It always best to start at the beginning.  Even if the beginning was in July.  It was summer.  It was quiet.  It was hot, and I was stuck at home.  Two events were taking place and I was definitely not going to miss out.  If I have to have my fun virtually, let the party begin!

The UFDC was having their Online Event, which was in a virtual doll convention format.  Many of us were relieved and delighted that the convention didn't just go away, but the truth is that is was merely a shopping trip to Ruby Lane, and eventually the UFDC's website shop.  This was their first whack at it, so I'll give them a thumbs up.  And, of course, my delightful Peggy Sue was purchased, and I've been having a ball with her.

Following two weeks later was the Virtual Doll Convention, produced by Rachel Hoffman.  For me it was the event of the year.  Each day provided endless entertainment from Michael and David of the Grovian Doll Museum and Carmel Doll Shop, and the wonderfully energetic, Rachel.  The event was called Summer Fling and while the entertainment and doll education was phenomenal, the free downloads from artist, Diana E. Vining were the  highlight for me.  I love paper dolls, and paper toys.  We all know that.  So when I spotted the Summer Fling paper dolls she drew of Grace Marie Fitzpatrick, Tonner's new fashion doll that debuted last winter, I went nuts.  Of course I had to purchase a Grace and make her paper doll wardrobe.  She became more than just a souvenir of the summer event, but a treasured doll to dress and play with. 

I had to wait for my doll to arrive to begin sewing for her, and during this time I was dressing Peggy Sue.  I wanted the brunette doll so that she would look like the paper doll, but she had darker and more dramatic coloring.  I was nervous at first that I wouldn't like her as much, but now that I've spent the last few weeks with her, I'm delighted with her.

Let's look at Diana's beautiful paper dolls. The cover image was Grace in a darling swim dress, heading towards the beach from a wooden boardwalk.  Oh, how I miss the ocean!  This fantasy was right up my alley, and a perfect format to send me virtually to tropical shores. 

You'll notice that there is a blonde wig and a red wig.  When Tonner introduced his three new Grace dolls, two were "wigged", meaning their wigs could be changed, and Showtime Grace, the one I purchased, had rooted hair.  I did end up buying a blonde "wigged" Grace as well, but the brunette Grace would be my Summer Fling model.

Diana gave her a Summer Fling beach and convention bag on the first page, and three summery outfits against a back drop of warm sandy beach and gentle waves lapping the shoreline.  

The second page, with the same back drop, gave us four more outfits with plenty of challenge ahead for me.  Naturally, I'd have to make them all.  

I did purchase this red luggage that a lady in Australia made.  One of the reasons I did this, was because Diana drew the luggage in a advertisement for the Grace Boutique, where Grace is trying on new shoes provided by Marcia Friend from Facets By Marcia.  The other item I purchased was the swim dress in the yellow and peach mosaic print.  The seamstress used a light peach color to trim the suit, and this would have to come off to emulate the drawing Diana did, where the trim was done in a richer color - persimmon?

So this was my first task.  To retrim this swim dress.  It came with a pair of shorts beneath it.  I also made the bandeau for the hair and found a pair of heart shaped sunglasses on Ebay.  These were for Barbie, but who cares?  They fit, could be larger, but mainly Grace holds them in her photos.  You can spot the heart shaped glasses in the middle of the paper doll page.  Rachel wore heart shaped sunglasses for the Summer Fling VDC and they seemed to be an icon for the event.  Grace definitely needed a pair.

As I awaited the shipment of the dolls from the factory and their eventual trip to Colorado, where Rachel's Turn of the Century doll shop and home are, I shopped for fabrics.  For days and days I shopped Etsy, Ebay, Fabrics.com and  Farmhouse Fabrics and dug through my own stash for matches to Diana's drawings.  There were no hats or accessories to bring to life, so it was mainly the right fabrics that I hunted for.  

I also bought a few pairs of shoes from Facets to go with the outfits.  Showtime Grace came in a gown (I'm not really into glamour gowns), so her shoes were not appropriate for the Summer Fling Set.  Well, I do my best.  At some point I'll try to redo the red shoes I purchased and turn them into sandals with a wide red band.  If I can make Kitty little shoes, certainly I can take a pair apart and remake them.  Right?  I hope.  I will try.

Let it be known, also, that of this writing, the new blog formatting is up and running.  I've already restarted this three times, so forgive the weird formatting if it doesn't turn out well.  We knew this was coming.  The other option was to stop writing From My Little Hole In the Wall.  Not an option for me.

