Disboutiquers Part 25 Kids Disney Boutique / Customs Clothes psst..we sew ;-)

[mphalens]

So ... I need to introduce y'all to Kirsten ... While I was procrastinating packing the car I got my Mom to help me find her trunk (an old wine chest ... my kirsten never could afford her blue trunk) ... She's a dirty girl and needs a bath, but that will have to wait til we're back in Charlotte and I have some time to spend with her ...

Addie decided she'd rather stay up here in RI ... she says the summer months are kinder to her here than they would be in NC But Kirsten agreed to come back with me to be on hand for modeling, etc. if and when I get around to sewing some AG clothes ...
She decided to travel in her summer dress and snazzy red boots (but left her straw hat here in her trunk for safe keeping) ... she had to change out her bloomers though - the elastic had rotted out of her Pleasant Company bloomers

So, without further ado ... May I present Kirsten:

She insisted on a close up of her face as well . . . she says she's worried about her right eye and wanted to ask what y'all think ... is it messed up? Does she need to visit the AG hospital? What should we do?
(you can also see how much dirt collects in ones skin when you just sit around in a rocking chair for years):

We're thinking about some easy fits and a bowling shirt to start us off ... Would anyone be able to tell me if sewing a bowling shirt in AG size first would help me get a feel for how it would go together for an actual child? Or would I make myself crazy???

 

[cogero]

(Cue the announcer with a deep resonant voice) When we left off last week there was a flurry of stitching in preparation for meeting real live AG dolls . . . .

Okay, so I had my meet and greet. ~D was right, some of the patterns I was using are a bit big for AG dolls, although they seem to fit GA dolls perfectly.

First is Oliver's popover dress, featuring my first ever digitzed logo -- Mythbusters for Andrea. Needless to say I'm quite proud of my digitizing and see making it a profitable hobby.

It didn't quite make it over Ginger's petite head.

Then, I remembered that I have my sister's AR doll.

It fit Ann Raggedy quite well. (AR was made by my grandmother whom you met a few posts back -- her real name was Minnie and she lived to 108.)

Next up I tried a bowling shirt and easy fit fits -- my first ever for either one. I've read sooo much about them it was neat to actually make my first ones. I was up against the clock so I didn't finish the bowling shirt (you probably wouldn't have noticed if I didn't mention it.)

Ginger had a hard time putting the pants on.

I finally had to take out the elastic for them to go over her ample hips. They remind me of bell bottom pants, which of course I would have no first hand knowledge of, but have read about in history books.

I started a raglan, couldn't quickly find any knit material, but wanted to do a size check on the real live AG dolls. Another one I didn't come close to finishing. Please note the jaunty red beret, it adds so much.

Then I moved on to Molly's jumper. The pattern suggests plaid, but I know plaid is not always a sewer's friend, so I used a calico I thought would be more forgiving.

It fits . . .

. . . . from the front, not so much from the back.

I had a hard time figuring out bias and grain and front and lining, and I'm still not sure how they think the waistband goes, so I tried another one. This time in plaid -- like I said, not a sewer's best friend.

It didn't fit any better than the first one, but Ida came over (no relation to my Aunt Ida). Please, she's not anorexic, just has very good metabolism. It fits her perfectly.

And so that wraps up this week's episode. Gotta figure out what's next.

(I have my fingers crossed that the photos aren't all crazy sizes. Here goes the submit button.)

I love all the clothes. Good for you for trying a bowling shirt

I have had the best couple of days! I have been off since last Friday, DH was home with me over the weekend and did a few projects that needed done and I have just floated around and did a little of this and a little of that. I went to work a little over a year ago and I have really missed my housewife days the last few months. ( Who knew ) Anyway, the last few days have been great "playing housewife" back to work tomorrow though.


I finished the kids outfits for DHS

For Edward

[/IMG]

For Emily

I think I'll work on Ohana outfits next, I bought the cutest fabric on Sunday.

The cars outfits are adorable.

 

[DISNEYJAZZ]

RMAMom,thanks for the welcome and aren't grandkids the greatest gift!~ they are all so different and wonderful in their own ways and such blessings...

 

[DMGeurts]

Thanks Mary. The Sew Vac right up the street from me deals with Brother so hopefully they will have the thread. I hate going in there though -- Bruce always tried to sell me things I don't need -- like a $700 Singer vacuum cleaner!

Ouch.... That would annoy me. I dislike going into our local Brother store for that very reason - they are very high pressure and their items are always twice as expensive as everywhere else.

Can I just download you instead to come down here and figure out how to do rolled and lettuce hems on my serger? It just doesn't work with the manual settings.

Rofl... yes, I come in an xxl PDF format.

I have a bunch of Ginger's dresses to share, but for now I'll post a "before" photo of the castle my son was making in the basement. I got excited thinking it would be Ginger size, but it's on a smaller scale. It's for a dragon, not a princess.

Poor Ginger... Has your son even met her yet?

(Cue the announcer with a deep resonant voice) When we left off last week there was a flurry of stitching in preparation for meeting real live AG dolls . . . .

Okay, so I had my meet and greet. ~D was right, some of the patterns I was using are a bit big for AG dolls, although they seem to fit GA dolls perfectly.

I wish they would have fit, they are all so cute! I hope you are able to resize them.

First is Oliver's popover dress, featuring my first ever digitzed logo -- Mythbusters for Andrea. Needless to say I'm quite proud of my digitizing and see making it a profitable hobby.

It didn't quite make it over Ginger's petite head.

Then, I remembered that I have my sister's AR doll.

It fit Ann Raggedy quite well. (AR was made by my grandmother whom you met a few posts back -- her real name was Minnie and she lived to 108.)

This turned out so cute! I just love the fit... the fabrics you chose are adorable and I love the colors.

