Yes, don't shoot the messenger! I know you are probably so sick of me already, with my annoying ways of not having dolls in regular updates, not really having updates sometimes, or forgetting to finish the rest of the pyjamas and underwear...and instead fiddling with patterns all the time. What is it with me? Will I ever settle on something?
Well, I fiddled with the 16" doll pattern. Again. I did it last summer and gave the dolls: resting arms, longer torso, shaped legs, bum dart, and longer feet. Wow! that was a lot of giving. Now, I have given them a bum panel (like the 9.5" dolls) and apparently 2 extra inches! Sheesh! This doll has longer legs (don't look at me), same everything, but longer legs and the most rounded and precious bum ever. The pattern is growing on me, and I won't be blamed if I change my pattern again, would I? Are you going to be terribly mad at me? I hope not.
Thing is, when I started making dolls I needed to do as much as possible by hand, because I barely knew how to use my sewing machine, and because it was much easier to have a wee basket and do it by hand, while my children played around me, than to drag the sewing machine onto the kitchen table and put all the supplies out. Little by little I have found myself with more time to do things with my sewing machine, and I can also probably say I know how to use it by now, so I figured it would be a good idea to try to accomplish most of the doll assembly with the sewing machine. I have always done the leg seams by hand, and it takes me about an hour to do two little legs. Now with the sewing machine I can do that in about 5 to 10 minutes (pinning and cursing included!).
So, Crabapple Jam, has quite a round tush, and longer legs. Next in the line of assembly goals is to do the arms attachment with the machine, and the feet. Oh! the feet!. Don't get me started on the feet. So she is 18" tall, but a wee more slender than my 16" dolls (this is starting to sound like a riddle), and she comes dressed in this fantabulous linen dress, with front release pin tucks, bound neckline in Liberty bias and puffy short sleeves. She also has long pink polka dot bloomers and a wee linen vest, properly lined of course. Now I need to go on and start her hair. She should be ready in a day or two, and will most likely be uploaded to the store. So stay tuned. And please don't shoot the messenger!