So the next thing I did was make Grace a Summer Fling beach bag.  A convention bag.  I cropped the image from the paper doll page and printed it out on printer fabric for inkjet printers.  Made handles from the "persimmon" trim fabric and added a couple of mini fold over prints of Rachel's faux VDC magazine.  She's really having fun with this, and its wonderful to see such creativity and enthusiasm - both for her VDC, but also for Grace.  The bag came out pretty cute, and would make a nice prop for the fashion photos

 

The first outfit I would try was the purple floral wrap dress.  Well, its not really a wrap dress, but it drapes in front like one.  This gave me a lot of trouble because I tried to make a wrap dress with straps, when what I needed was a split drape front dress with a cinched bodice, and of course one very fitted to Grace's voluptuous curves.  

The first dress came out too short, which was fine, because as will all of these, there were many tries.  I had to design the patterns, make mock ups, and finally the outfits.  The lace straps were very difficult because there isn't anything just like them.  I searched for Venice lace to cut up and sew the flowers together from, and this was a little wonky.  I kept looking.  I finally found something that would work.

In her hair is a felt flower I made multiple petal layers for.  Getting it to stay in her hair with a pin wouldn't work, so I found teeny tiny claw clips to hot glue the flower to.  Grace arrives at the hotel with her luggage in tow and begins her holiday.

The second outfit was this hibiscus dress with a side slit.  In Diana's drawing, the dress is blue with white hibiscus flowers.  I was lucky just to find this fabric with suitably sized flowers.  I'd like to add that the quality and thickness of the fabrics were not always what I would have chosen to dress the doll in, but we were bringing paper doll outfits to life, and to me, sometimes the print is everything.  

This dress gave me a real indication of how hippy she is.  Wow.  I am NOT used to dressing fashion dolls, much less ones with an hourglass figure.  I worked off Tamara Casey's patterns for some of these, but only as slopers.  You will not be able to make these outfits direct from her patterns.  I did a lot of designing, but the basic torso shape made for great sloper starts.  

This dress has a band at the top of the bodice that hooks in back like a halter dress.  The thickness of the fabric made the design difficult, but I WET it and folded it and pinned it, then dried it.  That's how I achieved this look.  The luggage did not come with dragonfly charms, but Diana drew them on her rendition of the luggage, so I added them via a charms seller on Etsy. 

The third dress is probably not a favorite, but had to be done.  I called this Beautiful Shells (I was naming the outfits now), since Grace went shopping for beautiful shells for her home, as souvenirs.  I've always had trouble purchasing yellow fabric in the right shade.  Especially in silk.  I had this yellow on hand and decided to use it.  Its a bit lighter than Diana's drawing so let's say I gave myself artistic license.  Its lemony.  

There is a band going up the front, in white, edged in rose pink.  This I applied to the top of the dress and sewed the appropriate number of buttons on.  The pockets are a rose print, and one I had from an Ultimate Alice dress I made a long, long time ago.

The shoes Grace is wearing are the sandals that came with the basic blonde "wigged" doll.  Tonner has made better shoes.  Did he lose the company that used to make the clothing, too?  Yes, I'm picky.

Then I came to my favorite outfit.  The one that had to be made.  This little romper has delightful sailboats on it, and I adored the design.  It was a nightmare to make.  I made no less than seven tries at it.  And, still, I could do it one more time, I think, to get it perfect.  And, might.

The fabric came from the U.K.  I bought it in both pink sailboats, and purple sailboats.  The illustration is of black line sail boats on a pink or mauve background.  I chose the pink.  The problem is that the sail boat print doesn't show up as vibrantly.  So here's what I'm thinking to do.  Take the purple print and wash it with a new red shirt.  Then you'd have the striking sailboats against as pale pink background.  

If  you're wondering why I didn't do this and make this romper an eighth time, its because my goal was to finish this wardrobe by the end of summer - or at most, the end of September, and I began on the 10th..  

One of the issues with making an outfit like this is Grace's RTB101.  The torso connects into a literal "rubber bottom" just under the belly button.  Shorts and swimsuits must be moderately high waisted.

In this photo she is holding two Victorian postcards that were downloads from the VDC.

Ah!  And, now to Rio De Janeiro Blue.  I love this one.  I was listening to Randy Crawford's song while making this, and the name fit perfectly.  It really came out nicely.  Its a knit bathing costume beneath a lace cover up.  In reality its like a long fitted, sleeveless t-shirt with bathing suit bottoms.  

