A Stitch in Time 1916 Summer Dress

 I haven't made many patterns by A Stitch in Time.  The 1916 Summer dress is lovely.

I found this pattern to be relatively easy to sew. It is really beautifully engineered, so that everything matches up perfectly.

The opening on the back of the dress, for instance, end at exactly where the first ruffle starts.

It includes several possible variations on the skirt, sleeve, etc.

I loved this and will be making more variations of this pattern!

Pattern Review: Keepers Dolly Duds Victorian Caroler's Coat

 Ladies and gentlemen, I did it!

I finished the 47th Keepers Dolly Duds digital pattern.

This one is the Keepers Dolly Duds Victorian Caroler Coat.

It has a lot of pieces!

But that's not the reason I made it last. I just couldn't find fabric that I was happy with to use as the trim. I debated several options, and just decided not to do the trim.

Like the Double Cape pattern, the pelerine is removeable from the cape. So if I decide that I hate the red I included, I can replace it by making a new pelerine. Easy peasy. It's fun to know that you can switch looks up and that decisions are not irrevocable!

I am happy with how it turned out!

This coat reminds me of the Thimbles and Acorns A Long Winter Coat. I know that I have made that coat, but maybe I never posted it to the blog, because I can't find a post to link to.

Anyway, the coats are from a similar time period, and they are both long coats that are fitted at the top and flare out at the bottom to make space for women's skirts. If you wanted to make a group of carolers, you could utilize both patterns for some variety!

Rebecca's Spa Day

 Well, Rebecca was one of the AG dolls that I was never going to buy. I'm just not a big Josefina face mold fan.

I was re-reading Frances Hodgeson Burnett's A Little Princess a few years ago, and I thought about customizing Sara's doll Emily. And Rebecca is pretty close to the book version of Emily. I don't remember what she looks like in the movies, I always prefer the books.

So I decided if I could find a really cheap Rebecca, I would have a go at customizing her.

I found this Rebecca for $30. She was naked, I already had this dress because I loved it so much.

She needed some attention.

I did not take any before pictures. It was late, and I was eager to get started.

I sprayed her hair with braid spray, brushed it out curl by curl, and finger curled it. This made a huge improvement!

I used magic eraser to clean all the marks off her face. She had a lot of little pink marker marks.

I then used non-acetone nail polish to remove the nail polish on her fingers and toes.

She still has pink marker in two places. There is pink marker on her ears, which is hidden by pierces ears. And she has pink marker on her fingernails, which was under the fingernail polish.

I am pretty sure that this is the same pink marker that was on her face, but because it's in a crevice, I haven't had luck removing it with the magic eraser. I also wonder if somehow being under the nail polish sort of sealed it on.

I might try using benzoyl peroxide on them, but these don't actually bother me much.

Overall, she has cleaned up very nicely so far. I want to eye swap her with light blue eyes to make her Emily. Emily is described as having blue-grey eyes, so I decided light blue will be closest.

I just need to find the courage to try this!

The only reason I am considering it is because Josefina molds are the easiest ones to eye swap. Jess molds are the hardest to eye swap.

We will see what happens.

A Little Princess was published in 1905, so Emily's wardrobe would be closest to Samantha's. I am thinking of still giving her some of Rebecca's dresses, like the one she is wearing.

Secret Snarker 2016 Part Two

So you have seen the gift that I got for Secret Snarker, but what did I give?

I made a pattern  that I have already made once, Keeper's Dolly Duds Simplicity 1179 pattern.

This time I made the collar too.

This time I did it in yellow and blue instead of pink and purple. The yellow fabric just said "Rebecca" to me.

Esdolls was the recipient of the dress.

I really like how it turned out! It has buttons in the back, but I didn't take a picture of it this time.

Esdoll's Rebecca looks so cute in this dress!

Keeper's Dolly Duds Simplicity 1179 Coat: Pattern Review

Fall is in the air! I just finished another pattern from Keeper's Dolly Duds Simplicity 1179 pattern.

This time I made the coat!

It is definitely getting chillier, and dolls need to stay warm too.

Kit is the model today because her short hair lets you see the collar of the coat.

