Much as I enjoyed doing the doctorate I am glad that it is finished. I am just waiting to have my final examination which will probably be in about 6 weeks time. Meanwhile I have been really enjoying having lots and lots of free time to do creative things and have been making some more Barbie clothes as Christmas presents.

I have been inspired by some amazing sites that I actually found during my research for 1940s fashion so will post about those separately. I bought a pattern for these latest dresses from this Etsy seller , excellent value at only £2.76 for a digital download of all of these lovely 80s style fashions.

 

I have made four dresses so far, two using the pink dress pattern in the top right for inspiration, minus the bottom ruffle and extending the length of the dress.

All fabric came from stash, I think the black and gold ones were originally from Kerry as they look like sample from her dress fabric for medieval gowns. I did buy the little roses.

The pattern was a little fiddly due to trying to finish seams that were only and inch long but very quick to make and I really enjoyed going through the stash to find all the gorgeous fabrics as I don’t usually make things with silk and velvet.

I am hoping that developing my skills with Barbie patterns will help me with making clothes for myself as I need to get better at using patterns generally. I have been watching lots of sewing sites and the answer seems to be to make mock ups or toiles of each pattern for fit.

I used the bodice pattern from the blue dress on the top right of the pattern and altered the skirt to make this lovely little cocktail dress.

The skirt is actually two layers, silk and chiffon, so it looks really pretty close up. I have enough silk left to make the coat on the bottom row to go with it.

The final dress was another cocktail dress, using up some of the velvet that I abandoned last year after trying to make a jacket for me. I paired it with some black silk for the top and some lace from my stash which I stitched on then embellished. I am very pleased with this one and think it looks really elegant.

I have lots more ideas for gowns so am hoping to get at least four more made before Christmas. I am also knitting, just finishing off a Little Cotton Rabbits bunny at the moment for my youngest great-niece’s birthday at the end of the month and working on a doll’s blanket for the local school. It is lovely to just sit and watch Netflix and work on these projects in the evenings with the candles lit 🙂

I hope that you have all had a lovely weekend and are going to have a good week ahead. Term is in full swing so I may not get much done before next weekend when lovely Kerry comes up for a bit of sewing!

Take care and thanks for visiting.