Ooh La La Couture Dress

Looking for girly clothing that is really frou-frou? We weren't, but we found some that intrigued us anyway! First we came upon this....a Kaiya Eve boutique dress....

Dear God, my eyes! The ruffles.... the ruffles are everywhere!!!!

Needless to say we didn't buy this ensemble, though I am sure little girls might be very happy to have such an outfit for their dolls. But it did lead us to investigate boutique lines of clothing for young girls and to check out what they are making for American Girl dolls. And we found these....all from "Ooh La La Couture"....

The original four outfits you see first in the slideshow, with the toile shirts attached to the petticoats, are mostly sold out and the new line with the peace signs on the shirts are what is currently available. Interested in them? Click here to visit Lil Britchin Post (the online shop where you can buy the in-stock items and look at the full Ooh La La Couture line for dolls).

So what did we end up buying? Yes, it has pink on it..... and yes, it is kind of frou-frou. But it was very entertaining in its design and we wanted to see it up close and in person. We discovered it is basically a little onesie for your doll with a petticoat thingy attached at the hip-line. And in its own way, it can be very versatile.

Here is Mary modeling the dress as is....

And here is Mary with a tricked out dress...
We added a hat, vest, belt, socks, sneakers, and a purse.....

Accessory round-up: the hat is from Seejoansew's "Squeak's Outfit," the vest is Liberty Jane, the belt is the JLY Meet Outfit headband you see in the previous pics, the socks are also from Seejoansew, the sneaks are AG, and the purse is one of those lipstick cases we found in a shop once upon a time.

Doesn't Mary look awesome???..... despite the pinkness that Penny abhors so much... Heehee. :)

Ruthie (Jess) Models Liberty Jane

In this post our Ruthie, once upon a time "Jess," is taking her turn modeling some items from the Liberty Jane Spring 2010 Line. She starts off wearing "Getty Villa Stroll" and then gets to model some Mix and Match outfits, just like Arista did last week.

So without further ado....the first outfit from the "Malibu Libby" theme...."Getty Villa Stroll".... without a doubt the most mix and matchable outfit amongst the first four outfits of the Spring 2010 Line....

And next is the green top from "Harajuku Station" with the jeans and shoes from "Boomerang"... (very versatile jeans, btw)....

Our final combo today is the jacket from "Boomerang," and the purple top and white shorts from "Getty Villa Stroll." The shoes are again, from "Boomerang".....

As usual, stay tuned for more Liberty Jane posts!
And if you feel like shopping...click here or here!!!

Doll Closet Christmas Dress

Here is the beginning of those Christmas-y posts I was talking about a week ago... yeah, I'm a bit slow per usual. But I am finally back from my out-of-state excursion and I have the time to organize these things.

First we have a Christmas-themed Asian-style Crossover dress purchased from Etsy seller Doll Closet. It is created from a novelty fabric with words like "Naughty," "Santa," "Joy," etc. printed on it. Our Ruthie (fka Jess) is modeling this fun dress for us. It came with the red tie-on belt that can also be used as a headband and of course can be used for other outfits as well. Always nice to have those types of versatile accessories.

Want to visit the Doll Closet shop?
Click here.

Please enjoy the photos!

Revisiting LinneaAnne AGFMB Special Feature

Hello again and welcome back for another installment of the American Girl Fans Message Board Member Special Feature! We are returning to member LinneaAnne for a look at some of the clothing she has made for Ruthie. All of the photos you see in this post are the property of LinneaAnne.

Here is a breakdown of what you are seeing in the photos and slideshow below:

1) The blue dress with the very fancy collar was inspired by a dress that Ruthie wears in the movie.
2) The brown dress and coordinating hat was created by LinneaAnne for the AGFMB 2009 sewing swap. LinneaAnne explains: "I love the color (of the hat) with Ruthie's hair and eyes - it just brings out her eyes so well."
3) The pink, green and yellow apron you see below was created in a 1930s style.
4) The green, white and brown dress which you see as a close-up shot was made as a school dress for Ruthie and has a pleated skirt.
5) LinneaAnne also created a slip for Ruthie based on the pattern for Molly's slip.

