The Doll Wardrobe

Friday, August 17, 2012

AG Pink Sale Shirt and TX souvenirs

Hola! Sup peoples.

So on last Friday we posted about the polar bear sweater set and red flats we got through the latest AG "deep discount" online sale.

We also purchased the side-ruched graphic pink tee shirt from Los Angeles. Today CeCe models it while showing off some of our souvenirs from Austin, Texas.

The tee is ruched along the seam under the right arm. I think the hemline is supposed to then be asymmetrical.

In general, this is a fun idea -- but the ruching looks bulgy and the hemline isn't asymmetrical enough, it just looks uneven. Hopefully this makes sense via the photos.

Also one sleeve looks bigger than the other. Oops.

The fabric edges are all raw as well (except on the neckline) -- which is the trendy thing now, so we don't have a problemo with it -- but just in case you want the shirt, know that the edges are raw.

While we don't really luuuuurve pink -- we liked the graphic quality of the tee. The starburst thing is pretty, though a little off-center. But eh, it was on sale.

As far as our souvenirs... the BBQ sauce and Armadillo Droppings

are supposed to be for the humans.

CeCe claimed the Austin Sheriff's badge because she likes to be in charge,

(don't tell Maple that CeCe has this, haha).

The copper bunny bracelet is actually for babies/toddlers, made by Sunrise Copper,

but we grabbed it for the dolls.

The clock plate is perfect for Maple's Lab.

The tiny armadillo silver charm will be made into a doll necklace.

The dog pen will be a feature of the modern girl's writing desk (Kit's desk).

The airplane, which lights up and makes take-off jet noises, was nabbed by me.

I have proceeded to run around the house with it, making my own (louder) jet noises to annoy my sister Ellie while she tries to read.

And the wooden owl and bunny are part of a larger set for home decor purposes. But at least one owl and bunny will be nabbed by us for doll decor purposes. ;-)

The owl and bunny sets are made by Design Ideas.

We spotted a microfiber Iphone cleaning wipe that looked more like a doll rug or towel to us -- so we grabbed that as well. Good item for a chic dolly bathroom.

And the bonus item for the human infant in the family is

this awesome Jane Eyre counting book:

Thanks for visiting us today!!!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

August Trends to Sew: Shirt Dresses 102

Welcome to August's Trends to Sew:

The Shirt Dresses 102 Course

I, Maple, realized I wasn't very snarky yesterday for July's Trends.

So I feel I should be extra snarky today.

But then, how can one be snarky about shirt dresses???

Well.....

American Eagle can provide some help as they have made their shirt dresses so short that this girl looks like she is uncomfortably waiting for the staff to find her some pants or leggings.

Or maybe she needs to go wee wee.

This is another example of the too-short AE shirt dress.

But this girl looks pretty relaxed and casual.

Obviously she went to the bathroom before the photo shoot started.

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We showed one dress from the GAP yesterday, but here are two more... fabric choice can dramatically change the look of a shirt dress.

Don't you love dresses with side pockets???

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From Nordstrom we have four finely tailored, expertly designed pieces.

The first shows us the power of floral, a slightly higher waistline, and a rounded hemline.

Oh, and also beautiful, accented side pockets.

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The second stands out for the pin-tucking under the breast pockets and the perfect bow on the waist.

The girl does look like she is picking a wedge though.

Or she only has one hand.

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The third is worthy of posting for its bold green color and sassy, unique angled skirt pleating.

Look at her, she is like "I know I look awesome! You will never look this awesome....."

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The fourth dress is a beautiful lace, which (again) points out how seamstresses should really consider non-traditional fabrics for their dress experiments.

Also, that model looks like she is giving the photographer the

"I'm so tired, let's stop this shoot" death stare. Heehee.

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From French Connection.... a lovely plaid, perfect for autumn....

And, as you can tell -- booties/ankle boots are the preferred shoes for this look.

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From Free People..... a nice alternative, with a full, bias-cut skirt added on

a couple inches below the waistline.

The striped fabric really makes this design sing.

And from Mod Cloth...

Seven dresses, lots of styles... lots of fun!

Note the fabrics, the colors, the types of sleeves, how the waistline is dealt with, where the buttons land, and how full (or sleek) and long (or short) the skirt is.

All shirt dresses, but all different.

Thanks for visiting us today!

Hopefully these 2 Shirt Dress Courses provided y'alls with some design inspiration. :-)

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

July Trends to Sew: Shirt Dresses 101

Hola!

Yeah, we know it is half-way through August already, but we are pretty sure we didn't do a July "Trends to Sew".... sooo, we'll do that now. ;-)

So yeah.... it is half-way through August, so we thought we'd look at some back-to-school semi-collegiate styles.

We wanted to use a Shabby Apple dress style as an inspiration, so we have landed on the shirtdress. Or the shirt dress. Depending on how you want to spell it.

Disclaimer: We are partners with Shabby Apple. That means if you click on that ad down on the right and then buy something from them, we'll get some of that sale. Five percent to be exact. We have been partners for awhile and haven't gotten any moola, so we aren't really high-functioning partners. Haha. Any $$ we earn though would go towards our doll giveaways.

Anyway, we had never heard of Shabby Apple until they emailed us. And once we saw their website we thought, "Hey, nice stuff."

So we are going to do a couple "Trends to Sew" about their products, not so much to advertise our partnership (which they have partnerships with about 1,000 other blogs, fyi), but more to advertise how cool their designs are and the potential they have for dolly clothing.

We begin with some of the shirt dress designs which (we think) lend themselves to possible dolly dresses. Also, a lot of their photo shoot set-ups are pretty neat.

A+

This dress's name is actually A+. We didn't give it a grade or anything. ;-)

Shabby Apple has a lot of "nerd chic" options out there for the 20-30-something crowd, and this is a good example. We like the pinstriped light blue fabric, dramatic collar and cuffs, and the 3-strap two-tone leather belt accessory.

If you are thinking of ways to create this dress for tween and teenage dolls, we suggest shortening the length. Such as with this GAP shirt dress below, which also features breast pockets, a tie belt, and a double-layer skirt.

Med Welch offers a shirtwaist dress pattern for your 1950s doll that we think could be adapted into a modern shirt dress with some sewing creativity and skilz.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/52790053/doll-clothes-pattern-shirtwaist-dress-no

Again, the key to make this style contemporary is to shorten the skirt, reduce its flair, and make the sleeves 3/4 length with chic roll-back cuffs.

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Here is another Shabby Apple design below to help inspire you: the Ivy League dress.

A wonderful green and white striped fabric, contrasting collar and cuffs, dramatic necklace, thin woven leather belt. A stunning, sophisticated look that really shouldn't be stuck in a shed...