I bought a baby's dress in aqua and white striped knit, and cut it up for the outfit.  It had plenty of sold aqua trim that I could use to edge the armholes and neckline.  It was an exercise in making t-shirts.  

The bottoms were another matter.  Its knit, and it had to fit.  So I used the tape method.  I tore off little bits of tape and taped them to her body in the form of the bottoms I needed.  I gently pulled this off and stuck it to a paper towel, then added width for seams and turning under.  I overedge stitched the edges, then  turned them under by hand stitching.  They pull on and off just like swimsuit bottoms.  They have a very nice fit.  

The lace fabric!  I was so lucky to have this on hand.  I'd bought it for a dress for France (remember her?), and was going to dye it bone.  It was pure luck that I had it.  The lace fabric made up quite nicely into a lacey cover-up.  There is a good quantity of angel sleeve-flutter sleeve there, but the photo just doesn't show this.

Next I tried the "convertible" set.  While I'm just not into sporty looks, this seemed appropriate for a drive around the island.  It does have a charm of its own.  I call this one Castaway, because it looks like something Mary Ann would have worn on Gilligan's Island.  Remember that show?  I loved it as a kid.  

We have a pair of red shorts that open in front like jean's pants.  I was very nervous about making these, and I'm not even sure I did it right, but the look is there, they fit, and they're cute.  I used a red cotton sateen for them since it had a good "jean's" weight to it for a doll.  The cuffs are in blue gingham, and the top is in the blue gingham as well.

I agonized over how to design this top.  Tamara's Summer blouse was used for the sloper, but the front folds over to make the collar.  I designed that.  The ties at the waist befuddled me.  Again, its not a wrap top, but it looks like one.  Its just has ties that tie in front.  So I added in ties at the waistline seams.  

I made her a pair of gold tropical leaf earrings for this set.  I guess I haven't mentioned this, but I've been making earrings to go with these outfits.  There's a coral pair, a turquoise pair, and the gold leaves.  She also has a pearl bracelet.  Jewelry can't be too glamourous when you're on a tropical holiday.

And, finally, we came to the red polka dot swim dress.  Four days to the end of the month and I was determined.  You would think that after designing these patterns, making several mock ups for each, then a final piece, that I would have sewing for this body shape down.  Not really.  Each outfit provided its own challenges because of their unique designs.

At least I had a swimsuit bottom pattern to work from for this one.  And, had edged the yellow and peach mosaic swim dress at the start.  This one was different though with the addition of the reverse color polka dot bustline.  

The bathing suit bottoms pattern is the same, but I added width to it, for seams, and split the back.  The bottoms needed to open at the back since they wouldn't stretch like the knit.  I studied the bathing suit bottoms of Poppy Parker dolls for this.  Its not perfect, but it fit and looks nice.  If I did them again, I'd widen the butt and maybe use a couple of darts at the top.

These costumes were full of darts.  I gained a fine appreciation of darts and how to use them.  This was also evident in making the top for Castaway.

While making this, I decided to make her some shell jewelry.  I had a collection of lovely mini shells and chose two similar ones, then hand drilled holes in them for the jump rings.  I use a pin vise with a micro drill bit, and each shell took about 10 minutes of twisting to eventually get a hole drilled into it.  Shell is very hard.  Don't be fooled by these fragile mini shells.  I love the look though, and made her a hair comb with shells on it, too.

I really enjoyed this Summer Fling.  It was my vacation.  I got to play tropical paradise with a beautiful doll and design her some fun clothing for her Summer Fling, and I owe it all to Diana Vining and Rachel Hoffman, and of course, Robert.

Below is some of Diana's wonderful artwork for the Summer Fling.  I've always loved her work, but if I could possibly enjoy it more, I do now!  I can't wait for the Christmas Pageant VDC, and I HOPE Diana makes us Grace paper dolls for it!  Thank you Diana and Rachel!

Love,

Melissa

 

UFDC's Peggy Sue Goes Back to School

School is well underway, and Peggy Sue goes to the head of the class.  She's smart, reads well in front of the class, practices perfect decorum, and can run a projector when the class watches films.  Is it any wonder that Peggy Sue is the teacher's pet?

Back in the 1950's, lessons were written in chalk on a black board.  Paper was punched manually with three-hole-punches to put into binders.  Children stood at the beginning of class and recited the Pledge of Allegiance. 

