Hello everybody! I am so glad to be back in the swing of things. I have been making good progress on the Ood shirt. I adore the look of Sticka till Barbie pattern #913, and thus far it has been smooth sailing. We will see how I feel when it is time to stitch it up, but for now I am making steady progress with it. Luckily, this isn’t what today’s post is about. Today’s post is about some of the neat things we’ve found while visiting family.
In the first installment in a series I lovingly call ‘stuff we found at grandma’s house’, I bring to you a cool cache of doll patterns. My mother is an avid crafter, and growing up she made us girls a myriad of doll clothes and accessories. During those years, she accumulated a bunch of patterns in books. For those of you who are too young to remember a time before the internet, we used to be limited to the patterns we could find in books at the local craft store or library. My mom amassed quite the collection over the years, and she still uses them to this day. Under the bed in the guest room, tucked inside a plastic container, I sorted trough various crochet, knit, and plastic canvas patterns to find all of the patterns designed for Barb- *ahem* fashion – dolls. I was not disappointed! Here are pictures of everything I found.
The Needlecraft Shop Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Carry & Play Craft Room
The Needlecraft Shop Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Carry & Play Wedding Chapel
The Needlecraft Shop Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Carry & Play Floor & Tote
Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Beauty Salon 3104
Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Living Room 3085
Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Hearts ‘n’ Flowers Bedroom 3140
Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Country Kitchen 3083
Crochet Fashion Doll Ruffles & Ribbons Bedroom
Fashion Doll Family Room
Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Nursery 3095
Fashion Doll Playhouse
Plastic Canvas Fashion Doll Vanity Boxes
Crochet Collection Costume Volume 1
Fashion Doll Moments in Time Edwardian Era Garden Stroll
College & Career Fashion Doll Wardrobe
Crochet Fashion Doll Tooth Fairies
Fashion Doll Birthday Belles Vol. 1
Crochet Fashion Doll Southern Belle Trinket Boxes
Fashion Doll Birthday Belles Vol. 2
Unbelievable, non? I am so lucky to have a mom who kept these over the years. We haven’t decided exactly how we will share them, but I am confident that we’ll work something out. I am just so excited about the new possibilities these patterns open. With internet patterns, it is hit or miss on whether they are well written. You generally have much better luck with printed patterns, so I am all the more motivated to finish the Ood dolls so I can dive into some of these.
The pattern I am most excited about is the College & Career Fashion Doll Wardrobe. It has 17 patterns that cover everything from nurse to Victorian era lady. I can think of several episodes of Doctor Who that tie back into the patterns in this book, and chances are good that I will choose one of them once I finish the Ood dolls.
I absolutely adore the details on the last doll’s blouse. It reminds me of the movie Pollyanna. I also think that the winter ensemble is lovely.
That nurse outfit is right up my alley! I am trying to remember whether or not there was a nurse in the Empty Child episode. That episode was amazing in so many ways. I loved the costume design and the overall story. If I can find more children and teenage dolls, I may have to try my hand at making characters from that story.
I am also excited by the plastic canvas patterns. I plan on making a few Ood accessories from what is in there. It is just a matter of deciding which one is the most fitting. Ood at the beauty parlor? Ood getting married? So many delightful possibilities.
The wedding chapel would be awesome to make to go with the first episode of New Who to make me cry, Father’s Day. Call me an old softie, but it was such a touching story. If I can find a good ginger Ken to be Pete, I will have a go at it. I could make the entire wedding party! It would be extravagant and crazy and just my style. Or Donna! I’ve wanted to do Donna’s wedding since the beginning of the year. Either would make for a fun set.
I also like the larger ‘birthday belle’ dresses. I know my mom made one or two of them for my birthday in the 90’s. I keep hoping we’ll find a box with a few more dolls and they’ll pop up. I remember she did one in a peach color, and it was such a lovely dress. There is one more location where they may be hiding, so fingers crossed that I have a bit of luck finding them.
That is everything for today! I hope you enjoyed seeing these because I certainly enjoyed sharing them. It is always fun to have a blast from the past, and these are very nostalgic for me. I suppose much of Doctor Who gets me that way, too. The mix of new stories and nostalgic throw-backs has always kept me intrigued, even if it takes me a while to warm up to a new Doctor. Until next time, I hope you have a fantastic week.
Barbie Who? 