Getting ready to move, Trip to Dallas, and new pattern I’m working on
It’s been a while since I’ve updated my blog and added anything new to my Etsy shop. I figured it was time to let everybody know what’s been going on the past few months. My husband’s employer’s warehouse closed down and they wanted him to take a position halfway across the country. I was excited and started to pack things up and go through things to get rid of. I was anxious to sell our small house and move somewhere else, preferably a much larger house so I could have my own sewing room instead of using the bedroom. If anyone has ever moved, they know it is a LOT of work! We had many, many projects that needed to be finished before we could list our house. I started painting things that needed repainted and things that hadn’t been painted yet. The to-do list seemed to go on forever. Then in June his company flew me and my husband to the area to check it out. Before uprooting our entire family and moving to a place we’ve never been before, we wanted to make sure we would like the area. We live in a community of about 11,000 people. We are “small-town country folk.“ The population of the largest city in our area is over 200,000, an hour’s drive away. The new warehouse was in the Dallas Fortworth Metroplex—a population of about 7.5 million! When we got there, it was a huge culture shock. We drove for hours, trying to find a small community like ours. We couldn’t find one nearby, and the traffic and roads were horrific. I thought that I would get used to it but the whole time, I was popping anti-anxiety pills. We were there for about a week. It was just too much for us so we decided not to take the position. This left my husband with no job and when he filed for unemployment, they denied it because they said he resigned. I’ve been trying to work on my patterns and work my part-time job at the same time.
I don’t think people realize how much it takes to make a pattern. It takes a LOT of time and work! First I have to find a similar pattern to go off of and draw out the pattern with the correct sizing. I don’t have any pattern-making software—I use Photoshop. Then I have to actually make the outfit, taking photos after each step, then try it on the doll to make sure it fits. If I’m lucky and it fits the first time, I won’t have to make any adjustments. Otherwise, I have to make the adjustments on the pattern and make the outfit again, hoping it will fit. Once I get it right, I write the instructions, take lots of photos of the outfit, both by itself and on the doll. I also have to write a list of notions needed and how much fabric is needed, as well as draw out a layout of the patterns. And if I’m making multiple sizes, I have to make multiple patterns and outfits.
With Covid-19 restrictions, where I normally shop (Joann’s Fabrics), they limited the hours and the amount of customers allowed in the store. Even when I go there, they have very limited product. Luckily, when I worked there a few years ago, I stocked up. Every time something went on clearance (thread, zippers, fabric) I bought it (whether I needed it or not.) At one point, I was going to sell it all, but I’m sure glad I didn’t! 90% of the time when I’m looking for fabric, I go to my shed and get it. If Joann’s nor I have it, I can usually find it on Etsy, but then I have to wait about a week for it to get here.
Nevertheless, I’m really excited about the new patterns I’m working on. They are Cabbage Patch Kids sleepwear! Three different outfits with three different sizes—preemie, full size, and TRU.
1930s Inspired Pleated Dress for 16" Cabbage Patch Kids Dolls
It didn’t even say
how to stitch the collar, and there is no neckband. Also, the back is one piece that is to be
slit from the top to about 1/3 down to make the opening. So I did some digging and found some
interesting facts. Apparently in the
1930s, due to the Great Depression, pattern companies had to cut prices. Some were cut from 45 cents to 15 cents, thus
cutting costs by having less printed instructions (1) . Also, fabric had to be used sparingly. The following is an excerpt from “Doll News”
on ufdc.org:
Their clothes were made with new, factory
friendly techniques which traded fine sewing for faster finishing. Speed was
key, since many items were made by homeworkers who were compensated on a
piecework basis. Most of the time there were no buttons at the back. Garments
were closed instead with tiny gold safety pins. Styles were kept simple for the
same reasons, and organdy became a popular choice for fabric because its
stiffness made it easier to sew quickly. (2)
The collars were usually stitched to the inside of the dress
and then flipped back outward over an unfinished seam. I became very intrigued with these vintage
patterns, and how they sewed clothes back then.
So I decided to draft the pattern both as the original 1930s pattern
instructed, and also how we would construct doll clothing now. You can choose
which version to use, or use both!
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
1. Sessions, Debbie. 1930s Sewing Pattern
History & Pattern Review. Vintage Dancer. [Online] March 22, 2017.
[Cited: May 04, 2020.] https://vintagedancer.com/1930s/1930s-sewing-pattern-history/.
2. United Federation of
Doll Clubs, Inc. [Online] 2014. [Cited: May 03, 2020.]
http://ufdc.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/sum14-pattern-patsy.pdf.
Materials
· Main
Fabric: 3/8 yard
· Contrast
Fabric: Remnant (8x9”)
· Bloomers
Fabric: 1/4 yard
· Closure
of your choice: snaps (sz 2/0), Velcro, buttons, or small safety pin
· 1/4” or
1/8” elastic
· Piping
for collar
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