Disboutiquers Part 24 Kids Disney Boutique / Customs Clothes psst..we sew ;-)

[cogero]

I had plans to finish a Give tonite and work on something for DD it just isn't happening. We spent all day in CT at a dance competition.

It took us 2 hours to get home, it should of only taken us 30 minutes. There was a horrific bus crash this morning and they still have I-95 closed. So we had to take the long way and it was just bumper to bumper.

So now I am exhausted. I am actually thinking of turning the TV on and vegging out in front of it.

 

[sheridee32]

Wow, 30-odd pages while I was gone. You ladies have been busy! Far TMTQ but there were a few things I just had to comment on.

I love the Dr Seuss outfits! The fabrics are all so bright and lively.

The Perry dress is way too cute.

Andrea, the books for Kade's give are just amazing! It is wonderful how much time and care you put into those!

Love the Nemo shoes, but I'm afraid if I get started doing matching shoes I'll end up with a whole new (expensive) obsession.

I've got a few pics to share of my customs in action on our trip!

The pictures are great love the one of the littlest one with tiger

 

[Buckeye Princess]

Hi all! I've peeked in on here on and off, but to be honest I just can't keep up with all of you ladies. I'm sure it's been discussed before, so I apologize, but I have a pattern question.

I've yet to stray from patterns and have my DD a belle dress, a tinkerbell dress, and a cinderella dress and a bunch of regular clothes. Now she is obsessed with sleeping beauty but I cannot find a pattern anywhere.

Any suggestions?

Also any tips for beginning to take baby steps away from the patterns? I mean I've done simple twirl skirts (elastic waist and zipper) and pj bottoms without a pattern but that is about it.

 

[Waybuloo]

to those of you who digitize.... what software do you use? I downloaded stitch era and can do names with it, but have no clue how to use it otherwise.

I use EmBird - I find it pretty easy to use

Oh, and hi! I'm new here. A sewing nut (but hard when running my own web based business making websites) - and addicted to YCMT and it's sister sites. Wow, I'm totally wrapped to find this board!

Garry - love the bags, totally going to borrow the idea!

 

[MyDisneyTrio]

I use EmBird - I find it pretty easy to use

Oh, and hi! I'm new here. A sewing nut (but hard when running my own web based business making websites) - and addicted to YCMT and it's sister sites. Wow, I'm totally wrapped to find this board!

Garry - love the bags, totally going to borrow the idea!

Thank you so much for answering me I was thinking about buying that since it is fairly reasonably priced (better than PE Design at $1000!)

 

[Loodlow]

I use EmBird - I find it pretty easy to use

Oh, and hi! I'm new here. A sewing nut (but hard when running my own web based business making websites) - and addicted to YCMT and it's sister sites. Wow, I'm totally wrapped to find this board!

Garry - love the bags, totally going to borrow the idea!

Welcome! Can't wait to see your creations!

 

[TinkerbelleMom]

Hi all! I've peeked in on here on and off, but to be honest I just can't keep up with all of you ladies. I'm sure it's been discussed before, so I apologize, but I have a pattern question.

I've yet to stray from patterns and have my DD a belle dress, a tinkerbell dress, and a cinderella dress and a bunch of regular clothes. Now she is obsessed with sleeping beauty but I cannot find a pattern anywhere.

Any suggestions?

Also any tips for beginning to take baby steps away from the patterns? I mean I've done simple twirl skirts (elastic waist and zipper) and pj bottoms without a pattern but that is about it.

I made my DD a Sleeping Beauty dress from Carla C's Portrait Peasant, which can be found on YCMT. I just added the collar, which I designed myself, and followed Carla's blog directions for princess-ifying a Simply Sweet. I wanted a dress and not a sundress, but the idea works for both. The directons for the collar should be in the Bookmarks, but if they aren't, let me know. I'm sure Teresa planned to add them.
Here's a pic.

The first day she wore this, we had lots of people stopping us to ask where we bought it! The funniest part was one little girl on the playground under Splash that got mad when Rebecca wouldn't dance with her, she really thought she was Aurora. I make my DD's princess dresses out of comfortable calicos, it's not itchy and it's cooler than the fancier fabrics in this hot and sticky FL, but still gives them the princess look.

