This dress for Nyssa HAD to be called “School Girl Charm”

By / / 26 Comments

I LOVE it when a dress comes together like I had hoped it would and then love it when it’s finished! This one did and I do! I’ve called LOTS of dresses by many titles but this one absolutely had to be called School Girl Charm. Not super unique, but very fitting…at least I think so!

We had a great photo session and I’ll share some of my pictures with you.

I finished the sleeves…took one out and redid it, added the pleated skirt, sewed the buttons and snaps on the back, RESET Nyssa’s eyes so she no longer has that “sitting in the outhouse look” (sorry, Linda, it was you who mentioned it and I gave credit to Joy!) I have had several good laughs over that!

I made a hair bow AND a beret AND a pair of white lace thigh highs to go with the dress too!

Oh my goodness… you’ll have to come back tomorrow and see what else will be added! It gives more meaning to the name School Girl Charm… She is adorable in ___________! Oops… no hints! :o)

See you then,
Blessings, Jeanne

26 thoughts on “This dress for Nyssa HAD to be called “School Girl Charm””

  1. Charlotte Trayer

    I have to say, Jeanne, that even though I wasn’t crazy about the fabric when you first showed it, this dress has turned out beautifully in every detail!! I especially love the pleated skirt, but all the details work so well together. I can see the difference in her eyes, and I like this wig better than the previous one–on Her, anyway. The hat is nice, but I rather prefer the bow, I think. The white lace stockings are the finishing touch–although apparently not quite yet! Can’t wait to see what you might be adding to the outfit!!

  2. Linda D.

    Oh Jeanne, I love the pleats! You don’t see much in the way of pleats with doll clothes, and I can imagine why, but yours look so crisp and neat! Didn’t the green dress have pleats just in the front, because this dress stands out a bit more. Yes, this really looks like a school dress, and I too, love the bow better. This would also be cute with knee high socks! I also notice the new wig, since it’s a bit neater looking.

    Her eyes are better too! How do you reposition the eyes, without taking her head off?

    I can’t imagine what will be added, although I think a bookstrap with some tiny “books” would be cute and fitting.

  3. Sandra L.

    Gorgeous, simply gorgeous. She will definitely win the award for best dressed the first day of school. Those pleats are to die for…perfectly done. Her hair is beautiful but then again I’m a sucker for any doll with red hair. The braids and beret are wonderful with her dress.

    Nice job on fixing the “outhouse” or “deer eyes” not sure I would have the nerve to attempt that. Love her white tights and black shoes. All she needs is a matching black bag or book bag. Can’t wait to see what you have in store for tomorrow. You make me tired just reading all you managed to squeeze in on a given day.

  4. Shara

    Wow, Jeanne! Those pleats! So knife-edge perfect! Really a wonderful outfit and easy to see you pressed each step of the way:) I love the Swiss eyelet unset at the shoulders..what a sweet way to brighten up a dark transitional print. Wishing you high bids when it goes on sale!

    Yes..those ‘deer in the headlights’ eye placements are easily fixed..I wonder why so many leave their doll’s eyes like that.? Wait… hmmm, maybe I know the answer..I remember the first time I tried to reposition a pair in my Layla, ..two glasses of wine, and a few words I never utter…I finally got one perfect…then I had to tackle the second to match it up! It wasn’t pretty ! LOL Thank goodness I can doo a pretty good job now, but they are still always a challenge:)

  5. Susette

    .Perfect First Day of School dress 👗. Now we need a lesson in how you did the pleats please. The print, color an pattern are perfect for a 50’s school dress.

  6. Linda D.

    Maybe Jeanne has a pleater attachment on her sewing machine? I have one, but never am brave enough to use it!

    1. Susette

      I haven’t used it either. I just discovered what that funny little quarter-shaped thing with a hole in the middle is among the things that come with a sewing machine. It’s a kind of screwdriver to get the plate off to clean the working parts! Not much for maintenance, am I?

  7. Barbara Haring

    Oh, Jeanne! I so wish I had a Nyssa. This outfit would be hard to resist. It is truly charming. The fabric is perfect and the lace accent and bow really complete the dress. I can’t imagine what you will add, besides a bookstrap and books as someone suggested, but that would not complete the sentence you started so I’m really perplexed.