When lunchtime came, students stood up row by row to leave the classroom single file to go to the cafeteria.  Schools were run with tight discipline since there were so many children to each classroom - often 30 to 40.  This was a result of the Baby Boom and well behaved children were expected. 

There was one teacher to a classroom and he or she would teach all subjects.  Occasionally a different teacher would come to the class to teach a different subject, but in general, you and your teacher got to know each other real well over the school year.  There were two recess breaks, and two bathroom breaks.  The bathroom breaks were taken by the whole class, and the children lined up to take their turn.

Students studied almost the same courses that they study now, except there were civics classes, state history, handwriting, spelling, singing and art classes.  Some schools had classes in citizenship or how to be a good citizen.  Class ended around 3:00 - 3:30, and students went home the same way they had arrived, by walking, bicycle or bus.  One thing is certain.  Peggy Sue was always dressed beautifully.

I've been buying fabric like nobody's business these days.  When I can't sleep, when I need a quite moment to rest my mind, anytime I need a small meditation, I look up fabric on Etsy.  I love Riley Blake, and Lori Holt for Riley Blake.  These fabric colors and patterns are rich and bright and delightful.  I have quite a few little 1/2 yard packages arriving soon.  Some will work.  Some won't.  Even when the fabric has a ruler on it, I'm often surprised when the print is too large.  More surprised when its perfect, but its such a joy to shop fabrics!

The first dress I made Peggy Sue for her autumn school days, was this tan and white plaid affair with a Peter Pan collar and belt.  The pattern has a pieced bodice, which was a perfect choice for playing with the plaid.  The top half is horizontal, and the lower half is on the bias.  A white cotton collar and white sleeves give the look of a jumper and blouse, but this is all one dress.  This was a popular style in the 1950's.  I added a same fabric belt to finish the look.  I was so happy with how this turned out, that I posted it on FB right away.  The more I sew for Peggy Sue, the bolder I become with design. 

For her hair, I made a matching hair band.  Looking for a medium that would hold a curve, I used some of the aluminum sheeting that was purchased for making Kitty's high heels.  Fabric glues beautifully to it, and you can fold it over or double it up for a firmer headband.

For the second school dress, I chose a peppermint green stripe.  This beautiful vintage stripe was a fabric that I bought years ago and never used because there wasn't much of a piece to work with.  If I recall, I was going to use it for one of Daisy's dresses, but it was too small a stripe.

Alice Leverette made a dress with a large white border and I wanted to try the look.  Again, I played with bias cuts for the bodice and horizontal stripes for the sleeves and skirt.  The idea is to make each dress uniquely different, but also choose colors and patterns that will work beautifully in a dress display in her case.  The bias on the bodice creates a chevron look.  These dresses all have darts, and I can't figure out why, since Little Darlings are barely budding. 

The Swiss lace down the front of her bodice is a delicate batiste with three black buttons.  The collar and cuffs are white to balance out the large white border on the skirt.  This was a fun dress to make and I secretly called it "creme de menthe".

To top off Peggy's pretty red hair, I made her a bow from the green stripe.  The bow that came with Peggy Sue was on a very tiny hair clip.  I found some on Etsy, coming from China, of course, and when they arrive, I'll sew all the bows I've made to the hair clips and she'll have some proper hair accessories.

Encouraged, and really have fun by now, I started the blue gingham dress.  I'd purchased several colors in the 1/8" gingham check and the blue seemed to pick up the color in her eyes perfectly.  As I was designing this, and I should note that I'm using Alice's patterns as slopers now to create unique pieces, I recalled this lovely trim that I'd purchased some time ago.  Do click on a photo for a close up.  Its a Swiss batiste insertion?? lace with blue embroidery dots on it.  It was very expensive if I remember, and I had about three yards of it.  Sometimes its hard to use the expensive stuff, but I went for it and wasn't sorry.

Again we have a Peter Pan collar and I lined the bodice fully.  This meant pulling the whole bodice with collar through the shoulder area, then applying the trim later.  A lot of people wouldn't do it this way, preferring to finish the armholes with bias binding, but I've been doing this for years and I love the results.

As you'll note, the bodice was cut on the bias once again for style.  This gingham also gathers like a dream and all these dresses have a skirt of 24".  I added a bow to the front of the dress as I chose to make another head band, also cut on the bias. 

