Pretty in Pink

I've been feeling so confident in my sewing ability -- thanks to all of the doll clothes I've made -- I decided it was time to revisit making clothes for myself. I had made a rectangle skirt last year that turned out pretty well (it might be a little too poofy), so I thought it was time to try dresses again, starting with the most difficult part, the bodice. Unfortunately, most big name pattern companies are notorious for being so focused on the "average" of multiple sizes that they end up not fitting anyone well without significant modification.

If I want to modify something on a doll pattern, I usually have my trusty sewing helper, Lizzie, nearby and ready to do a test fit or see how a mockup piece would look. But my space is too small for a human-sized dress form, so if I want to test out a mockup for myself, I have to pin pieces to whatever shirt I'm wearing, and hope I'm marking things correctly as I look in the bathroom mirror. Sometimes I feel like I need ten extra hands, and most of the time, I feel like the fixes I need involve some kind of measurement formula that I don't know or understand. So, after about six or so different mockups that weren't fitting well enough, my sewing confidence was completely spent and I felt like I'd just wasted hours, only to come up empty-handed. I know that's not true. I know that sewing involves a lot of failure and that's how you grow and become a better sewist, but I'm so eager to make something I can wear and be proud of that it's hard to work through those failures and keep going.

Sometimes it helps to get back to basics. So, after making myself a new scrunchie (those are a good 5 minute confidence booster), I decided to use some pretty pink gingham I'd found in the Joann's remnants bin to make a dress for Barbie.

Pink goes with everything!

I searched around for a sundress pattern I liked and finally settled on Pixie Faire's Country Mart Sundress. I've almost bought this pattern several times in the past. The only thing I'm not totally sold on is the pleated skirt. I'm not a fan of the look unless it's for something like a school uniform or Yuna's summoner outfit. But now that I've made several dresses, I know how to swap in other pattern pieces to make the look I want. For this dress, I used a rectangle skirt piece from another dress pattern.

The pattern came together pretty easily, except for the fit of the bodice. I'm not sure if I sewed something wrong or my Barbie is just thiccc, but the bodice fits together exactly, with no room for a velcro overlap. To remedy this, I took a cue from the old Pleasant Company dresses and sewed the hook part of the velcro to one edge of the bodice and attached the loop part fully to the other side. It's funny, when I run into a snag with doll clothes, I don't even worry anymore. I just bust out my seam ripper or think of available work-arounds. When it happens with human-sized sewing projects, it feels like I've hit a wall. I hope that changes someday.

Overall, I'm really happy with this dress! It's like my take on the Barbie movie's signature pink gingham dress. My next goal for Barbie is to make her recreations of some of my favorites of her fashions from the early days of the brand. I have a human-sized version of the Busy Morning dress. It'd be fun to make an AG-sized one, too.

#barbie