    Do you use a pleater? I have a pleater/gatherer for my machine. I’ve used the gatherer, but never the pleater. I never could find where someone has done a ratio of pleats/gathers per amount of fabric. When I used the gatherer I ended up with way more ruffle than I needed for my project. I have a pleater you do by hand. It’s a board-like thing where you can do different sizes of pleats but you have to push the fabric into the slots and then use a metal ruler type thing to push them in tight. Then you iron that. Haven’t used that either. The last time I did pleats was for Lissy’s school dress last year and the pattern called for folding along dots on the fabric, ironing well and then I took a wet Q-tip and removed the dots. Jeanne, inquiring minds really want to know how you do them. They are so perfect,

    Nyssa’s eyes are better. You seem so expert at doing things like this. The only time I’ve messed with eyes was when I got my Meadow Lolla. I had trouble getting her head back on and now I’m too intimidated to try to change them.

    I’m at the grandkids today and tomorrow while they do their schoolwork. I can see this virtual schooling is growing thin. The plans are still to return to in-person next Tuesday. I think everyone is more than ready. Many of the school districts out my way, including the one I live in, have been back in person since they started. Last Friday Sean had a small A/C job he had to go to. It was too late to call me so he took the kids. They had to log out of “school” and log back in when they returned. They ended up missing a couple classes. Sean was prepared to take them to the job he had this morning to save me a trip for such a short time, but it would have been a repeat of Friday with them missing something, so I said I’d come, even if it was only for a couple hours. I’ll probably be here all day tomorrow because he scheduled three jobs for the same day so I wouldn’t have to make the drive here more than two days. The good thing is he is working but none of us are willing to accept this as the new normal. Time to get back to the old normal.

  8. Kathie

    She is a darling school girl. I wasn’t crazy about that fabric either but you can see “ the finished look” in your head so much better than most of us😉It looks so cute on her,
    I’m sure you have other accessories that will make some darling pictures. So do you spray starch the heck out of the fabric to get those sharp pleats?
    They just make that skirt perfect.
    Happy Monday!

  9. Laura

    Nyssa’s dress turned out very sweet. Her eyes being repositioned really helps. I really love the knife-pleated skirt. That, and the sweet little lace collar, bow, and tights, gives it a very old-fashioned look. Looking forward to the final touch.

  10. Marilyn

    Nyssa’s eyes are so much better. Little changes can be huge changes. The lace behind the trellis is another positive addition — it’s just right.
    You have definitely chosen the right name for this outfit.
    Other people have mentioned Nyssa’s nice appropriate-for-school new hairstyle. Everything has come together so well — and so fast. Poor Nyssa has had to wait so long and she’ll be sending her new dress off for someone else in no time. That someone else is going to be very happy.
    My compliments on those stockings too. The design is so subtle but quietly adds to the charm. I’ll be interested in seeing what else you think will add to this outfit.
    Do you get mail from the Virtual Doll Convention? Last time the had a free composition book to xerox. I wonder if I still have it.

  11. Judi Kaye

    Jeanne, I love this dress, I love my Kaye Wiggs girls, this has inspired me to sew for them again… I wish you sold patterns…sigh…

  12. Anne Coldron

    I checked back to see the difference in Nyssa’s eyes and the repositioning makes them so much better, she did look a bit like a startled deer.
    The outfit is just beautiful. everything is so perfect especially the pleats. I love the beret, personally I like it better than the bow. I love the eyelet lace on the shoulders it is so pretty.
    I think I have made the overskirt work, now I am working on the jacket which is boned. It doesn’t appear to have a lining covering the boning and I don’t think I will like it like that so may have to make a lining for it. It does have flat-lining (something I had never heard of) but that doesn’t cover any of the inside. I’ll have to give it some thought.

  13. Jeanne W

    Hi everyone,
    There were quite a few comments about things done for Nyssa and her new dress. I’ll try to address a few of them this week in my posts…
    * how to reposition dolls eyes
    * how did I make the pleats
    * pleats in different sizes
    * the lace behind my white trellis
    * a composition book printout
    * machine pleater attachment
    Thanks everyone for your kind compliments. What you say and how you encourage me only makes me want to try harder….and be more creative with each new dress set.
    Blessings, Jeanne

  14. Joy

    Just got home from a cabin run and found that the comments have already been answered. 🙂 Well, here is mine. The tilting up of the eyes on Nyssa, looks much nicer and the wig much tamer for a school girl look. I’d still like to see Nyssa in a darker reddish wig that matches her eyebrows more, but the braids are perfect for her. The dress with those fantastic pleats is so adorable, and the over sized bow is very sweet. What size is Nyssa anyway? I’m never sure of the Wiggs sizes. 🙂
    I brought some snap sewing (snapaphobia here) and buttons along on our quick trip and surprise. Didn’t sew at all. No spare time. We worked on the pump, raked needles and dead wood, and cut back brush. Did a total vacuum and winterized the place. The whole time there and on the way up, the smoke was very thick. Can’t get away from it as there are still fires burning. We were actually glad to get back as the smoke is better here today. So much for mountain air. 🙁

Comments are closed.