Finally, although there may be more school dresses or outfits to come, the gingham plaid in red-orange and purple arrived just as I was finishing the blue.  I'd been wanting to somewhat replicate AG MaryEllen's first purple plaid school dress.  But, different, of course.  I had quite a time trying to make this on a bodice pattern that is all one piece (no shoulder seams), and failed miserably.  It happens.  But, it gave me some experience in what to do and what not to do.  No time is ever wasted if you're learning something.  And, no fabric was wasted, not really, when I had plenty to work with.  So I slept on it, and started again.

This time I made a bib edged in black piping, then hand sewed it to the bodice with a ladder stitch.  The result speaks for itself.  Whatever it takes to get the look - get the job done. The collar was redrawn to have points instead of rounded edges, which is hard to detect from the photos.  Three little black buttons are sewn down the front, and black cotton grosgrain ribbon was applied to the hem and waistline.  This is a perfect look for fall and I love the colors.  A little grosgrain ribbon bow is tacked just under the collar.  It as applied to the top of the collar with the "creme de menthe" dress, so there's the difference there.

Any finally a little bow was made for her hair.  The saddle shoes work well for school and truth be told, as a child, I was only purchased one pair of shoes for the school year.  I usually convinced my mother to buy me an impractical pair for spring, and I'm sure my fashion sense as a child was complete lacking.  Does anyone remember the t-strap "tennis shoes"? 

In writing this blog, I noticed that the team is still allowing us to revert back to the old format, so I'm happy.  I was dreading learning a new formatting process.  phew!  I found this adorable advertisement from Woolworths's for school supplies and wanted to share it.  I adore the rocket ship pencil caddy!  I'd love to find a vintage one just to have.  If I were a retro toy manufacturer, I'd replicate so many joys from the past!

By the way, I've slowly started putting the display case in order.  I added mini 45 records as buttons with a thread for winding close, on the front of the case.  I added pink poodle stickers to the inside and am toying with more ideas.  I will share the case completed when done.  Also, the pink dress with rick rack is getting tossed.  The rick rack I used was kind of chunky and I found the regular mini red rick rack a couple of weeks ago.  I'll probably make the dress with sleeves, too, but later.  It was the first one I made, and I know I can do better now.  Its the only dress I made with the square collar, so I do want to make it.

Enjoy the turn of the leaves and change of season.  Remember that every day is precious and there is no time to waste.  No regrets.  Play!

Love,
Melissa

UFDC's Peggy Sue in the Fabulous Fifties

Labor Day Weekend.  Could it possibly be the end of summer already?  Back to school?  Not in Peggy Sue's world.  Summer is here for as long as the days are warm and bright.  Or at least until the twenty-first of September.  There are barbeque parties to attend, picnics by the lake, make-up and curler dates with girlfriends, and of course, hanging out at the diner with friends.

Life was...well, different in the 1950's.  There were less cars on the road, children played outdoors.  Neighborhoods were safe.  Jump ropes and hula hoops kept the young set fit and energized.  Rock n Roll blared from hotrods cruising the boulevards, and girls sought to be pretty in an idealized way.

Peggy Sue is just a tween.  Too old for dolls, too young for boys (says her mother).  She spends her time listening to 45's on the record player and reading teen magazines.  She dreams of the day she'll wear a bridal gown and begin a family of her own like her older sister.  These years are special ones where she discovers who good friends really are, and how to behave as a young lady should.  She'll learn to cook and sew, and clean.  Chores won't be difficult, but she wants to learn since Mother does such a wonderful job.  Peggy Sue loves to draw and paint, and read mystery books.  But, mostly, she enjoys being a girl.  Just like the song.

When the UFDC Online Event began, I wasn't so sure I wanted another Little Darling.  I have two and display them in lovely Russian made knitted outfits.  I complained to a friend of mine that  I didn't want a doll in a poodle skirt.  Why do I behave like such a stick in the mud sometimes?  They are cute.  I do love the 50's.  The fashions were elegant and fun and feminine.  Two of my favorite Tonner dolls are Kitty Collier and DeeAnna Denton.  I like Cissy.  But, truth be admitted, I found it difficult to sew for her, even though I loved the fashions she wore in the 1950's.  I like sewing for young girls and tweens.  So as I mentioned in my last blog, after I spotted Alice Leverette's pattern set made for her, I decided to purchase Peggy Sue, Diana Effner's souvenir doll for the UFDC convention that became the Online Event. 