Next up I tried a bowling shirt and easy fit fits -- my first ever for either one. I've read sooo much about them it was neat to actually make my first ones. I was up against the clock so I didn't finish the bowling shirt (you probably wouldn't have noticed if I didn't mention it.)

Ginger had a hard time putting the pants on.

I finally had to take out the elastic for them to go over her ample hips. They remind me of bell bottom pants, which of course I would have no first hand knowledge of, but have read about in history books.

Poor Ginger... I hope you didn't tell her that you had to take the elastic out. Nothing wrecks a girl's ego like having to lay down on the bed to zip her jeans.

I started a raglan, couldn't quickly find any knit material, but wanted to do a size check on the real live AG dolls. Another one I didn't come close to finishing. Please note the jaunty red beret, it adds so much.

I love the beret - it's the perfect color! I don't know where you find these things???

Then I moved on to Molly's jumper. The pattern suggests plaid, but I know plaid is not always a sewer's friend, so I used a calico I thought would be more forgiving.

It fits . . .

. . . . from the front, not so much from the back.

I had a hard time figuring out bias and grain and front and lining, and I'm still not sure how they think the waistband goes, so I tried another one. This time in plaid -- like I said, not a sewer's best friend.

It didn't fit any better than the first one, but Ida came over (no relation to my Aunt Ida). Please, she's not anorexic, just has very good metabolism. It fits her perfectly.

And so that wraps up this week's episode. Gotta figure out what's next.

(I have my fingers crossed that the photos aren't all crazy sizes. Here goes the submit button.)

THese turned out really cute! I've heard the AG patterns are very hard, so I commend you for making them look so good.

So ... I need to introduce y'all to Kirsten ... While I was procrastinating packing the car I got my Mom to help me find her trunk (an old wine chest ... my kirsten never could afford her blue trunk) ... She's a dirty girl and needs a bath, but that will have to wait til we're back in Charlotte and I have some time to spend with her ...

Addie decided she'd rather stay up here in RI ... she says the summer months are kinder to her here than they would be in NC But Kirsten agreed to come back with me to be on hand for modeling, etc. if and when I get around to sewing some AG clothes ...
She decided to travel in her summer dress and snazzy red boots (but left her straw hat here in her trunk for safe keeping) ... she had to change out her bloomers though - the elastic had rotted out of her Pleasant Company bloomers

So, without further ado ... May I present Kirsten:

She insisted on a close up of her face as well . . . she says she's worried about her right eye and wanted to ask what y'all think ... is it messed up? Does she need to visit the AG hospital? What should we do?
(you can also see how much dirt collects in ones skin when you just sit around in a rocking chair for years):

We're thinking about some easy fits and a bowling shirt to start us off ... Would anyone be able to tell me if sewing a bowling shirt in AG size first would help me get a feel for how it would go together for an actual child? Or would I make myself crazy???

She is gorgeous! You are so lucky to have her!

It looks like your Kirsten has the beginings of "silver eye"... Which happens to blue and grey eyed AG dolls. It's a known defect by AG and they will fix her free of charge. They used to only replace heads (which is a problem if you have a Pre-Mattel "PM" head, because it would be replaced with a modern Mattel head - which looks nothing like your doll) - but recently, I've heard that they now do eye replacements. I've never sent one in myself, so I would look at the hospital form to make sure. The eye might get worse, and it might never get worse, so it's personal preference whether you want to send her in or not. But it's free of charge by AG for this particular defect. Here's the hospital admission form:
http://store.americangirl.com/agshop/static/dollHospital.jsp

D~

 

[SallyfromDE]

And now I have a question I would like to post:
QUESTION?
My PE770 came with a spool of Brother thread for bobbin winding. I have been winding my own bobbins. For those of you who wind your own bobbins do you only use the Brother thread or is there another thread more readily available that I can substitute? I have never seen the Brother thread in fabric stores.

My first Brother machine would not use anything but Brother bobbin thread or Janome. I tried several different brands, but it usually pulled to the top, or jumbled. Since I've a new machine, I don't even bother to try to use anything else. I keep thinking of trying the prewounds, but I had to tie up $$ if my machine doesn't like it.

So that makes me ask a question on top of a question: Are you only suppose to use the Brother bobbin thread that came with the machine like Andrea asked? Or like with regular machines you match your bobbin to your thread... cuz I wind my own too, matching colors. I know that sounds like a ridiculously newbie question but I'd rather know than be doing things wrong.

Also, my appliques seem to be "holey" like there's a lot of space between the fabric and the thread.... is that normal or does it have something to do with the type of needle/thread/fabric/stabilizer I'm using? It was much worse on my machine designs than my minnie head.

You ladies are just so sweet to help out with all these questions.. I hope y'all know you don't go unappreciated.

You would use the white and sometimes black if the shirt is dark. But I've never used it. The only time you need to match, is if your' doing a In the Hoop project. Like a keychain, when the back is going to be visible.

Nice machine. It will probably sew any and everything. Above the G, is a small lever, LCR. Left/Center/Right. That is the needle position. If your going to do zigzag, you'd use the left position. Or if your putting on bias tape, you may want to use the left position. But mostly you will keep it in the center. To the right of gold plate is a lever that goes up and down, that is the stitch length. You'll most likely want to use in the 12. If your doing base stitching, you'll use the longest length. Is it 6?You would tighten the lever so it won't slip on you. And losen it to move it up and down. I think reverse if to the top. And the smaller lever on the gold plate, I believe is the stitch width, for when you do zig zag. Does the top lift up and have information so you can change your stitches? It looks alot like an old Singer Touch and Sew I had.

D, were you around last summer when I posted the pics of the machine I have? My dad acquired this machine that had been painted and left outside and is in horrible condition. These are the before pictures...last summer I got a fair bit of the paint stripped off but it's still a work in progress. I want to restore at least the wood parts and use it as furniture at some point. It's not electric and uses the big pedal to move the wheels, though, what I'm figuring was a belt to connect the bottom to the actual machine is missing. I doubt I would ever sew on it but it's sure nice to look at!! I do all my sewing on a 70's-tastic White machine.