And last but not least.....
6) The pink dress was adapted from a Bunny Bear pattern, but LinneaAnne omitted the sleeves from the design.

I would say Ruthie's wardrobe is now quite complete!
Awesome job LinneaAnne!!!

Fantastic! Everything is just so beautiful and the pictures are great. Thank you for sharing your creative doll clothing with us LinneaAnne! Join us next week for another look at what AGFMB member Numberonekitty has created for her dolls.

And next time in The Doll Wardrobe you will find out what I, Nora Demington, gathered as my souvenir loot from our Disney World vacation. Yes I got some more toys! Surprise... surprise. And I'll also start posting some more pictures from our vacation in a more organized thematic manner. :)

Outfits of the Week- Ebay Highlights

Here we are again, looking at upcoming auctions on Ebay that present some interesting doll clothing for us to drool over. :) All pictures in this post are the property of the listed Ebay sellers and I use them here only to showcase their wares.

First we have a nice yellow and green dress for the 1860s and
the petticoat is included as you can see in the photo below.
This is being offered by Ebay seller kmkdollshop
and the auction ends tomorrow, Sunday,
September 27th (18:30 PDT).
Addy looks so pretty in this dress!

Our second highlight is the Keepers Dolly Duds version
of the green coat from the cover of "Really Truly, Ruthie."
Such a wonderful green color!
The auction ends Monday night,
September 28th (18:00 PDT).

The third auction showcased today is this cranberry-colored
middy top and pleated skirt combo for Rebecca
offered from Ebay seller sewing*genie.
This auction ends Thursday, October 1st (17:53 PDT).
Yet another impressive Rebecca outfit from sewing*genie!

And last but not least, let's flash forward to something groovy
for Julie (or a modern doll who wears vintage duds)-
this five-piece jeans set offered by
Ebay seller idreamofjeannemarie.
This auction ends Thursday, October 1st (17:15 PDT).
So tempting! That purple hat is adorable.

Be sure to check out the other items being offered by these sellers- each week's auctions usually feature more than one outfit. :) On Monday we continue our "Liberty Jane Mondays" tradition with the Summer Camp Outfit. Hope everyone is having a good weekend! Toodles!

Guest Review: Bon Jean Creations

Emily was very excited to be the one chosen to model this dress from ebay seller Bon Jean Creations. This period perfect dress was patterned after a dress made by the dressmaker's own mother! The feed sack fabric is perfectly paired with the ruffles. Emily felt cool and summery all day.

This is the original handmade dress from the 40's that Emily's dress was patterned after. Isn't it cute?

Sophie_nc Purple Dress for Ruthie

There is a house full of weary travelers here in Badger's Wood. All we pretty much want to do is nap! Why do vacations have to be so tiring? We really need a relaxing one soon. Our next vacation will probably be to Disney World. Unfortunately that probably will be a lot of walking and not a lot of relaxing... but still, it is the House of Mouse!

Anyway, besides all of my whining and rambling, I am here to tell you about the purple dress we bought off of Ebay from seller Sophie_nc. It was being modeled by Kit in the Ebay auction and could probably work for the 1930s. So we gave it to Ruthie. It is longer than a normal 1930's young girl's dress would be. But we think it still works for Ruthie, and she loves the color purple. So please enjoy the pictures below of her modeling the sophisticated new dress!

During our "vacation" Penny got to go to the American Girl store in New York City. Yes, she bought some stuff there, including 3 dolls (which we will show off to you next week). She also went to Tiffany's, FAO Schwartz, and a variety of restaurants. I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Central Park Zoo. (I will show you some of the neat stuff I saw there next week as well. And maybe even some videos if I can get those to work in Blogger...)

After a few days in the city we traveled to Penny's parents' house. There we ate a lot of food, went shopping, went out to the movies, and took a whole bunch of pictures of Molly in handmade clothing that Penny had collected when she was a girl. So you should be seeing those in upcoming posts as well. About 75% was made by Penny's Mom, and the other 25% was purchased at craft shows back in the olden days. Heehee.

So Monday June 22nd will be Wild Card Monday! Will you see a new handmade outfit? Maybe! Or will you see a new doll? Or something from New York? Or our Molly in an "old" handmade outfit? Check back with us on Monday to find out!

gehrom Grey and Red Sweater and Hat Set

Rebecca is here! Well, not "here" as in here in Badger's Wood... just "here" as in available for crazy collectors like Penny to purchase!