I will also add, that having spent a good deal of time looking at Little Darlings, and owning two painted by Geri Uribe, I think Peggy Sue is the better of the three.  Of course I love the doll best who I'm currently sewing for, usually, but the artists that painted these dolls did a phenomenal job.  And, she is the one Little Darling I have that can stand on her own.  I don't know what it is about the other two, but they are constantly falling over.  I'm so happy I got her, and couldn't wait to begin sewing for her. 

A couple of weeks ago, I cut out every single pattern in Alice's set.  I had quite a bit of Cissy related fabrics on hand, but went ahead and purchased a few more fabric selections.  What I wanted to create was a bright and cheerful wardrobe to take me though the end of summer's sewing.  My favorite historical American Girl right now is MaryEllen, and her wardrobe would, in part, be my inspiration. 

The first dress I made was using the square necked bodice with a full skirt.  I believe this bodice was intended for sleeves, but I created it fully lined, then added the skirt.  The print is a muted pale pink-mauve gingham with red flower pots hosting a daisy each.  I had this red rick rack on hand, and added plenty to trim and decorate the dress.  Somehow it still seemed too plain, so I added two small daisy appliques.  One at the neckline and one on the skirt.  In her hair she's tied a red grosgrain ribbon.

The next outfit would be a sun dress for patio parties, carnivals, and beach days.  I'd bought this salt water taffy stripe originally for Cissy, but its perfect for Peggy Sue.  The sweetheart neckline bodice was intended for both a petticoat and a sun dress.  Instead of simply attaching another full skirt like the dress above, I played with the stripes for more depth and visual appeal.

I sewed a horizontal length above the vertical, and trimmed the hem with a bias stripe.  The shoulder straps are the same stripe patterning.  I love working with stripes and checks since you can cut them so accurately to match.  The bottom of the bodice ends in the large pink stripe, and the horizontal top of the skirt begins with the same pink stripe.  The sun dress is a circus of colors.  A playful parade of candy stripes.  I will note that I had to make the bodice twice.  It was not wide enough to fit around Peggy Sue's torso.  I have a ton of this fabric, so it was no problem.

The next thing I wanted to include was a pair of pedal pushers.  Alice did not include a cut line on her pattern for these, so I copied the pattern on my printer and added length to the cuffed shorts line.  I chose red since its such a stand out color.  The pants pattern sewed up like a dream with no adjustments needing to be made.  I was feeling more creative as I went along and the ease of these patterns allowed me to play freely.

But, it was this cherry print cotton that I really wanted to sew with.  Peggy Sue needed a cheery cherry shirt to ride her bike in and do the occasional chores about the house.  Its a good thing that I had plenty of this "Cissy intended" fabric as well.  This shirt pattern was all one piece with only sleeves and collar added.  The problem is that it was not wide enough across the shoulder blade area, and the sleeve holes were too small.  After some careful looking, I noticed the front of the sleeve hole was smaller than the back.  Maybe this works for people???, but it didn't work for this doll.  So I went to bed that night with the intention of making the shirt all over again from scratch. 

The first thing I did was decide not to use the 1/4" recommended seam allowance, and take it down to 1/8", which is what I normally sew for my own designs.  I also copied the blouse pattern on the printer and cut a wider hole in the arm front to match the back.  Now I had a nice fit.  The collar is adorable and was easy to apply to the shirt.  I did not clip the recommended 3/16" along the neck edge to attach the rectangular collar, but attached it the way I normally do, stretching and fitting.  I made sure on the second try to leave a good 1/4" from the edge of the collar where the self facing folds in, to give it a proper shirt collar look.  I added a pocket smaller than the one the patterns provided and tucked a purple gingham handkerchief into it.  Four little buttons go down the front, and one on the pocket flap.  All these outfits are fastened easily with snaps.

Now that I had plenty of pink and red in this wardrobe, I wanted some bright yellow or green.  I had a very small piece of Aunt Grace Scrap Bag yellow with tiny purple roses.  Its such a pretty fabric.  Peggy Sue needed a little garden sun suit that could be worn on vacations and during games of hop scotch, or even backyard badminton games.  Further enjoying myself at this point, I pushed the design concept and trimmed her yellow sun suit with the purple gingham, picking up the purple in the tiny roses.  I knew exactly what I wanted to do with this one.

