Kingyo's Sewing Photos

Hopefully this is in the right place! I got my first vinyl doll a month or so ago from the Volks USA store, a Dollfie Dream Pretty with the default bust. She's my first 1/3 scale doll and oh my GOSH is she fun to sew for. I've been using a lot of Requiem Art 1/3 Curvy patterns, printed at 85% scale, and so far they're fitting great.

Here's her Qipao pattern on Yoko. If I make it again, I'll decrease the size of the bust darts. I didn't take the waist in because Yoko's supposed to be about 14 and I didn't want her dress to be too tight.

Edited April 7, 2020 by KingyoNingyo

This is her kimono pattern. I did a fit test in white cotton that became a liner to protect her from the super dark yukata fabric I chose. I fiddled with the faux obi that's included in the pattern but ended up making a real one and learning to tie it. As a result, the yukata doesn't have the folded-over fabric beneath the obi that a real one would have, but I'm not going to sweat it. Maybe if I make this pattern again, I'll add extra length to the body of the kimono so it will fold properly.

The liner:

The faux obi (fauxbi?):

The finished outfit:

 

Here're my attempts at the Shabby Chic pattern! Again I printed it at 85% of the original pattern size. The skirt was VERY much larger than Yoko's waist, and honestly even a bit big to hang off of her hips. I ended up putting a pretty wide strip of velcro into the skirt I finished - the purple one.

I used a man's t-shirt from Walmart for the green-gray skirt and shirt and a half yard of quilting cotton for the purple skirt. 

I didn't try to set the wrinkles in the green-gray fabric version as it's a knit jersey.

Waiting for the wrinkles to set in place. 

The completed skirt and shirt. I was able to save some of the neckline ribbing to use for the top of the shirt. 

Overall this was a pretty fun pattern, but thanks to how much guesstimating I've done it ended up being pretty huge on Yoko. Still, it's the one outfit she has that really suits her character! 

The next couple of patterns I'll be trying have been printed out at 80% to try for a better fit.

I love these! I have a DDP girl myself that I am itching to try sewing for. Very interesting to know that shrinking the requiem art patterns works decently well. I may have to try that! I also appreciate that you mention which types of fabrics you use-- I am very much a sewing novice and still experimenting with different kinds of fabric, so it's helpful for me to know what you're working with and see what the end results look like on your adorable girl.

Oh, thank you! I had a really hard time finding ANY DDP patterns, but I've got plenty of fat quarters in my stash and lots of free time right now, so I might as well experiment a bit. If you're just starting out, it's always a good idea to use regular old cotton just to get used to how fabric behaves and to work on your technique. Are you sewing by hand or with a machine? I tend to do a mix of both - the machine for long straight seams, and hand sewing for intricate bits.

I'm sewing both by hand and with a machine. Like you say, hand sewing is much easier for the intricate stuff. I've already learned that the hard way

I bought a bunch of quilting cotton before my local fabric stores shut down so I've been experimenting with that! I'm already eager to try my hand at working with something a bit nicer, though...

That's awesome! I hope you'll post a thread about your projects too, I love seeing what other people make. I'm working on a pair of pajamas today that are definitely going to challenge me... they're made of cotton jersey like the green shirt and skirt, but thinner and more drape-y. I hope my machine's zig-zag setting is up to the challenge...!

I've spent the last couple of days working on this one off and on, but by this morning I was pretty ready to go ahead and call it done with. I'm not sure if I left my seam allowances too wide, or if 80% makes just a bit too much difference, but this pajama set just doesn't /quite/ fit Yoko properly. I'll definitely try it again, but I'll reprint the pattern at 85% next time. I'll also use my modern sewing machine for any zigzag stitching that needs to be done, because my 1950s Brother 280 reeeeeally needs a tune-up. No matter how much I fiddled with the bobbin tension I just couldn't quite get anything that really worked with the fabric I chose.

Still, I feel like I definitely learned from the experience!

You can see that the top is just a bit too small to look comfortable, even without closures.

The shirt is too short, although that's almost certain a too-generous bottom hem. I also need more practice sewing stretch fabrics!

And while I was certain I'd provided enough elastic to keep them from riding up to her ribcage, it still looks kind of like she got a wedgie. Sorry Yoko!!

And now that my Smart Doll has arrived, I finally have someone around who won't need an altered pattern for most things I want to make her! ...I said, right before printing and altering a pattern for her. This is once again a Requiem Art pattern, 'Shirr Romance', only cropped from a dress into a peasant top. I tried to follow the directions at first - two rows of gathers at the neckline and sleeves, sewn into place with elastic or ribbon...

Before I remembered that my sewing machine accuracy is questionable at best, and also I have elastic thread.

So I took out the gathers and redid them by hand, then sewed the whole thing up. The back's not as pretty as the front, but even though it took me the better part of the day to actually finish, I'm pretty proud of this top!

That top turned out so well that I actually got into my stash to try it again. It reminds me of the boho styles that were popular in the 70s, so what better fabric to use than some seersucker my mother bought in the late 70s to make a skirt? She never quite got around to making it, and the fabric ended up in my possession when she was thinking of finally throwing it away a couple of years ago. I'd never found a project quite right for it either, until yesterday.

Please ignore the background mess, it's not quite recycling day yet.

It's been a while! I've still been sewing, but a good deal of it has been masks. I've got some new projects to share though, because...

I bought myself a brand-new sewing machine!

The first project I made with it were the pants from the Requiem Art pattern 'Hippie Chic'. I tried the shirt as well, but the cotton gauze I had wasn't the kind I need. 

The next pair I make will have the pockets hitched up higher, and I'll take better care with the closure. I'm still waiting on a shipment of tiny hooks and eyes to get here.

But as a nice bonus, the new machine has some fancy embellishment stitches!

That retro 70s fabric is amazing 😄 it looks so nice with that dress pattern. And yay for new sewing machine! Ones with decorative stitches are absolutely perfect for doll clothes, 'cos you can make beautiful embellishments so easily. :3 Adds a nice little extra to even plain clothes! So cute!!