I am actually not totally sure what kind of fabric I used for the outer part of the coat. I think it's probably fleece. I got it from a free pile of scraps at my work, so the price was right, and it looked appropriate for a coat. I added interfacing to the back of it, which was probably not necessary. I used cotton for the lining.

This pattern was quite easy to follow and make. I didn't even read the directions all the way through. 

Have I mentioned how much I hate reading directions for sewing? A lot.

I changed the pattern a bit, as usual. In this case, I omitted a short pleated skirt which was meant to be added below the section of the coat that you see pictured. I did not think that the fleece was going to hold a pleat. The coat looks long enough to me as is.

Here is the lining. The dark blue pieces that you see were meant to be in the same fabric as the outside of the coat. I didn't follow directions because I thought it would add too much bulk to the coat.

Here is the coat from the back.

I sewed all the braid on by hand while watching Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries on Netflix. I love that show. The books by Kerry Greenwood are even better.

And here is another view of the finished coat! I really like it. It is both warm and gorgeous. Several of  my coworkers want one in their size and I am completely in agreement.

This coat is also going to be added to the wardrobe of my friend's daughter's Rebecca. That's one lucky doll!

Rebecca's Holiday Frock: Designing My Own Version

I thought I was done making dresses for my friend's daughter Rebecca. "That is enough pink and purple!" I said.

Then I remembered that I had a scrap of blue fabric left over from a quilt my friend made in grad school.

So I decided I wanted to make this into another dress. I didn't want this to be the main color of the dress for two reasons. One, I didn't know how much of this fabric I had- possibly not enough for an entire dress. Two, if this was the one dress the little girl had that was not in her favorite color, she might not like it for that reason. So I decided to make a purple dress  with blue accents.

I looked around at all the 1914-era dress patterns that I had not made yet, and none of them seemed just right. (Okay, too many of them had pleated skirts.)

Then I looked at dresses that American Girl had made for Rebecca.

I decided that I really liked Rebecca's new Beforever Holiday Outfit. It was even almost the same color scheme that I wanted to use.

Keeper's Dolly Duds Simplicity Pattern 1179: Pattern Review

I have admired Keeper's Dolly Duds for years, since she was selling doll outfits on ebay. I could only look and admire, as her outfits sold for far more than I could afford. Her doll clothes are beautiful, professional, and historically accurate. You can visit her website at this link.

I was very excited when her patterns became available to purchase. They are now available both on Etsy and through Simplicity. I have bought many of her patterns, although I have not used them all yet! When a new one becomes available, I just have to run out and get it.

Well, my friend's daughter getting Rebecca gave me an excuse to make Simplicity pattern 1179 for the first time. Once more I am sewing in pink and purple, and then I think I am going to need a break from these colors!

Patterns for Rebecca Rubin

Since I am researching and sewing for Rebecca a lot lately, (okay, I'm a little obsessed) I wanted to make a list of the patterns out there for her era. I do not own all of these. This list may be updated over time.

I feel that there are fewer patterns out there for this period, so it helps to keep track.

Also, why do almost all these patterns have pleated skirts? I'd like to see more dress patterns for this era minus the pleats, please. It gets repetitive.

I would also like to see more patterns for clothing items that are not dresses. Keeper's Dolly Duds Simplicity 1179 pattern has a coat, but I would also like to see patterns for pajamas and swimsuits and bathrobes and other things.

Please share any patterns that I have missed!

On Pixie Faire:

Crabapples Dress It Up

Crabapples Fancy Edwardian Doll Clothes

Crabapples Edwardian Fancy Bundle

Eden Ava Couture 1912 APRON DRESS 18" DOLL CLOTHES

Fashioned by Rebecca 1915 SWEETHEART PLAID BLOUSE

Forget Me Not Designs 1914 Girl Scout Uniform

Love U Bunches LADY LILLY'S TEA DRESS

Love U Bunches LADY LILLY'S WINTER EVENING DRESS

Thimbles and Acorns A Piece of History Dress

On Etsy:

