This post is part tutorial and part cautionary tale. I am not a hand-sewing or doll-costuming expert. I merely share with you the hard-won lessons I have learned by making a multitude of mistakes, perhaps helping you to have a smoother sewing journey. There are easy ways to set in sleeves on tiny doll costumes. This is not one of them. Several months ago, I challenged myself to make a … Continue reading
Category Archives: Hand Sewing
Long ago, G Street Fabrics was far, far away. Then they opened two stores in Northern Virginia. My house was smack dab in the middle of them. So I could choose which one to go to depending on which direction had less traffic at any given time. Once upon a time, they were the best place to find natural fiber fabrics and threads, books on sewing and crafts, fabulous trims … Continue reading
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I live in the Washington, DC area and my doll club meets on the other side of the Potomac River. Last Thursday evening I made a rare journey to my doll club meeting. It only took 1 1/2 hours to get there, during rush hour traffic, around the DC beltway. Coming home, later that evening, took me just under 30 minutes. There have been times I’ve tried to go to a meeting … Continue reading
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I know it’s been a while… I haven’t had a lot of time to do creative stuff lately, and I needed to be quiet for a while. But I did finish my S&H 890’s slip/dress and I have a couple of things to share. First, I promised a trick for finishing the neckline with all it’s tucks. If I turned everything to the inside, it would leave a lot of … Continue reading
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I’ve talked about tucks. And shown you tucks. So I thought that I should show you how to make them by hand. For the record, pleats are folds that are normally sewn only at the top and/or bottom, and tucks are sewn along the length of the fold. Inspired by this slip/dress from La Poupee Modele for my S&H 890, I’ll show you how to make released tucks. In … Continue reading
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I am finally getting around to dressing my doll who lost her head a few months ago. She’s a Simon & Halbig 890, size 3, and she’s 7 inches tall. Her coat dress, inspired by this 1885-1890 child’s coat from The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s website will be made in the periwinkle blue wool gabardine seen above with the doll. It is a very light-weight, fine “designer” wool. Her undies and dress/chemise … Continue reading
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The other day I started trying to get a handle on all my unfinished projects and gave up. My solution was to just finish something. Anything. So I finished my Huret’s slip. Sorry the photo looks like a mug shot. With her kid body, it’s hard to get her to stand straight in her stand, so I just photographed her lying down. I love how the slip makes her skirt … Continue reading
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It is no mystery to me why the 2003 movie titled, The Gathering, was a horror movie. I do not enjoy horror movies and I do not enjoy gathering. Cartridge pleating is such a neat, orderly, precise process. But for some applications, and for most ruffles, it’s just too much. Since I had hand sewn 6 feet of ruffles for the 42″ circumference slip for my Huret, I just had to break … Continue reading
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I’ve been slacking lately. I took the period between Thanksgiving and New Years to stay busy with stuff other than dolls, sewing, embroidery, and designing my mini casket. And since the New Year, I have been working a lot on the boring, tedious end-of-year accounting work my real job requires. Also, I decided to make myself some new clothes. I’ve started to bore even myself with my EVERY DAY wardrobe of … Continue reading
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Naked dolls haunt all doll collectors. Every doll should have something to cover their birthday suits, even if it is something simple and quick. This 3 1/4″ (8.5 cm) German all-bisque flapper doll was a gift from a dear friend over a year ago and she was still naked until today. To make a simple dress for her, I chose 1 1/4″ silk ribbon and some tiny antique trim. By using … Continue reading