I'd love to have a machine like this just for furniture. I love it. Have you tried to use one of those Mr. Clean spongy things? They clean almost everything.

 

[DISNEYJAZZ]

I have had the best couple of days! I have been off since last Friday, DH was home with me over the weekend and did a few projects that needed done and I have just floated around and did a little of this and a little of that. I went to work a little over a year ago and I have really missed my housewife days the last few months. ( Who knew ) Anyway, the last few days have been great "playing housewife" back to work tomorrow though.


I finished the kids outfits for DHS

For Edward

[/IMG]

For Emily

I think I'll work on Ohana outfits next, I bought the cutest fabric on Sunday.

Oh i love the CARS outfits ,expecially the girls,so cute!

 

[Diz-Mommy]

Okay ... as promised!

The boys in their patriotic red, white & blue pants:

That was a good shot of the pants, but this is the best shot of the two of them:

And I just have to share these two:
The boys with their cousins, Lily & Ellie:

And a somewhat decent family shot of the four of us:

HAPPY 4th of JULY!!!!

Love the pics!! The boys' pants turned out great. You all look great and I hope you're having a nice visit in RI.

I've been thinking of purchasing Carla's easy fits pattern, even though I already have a pants pattern, I hate how the sizes are stated...It's a baby pattern and all it says is "small" "medium" and "large". It doesn't give finished sizes anywhere either which is totally frustrating. I'm making Anna size "small", so we'll see what they look like when they're done.

I finished my DD birthday dress today. The pattern is Miley from Fairytale Frocks and Lollipops. Someone on here posted a dress, so I bought the pattern that day I don't think it is a beginner pattern like it says but I got it done. I like it, and so does DD! Now I need to figure out how to use this for our DW trip coming up. I need to start sewing for that!

Lovely little dress and your daughter is precious!

D, were you around last summer when I posted the pics of the machine I have? My dad acquired this machine that had been painted and left outside and is in horrible condition. These are the before pictures...last summer I got a fair bit of the paint stripped off but it's still a work in progress. I want to restore at least the wood parts and use it as furniture at some point. It's not electric and uses the big pedal to move the wheels, though, what I'm figuring was a belt to connect the bottom to the actual machine is missing. I doubt I would ever sew on it but it's sure nice to look at!! I do all my sewing on a 70's-tastic White machine.

I really love the look of this machine. I think I'd keep it around just to look at it.

This machine reminds me a great deal of my Great Grandmother's machine and even though Great Grandma loved me to pieces that machine did not like me one little bit!

I finished the kids outfits for DHS

For Edward

[/IMG]

For Emily

I think I'll work on Ohana outfits next, I bought the cutest fabric on Sunday.

I love what you've done with the McQueen fabric!! The Emily's outfit is super cute!

Ginger had a hard time putting the pants on.

I finally had to take out the elastic for them to go over her ample hips. They remind me of bell bottom pants, which of course I would have no first hand knowledge of, but have read about in history books.

Poor Ginger!! I feel your pain sister!

 

[DISNEYJAZZ]

I love the photo of your sons and great family photo. Seems like it's always hard to get everyone in a photo.



No advice, but it looks heavy duty! Probably would have been useful a couple weeks ago when I replaced the zipper in our leaf vac bag.



Your shorts turned out great and I love the toy story outfit. After lunch I'll post my GA easy fit pants.



Your daughter is beautiful and so is the birthday dress. Nice job.

I have a bunch of Ginger's dresses to share, but for now I'll post a "before" photo of the castle my son was making in the basement. I got excited thinking it would be Ginger size, but it's on a smaller scale. It's for a dragon, not a princess.

I love that castle,awesome job! inspired me to ask dh to see what he can do at work { cabinet shop} for the 3 dgd's who we just wentto WDW with. They love the Cinderella Castle in th eshops there but it is $70! but Pawpaw can do a larger castle for cheaper and it will last forever! now to googles ' how to make a wooden castle' . did your son have a pattern or do this form his ideas...?

 

[Blyssfull]

Thanks guys for answering all my bobbin questions. Boy do I feel like a ding dong! Right now I'm just using tear away stabilizer.... I need to get something different. My daughter has super sensitive skin and I know that's going to irritate her.

Nobody at Walmart gives me the same answer.... I've had some people say they are putting a fabric dept in every store and some that don't. We have several near me so as long as 1 of them gets fabric I'll be excited.

Andrea, thanks for posting those tips... I need to get out my sewing journal and write them all down.

I love the pics of everyone's kids! They are all so precious.

 

[mphalens]

She is gorgeous! You are so lucky to have her!

It looks like your Kirsten has the beginings of "silver eye"... Which happens to blue and grey eyed AG dolls. It's a known defect by AG and they will fix her free of charge. They used to only replace heads (which is a problem if you have a Pre-Mattel "PM" head, because it would be replaced with a modern Mattel head - which looks nothing like your doll) - but recently, I've heard that they now do eye replacements. I've never sent one in myself, so I would look at the hospital form to make sure. The eye might get worse, and it might never get worse, so it's personal preference whether you want to send her in or not. But it's free of charge by AG for this particular defect. Here's the hospital admission form:
http://store.americangirl.com/agshop/static/dollHospital.jsp

D~

That's what I was afraid of ... "silver eye" ... Well, I'll take a look at the hospital admission form... I wish you could take them directly to the AG store and have them do it while you wait ... it'd give me an excuse to go to NYC

Honestly, until all of this AG talk and Ginger's appearance, I didn't know that Pleasant Company didn't make the AG dolls any longer ... when did Mattel take over???

