Chelsea Summer Play Set

I've been working on a few more complicated doll outfits so to give myself a break I've been throwing in a quick Chelsea outfit when I reach a "milestone" on a bigger project.

I found this free Amelia Thimble pattern a few years back and while the outfit wasn't a complete match for Chelsea, I was able to turn the top into a dress for Chelsea. It has become a great quick project and adds another item to Chelsea's donation bag.

You can find the free pattern here. Notes:

This pattern is the base for the Chelsea dress but do to the differences in dolls I've made significant changes.

The pattern calls for size 30 thread I use size 10 for Chelsea with a 1.8mm thread hook.

I follow rows 1-4 of the pattern as written with the changes in thread and hook size.

Following row 4 I continue row 4 for an additional 4 rows joining after completing 8 rows.

I changed the pattern's written row 5's V stitch to 2dc ch1 2 dc instead of dc ch1 dc I kept the skip stitch in place.

The dolls are different sizes and I never counted the skirt rows. I continue until the dress fits passed the doll's knees.

To close the back I use a snap after finishing the back with sc.

Chelsea Drop Waist Dress with Flared Skirt

This is on of Char's Pattern for Chelsea that can be purchased here.

I made this one two years ago with Creative Yarn Source solid colors as I didn't have any Lizbeth size 20 on hand. I couldn't find Watermelon when I did finally order but I did get a variety of variegated colors.

Oddly when I searched for Lizbeth 20 this year it isn't really available. I don't know if it has been discontinued or if it is a supply issue but it is kind of sad. While Creative Yarn Source has lots of amazing solid colors the don't the same mix of colors in their striped thread. Their stripes tend to have limited colors for size 20. Not exactly what I want for these projects. The fashion doll projects don't take much thread so I'm hopeful my size 20 Lizbeth supply will hold out for a bit.

When I made this last time it was a bit larger than I wanted. This year I opted for a .9mm Tulip Etimo Thread Crochet Hook. I've made a habit of recording the mm of the hook for the thread hooks rather than the size as I find the thread hooks vary far more between brands for the thread hooks than they do for the larger yarn hooks.

Notes:

When I made this previously I made it with all solid colors from Creative Yarn Source. This time I mixed Lizbeth and Creative Yarn Source. I found when I went to add white trim with the Creative Yarn Source size 20 yarn it seemed bulkier than the Lizbeth and I pulled it out as it looked fine without the arm trim.

The pattern includes a dress, hat, panties, and shoes. Last year I made the hat, but this year I just found it was akward trying to get it fit over Chelsea's hair and opted to frog it and not include it with the donation. The outfit is cute without it.

Chelsea Mint Dress

I mentioned in last week's post that I was experimenting with the pattern I used to make Chelsea's Valentine Dress. I haven't had the outcome I wanted but no loss as Chelsea now has more outfits for her donation bag.

You can purchase the pattern for the dress here.

Notes:

As I mentioned in the St. Patrick's Day post I moved to using Thread Art's size 3 crochet thread rather than 2 strands of size 10 crochet thread together for these last two dresses. Just for the record while I called this a mint dress, when I checked the color on the website it is Aqua.

After making the St. Patrick's Day dress changing the stitches I decided to go back and try a single colored outfit using size 3 crochet thread rather than 2 strands of size 10 thread together. I have never achieved the texture shown in the picture for the pattern, but I've liked the look of the dresses for Chelsea and they have the benefit of being easy to play around with and quick to finish to add more outfits to her donation bag.

Chelsea St. Patrick's Day

I've been experimenting with the pattern I made for Chelsea's Valentine dress. You can purchase the pattern here.

I was trying to achieve the texture found in the original pattern so I decided to use hdc and dc instead of sc and hdc. I crocheted between the stitches and came a little closer to the look found in the picture for the pattern. At this point I've decided a few extra dresses for Chelsea aren't a bad choice.

Notes:

I used Thread Art's size 3 thread to avoid using two size 10 crochet thread strands together. It also allowed me to use the variegated garden greens yarn to give me a bit of holiday colors for St. Patrick's Day.

The hook for this project was E.

Skipper Dress

After making this dress for Barbie and liking how it came out I decided to see if it could be adapted for Skipper.

Going down in hook size was not an option with Sinfonia Cotton yarn I had used as a substitute for the Grace Patons the pattern suggested for the outfit. I tried using a smaller hook for Skipper but it was bulky and large.

Thankfully over time I've acquired a large selection of sport cotton yarns for making amigurumi's so I decided to try Schachemayer Cantania for Skipper and once I got done to a D hook the dress fit her.

You can purchase the pattern here.

Chelsea Pink for Valentines

I like to look around to see what's new in the doll pattern market and I came across Michelle Ratman's designs on Etsy. There are a variety of doll sizes and I picked up a few to try but I decided to start with the Chelsea dress. You can purchase the pattern here.

I used an e hook and 1 piece of pink and white Aunt Lydia's size 10 for the holiday blend I was attempting. I think I might try a plain size 3 to see how it looks.

Chelsea Variegated Dress

I started making this for the donation a couple of years ago adapting it from a free pattern found here.

I like the shorter version of this dress in the variegated colors. I will hopefully make the longer version in a solid color prior to the donation as it is a quick and easy add to the donation bag.

Notes:

I used a 1.8 mm thread hook for this project.

I did not decrease rounds when joining at round 7 or the project would be too small for this Chelsea doll.

When I previously made this outfit in the vaiegated colors I believe I stopped prior to the dress increases around the knee. In the future if the dress is too short I'd just continue with the current rows until the length was achieved. It looks better longer in the solid color than the multi-colors.

Last year I finished not just the back but the neckline of the dress. It looks fine with the solid pink. I'd just finish the back when using variegated in the future.

Thanks to a Barbie Blogger I was able to pick up some outfits for Chelsea at Dollar Tree prior to Christmas for this year and next year's donation.

I never know what will come back at the Dollar Tree and what is a one and done so I will pick up stuff and store if it is something I'm likely to want for another year.

The line is called Friend's Forever and I believe there are a total of 6 outfits. I had to hit almost all my local Dollar Tree stores to find all of them, but I know Chelsea will leave pretty well dressed for the next few years.

Chelsea Sleeping Bag

I needed a small travel project for a rare Saturday appointment. These often come with wait times so I thought it best to have a small travel project.

I was able to fit Chelsea in one of the pockets of my project bag along with my regular crochet tools as I need to measure as I go with this project as the pattern is designed for a Beanie Babie and isn't quite the right length for Chelsea. It is easy enough to adapt by measuring the length against Chelsea and adding rows until her feet are covered before closing the end.

You can find the Teanie Beanie free sleeping bag pattern here.

Notes:

I ended up using the same left over ball of purple I used last year to make the sleeping bag.

I hook

This is the beginning of the sleeping bag project for the non-baby dolls. I'll be alternating the sleeping bag with other accessory and clothing projects. This week I'm hoping to finish off the last of the bibs I need and hopefully get one more diaper finished before beginning another clothing item. In that way I'm hoping to get back to that balance I had before the holidays hit of working on accessories and clothing so all dolls leave with a wardrobe along with accessories.

I did pick up clothes at Dollar Tree for Chelsea so she will have some clothes, but I always like the dolls to leave with hand made items when I have the time to make them. The Dollar Tree items are more of an insurance policy and for times I just don't get to the smaller dolls or extras because most girls love extra doll outfits for their fashion dolls.