 

[momto2cuties]

to those of you who digitize.... what software do you use? I downloaded stitch era and can do names with it, but have no clue how to use it otherwise.

I use Stitch Era. I still struggle a lot with digitizing. I went through a bunch of the tutorials, but mostly autodigitize with it. It works fine for simple patterns. Unfortunately, I like appliques a lot, and the auto-applique function doesn't work properly, so I have to go back in and modify it to work. Sometimes, I succeed. Sometimes I want to pull out my hair. Such is our hobby, at times.

 

[momto2cuties]

I made my DD a Sleeping Beauty dress from Carla C's Portrait Peasant, which can be found on YCMT. I just added the collar, which I designed myself, and followed Carla's blog directions for princess-ifying a Simply Sweet. I wanted a dress and not a sundress, but the idea works for both. The directons for the collar should be in the Bookmarks, but if they aren't, let me know. I'm sure Teresa planned to add them.
Here's a pic.

The first day she wore this, we had lots of people stopping us to ask where we bought it! The funniest part was one little girl on the playground under Splash that got mad when Rebecca wouldn't dance with her, she really thought she was Aurora. I make my DD's princess dresses out of comfortable calicos, it's not itchy and it's cooler than the fancier fabrics in this hot and sticky FL, but still gives them the princess look.

I love this dress! I'm in the process of "remaking" my daughter's Aurora dress from last year's trip. She wants to wear it again, but has grown, of course. So I made a new bodice, and was ready to attach it to the skirt, but my daughter saw some crepe-back satin at Joanns and really wants her dress to be made of that, now. So, I'm trying to decide what to do. The original was a modified simply sweet. Has anyone done it with satin? And if so, what do you line it with? I've always done cotton/calico before. We leave for WDW on Thursday... I think I can throw it together tomorrow if I am dedicated enough. Or I can just finish what I have already started... I already told her we may have to save the satin version for next time. Of course, I need to start packing too...

 

[Waybuloo]

Thank you so much for answering me I was thinking about buying that since it is fairly reasonably priced (better than PE Design at $1000!)

Ohhh, that's expensive EmBird have a 30 day trial - it's functional limited (no save) however you'll discover you can use it to digitize. Also, remember they charge for the alphabets separately, check the site before you commit to buying

Enjoy!

 

[EEs*Mommy]

So I am a slacker and have not been posting. I have been lurking. You ladies are making some amazing things. Love that we have Garry now! Welcome! And welcome to all the new ladies as well
Things are nuts here. James started school and of course second week back we have all been sick. I am probably not going to be sewing much for a while. I need to start going through the house. Which I am not looking forward to. We plan on getting rid of a lot so with a 6 bedroom house it is going to be an undertaking. We hope James has a new job and we will be moving wherever that may be by June 1. Would really appreciate a few prayers for our path to be well lit for us I am thinking our Disney trip may be pushed back but we will get there again some day right?

 

[RubberDuckyRanch]

MyDisneyTrio -- I use StitchEra. I taught myself through trial & error. I actually don't know how to use the autodigitize feature. I started with names/sayings. Now I can do pictures/coloring pages without a problem. I have even simplified a couple designs I got from other people so they worked better --- I do have to say I have NEVER had to do that with HeatherSue's designs - they are great! (I am still a frequent purchaser from her)

D~ LOVE THE SLEEPING BEAUTY!!!!!!

aimegg -- love the Snow White & Barbie vida - can I please see the back of the Snow White?


My old laptop got infected - granted my SIL's boyfriend fixed it and is cleaning it so my girls can have it. I got a brand new laptop! Love it!!! DH got a new desk top too - now we will have 3 computers! Gotta love tax returns!

We had Juliet's bday party tonight - nothing big just close family - gave her the Jasmine outfit from the parks that she wanted. The bottoms fit great. I have to fix the fit of the top a little.

 

[froggy33]

to those of you who digitize.... what software do you use? I downloaded stitch era and can do names with it, but have no clue how to use it otherwise.

I use the free version of Stitch ERA as well. I am totally self taught. It took a little bit, but now that I know what I am doing I can do a design really quickly. I've even started selling my designs. However, as someone said earlier I still use a lot of HeatherSue's (she was my inspiration for how I do my designs). Good luck! If you have any questions I can help try to answer them.