Love the pics!! The boys' pants turned out great. You all look great and I hope you're having a nice visit in RI.

I've been thinking of purchasing Carla's easy fits pattern, even though I already have a pants pattern, I hate how the sizes are stated...It's a baby pattern and all it says is "small" "medium" and "large". It doesn't give finished sizes anywhere either which is totally frustrating. I'm making Anna size "small", so we'll see what they look like when they're done.

Aw! Thanks! We had a fantastic time in RI ... today is the day we leave (and I'm waiting til last minute to pack the laptop) ... we'll be back in NC til the 23rd when we fly to Missoula, MT to visit the "Disney-Hater ILs" We're there til the 31st ... then NC til after the 6th and then I have yet to figure out WHEN in August we'll head back to RI ... probably sometime the week after the 6th... I'm stressing just THINKING about all of that!!!

I packed up all my fabric ... it took TWO sterilite hanging file size boxes ... One if full of washed fabric and one is full of un-washed fabric. I have a Joanns bag FULL of spools of ribbon, etc. I have big plans for a wall in my bedroom when I get home ... I wanna move the sewing machine OUT of the hallway and into my room (which will take some work) ... when I come back to RI in August the plan is for me to bring the machine cabinet I have at home to my parents house and I'll take the new(to me) larger one back to NC at the end of the month (the larger one also matches our bedroom furniture, so it will look like just another cabinet when it's closed up).

Phew! Okay... must finish packing!!! I'll be able to READ while on the road, but not post (the iPhone is NOT the easiest to post from )... Tomorrow morning I plan on having breakfast at Biscuitville in Elon (Burlington) NC

 

[DMGeurts]

I'd love to have a machine like this just for furniture. I love it. Have you tried to use one of those Mr. Clean spongy things? They clean almost everything.

I saw someone ask if they could use a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser on a Vintage machine forum and everyone there said not to use them... they are filled with fiberglass and the fiberglass will take the finish and decals right off the machine. They recommend to use GoJo (non-pumice) to clean - wax on wax off method, and then the old fashioned Liquid Gold (pour bottle, not aerosol) to give the machine it's shine back. I can vouch for both of these products, as I used both of them on Patience (had to order the Liquid Gold online) and they worked amazingly. To remove the old grease, a kerosene bath is recommended (even recommended in the original manuals). So, personally, I wouldn't try a Magic Eraser, because I wouldn't want to risk losing the finish... The Japan (black paint), clear coat and- especially - decals are irreplaceable. Then to clean up the tarnished silver parts... fill a sink with hot tap water - enough to cover parts, about a 1/2 C baking soda, 1/2 Cup salt and a wad of tin foil to attract the tarnish and it sparkles when you are done. IF you seriously want to restore a machine - I highly recommend the sew-classic website - if she doesn't have the info there, there is another website that walks you through everything step-by-step: http://www.tfsr.org/publications/technical_information/sewing_machine_manual/

^^^^ This is actually an amazing organization! I would love to do this!

D~

 

[DMGeurts]

That's what I was afraid of ... "silver eye" ... Well, I'll take a look at the hospital admission form... I wish you could take them directly to the AG store and have them do it while you wait ... it'd give me an excuse to go to NYC

Honestly, until all of this AG talk and Ginger's appearance, I didn't know that Pleasant Company didn't make the AG dolls any longer ... when did Mattel take over???

Off the top of my head, I want to say it was right around 2000??? But I can't remember for sure.

You can drop your dolls off at the store to be sent to the hospital (then you only have to pay for shipping home, or in your case, they'd reimburse you shipping home) and then they get sent as a group - which is nice if you don't have a box. But all the dolls are fixed at the hospital in Middleton, WI. Even if you were to walk a doll into the "hospital" - they wouldn't take it... must be mailed or done through the store. I've sent many dolls in and they've always been excellent - no worries for me. Just make sure that you are CLEAR AS POSSIBLE on the form, exactly what you want done in the comments section. IF you want her sent in for just the eyes, I would say something like "Replace eyes only, not head - if you can not do this, mail her back to me with out replacing anything - thank you" or something like that - but nicer - sometimes I'm not so nice and I don't mean to be, when I am trying to get a point across.

D~

 

[Diz-Mommy]

I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July!!

We had a great day with friends. Here's a picture of a non-sewing project but I wanted to share anyways...our "star" shirts. DH didn't want one, party pooper!

Please forgive my frizzy hair...naturally curly hair and Nebraska summers don't mix well

And here's a little sewing/embroidery project I've been working on for my DH's work friend. BIG thanks to Heather Sue for the wonderful embroidery design!!

And I made the smallest Rosetta thinking it would be a good little kid size, but it looked huge on the little girl. Oh well, little girls love purses no matter how huge I guess

 

[Loodlow]

I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July!!

We had a great day with friends. Here's a picture of a non-sewing project but I wanted to share anyways...our "star" shirts. DH didn't want one, party pooper!

Please forgive my frizzy hair...naturally curly hair and Nebraska summers don't mix well

And here's a little sewing/embroidery project I've been working on for my DH's work friend. BIG thanks to Heather Sue for the wonderful embroidery design!!

And I made the smallest Rosetta thinking it would be a good little kid size, but it looked huge on the little girl. Oh well, little girls love purses no matter how huge I guess

I LOVE your shirts and Barney outfit! (I am shamefully usually a lurker but couldn't resist complimenting these!)

 

[dis4harley]

I am going to try to post some pictures. Here are my projects from the last week.

 

[mphalens]

Off the top of my head, I want to say it was right around 2000??? But I can't remember for sure.