Anne Van Doren Designs Edwardian Style Dress and Apron

Anne Van Doren Designs Victorian Style Underwear

Hint of History 1912 Kimono Variation Dress

Hint of History 1912 Shawl Collar Dress

Jen Wrenne Straight-front pleated skirt dress pattern

Jen Wrenne Irene Dress

Keeper's Dolly Duds PDF Pattern KDD08 "1914 Pleated Frock"

Keeper's Dolly Duds Simplicity 1179 Vintage Inspired Clothes

Mother of Nine circa 1910 Edwardian 3 Dresses

Elsewhere on the Web:


Jen Wrenne FREE Sailor Dress Pattern

Jen Wrenne FREE Stenciled Tea Dress

Primrose Lane Amy's Eyelet Dress Pattern

Primrose Lane Brittany Pattern

Primrose Lane Felicity Pattern

Primrose Lane Michelle Pattern

Sense and Sensibility 1914 Doll Dress Pattern

Sense and Sensibility Edwardian Doll Apron Pattern


Edit: Linouttematha from AGPT found the following patterns:

Ruthie, Emily and Me's Sleeveless Pleated Sundress
Bunny Bear's 1900 Sailor Dress Pattern
Med Welch's Mary's Dress No. 1001
Med Welch's Sissy's Favorite No. 1019

Thank you for sharing, Linouettematha!

Elsewhere on the Web: (I don't know how well some of these fit AG dolls)

Ladie's Home Journal Pattern for Lottie Lane Kestner dolls

Bluette 1913 Winter Coat Pattern for Small doll

Daisyette Vacation Clothes

The Mary Frances Sewing Book

Inspiration for further Rebecca dresses can be found at The Bleu Door. This shows dress patterns produces for Bluette dolls, and you can search by year and decade.

Dolly's New Wardrobe

A friend's daughter just got her first American Girl doll, Rebecca. I was so excited to start creating a wardrobe for her! Every doll needs some clothes.

I asked what the daughter's favorite colors are, and was told pink and purple. I tried to use these colors as much as possible. I think that will become very obvious when you see the pictures.

I first used my favorite doll dress pattern, Eden Ava Couture's 1930s Vintage Dress.  This dress is very classic, easy to sew, and it uses a tiny amount of fabric. I once made three doll dresses from one adult women's blouse using this pattern. Yes, it's about 16 years late for Rebecca, period- and style- wise, but I decided to go for it.

There was a special request for pajamas. I don't have as many patterns for pajamas as for dresses, but I did have one.  I used the pattern for Molly's original pajamas, which you can download for free from AG Playthings.  I wasted a bit of fabric figuring out how the collar works, but I got there in the end. It did not help that while I was sewing the pajama top, the air conditioner was not working in my house. The sewing machine is in the hottest room in the house. I had a mission, and I was not going to let melting stop me!

The pajama pants were a whole 'nother thing. I thought the pants pattern piece looked really wide, and I didn't want them too baggy, so I made each piece a half inch narrower, making the whole thing overall two inches narrower. Hoo boy, was that insufficient. Elastic was the only thing holding the pants up. They looked like clown pants meet bell bottoms. I ended up cutting another inch off each side. The pants are still loose, but now they look much better. For anyone keeping track, that is six inches of fabric I took off the waist overall. Eek.

To me, the pajamas look like a lab coat- at least she can role play if she wants to, I did my best and the end result surprised my by looking different than I imagined.

I made a dress using the Stenciled Tea Dress from Wren*Feathers. This is also a free pattern, and a simple one. This is much more period appropriate for Rebecca.

I am really proud of it. The hardest part was making the stencil out of freezer paper. I already had freezer paper for applique projects, but I had to go to work and use a special tool to cut out the tiny shapes. Once the stencil was made, I ironed it on the dress front and painted on the design. That was easy!

Here is the stencil on the dress front as I paint on the design:

Eventually I plan to make some more period-appropriate clothes for Rebecca, too. I have some.
Keepers Dolly Duds has published Rebecca-period dress patterns, through Simplicity, pattern 1179. These patterns are very elaborate though, and I wanted to do some quick projects to start Rebecca's wardrobe before tackling these fancier pieces.

Here are all the outfits together:

It's a cute little starter wardrobe, if I do say so myself!