Having sewn with both the pants pattern and the sweetheart bodice, I decided to attach them for a onsie and add a skirt she could wear over it.  Credit given where credit is due, MaryEllen has a similar sun suit.  I just made this one a little different.  Very different, but the look is the same.  To get the trim on the bodice, which is actually a fold over look, not sewn at the base, I cut a smaller shape from the bodice following the line by measuring down an inch.  Its a handy little pattern piece that can be used again for an elegant dress.  Both edges are sewn then turned inside out and pressed.  The gingham in attached by machine to the top edge of the bodice only by top stitching.

The shorts which attach to the bodice were shortened by a good inch.  I added the bias cut gingham as a turned up cuff.  Thank goodness I know how to sew some of this stuff.  It helps tremendously when you want to design and play.  The onsie is finished with straps that tie halter style.

I then added the top skirt to the set.  The skirts in this pattern set have a recommended 24" length, and so far its worked beautifully, although the first dress I made is about 28" in width.  The play skirt has a waistband in the bias cut gingham and closes in front with one snap at the center.  As an after thought, I added two little purple buttons to the front of the onsie and five down the center of the skirt.  As an after after thought, I make a bow for her hair. 

The shoes are all provided by Debs Adorables on Ebay.  They are cute and just fine for this classic little wardrobe.  Right now its all about fun and cheery colors and ease of play for me.  Each outfit took two days to make overall.  The next thing I'll do is work on her display trunk, but I've shown how the outfits will look in it.  I want the colors to blend and compliment each other set up in this display.  I also want to begin a school dress or two, a party dress fitting for the holidays, and as there was no pattern for a coat with hat, I'll have to modify some of the patterns to make one.  How many outfits will Peggy Sue have?  Enough to round out the display at least.  She should have something for each season, and already summer covered.

I understand from Rachel Hoffman that the Tonner Grace Marie dolls are in an LA customs house right now, so when she arrives, I can begin her Summer Fling wardrobe.  Fall is going to be here in no time at all, so I'm sewing daily.  My inspiration has returned and it feels wonderful.

Love,
Melissa

The Gift of Loulotte

There is nothing like a surprise package in the mail.  And, this is what happened on July 9th.  Going about my day, never minding my own business, I went to check the mail and found a box from my friend, Heather.  I thought to myself, "What did she do now?", and excitedly sat down on the floor to carefully open the box and pull out its contents.

Inside was a letter of introduction from Kitty's mother, telling the story of how they'd come upon this little waif in Paris, who just happened to be handy and quick with a needle and thread, and bought her a ticket to the U.S. to assist me with my couture business.  I opened the box and the most adorable little doll looked up at me, and I cried.  It was a Loulotte from Bravot of France.  I could hardly believe how this little doll, and gesture, touched my heart. 

Earlier in the year I'd been asking Heather about the Loulotte dolls and she gave me a brief history on the doll, which I promptly filed away for future use and lost.  So when this little charmer showed up on my doorstep, I was swept away with curiosity once again.  Its not that I hadn't worked with the idea of Loulotte before, but at the time, there was no such doll to dress and play with.  A comic book had been published in France called La Petite Princesse, which was a Becassine story of Loulotte.  Loulotte being a charge of Becassine's, as Becassine was a nanny. 

Back then I was making the miniature marionette theaters, and I can't tell you what year this was, but it was before I had a photo tent to photograph my work in, and must have been when I first got a digital camera or these photos would not be on my computer.  Either way, I did "Loulotte" for a time.  Today I rather wish I hadn't sold the Loulotte theater.  It was inspired by the artwork in the Gaultier-Langereau books of Becassine, and the relationship between Loulotte and her nanny.  I do believe I included the book with the miniature theater, and was grateful that I'd had the presence of mind to copy the pages on my scanner for future reference.  This was all during the time I was still collecting for, and playing with Bleuette. 

So who is Loulotte?  She was the daughter of the publisher of the books of Becassine.  A real child.  In the photo of sepia tones, you can see her wearing a Scottish inspired outfit.  Heather had given me minute, but richer history of the child and a couple more photos like these, but I'll be darned if my Yahoo mail will cough them up.  What I do recall is that the parents were terribly strict with the child and never spared the rod.  How she grew up and who she became later in life would be interesting to learn.  But, today we have her as a doll to play with.

Although many little 6 1/2" dolls have been called "Loulotte", there is only one true one, and you can purchase one from Sylvie Bravot.  Sylvie paid for licensing rights to produce both Becassine and the Loulotte doll.  And, a fine job she did!