You can drop your dolls off at the store to be sent to the hospital (then you only have to pay for shipping home, or in your case, they'd reimburse you shipping home) and then they get sent as a group - which is nice if you don't have a box. But all the dolls are fixed at the hospital in Middleton, WI. Even if you were to walk a doll into the "hospital" - they wouldn't take it... must be mailed or done through the store. I've sent many dolls in and they've always been excellent - no worries for me. Just make sure that you are CLEAR AS POSSIBLE on the form, exactly what you want done in the comments section. IF you want her sent in for just the eyes, I would say something like "Replace eyes only, not head - if you can not do this, mail her back to me with out replacing anything - thank you" or something like that - but nicer - sometimes I'm not so nice and I don't mean to be, when I am trying to get a point across.

D~

So ... after reading your post earlier and looking at the website, I decided to send her off to the doll hospital. I called and spoke with someone (she wasn't too reassuring, but ) and Kirsten is now wrapped in bubble wrap and in a medium flat rate box ready to ship out to WI tomorrow morning. I filled out the form but didn't fill in any of the $$$ spots, instead I wrote in the comments section "I have had this doll since I was 12 (and am now 32) and she is an original Kirsten from the Pleasant Company. I believe she has the start of Silver Eye and I was told this is a known defect and you can fix her eyes for free. If not, please contact me for further instruction." And I listed my cell phone number. I did give my CC info BUT I was sure to use a card that is VERY VERY helpful with unauthorized charges just in case ...

Hopefully she'll make her way to Charlotte in a couple of weeks ...

I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July!!

We had a great day with friends. Here's a picture of a non-sewing project but I wanted to share anyways...our "star" shirts. DH didn't want one, party pooper!

What a great 4th of July picture! And frizzy hair? Please! Did you see mine in the picture I posted from the 4th? Humidity in Jamestown, RI in the summers is killer on hair!

I'm SO not a Barney fan, but that outfit and the purse are just adorable!!!!

I am going to try to post some pictures. Here are my projects from the last week.

Those are fabulous!!! I LOVE the tutu!!!!!!!

Okay - shutting down the computer and packing it in the car ... we're rolling out shortly!!!!

 

[babynala]

Really far behind again so forgive my VERY long quote

I have bought the snow white one before online for ALOT more. Here is the dress I made last time. Hobby Lobby carries the coordinating fabric in the photo. Think I may need some more of it.

So pretty

It's finally here! The long anticipated Insa! Thanks for all your support during the creation period!

Front.

Back. Ruffles are so time consuming but totally worth the effort!

And a picture with the shirt that inspired my skirt.... ps the shirt has been done for a couple of weeks now! I fully intended on doing the skirt right away, but like I said.... completely intimidated! Not anymore! Loved making this skirt!

Thanks for looking!
Jeana

That outfit is gorgeous and I love the ruffles on the back. Your model really "lights up" in the room in that outfit.

Oh! I finished Phalen's "Rock Star" pants ... I've felt like I was back in the 80s all morning ... the kids were watching Bugs Bunny with my Mom and I've been sewing on neon zebra print All that's left is for the boys to start rockin' out to NKOTB and I'll know we went through a time warp!
Here they are with the T-shirt I found on clearance at Crazy8 -they go well together, don't they?

Oh! And here are the "Swag Shirts" for Finn's 3rd birthday party...

The rock star pants are perfect and the birthday party shirts are really nice. Hope everyone had fun at the party.
]

Okay, I finally had my camera out so I thought I'd take some pictures of Amy Grace. I found her (in her box) at Goodwill for $20. A few months later, I found an American Girl WC at the same store. Then a few months ago, I found forearm crutches. The rubber in the middle isn't in the same spot on both of them, but I only use one crutch, so I thought Amy Grace could do the same. They are a little too long, so I'm going to get my BIL to shorten them a little.

The outfit she is wearing was made many years ago and has a choice of collars. She is wearing the blue stars, so she will have red, white and blue. Her cat is named Amber and was adopted from a garage sale..so she is a rescue cat. Amy Grace has JRA, so she uses her chair for stamina issues and when her joints are very sore. Sometimes she needs a crutch for balance. She may go on my cruise with us and I might write a photo book about her experiences.

Whoops, I see I forgot to trim Amber's new bow.

Amy Grace is so cute, I love her hair. What a great find. I think she would be a fun cruise companion. Her outfit with interchangeable collars is neat.

I don't have a pattern, but I made this reversible cover 2 days ago. It was so simple. Only took about an hour total.

Ohhh, how pretty and reversible too. I really like the monogrammed side. Nice job.

So ... Phalen gets to have his first ever CHEWABLE medication ... he's always had liquid until now (which is a battle) ... so keep your fingers crossed this goes well!
[/QUOTE]
sounds like Phalen is on the mend and having some success with the chewables. I hope he continues to improve.

Cindy, I have every doll I ever got as a child. I have a Toni doll I got when I was 7, a Saucy Walker I got at age 5 (have a picture of me holding her), 2 Tiny Tears (got one of my friends that she left at my house when she moved and didn't want back) a Buddy Lee dressed in a Coke uniform (got him when I was 5 or 6) and a couple of small and large Miss Revlon dolls. Oh, and a Ginny, too. I have a lot of their clothes, too. The top shelf of my closet is full of doll trunks! They are all in great shape. I had to have Buddy Lee restrung about 10 years ago and the lady in the doll hospital offered me $400 for him. My daughter isn't interested in them, so I may sell them to someone who would appreciate them one day.

Next time you have them out to play be sure to snap some pictures so we can see your collection.

I finished Lucy's peasant top today.....actually this is the second one I made....I cut out the empire top for a single ruffle shirt.....it was way too short so I had to make a second one. I think I got distracted because Lucy kept trying to climb on the potty with DD, and she doesn't know she can fall in! As you can see I forgot to restyle her hair after the shirt change

The shirt looks really nice and I still love those pants.

