I actually started this outfit much closer to Valentine's Day but ran out of thread and had to wait for my order to arrive to finish the dress. I originally intended the outfit for Barbie but with the adjustments I made it was a better fit for Skipper.
Notes:
This pattern comes from an out of print Annie's Crochet Newsletter, the January/February 1995 edition.
The pattern calls for size 10 crochet thread but even reducing down to my smallest thread hooks it was too large for Barbie with size 10. This then became a Golilocks challenge.
I reduced my thread to size 20 with a 1.25 mm hook and the top was tight for Barbie but a decent fit for Skipper. I might experiment with the fit for Skipper if I make this again with hook size as it was an interesting fit large in the top but tighter at the waist. I suspect Barbie would need closer to a 1.5 mm to make it fit with the size 20 thread.
I reduced to a 1mm hook for the skirt.
While I'd consider the flower trim at the neck for Barbie it was too much for Skipper.
I've been challenging myself to try more patterns that are sitting in my binders that I've never made so I'm glad I tried this one. Not sure it will be a yearly addition as it consumes a great deal of size 20 thread and it takes more time than my average Barbie family project. I plan to continue to try some of these more challenging projects and perhaps I will be back again to revisit some of them again.