You may recall me telling you, I had a dry spell of creativity for awhile, and it was when Loulotte showed up.  And, to be honest, I didn't know what to do with her, how to dress her.  There were so many things I could have done with her.  Heather told me she looked like a mini Kitty.  And, she does!  So one of the ideas was to make her into the child Kitty would have been.  But, in reality she would have needed to be dressed like Lettie Lane, in Edwardian style dress.  Nope.  I wanted to dress her in the styles of the 1920's.  I couldn't keep the idea of her being a penniless orphan coming to work for Madame Hoover, because I don't like "poor" dolls.  I don't want to feel sorry for them.  It was suggested that she could be a cousin or little sister of Kitty's.  Didn't want to do that either.  But, I was certain that I wanted to dress her in the American child styles from that wonderful green book.  So she is simply Loulotte in the Roaring Twenties.  If you recall, Huguette Clark was born in France, then raised in New York.  So goes the story of my Loulotte.

July 9th might not seem a long time ago to some, but to me it  does.  So much has happened since then and all under the cloud of a deadly virus, and changing lifestyles.  Thank goodness for dollies to dress and Virtual Doll Conventions!  I even registered for the NIADA VDC just to have peek.  I do enjoy the surreal and whimsy in art dolls.

I will have to also add in here that I'd purchased maybe half a dozen patterns for this doll from Stephanie Ehmen.   However, they bothered me.  Something was just not right about them.  I was told that many were simply reduced sized Bleuette patterns, but not a single one of them shouted 1920s! to me.  So I bagged that idea, and started from scratch.  Back to the green book I went.  Again, this book is called Flapper Era Fashions From the Roaring 20's, by Tina Skinner and Lindy McCord.  Its fabulous.  Several pages were dedicated to children's fashions, which is where I found my inspiration.  The pages I used are shown below this journaling. 

Earlier I had purchased this gorgeous viscose in green with small wildflowers, blackberries and raspberries.  It is so soft and drapes beautifully.  I wanted to create an outfit that would work for summer as well as fall, so purchased a second yard in the corresponding burgundy color of the same print.  I love working with fabrics this way.  I did this with France's beach outfit in aqua and yellow.

Loulotte's little play dress comes with knee length bloomers and a decorative short dress over it.  You can see in the pages of the green book that this was a popular style for children.  One dress stood out among the other images and was made up in navy with a printed border on the hem and neckline.  See below.  I wanted this look, and achieved something similar by piecing the fabrics together.  The high bodice was done in the green print, and the body of the dress was done in the burgundy.  I copied out a scallop design and sewed a scallop border to attach at the hem to further create the look.  The bloomers are green as well as the sleeve cuffs, and the sleeves pick up the burgundy of the body of the dress.

The scallops were very well done, if I say so myself, and I could have left it there, but I decided to play with covered medallions and topped each point of the scallops with one.  Each has its own little flower in the center.  This idea could have also been done with buttons, but I was fussing with fiddly detail work.  I also made the medallions work as buttons on the back of the dress and to close the shorts in back.  I flipped the colors so the green button closes the dress on the burgundy and the opposite for the top back of the dress.  Just fun stuff.

I made her a pair of red t-strap shoes, and a cloche hat in felted wool.  There was so many darling hat styles to chose from, but I fell in love with the wildflower embroidery on the green hat shown in the image. I didn't have an exact matching wool felt in green, but this shade worked well after all.  With the added embroidery, it ties nicely in with the play dress.

I like my dolls to hold something, have an accessory, so I quickly put together a book of Grimm's fairytales for her this morning.  I used the McLoughlin Bros. front plate from 1890, so this book could have been passed down to her, as books like this should be.  My mother had carried to California my grandmother's Red Book of Fairytales, and Blue Book of Fairytales.  My sister has them now,  but the illustrations were in the style of Arthur Rackham.  Lovely!

Loulotte is now dressed and sitting in her tree house reading her Grimm's book of fairytales to a variety of stuffed animals and dolls.  Thank you for this precious doll, Heather!

Next, I'll be working on a wardrobe for Peggy Sue, and creating the interior of her display case.  Something bright and pleasant to do as summer carries on. There are too many not so pleasant things going on beyond my doorstep, so I'll stay indoors and play dolls and read to my heart's content.  I hope you find the perfect way to enjoy the rest of this sunny season.

Love,
Melissa

Playsets

My inspiration

Hat and Coats

I can fly!