Mishmash

Two of my uber-fans complained to me yesterday about my lack of recent posts. One I could’ve ignored, but two. Two seemed like a message from the Universe to get to work.

The problem is the work. What I’ve been working on lately is hardly noteworthy. In fact, some of it is downright embarrassingly ugly.

First up: jeans. I think I’ve got a pattern that works! It covers most of the flabby bits and shows a wee bit of shape (the wee bit I still have), so I am happy. I have to hem them and attach the waistband button, then they will be good to go. Photo coming.

Second up: doll clothes. You’d think this would be a fast and easy project. Hahaha! It’s painfully slow and rather difficult. Seam allowances must be teeny tiny to look in proportion. Finishing the raw edges is a nightmare!

Jenny, Mandy, Jenny and Mandy keeping me company
in my sewing room.

I’m making clothes for vintage Fisher Price My Friend dolls. My Friend dolls are similar to American Girl dolls, except 30 yrs older and 2” shorter.  Mandy (followed by her friends Becky, Jenny, Nicky, and Mikey) came out in the late 1970’s, just before the Cabbage Patch Kid doll crazy hit. The Cabbage Patch Kids dolls totally eclipsed the My Friend dolls and my poor beauties were discontinued soon afterwards. To me, this was a pity because My Friend dolls were the nicest dolls I’ve ever seen. They had sweet little girl faces (verses teenage tramp or alien morphed), could stand and sit on their own, and were machine washable, with stylable hair. Fisher Price even included sewing patterns with the dolls to expand their wardrobes. (Please note: I’ve never seen an American Girl doll in person, and they may be equally as lovely. But it’s hard for a Canadian to get excited about something called an American Girl doll.)

Anyhow, figuring out the world of doll clothes has been an unexpected challenge. I found a vintage McCall’s pattern for My Friends clothes on Esty, and snapped it up. But guess what? The shirt/blouse doesn’t have enough overlap for a fastener. So even doll clothes patterns have to be adjusted and fitted. Bum-mer!

Last up: shirts. I’m teaching a shirt-making class at the end of the month. It’s called One Shirt, Two Ways. Each half of the sampler shirt will be constructed using different techniques. In other words, I’m teaching two ways to do a collar, two ways to do a collar band, two ways to do cuffs.... You get the idea. To prepare, I’m sewing a shirt for my Stud Muffin, but it’s been slow going because I have to stop and write the notes and do research. There are far more than two ways to do each section, so I’m auditioning the possibilities. Picture shortly.

That’s it for now. Thanks, DD3, for the suggestion to do a mash post!

               -  Lady T