Sorry if I bored you all to death. I probaby know more about AG than the average adult should know, and for that reason alone, I do my best not to talk about it.
D~

I love when you share your AG knowledge. I'm not a collector or anything but my DD has one and my cousins (who are about 10 years younger them me) had AGs when they were little so I remember the stories, etc. The author of the original books lived not too far from where we lived so I remember my aunt showing me the house that was the inspiration for Samantha's house. I think my aunt was more into it then her daughters. She still has all of their stuff and lets my DD play with them when we visit.
Question: Did the Pleasant Company make those "look like me" dolls or just the historical dolls? My cousins have Samantha and Molly and then they each have one other AG doll but I don't think they were the historical dolls. I'll have to check them out next time we visit.

Aw! Thanks!!! He insisted on wearing the outfit (I took the shoes off after he fell asleep) to bed last night ... he said he needed to "rock to sleep"

How sweet.

10 tips to help you "spend" your summer vacation wisely

1. Buy fabric for your next project

2. And probably some thread, maybe stabilizer, buttons, and a zipper

3. Get a doll whether or not there is anyone in your house of an approriate age

4. Buy an old vintage antique Singer (not Paul McCartney, the other kind of singer)

5. Buy some fabric for a project you might sew sometime

6. Git yourself a ruffle bunny foot

7. Probably getting a laptop to sit next to your sewing machine would make it easier for following epatterns

8. Book a trip to Disney World so you'll have a reason to sew -- and try for reservations at 1900 Park Fare to see what the stepsisters are all about

9. Order some fabric that you know you'll never use but have to have anyway

10. Buy one first class and one coach ticket to MN to surprise ~D at her fourth of July picnic (be polite, don't eat more than $180 of food)

Hi everyone!! I have been busy sewing but most of it goes out the door before I think of posting it. I've been doing a lot of Vida's lately...

Front of Tink

and the back...

Gorgeous, the appliques are beautiful and the fabrics are so pretty.

DH would think I lost it if he saw me lugging in 5 bolts of fleece. I am hoping I can hide some of it in my closet but it's going to be tough to find storage for some of these bolts. The Tink was only $1/yd (and it's so pretty - pastels with lilac I think -- I didn't look too close -- it was cheap -- I didn't care) and princesses were $1/yd. I guess I will just make some blankets for BG's with the Tink and Princess. I really prefer to make clothes rather than blankets, but I just couldn't resist the prices. The prints on these are too big for jammies but the princess one could possibly work for Carla's raglan hoodie. Or maybe my kids would want to dress as huge bolts of fleece for Halloween this year.

Great shopping!!! You are making me giggle as I picture you sneaking into the house with all these bolts of fabric and trying to hide them in your closet. Great thinking on the Halloween costumes.

Made my first AG dresses today. I also have never worked with bias tape either so it was a learning experience.

So I made a sash.

Very pretty and the sash is a nice touch.

I've looked everyone, and can't find anything on this so I'm hoping it's not a repeat.

Has anyone made a Jake and/or Izzy pirate costume? My DS and DD want to be Jake and Izzy for Halloween this year. I'm thinking Izzy will be easy. I just have to make a pixie dust pouch and some purple pants, pink top, pink bandana and some boots. Jake on the other hand, I have to make a vest (and I can't sew). Does anyone know of any patterns for a vest or have any ideas for the boots?

Yes, I know Halloween is months away, but it will take me that long to make the costumes!

I haven't seen any costumes yet but I was thinking about making my son a Jake inspired outfit too and I was thinking about doing a vest and using some pre-made bias tape to trim the edges and adding some yellow buttons. Since you are not a sewer you might be able to cut up a t-shirt (maybe a size bigger) and use the bias tape to act as the yellow trim. Use no stitch glue on some buttons and you are good to go (I wouldn't recommend washing it).

Hello! I'm a new member of this thread, who loves to hand sew stuffed animals! I also like to make American Girl dresses for my little cousin's doll! I recently made a Tink dress out of green fleece and purple tulle for details. Does anyone else here like to make stuffed animals?

Welcome. I love all your animals. I've never made a stuffed animal before but I bought a pattern for my daughter to make one last summer, we just never got around to it. I'm a little scared! I noticed your website link and visited it your site. What a great idea. I was thinking you might want to add "gum" to your park packing list since you can't buy it in Disney (and you know how teens love their gum).

I forgot to use the lil picture thingy but the links in the last post worked...
here are soem more things i have made,with 5 granddaughters it's easy to get carried away.I made all 7 g'babeis flannel pj pants and appliqued tee's for Christmas ,hope i can find the pix t share. lerned the app from th etute on her too! i started on the 1st thraead and read all the way through! took forever,got to where i'd hit and miss but saw all the wonderful pix and picked up pointers here and there.

Welcome!! I love this picture of all your grandkids. I'm in awe of all the wonderful creations you have made for everyone. Everything is so unique and thought out. You are a GREAT shopper and did an amazing job repurposing so many of your finds. I love the princess dresses and the step sister outfits. I can't pick a favorite! I think my brother had that Humpty Dumpty fabric panel doll when he was little (30+ years ago). He called it Knit (I guess he thought my grandmother knitted it instead of sewed it).

Your autograph books are awesome. What a great idea to have one for each park.

I just wanted to let you all know that my mom bought me a sewing machine today for $7.00 I have been looking at all your creations and want to teach myself to sew so I will be asking lots of questions if that is alright

Great shopping

Here's the finished dress. So glad I purchased the open toe foot, can't imagine how long it would have taken to do the applique without one.

Your applique came out great. You did a wonderful job on it and it looks great on that dress.

 

[StarTunnel]

Thank you babynala, and I never thought of the gum! I haven't attempted to make anything today, I'm too shaken up over the Casey Anthony trail.