Jessica

 

[GlassSlippers]

Oh this is so exciting! How many stips do you want to use? I would do trapezoid "strips" to reduce the gathers at the waist. Maybe it's just me, but I found gathers at the waist in women's clothing only makes my tummy look bigger! So less gathers is better for me. The next question is how wide do you want your hem to be? I would work backwards from the hem to decide the width at the bottom. A bias tape to finish the hem will look great.

I think Easy Fits for your DD should be fine.

Good luck with your projects!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Thanks!

I did do trapezoids: 6.5 at the top and 8.5 at the bottom, 10 inches long. The waist piece is 5.5 inches top to bottom, so the whole skirt is 15.5. She's just a hair over 5 feet tall so with a little pair of those Soffee shorts underneath she's all set! I used a total of 12 strips. I didn't have any black bias tape so I'll need to pick that up so I can do the hem, but I'm pretty darned pleased with it. I made the whole thing in one day, which is a bit of an accomplishment for me! I'll tackle mine next. Wish me luck!

Lori in East Podunk

PS: I'll try to coerce DD into taking and posting pictures before she goes on her Chamber Choir tour on Monday!

 

[GlassSlippers]

I did one for myself for Halloween 2009. I followed Leslie's tutorial from here http://my-sweet-sunshine.blogspot.com/2009/05/okey-dokey.html but then had to calculate for an adult. here is what I did.

22" long skirt total

2" yoke (4" strip WOF then in 1/2 lengthwise)
18" strips
2" ruffle

Strips 5" x 18" (28 strips, I could have used a few less)

Underskirt was 3 pieces of 42" x 18"
Ruffle was 6 pieces of 42" x 4"

Here is what it looked like in the end.



If there is anything I forgot, or that you don't understand, just ask.

That's really cute! You must be taller than I am. I'm planning on 16" strips, but my yoke is going to be a bit deeper, I think. I made DD's with a drawstring, but it's going to be elastic for me! Getting those button holes at the waist in exactly the right place was a bear! I'll make a bow out of the left over drawstring to attach to the front of the waist band so that we still match.

Thanks for the help!

Lori in East Podunk

 

[GlassSlippers]

Y'all probably already know this, but I thought I'd share just in case.

I already had a ruffler foot from my grandma's old Elna, but I couldn't get it to work even with the tutorial from youcanmakethis.com. I decided it must have been worn out and I needed a new one. In the Thriving Metropolis where I abide, the only real fabric store is a medium sized JoAnn so I have to take what I can get sometimes. The only ruffler they has was a whopping $15. If anybody else is thinking of getting the same one, you might want to know that while it works, there are no markings on the screw that determines how tight your ruffle will be. You have to kind of wing it. I counted the number of turns it took to get the results I wanted. The screw also has a tendency to loosen while your ruffling so all of a sudden you're not getting ruffles any more.

As you might have guessed, I'm not terribly happy with it. The good thing is that messing with it helped me figure out what I had been doing wrong with the first one, which does have markings and does not come loose while sewing. The JoAnn's version is going back to the store since I only used it enough to figure it out and make one ruffle which had to be adjusted so much that it would have been just as easy to zig zag over dental floss.

I hope my purchase error helps someone else avoid the same thing!

Lori in East Podunk

 

[MomtoAlexnWilliam]

I finished a few more things today.

Beautiful!!!!

Ok ladies (Tom and Garry too)....

This is my dillema...

The AG clothes are getting the best of me.

I was thinking that my first purchase should be a serger. I hate the fact that my AG clothes are so expensive, but I have zigzagged seams. It really bothers me a lot... I feel that if people are going to buy from me, and they are paying quality prices, they should have serged seams. But over all, considering that my seams are zigzagged - I don't think they look awful. I use french seams wherever I can - so that helps... but sometimes it's difficult and impossible to do french seams on little doll clothes.

So, my latest outfit (Sleeping Beauty) - I spent a whopping 6 hours on hand embroidering this adorable (hand drawn, mind you) set of fairies.

They turned out fantastic - and I feel that they totally completed an, otherwise, boring outfit. However, 6 hours is not cost effective in the least. People do not want to pay $40+ for a doll outfit - and they could care less that I sat there for 6 hours trying to make this outfit unique and special. I will admit that I wasn't sure about this design - I knew it would take a long time - but I couldn't just stop at one fairy, if I did one, I had to do all 3.