But Penny is going to wait some more time and be patient before ordering her. I hope everyone who wants her can get her and doesn't have to wait! I am all about instant gratification. Don't forget to vote in the poll in the sidebar for your favorite Rebecca item!

For now, I am going to show you another sweater set from Ebay seller gehrom. This set is shown on Ruthie, but it belongs to Kit. I wanted to show it to you on Ruthie though because the last gehrom set was shown on Kit. Yay for diversification of photo shoots!

The red hat does look especially smashing with Ruthie's dark locks. The grey and red sweater is large enough to fit over a blouse or dress and it buttons up the back. The hat is wonderfully made and again the flower is detachable and movable. The first photo shows you the whole outfit with Emily's dark wool skirt. The second shot gives you an up-close look at the hat and the top of the sweater. The third photo was taken with a more powerful flash so you can see the vertical bands in the crochet-work contrasting against the red horizontal bands. It is quite a neat effect! Thank you gehrom for another great set!

Also, I have to say the red and dark grey combination is really striking and seamstresses don't take advantage of it nearly enough. I don't think American Girl has even made a historical dress with these two colors...or have they? Maybe somewhere there in the AG timeline...

Next time in The Doll Wardrobe I'll be talking about a purple dress for Susan purchased from Etsy seller BoltSense. It is quite a unique addition to her growing wardrobe.

Seems like everybody in this house is getting a purple dress nowadays....everyone except for me, of course. Though honestly, I'm not a huge fan of dresses. Yeah, they are pretty. But I'm more of a pajamas and costumes girl myself.... what have I been pining for? The rabbit costume from Gomunk Creations pictured in the "For sale" section! But that is not really the type of thing I can wear to school....or can I? Hmmm....

While I devise a plan for wearing a rabbit costume to school, enjoy our photos below!

Terristouch 1930s Purple Dress for Ruthie

SEVEN DAYS until REBECCA RUBIN! Do you think my countdown will get annoying after a couple more posts? Probably... but let's just pretend it won't get annoying and keep doing it. Heehee.

Our little Ruthie has a penchant for purple dresses, which she discovered after she was able to get her "Meet" dress back from Kit and try it on. Luckily, one of Etsy seller Terristouch's new Ruthie dresses is light purple with tiny yellow flowers dancing all over the fabric. It features a lovely white collar accented by lace and a bow as well as a tie in the back of the dress for a flattering fit. Ruthie was so excited when she saw it come out of the Priority Mail box she couldn't wait to do the photo shoot. Thanks Terri for another great dress!

Now let's see...what else could our Ruthie need for her 1930s wardrobe? She has 2 coats and 8 dresses, as well as the sweater set and skirt from Kit's Meet outfit. (Kit also gave that to her because of the pink-ness. Kit's mother must have picked that outfit out for her....haha.)

So we are missing some non-pink pjs and a robe, an outdoor play outfit, and maybe some non-pink cardigans we could pair up with her dresses. It would be nice to find these types of things handmade. I guess we'll have to continue the 1930s doll clothing search!

"Roll up the score, Navy, Anchors Aweigh!": Up next from Badger's Wood is a snazzy white sailor suit for Susan purchased from Ebay seller jeanebob4. It is our tribute to the WWII troops discussed and honored frequently in Molly's stories.

The outfit also reminded Penny of the sailor costumes from the musical "South Pacific" and especially that silly song "Honey Bun" which Ensign Nellie Forbush sings while dressed as a male sailor. Despite my overwhelming desire to sing it to you now, I'll wait until I write my next post!

For now, enjoy our photos of beautiful Ruthie below!

Terristouch Light Blue Ruthie Dress

So first here are some images of Ruthie's American Girl brand-name outfit: the so-called "Meet" outfit, which Kit initially stole from her upon the arrival of the original Ruthie doll. However, Kit decided she didn't like the dress because it was a little too girlish, lacy, and has definite traces of pink on it. So back to Ruthie it went, and now she has one more summery dress in her closet.