 

[babynala]

Okay ... have to share a coule of things ...
First, here's a shot my cousin took of the boys yesterday - they were wearing their star pants I'd made for them (and had just finished Phalen's the night before)

Then, here is the circle skirt I started a couple of weeks ago. If you remember, I was all finished with the waistband only to discover the waist was HUGE on me D had the great idea to take in the side seams (there weren't any, but I still could pretend there were and took it in where they would be) ... So, D, thanks for saving my skirt!!!
Excuse the horrible pictures, I had DH snap them on my phone so I could show you the finished product:

And the back (I just love the bow):

The boys look so cute in their pants. I really like your skirt, especially the bow in the back. Too bad about your other skirt, hope you can salvage it into something. Thanks for the "pirate" links.

i'm a beginner sewer and finally decided to sew something after reading all of the posts here but now find myself in need of some more tips. . .i followed the skirt tutorial and made the casing for the elastic and when the skirt is layed flat, it looks so adorable! but when you try to put it on, the elastic gets twisted. i even top stitched the top of the casing because it said that would help. should i tack it down somewhere? TIA for any help.

PS: this is the most inspirational site!

I see you got lots of tips and I think I remember one more that I read on here about sewing through the finished waistband and the elastic along the side seams to prevent the elastic from rolling.

Hey Embroiders with PE770 machines... I need some help please.

My machine arrived on Friday and yesterday and today I've finally gotten some time to play. I have done designs from the machine but I bought several appliques from Heathersue but when I put them on my jump drive it keeps telling me the "pattern can not be used". I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong?

I've just loaded dst and pes files and it still didn't work so I loaded all the files and that didn't change anything either... does anyone have any tips or had this problem before?

Thanks!

Make sure you are using the correct pes file since your machine only does 5X7 it won't like the bigger, 6X10 files that Heather provides.

And now I have a question I would like to post:
QUESTION?
My PE770 came with a spool of Brother thread for bobbin winding. I have been winding my own bobbins. For those of you who wind your own bobbins do you only use the Brother thread or is there another thread more readily available that I can substitute? I have never seen the Brother thread in fabric stores.

I bought some Gutterman embroidery bobbin thread because I ran out of the Brother thread and I did not like the results I got. The stitches were loose around the corners of an applique I did. I switched to some prewound Brother bobbins and it fixed the problem so I know it wasn't the design. I figured it was something on my end since it was a Heather Sue design! I've had good success winding my own bobbins using the Brother thread. (I have a Brother machine).

Also, my appliques seem to be "holey" like there's a lot of space between the fabric and the thread.... is that normal or does it have something to do with the type of needle/thread/fabric/stabilizer I'm using? It was much worse on my machine designs than my minnie head.

You ladies are just so sweet to help out with all these questions.. I hope y'all know you don't go unappreciated.

This happens to me sometimes when I'm doing t-shirts and using a ball point needle. I know others have lots of luck with the ball point needles but when I use them on my embroidery machine I don't like the results. I switched to an Organ embroidery needle and had better results. You could also try using more stabilizer (float it under the hoop) and see if that helps.

Okay ... as promised!

The boys in their patriotic red, white & blue pants:

That was a good shot of the pants, but this is the best shot of the two of them:

And I just have to share these two:
The boys with their cousins, Lily & Ellie:

And a somewhat decent family shot of the four of us:

Those pants are cute but that picture of your two boys is GREAT. Their faces are so adorable. I like the one with their cousins and the family picture too.

An update on my Walmart's fabric department. We started selling fabric today. Since I work in a nearby department, I was told that I'd have to learn to cut fabric , too. Don't they realize how dangerous this is? I'll never get out of there without buying more.

I'd just about given up on my 1979 era Kenmore sewimg machine. It had forgotten how to do any stitch other than straight. Saturday I cleaned it and played with the dials and now it's working again ! My other machine is a Singer Golden Touch and Sew. It's a good machine but some of the gears are nylon and tend to wear out after time.

Liz

Glad to hear you fixed your machine with a little TLC. Good luck no spending your entire pay check in the fabric department.

A couple things to share.

I finished DDs ruffled shorts, these were a pair of jeans with a hole in the knee.

Here is DS toy story outfit for our trip.

I am now saving some scraps for AG clothes. I had dd read the easy fit instructions today.

The jeans came out really nice and the Buzz outfit is cool, I like the way the alien looks - good choice.

I finished my DD birthday dress today. The pattern is Miley from Fairytale Frocks and Lollipops. Someone on here posted a dress, so I bought the pattern that day I don't think it is a beginner pattern like it says but I got it done. I like it, and so does DD! Now I need to figure out how to use this for our DW trip coming up. I need to start sewing for that!

This dress is gorgeous. Hope your DD had a happy birthday.

I am so excited! After weeks of trying, I gave up on SEU. Today, I attempted Embird. I watched one short tutorial on it and was able to figure it out perfectly! (Of course I haven't stitched it out yet, but it already looks better on the screen!) I only wish I hadn't wasted 2 weeks of my 30 day trial on it...but then again, I think I had to fail at SEU before I was ready to write it off and try something new.

I managed to merge a file and add a name to the file! (On SEU I had to do them in two separate hoopings!) As soon as I get the kitchen floor mopped I am going down to try it out on real fabric. If it passes the test, then I will try for it on an actual t shirt!

For reference, I spent an entire week attempting to do my grand daughter's shirt announcing she was finally 40 inches tall (thanks Jessica Lee for the inspiration!) After over 10 attempts, I finally came up with something that looked almost right...until I stitched it on a t shirt...yuck! I ended up having to stitch it twice. It looked better, but still not happy with it.

https://fbcdn-photos-a.akamaihd.net...766756300321_1581598032_1370389_2148477_s.jpg

Nini

It is hard to see your picture but I'm glad you are having success with Embrid. Can't wait to see your finished shirt.