Anyways, now I am seriously considering ordering the Brother PE770 - only because everyone here loves it. I am not sure that I need the bigger hoop - but I guess I'd rather get it now, in case I ever do want it. The majority of designs I do will be rather small.

Most of the reason my costs to make these outfits are so high, is because of my time spent embroidering.

So, my first question - If you were paying good money for a doll outfit - are serged seams important to you? Or are you equally as happy with a zigzagged/french seams - as long as the seam is finished?

Then my next question... If I decide to buy the Brother - what kind of thread do you use for it and where do you get it from? To start off, I think I'd want a bundle pack of some sort, they sell one with it on Amazon - is that the way to go?

I can't afford to get both machines right away. I can only afford one or the other. Eventually, I plan to get both. I truly value your opinions.

Oh, and here's the rest of the Sleeping Beauty outfit - don't you agree that the embroidery totally finishes off the outfit?

D~

Your AG creations are FANTASTIC!!! To answer your questions, I don't want to pay $40 for a doll outfit regardless of finished seams. I think a zigzag stitch is MORE than okay for them. I also LOVE your hand embroidery work but also think people won't pay for the true value of them!

I love my brother machine! I use Polystar thread and love it!

I love these - so bright and springy!

Thanks!

Ouch! I am sorry to hear about your injuries. I hope you will recover quickly. The dresses and the bow are beautiful.

Thanks!

Oh wow, you poor thing! I hope you heal up quickly!!!

Thank you!

I love the dresses and bows! The daffodil dress is so cute!

Thank you!

Love your dresses -- the daffodil dress is so bright and so spring! And we have daffodils popping up all over now! And I'm sorry to hear about your ankle but I'm even more sorry to hear about your second fall! Ouch
Please heal quickly!

Thank you!

That just sounded painful when you were describing it. I hope you heal quickly. At least you have an excuse to sit and sew now, right? The Daffodil dress is such pretty colors. Love the applique too.

Thanks!

 

[MomtoAlexnWilliam]

I finished another spring/summer dress for DD8. This is the new round neck patter for big girls on YCMT. I haven't added the buttons yet to make sure of the length of the round neck. I also think on the next one I will make the dress fuller.

I will leave it up to her but am starting to think about possible embroidery/applique designs on the yellow. Any suggestions? I am leaning toward a simple monogram but she LOVES appliques....

 

[VBAndrea]

Wow, 30-odd pages while I was gone. You ladies have been busy! Far TMTQ but there were a few things I just had to comment on.

I've got a few pics to share of my customs in action on our trip!

I love seeing the outfits in action! You have fabulous models too I think the Minnie stripworks are my favorite, but it's really hard to pick! Everything is so cute!

Hi all! I've peeked in on here on and off, but to be honest I just can't keep up with all of you ladies. I'm sure it's been discussed before, so I apologize, but I have a pattern question.

I've yet to stray from patterns and have my DD a belle dress, a tinkerbell dress, and a cinderella dress and a bunch of regular clothes. Now she is obsessed with sleeping beauty but I cannot find a pattern anywhere.

Any suggestions?

Also any tips for beginning to take baby steps away from the patterns? I mean I've done simple twirl skirts (elastic waist and zipper) and pj bottoms without a pattern but that is about it.

I saw Nanci already posted but I was basically going to second what she said and suggest you try the Aurora version of the Simply Sweet. The SS can be purchased on YouCanMakeThis.com and look up Carla's website by googling Scientific Seamstress Carla and you should find instructions. I think I like Nanci's Portrait Peasant better than the SS though!

I finished another spring/summer dress for DD8. This is the new round neck patter for big girls on YCMT. I haven't added the buttons yet to make sure of the length of the round neck. I also think on the next one I will make the dress fuller.

I will leave it up to her but am starting to think about possible embroidery/applique designs on the yellow. Any suggestions? I am leaning toward a simple monogram but she LOVES appliques....

Love the bright yellow. I agree, I think a monogram would look great.

 

[Waybuloo]

Hey guys, can someone help me out - I can sew in a straight line, so most things aren't a problem.. but I can't work out how to sew around a curve or say an ear (I've been making a monster tonight). Do I need a special foot for my machine?

Oh and thanks for mentioning HeatherSue's designs - can see me indulging in many of them