Showing posts with label swimsuits. Show all posts
Showing posts with label swimsuits. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Trends to Sew: O'Neill Swimsuits

In general, I don't see a lot of stylish swimsuits 
for the AG dolls that are super-realistic.

I noticed the Dollicious ones and the QT Pie Scrunchy style pattern 
really stand out in this regard.



(These were discussed in yesterday's post.)

I think people can experiment more with the construction 
of the swimmy-suit top in order to provide 
customers with more swimmy-suit options for their dolls.

And options are great - especially for people with multiple dolls 
who want to take group photo shoots.

You don't want your dolls all in the same style swimmy-suit. 
That's boring.

So check out these swimmy-suits from O'Neill 
and see if you can make them!

(Prod prod.)

And yes - there are two-piece human swimsuits below, that show skin -
so don't expect modesty here, haha.

(I don't expect a doll to cover-up 
all her bits when lounging poolside - sorry.)

Top styles to consider:

Bikini Ruffle


High-Neck Halter


Criss-Cross Bandeau


One-Shoulder


Knotty-Criss-Cross Front and String Tie-Back




Rash Guard Crop Top


Off-The-Shoulder with Lace


Off-The-Shoulder Drapey


As far as colors to focus on this summer: black, black, black.


But of course, that can easily look like underwear on the dolls -
so be sure to add some accents to make sure everybody knows it's a swimsuit.

For example - here ^^^ we see those extra X-cross straps as part of the top bodice.
(Most bras don't have those.)
And the model is sporting hemp and shell necklaces galore,
so consider adding something like that into your photo shoot accessorizing.

Here is another example of those straps underneath the bodice line:


You can also choose fabrics with black as the base, main color -
but not the only color.


Combo of black and gold ^^^

Note the high-waist bottom that is very in-style this summer.


^^^ Note the addition of the romantic florals which pop on the black.


I'd love to see more of these full-zip-front rash guard tops as well.

Another color range: rust-brown, bronze, rust-orange.




I love this one-piece design.
It looks awesome on the beach, or as a super-hero costume.
(Yes, I like costumes....)




One more color range: soldier blue, deep mint, dark teal.







^^^ "Check out my strappy-butt!"
(Straps are very in-style right now, if you haven't caught on.)



So start thinking outside of the box as far as swimsuit designs!

And remember - swimsuits don't all have to be in a psychedelic, 
bright color-range that burns people's retinas.

They don't all have to be pink.

They can be boho and hipster and edgy.

They don't all have to be cutesy, sweet-looking, and ruffle-y all over the place.

I'm not saying AG swimsuits have to be "sexy" but they don't all have to look 
like they were made for a 5-yr-old.

And they don't all have to look the same. ;-)

Thank you for visiting us today!!!

____________________

Buy the April 2016 edition of Maple's
Fantastic (ally Inappropriate) Planner
for $1.99...

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Pattern and Shop Shoutouts: Swimsuits

It's that time of year.

When people with disposable income go on vacation.
Or people with pools endlessly take pics of their dolls poolside. 

Summer means swimming - and you can't swim without a swimsuit.

Well, you can - but you might be arrested.

So if you aren't already offering some swimsuits in your shop, or don't own one for your dolls and want something to sew - think: swimsuits.

Today I will discuss some patterns and swimsuits offered in Etsy and Pixie Faire, so you can get the gears of inspiration turning.

And tomorrow I will discuss human 
O'Neill swimsuits that I'd love to see in doll-size.

One thing I will applaud AG for is the realism of their doll swimsuits.

I like the style of Lea's set.
Just not the colors.


But it does look like something a human would wear.

And the Truly Me swimsuit is nice.
But it looks baby-ish to me.



And the fabric gives me seizures.

On Etsy everyone makes the Liberty Jane swimsuit or an equivalent one-piece.


And you can do a lot of things with it.


But if you are trying to think outside the box and offer something new - you're going to need something else in your bag of tricks.

What do you do if you want to sew something a little bit different?

I recommend looking for two-piece patterns because 
that is the common style in the human world.

Try QT Pie's Scrunchy Swimsuit pattern:


I think this one deserves more attention.

QT Pie also has the Take the Plunge pattern:



But if you want to stick with one-piece....

The QT Pie Summer Fun Sporty pattern has a very unique style:



Also, look for Lee and Pearl's halter tiered pattern:



Back to two-piece patterns...

I like the Peppermintsticks Making Waves pattern:



Here is a beautiful version of that pattern from Up Owl Night Crafting:



Up Owl Night has many neat swimsuits for sale,
including ones from the Lee and Pearl pattern:






And I also recommend making rash guard tops (like Lea's).

Pixie Faire has two rash guard patterns:





While I was browsing Etsy for this post I noticed that 
Dollicious has come up with a cool design for her swimsuits:







Very impressive!

And don't forget the board shorts for the boy dolls:

http://www.pixiefaire.com/products/surfs-up-board-shorts-18-doll-clothes


Overall, my main recommendation is to stop creating one swimsuit pattern 
in 600 different fabrics that all have pink in them and flowers.

Blergh.

There are definitely a lot, A LOT, of ugly doll swimsuits on Etsy.

And if I see another pink, flowery one I may vomit.

Sorry, folks, but that's my opinion.

Cough, cough.

Anyways.....

Thank you for visiting us today!

Stay tuned for more swimmy-suit discussion tomorrow!

__________

Purchase the April 2016 edition of Maple's 
Fantastic (ally Inappropriate) Planner below for $1.99. :-)



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