I have had the best couple of days! I have been off since last Friday, DH was home with me over the weekend and did a few projects that needed done and I have just floated around and did a little of this and a little of that. I went to work a little over a year ago and I have really missed my housewife days the last few months. ( Who knew Anyway, the last few days have been great "playing housewife" back to work tomorrow though.

I finished the kids outfits for DHS

For Edward

[/IMG]

For Emily

I think I'll work on Ohana outfits next, I bought the cutest fabric on Sunday.

These came out great, they will look so cute on! Looking forward to seeing your Ohana set.

First is Oliver's popover dress, featuring my first ever digitzed logo -- Mythbusters for Andrea. Needless to say I'm quite proud of my digitizing and see making it a profitable hobby.

It didn't quite make it over Ginger's petite head.

Then, I remembered that I have my sister's AR doll.

It fit Ann Raggedy quite well. (AR was made by my grandmother whom you met a few posts back -- her real name was Minnie and she lived to 108.)

Next up I tried a bowling shirt and easy fit fits -- my first ever for either one. I've read sooo much about them it was neat to actually make my first ones. I was up against the clock so I didn't finish the bowling shirt (you probably wouldn't have noticed if I didn't mention it.)

It didn't fit any better than the first one, but Ida came over (no relation to my Aunt Ida). Please, she's not anorexic, just has very good metabolism. It fits her perfectly.

Your son did an amazing job on his castle. Your newest creations are lovely (especially your digitizing). Your bowling shirt is great (even with the slight imperfections), I can imagine that would be tricky to make in such a small size. Molly's dresses are so cute, especially the plaid.

So, without further ado ... May I present Kirsten:

We're thinking about some easy fits and a bowling shirt to start us off ... Would anyone be able to tell me if sewing a bowling shirt in AG size first would help me get a feel for how it would go together for an actual child? Or would I make myself crazy???

Your Kristen is very pretty. I'm sure you will have her all cleaned up in no time. I've never made a bowling shirt in the AG size but it might be a little tricky working with the smaller size. I think you can handle the child size, just go slow and follow the directions, you can't go wrong with a CarlaC pattern.

I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July!!

We had a great day with friends. Here's a picture of a non-sewing project but I wanted to share anyways...our "star" shirts. DH didn't want one, party pooper!

And here's a little sewing/embroidery project I've been working on for my DH's work friend. BIG thanks to Heather Sue for the wonderful embroidery design!!

And I made the smallest Rosetta thinking it would be a good little kid size, but it looked huge on the little girl. Oh well, little girls love purses no matter how huge I guess

Your star shirts are so COOL. The Barney set is cute, cute, cute. The fabrics you picked are beautiful. The Rosetta is darling and she will get to enjoy it for years to come. What a lucky little girl.

 

[DMGeurts]

I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July!!

We had a great day with friends. Here's a picture of a non-sewing project but I wanted to share anyways...our "star" shirts. DH didn't want one, party pooper!

Please forgive my frizzy hair...naturally curly hair and Nebraska summers don't mix well

And here's a little sewing/embroidery project I've been working on for my DH's work friend. BIG thanks to Heather Sue for the wonderful embroidery design!!

And I made the smallest Rosetta thinking it would be a good little kid size, but it looked huge on the little girl. Oh well, little girls love purses no matter how huge I guess

I am going to try to post some pictures. Here are my projects from the last week.

I love everything! The 4th of July shirts are so cute! And I just love the Barney set with the Rosetta - adorable. I carry the small Rosetta on a daily basis - and I agree - it's probably too big for a small child... but I also agree that they love to carry things around -

So ... after reading your post earlier and looking at the website, I decided to send her off to the doll hospital. I called and spoke with someone (she wasn't too reassuring, but ) and Kirsten is now wrapped in bubble wrap and in a medium flat rate box ready to ship out to WI tomorrow morning. I filled out the form but didn't fill in any of the $$$ spots, instead I wrote in the comments section "I have had this doll since I was 12 (and am now 32) and she is an original Kirsten from the Pleasant Company. I believe she has the start of Silver Eye and I was told this is a known defect and you can fix her eyes for free. If not, please contact me for further instruction." And I listed my cell phone number. I did give my CC info BUT I was sure to use a card that is VERY VERY helpful with unauthorized charges just in case ...


Okay - shutting down the computer and packing it in the car ... we're rolling out shortly!!!!

I hope your Kirsten has a safe journey to the hospital - please take pictures when she returns. Also, I hope you have a safe trip.

I love when you share your AG knowledge. I'm not a collector or anything but my DD has one and my cousins (who are about 10 years younger them me) had AGs when they were little so I remember the stories, etc. The author of the original books lived not too far from where we lived so I remember my aunt showing me the house that was the inspiration for Samantha's house. I think my aunt was more into it then her daughters. She still has all of their stuff and lets my DD play with them when we visit.
Question: Did the Pleasant Company make those "look like me" dolls or just the historical dolls? My cousins have Samantha and Molly and then they each have one other AG doll but I don't think they were the historical dolls. I'll have to check them out next time we visit.

That's awesome... I"ve see pictures of the house used for inspiration for Samantha's house - it's gorgeous!

The Pleasant Co. did make the American Girl of Today dolls - I believe they started with 7 of them, and added on as time went on. The names of that line changed several times - Just Like You and My American Girl - and most of the original PC dolls are retired and replaced by newer versions with better hair - supposedly. What once was a line of about 7, then 14, then 21 expanded greatly last fall when AG released about 19 new dolls to that line... there are now about 40+ variations of skin tone/hair and eye color. So, yes, Pleasant Company did start that line, Mattel has expanded on it - added many plastic accessories - and I don't think there is anything left of the original that was started by PC. The meet outfit has changed several times over the years, and usually stays on a 2 year cycle... we are due for a new meet outfit sometime in the fall of 2012.

Glad you like my knowledge... I hope I'm not too annoying with it. As I know some of my facts are off a bit, but the jist is right.

D~