buckle sewn onto it.

Summer Sew Along Week 3

So it's week three in the summer sew along with Wren Feathers....

This week's pattern is for a jumper or pinafore.

Given that the waist is rather loose on the look, rather than have Zelia wear a blouse under the jumper and risk being able to see her underwear looking down the waist band I made her a black sequin a-line dress to wear underneath.

As for the jumper, I cut it out exactly following the pattern in a pink zebra print.  For the front buttons, I used pink glitter heart stickers.  It fastens down the back.  

This combination gives the look a day-to-night quality too.  For day she can wear the jumper over the dress for a cute sparkly zebra look and at night take it off and be all sparkly.

Depending on how the week progresses, I may attempt this pattern in lace also as a pinafore.

Summer Sew Along Week 2

Its week two of the summer sew along with Wren Feathers.  This week's pattern is for a blouse or dress with a scoop neckline and puff sleeves.

I chose to make it both ways using the same bright pink printed fat quarter.

For the blouse, I cut the pattern at the dress bodice line and then cut a two inch ruffle for the bottom.  I pleated the ruffle and attached it to the rest of the blouse.  Then on each of the flowers in the print, I added flower shaped pink sequin.  This look was then paired with Zelia's shorts for the photos.

The dress was cut with the sleeves patten slightly off the fold to add a little fullness.  The skirt was cut at 6 inches long and was box pleated with the top couple inches stitched in place.  The dress was then accented with a silver ribbon belt a the waist seam.

Zelia decided to remain barefoot and wear her hair in a ponytail for the photos of both looks.  And she decided to play around in the rock garden by the strawberries for the dress pictures. 

Check out Flickr for a picture of the top and more views of the dress beyond the one posted on Sew Dolled Up.

Summer Sew Along with Wren Feathers - Week 1

This summer I'm sewing along with Wren Feathers.  Check out all the fun of the Summer Sew-Along on Flickr.

The week one challenge is pants for my Hearts for Hearts doll.

Using a piece of denim with butterflies on it (and 2% spandex in it), I cut out the pattern.  The I threaded my sewing machine with gold thread as all my jeans are sewn with gold top-stitching.  I altered the pattern slightly to create pockets. And I stitched the front placket as if it was a zippered placket, even though the jeans fasten in the back instead.  To finish the look, I added a line of jewels along the pocket stitching on both sides.  Zelia paired her butterfly tank top with the jeans to make her outfit.

 And then I decided to give myself an extra challenge......by doing a second pair with a 70s twist.  I flared the hemline on the pattern a little and added a triangle piece to cut out of a fun print and stitch to the side seams.  All the stories I've heard people tell about their jeans in the seventies involved splitting open the side seams and adding fabric to get an even wider hemline.  For the top, I took the same fun print and created a halter style mock-smocked top with pink rick rack along the "smocking".  Then to finish off the look, Zelia's hair has two braids from just above her ears coming around her head and meeting in the back with a star shaped barrette.

Caroline in Houndstooth

Caroline is headed to a summer birthday tea party and wanted something cute an cool.

For the skirt, she picked a fat quarter in a pink and white houndstooth print.  Then she chose the pleated skirt from American Girl Molly's jumper.  Following the directions, the skirt was cut out, pleated and sewn.

Caroline's top is a pink camisole made from a re-purposed camisole.  It was cut out in a rectangle and then draped on her to get the armholes.  Once the fit was correct, the edges were finished, tri-ribbon straps were a added and a matching lace was placed along the hem.

Caroline has accessorized her look with shoes from the American Girl Sweet Spring outfit and a silver purse from the Springfield dolls collection.

Regency Sunshine

After staring at a fat quarter of yellow fabric with pink flowers for upwards of a week, the idea of a regency style dress started taking shape.

Along the hemline of the skirt, I added two rows of ribbon.  The pink ribbon is half opaque and half sheer.  This ribbon is also used at the waistband. 

The bodice has a square neckline and puffed sleeves. 

To finish off the look, Zelia added pink ribbons to her braids.

Inspirations

Around here several project ideas are brewing.

One inspiration is a September wedding and the dress that goes with it....look out Barbie you're about to get dolled up for a wedding again.

A request for a matching girls and dolls dress set is another pending project...think pink cotton with a Strawberry Shortcake print.  Now to just decide on a pattern.

Skirts for the Camp Quality Sock Hop are also on the pending project list.  Poodle skirt or something more creative like music notes or butterflies? 

And another inspiration is the new doll pattern from Simplicity #1391 designed by Keepers Dolly Duds Designs.  The flicker portfolio of Keepers Dolly Duds is what inspired me to restart the blog Sew Dolled Up after life and stress caused me to make it private for a while.  One of my favorite fashion history era's is the Civil War.  I've always been fascinated by the hoop skirt.  Simplicity #1391 is this style of clothing.  So now all I need to do is settle on which look and what fabric.

And finally, a Downton Abbey marathon has me inspired to do something with a handkerchief hem.

Now all I need is some time off to work on all these ideas and turn them from idea into reality.

Kaylie's Doctor Coat

Kaylie is a Doc McStuffins fan.  She likes to pretend she is a doctor.  And maybe someday when she grows up, she will be.

To encourage her interests, I decided Kaylie needed a doctor's coat.  After some research it was discovered that Molly's pajama top pattern would work with minor alterations.

So armed with white fabric, the pajama shirt pattern and a tape measure the process begins.  First Samantha was measured from neck to there the coat should stop.  Samantha is standing in for Kaylie in this part of the process as the coat is a surprise for Kaylie. Then the pattern was measured and the two sets of measurements were compared.

Once the measurements were settled and the pattern adjusted, the pieces were laid out on the white cotton fabric.  I just used two fat quarters in white cotton for this.  Two pockets were cut out instead of just the one called for by the pattern in order to match Doc McStuffins' look.

With all the pieces cut out, I followed the instructions for putting the pattern together, keeping the extra pocket in mind.  My sewing machine was set up with white thread to match the white cotton.

Once the coat is complete, Samantha models it to confirm fit.  For fun we have a preliminary photo shoot.

Now all that's left is surprising Kaylie.

Behind the Looks - The Models

These dolls know how to bring a look to life.

Anna is an Our Generation Girl.  She has
reddish brown hair and brown eyes.

Hailey is a My American Girl doll with
brown hair and blue eyes.

Kaylie is a My American Girl doll with
blond hair and green eyes. 

Laura is a Laura Ashley doll.  She has brown hair
and brown eyes.

Princess is a BFC Ink doll with brown
hair and blue eyes.

 

 Zelia is the Hearts for Hearts doll from Brazil.
She has red hair and brown eyes.

          Samantha is a Pleasant Company American
          Girl doll. She has brown hair and brown eyes.