To beef-up Ruthie's warm-weather-wardrobe, in addition to the sleeveless Keepers Ruthie dress previously reviewed, Penny also bought the light blue, light-weight dress for Ruthie from Etsy seller terristouch pictured below. It has graceful lines, features a soft fabric, and sports a cute row of buttons down the front. Just the sort of dress Ruthie can wear when she and Kit visit the famous Cincinnati Zoo in the summertime! Thanks Terri!

Next up from Badger's Wood is a return to Susan Shapiro's wardrobe for a look at a daisy-tastic, flower-rific summer dress from Ebay seller suebesewing! See ya later!

Keepers Dolly Duds Red, White and Blue Ruthie Dress

Ok, so we are a little early for the 4th of July. But how can you write "red, white and blue" in a different order than "red, white and blue"- especially when you are writing about American Girl dolls? It is quite a conundrum, but....

....I guess we can try...this blue, red, and white dress was recently purchased by Penny from the Ebay store of seller keepersdollyduds. If it is possible to be addicted to an Ebay store, she is definitely addicted to Keepers. We may have to have an intervention soon. Heehee.

Truth be told, once the spring and summer warm-weather dresses started being released Penny started hunting them down feverishly in order to fill gaps in specific dolls' wardrobes. For instance, our dear friend Ruthie, who as a wealthy young lady should own a lot of clothing, is sort of lacking a lot of attire choices. So now she has a nice sleeveless dress to wear in the summer while sitting on Kit's front porch and sipping ice tea.

This beautiful blue dress with tiny white polka dots is accented by pleating, red rick-rack trim, a white cut-up layered collar with tiny red buttons, and a removable belt. Also included was the red hair ribbon which Stella managed to tie onto Ruthie's semi-fancy hairdo. (Stella was in charge of hairstyling for this photoshoot.)

Stop by next time for a look at our new Dollies' Dressmaker striped 1940s dress being modeled by Susan Shapiro!

Keepers Dress and New Ruthie

Ok, so two big pieces of news for this posting.

#1 Penny took the plunge and bought a "pinkish" dress from Ebay store keepersdollyduds! The listing included the colors coral, pink and ivory. Penny was willing to buy it because the first color listed was coral- which she likes quite a bit.

Now that we have it here in person, I would say that it has two different tones of coral, as well as a creamy-yellow and white in the heavily-patterned fabric. It looks like a plaid fabric that got swarmed by bubbles. It is quite neat! Another great Ruthie dress from Keepers!

#2 bit of news: Jess quickly volunteered to model the new Keepers Ruthie dress and was quite patient as we put the included hair ribbon on her head. During the photoshoot she was telling Penny about how she has reddish-brown hair and brown eyes, just the Ruthie in the AG books. She also talked about how much she likes wearing the Ruthie clothing Penny has purchased before. In addition, she stated that she wasn't very interested in wearing modern clothing.

After 15 more hints, Penny asked Jess if she wanted to be Ruthie Smithens- and the answer was an excited "YES!" So while many others choose to keep Jess as Jess, she has now become Ruthie in our household and has taken on a new time period.

A bizarre and unexpected turn of events to be sure, especially since Jess has been living here for so long already as Jess. But in the end, I have always said that dolls rarely keep there original identities in this house. They seem to have slightly different personalities than AG originally had intended for them. Haha.

Julie= Cassie, Mia= Nora (me!), Ruthie=Mary, Sonali=Sundari and now Jess=Ruthie (and of course the future Felicity=Elinor)

Doesn't our new Ruthie look so happy to be Ruthie? Heehee.

Granmasplayroom Monkey Pajamas!

Need some awesome pjs? Or need monkeys? Look no further than Etsy store Granmasplayroom! Here Penny found some pretty darn cool modern pjs- one set with meditating monkeys and one set featuring sock monkeys. They are made out of really soft flannel fabric and come with snaps under the front buttons so they are easy to take on and off.

Also seen below are some plush donkey slippers, worn by Jess, from the Ebay store releaserain- the same store that brought us the tiger slippers you see on Maggie in an earlier post. In the photos below you can tell that the squishy donkey slippers make Jess appear much taller than our Mary. She said she felt very short.

