I am thrilled with the way my new Addy doll looks in pictures. That’s always my deal breaker with a doll… she has to photograph well. She is just the loveliest doll! Thank you to the seller who sold her to me!!!
You all had picked out the fabric a little while back for her Valentine’s Dress and I’ve been pondering what kind of a Civil War dress I was going to make out of it. I’ve been looking at Civil War books I have and after admiring many pages of dresses, I was inspired by the sleeves on this dress…
[If you click on any picture, it will enlarge.]
I decided to make the dress with a scoop neck and made some piping in a blue and cream checked fabric. It’s just a hint of accent but I think it’s very pretty.
I had originally cut out sleeves that were 3/4 length, with the ruffle on them, but they just didn’t look right, so I decided to take them out and make a long straight sleeve and add a sleeve cap with a ruffle. I really like them…
No, Addy’s dress isn’t going to be a mini dress…
That’s just the top ruffle… here’s the second one…just pinned underneath to her body… The hemline will be above the floor a few inches…
…and now you’ll have to use your imagination for the vertical bows… but here’s a shot of them just roughly tied and in place with pins..
Don’t panic…they will look much better when they are neatly tied and sewn into the waistline of the dress. I’ve made 4 dresses like this before and loved every one of them.
So, I’m hoping you’re liking it so far… Addy sure is… and again, I am just over the moon with how she photographs… but I’ve got to get her legs tightened… they are so wobbly… next week… :o)
Thanks so much for taking a peek and I hope you have a wonderful Saturday!
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
such a creative piece! Just lovely.
Thank you Mary,
My Saturday is looking pretty busy, but I’m hoping to get more done on it today.
Thanks again, blessings, Jeanne
Just as everyone thought, this is a lovely color for Addy. I wouldn’t have thought of the blue checked fabric, but it works nicely, just as you thought it would. I’m already looking forward to seeing what you get done today. The original dress must have been beautiful. I wonder what color it was.
How is your foot? We wanted it well for Christmas, and already it’s a month later. That’s hard to believe, isn’t it?
HI Marilyn,
You should see this dress on Addy in person…it is outstanding on her… the color is really really nice next to her skin. I also like the texture of the fabric…it was a very good quality quilt fabric and it does make a difference.
I always wonder about the colors of the dresses in the sepia toned pictures too. I guess all we can do is guess or imagine.
Well… my foot still isn’t back to normal.. in fact, it’s been giving me fits the last few days. I worked at the Food Pantry and walked a ton, and that night it wasn’t working quite right. I need to keep doing my exercises and hopefully it will get back to 100%!
Thanks Marilyn,
Blessings, Jeanne
Hi, Charlotte. Yes, I have a couple of the McCalls Craft Magazines out in the garage. No, Jeanne, the scarecrow’s head was knitted as a sphere! Maybe that’s why I never knitted anything again? I’ll have to get him out and send you a picture to prove I’d tackle something that silly for a first attempt at knitting. That was 50 years ago.
Speaking of which, I’m making a coatdress for a doll to go over a St. Patrick’s Day dress that needs grommets set in at the waistline. It’s terrifying as the jacket has to be complete and lined before doing it and it might ruin the whole thing. I’ll practice a lot before tackling this little craft. I always seem have ideas for which I need to alter patterns and make more complicated things out of them. Anyone have tips for setting grommets?
I’ve mostly used them in covering outdoor furniture, but I just Googled how to and there are a lot of tutorials. I tried using the eyelet setting on my machine and it makes very nice little holes too. I’m with you on the more complicated patterns and altering. Takes me forever to make something because of it.
HI Joy,
I sometimes use the eyelet setting on my sewing machine too. Somehow it seems less scary to sew them in than to punch them in…
Thanks, Jeanne
Hi Susette,
I did get your picture of the scarecrow this morning… I might have to show that to everyone. That was a LOT Of work!
I have a Cropadile that I use for eyelets, but sometimes it can still be scary when I’m making those holes in something… so I feel for you…I’d just keep practicing…
Blessings, Jeanne
So, I think that vintage photo is a mourning dress? Civil War, very common. Anyway, love Addy’s dress so far. The checks are the perfect accent fabric, especially the bias around the neck. Looking good!
Thanks Joy,
I’m glad you like it…
Blessings, Jeanne
I just Googled Civil War mourning dress and the dresses were very interesting. There are a lot on Pinterest too. So many dresses, not enough time…
I love that pattern on Addy, Jeanne! The blue and white checked material is just perfect on that dress too! But don’t you think those blue bows are a bit big? I know you aren’t finished, and I shouldn’t question the expert, but they just take up too much room in the front of the dress, at least to me! I’ll wait until you are finished to make the final judgment on the dress though, because you always wind up doing it right!
It’s going up to 66 degrees today, so I have to get outside for the afternoon!
HI Linda,
I’m glad you like Addy’s dress…so far… As far as the bows go, they do look pretty big in the picture, because I just tied them quickly but I think they’ll be okay when I do them smaller. If you look at the slideshow of dresses at the right side bar, one of the pictures is of Elizabeth in a blue and yellow dress and it is the same style. See if you think that looks okay…
I don’t know what the temp is supposed to get up to today, but my hubby is cleaning out the chicken coop, so it’s got to be somewhat up there! Have a fun day working outside.
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, Addy’s dress is going to be so lovely. She is just glowing. I bet you’re happy you got her back!. I love looking at old pictures and all the pretty styles. I am very conscious if something is period accurate and that is probably why I don’t care for anything from the American Girl BF line now (clothing or accessories), it just isn’t.
I got Addy’s PC school supplies a few months ago as my final PC accessory set I was looking for and the Union Reader and her abacus are just incredible. So much detail to the sets back then, especially Felicity’s Samantha’s and Addy’s. The little sets make the scenes I like to set about more realistic than just the dolls standing there in pretty dresses. You could consider a few as props only * 🙂 smiles, hint, hint*
You and I must be on the same wavelength. I have been thinking of getting started on Civil War dresses for my renamed Marie-Grace and Caroline. I don’t plan to buy any of the NOLA clothing just as I didn’t of Caroline’s ( well, in her case, she was moving to Civil War). I love the way MG’s summer dress was made with the ribbons down the front and thought just a little longer skirt with long sleeves and now that I see Addy’s it’s like what I would be looking for a pattern for. I need to be brave and take them to the fabric store so the fabric matches their eyes just right.
Thank you Laura,
I am VERY happy to have Addy back in my group of dolls. She was missed!!!
I have been looking at background scenes and props again… it seems to come in waves around here… buy something, use it, sell it, buy it again… :o(
It may have been Marie-Grace’s dress that inspired my first dress done with the ribbons placed vertical instead of horizontal.
Just take your dolls to the store. I have so much fabric, I can just hold my dolls up to “my” stash instead of going to the store, but I do that quite often… and it does help to get the right color for the dolls.
Thanks Laura and have a wonderful Saturday,
Blessings, Jeanne
Addy’s dress is totally beautiful…your accent fabric is so appropriate with it. It will be another beautiful outfit. Addy does photograph very attractively. She’s a lovely doll.
Thank you Becky,
I appreciate your kind words about Addy’s dress and yes, she is a very lovely doll. I’m so glad to have her back again as a model…
Have a wonderful day,
Blessings, Jeanne
Love your new sleeve style. Not a fan of bows so they don’t appeal to me on this gorgeous dress.
HI Jan,
The bows won’t be as big as what they look like in my pictures. I hope you like it when it’s done…even if you don’t like bows…
Thanks for your input…
Blessings, Jeanne
The first dress I saw on the slideshow was Elizabeth wearing the dress with the bows. They work very nicely. Are there matching bows in back?
Hi Marilyn,
There are no bows in the back…just in front…thanks..
Blessings, Jeanne
I can tell I am going to love that dress! Addy looks nice in just about everything, but I am very partial to red with light blue. I like the vertical ribbons as well. The entire outfit is going to be just gorgeous.
Thanks Carolyn,
So you like red and light blue huh? I hope you like this dress when I’ll all
finished with it.
I got the ribbons on today, so I’ll be showing that…
Blessings, Jeanne