During the photoshoot for these pajamas, Jess and Mary introduced themselves. Jess was intrigued to learn that Mary was originally destined to play the role of Kit's best friend Ruthie. But in fact had switched names and time periods to be colonial girl Mary Royall, taken from a John Singleton Copley painting. So, in reality, she shouldn't be wearing modern pjs. However Mary has a secret penchant for sock monkeys. Jess inquired if the role of Ruthie had been filled by another girl. Penny told her that the Ruthie casting call is still open.

Meet Kit and Ruthie!

So there was this $5 shipping code from AG and well, we just had to use it! Best Friends collection ordered!

There seems to be a slight shift in the form of the classic AG face mold, so Penny thought we should start buying all our Wish List classic face mold dolls before the old version is gone. At the top of the Wish List for classic looks were Kit and Ruthie...so voila! They have now joined us in Badger's Wood!

To explain what is happening in our Photobucket slideshow below: First we took pictures of Kit and Ruthie in their original "Meet" outfits. Then we switched their outfits to see if Kit would look good in Ruthie's dress and vice versa. For those of you who have read the AG Kit and Ruthie books, you know that Ruthie is supposed to have brown hair and eyes. The AG doll matches the movie actress instead of the book illustrations.

The AG Ruthie doll was not speaking to us as a real "Ruthie." The grey eyes, though beautiful, just weren't matching our Ruthie clothing.

So at this point, Penny made an executive decision. Ruthie Smithens was given a new name, identity and time period. Kit is now left alone in the 1930s. Will we find a new Ruthie?

Keepers White Coat

Welcome to 2009! Happy New Year Doll Wardrobe readers!

Our first item for the year is this lovely Keepers Dolly Duds white coat and beret designed for the AG doll Ruthie. It looks very classy on my twin sister Ellie. (And no, Ruthie has not yet come home to live with us. There is a plan to get both Kit and Ruthie at the same time....someday.)

Penny won this coat from an Ebay auction- so be sure to check out the Ebay store "keepersdollyduds" if you are interested in more high-quality items like this coat.

This is our second Keepers coat, but this one is unique for the plaid-like texture and the side-button effect. Nearly %90 of all Keepers clothing seems to be one-of-a-kind, so if you see something you really want in her semi-weekly auctions- I recommend getting it. You may not see it again!

Keepers Blue Christmas Dress

Here is the second item that Penny won on ebay- a blue Christmas dress designed for the AG Ruthie doll by Keepers Dolly Duds. Can you see the tiny Christmas trees in the fabric? Clever, very clever!

I really like the designs. They are so creative. I think I am going to request that I get to model the next purchase, though I'm not the appropriate brunette. Hehe.

It came with the lovely blue hair ribbon that you see in Samantha's hair. And if you haven't heard the news, (if you haven't you must be living under a rock) Samantha is being "archived."

Most likely, as of this moment, the dolls are sold out. Luckily Penny snagged her before she was gone. So we are particularly happy to have her here with us, sharing our happy little home.

Keepers Blue Coat

Finders Keepers! Yes indeed, Penny was able to win two new Keepers Dolly Duds ebay auctions!

So now after the big holiday rush, I have a bit of time to post to this blog...before school starts up again. Ack... let's just not think about school right now.

We begin with this dark blue wool coat and hat with white accents- designed for the AG doll Ruthie. If you are interested in items from this talented seamstress- please check out her ebay store: keepersdollyduds.

The Great Ebay Achievement '08

Okay, so Penny won this dress for us from an Ebay auction. We never win anything we bid on, so that is why winning this was "The Great Ebay Achievement '08."

Keepers Original Designs - by Eve Coleman of Nova Scotia - is like the Holy Grail of homemade AG items. As far as I understand, most of her items are one-a-kind and very sought-after. We are lucky to have gotten this dress and it is very exquisite. She obviously puts a lot of time and effort into her clothing. If you are interested in her clothing, visit her ebay store "keepersdollyduds." She puts up several items a week for auctions. But be careful of your budget- they do go for a healthy sum of moola!

Here we have Jess modeling the dress for us. It is meant for AG Ruthie- but she has yet to join us at our house. She is on the Wishlist for 2009 though, along with AG Kit. Because the dress is so awesome, we have given it three pictures.