Chelsea Critter Empire Dress

I discovered last year that Char Caywood's Calico Critter Mom Empire dress does fit Chelsea and Stacie with some minor adaptations. I have limited patterns for Barbie's sisters so I'm always thrilled to find something unexpected. You can purchase the pattern here.

This is made with size 10 thread.

The White is Aunt Lydias and the multi-colored is from a box of Artiste Thread smaller sample sized cones that I buy for these smaller doll projects. I love the color blends that they don't seem to sell as individual larger sized cones and they provide great options for small projects and trims. I love being able to reach into the box and come out with different options for the doll projects.

Notes:

This was made with a 1.25 mm hook.

Chelsea needs more length than the Calico Mom so I repeat row 6 until it reaches her knees before doing rows 7 and 8. A new note for this year is to remember to turn after joining the added rows to continue the pattern texture.

I finished the back and added a snap to close. Last year I finished around the neck. I would do that for future projects.

Our Generation Purple Dress

I am fortunate to have a rather large collection of crochet patterns for the 18 inch dolls so I don't have to repeat every pattern every year to get a decent wardrobe for the three female 18 inch dolls I set out to dress each year. I have some favorites and must do's for each donation round but others surprise me that they haven't been seen for a bit.

This is one of Adoring Doll's patterns that can be purchased here.

My schedule this year of rotating through the dolls on a regular basis has led me to dig deeper into my 18 inch doll binders and it is fun to see patterns that haven't been out in a while. This one was made for the My Life doll back in 2021. After looking at my notes and with a weird mistake to start the skirt I made a few changes for the Our Generation Doll.

For my own notes for future years, I've started to make many of the larger doll patterns especially in sections. In this case I started with the skirt, made the shirt, and jacket later and finished off with the accessories. This allowed me to start this project in between finishing off last weeks smaller doll projects.

Notes:

Shirt:

I started the project with the pink shirt and the suggested H hook. I followed my directions from last project not to join which requires 3 buttons instead of 1.

Skirt:

The skirt was made with an I which changes to an H hook as the pattern suggests just with different hooks.

I mistakenly started with the Red Heart Super Saver Amethyst yarn. It is supposed to be white at the top with a bottom trim of purple.

I made it that way for the My Life doll previously but I wasn't crazy about the long patch of white against the purple.

The white wedged between purple just worked better for me and I'd do that again for future projects.

I started with purple changing to white in row 5 and then changed back to purple as the directions suggested.

Jacket:

I used the suggested H hook for the jacket.

On my copy there is no line space between row 2 and 3 and I kept trying to use row 3's stitch count and figuring I'd made a mistake. I circled the correct count but an extra note here hopefully will remind me not to make this mistake.

I followed the jacket directions as written. This is one of the easier jacket patterns for me. My only suggestion for the future is to ss around the arm openings as this helps keep the fingers from catching.

Shoes/Socks

The shoes and socks required all three colors and a G hook. I made both shoes first, finished them off and then added the socks.

Scarf/Headband:

I made these after finishing the jacket and I just circled a note on the pattern to remind myself that neither are made in purple. I was half way through a very pretty purple scarf when I saw the picture and realized I had just continued on with the jacket colors without thinking.

I used Red Heart Super Saver Turqua for both items.

They both require a g hook.

Skipper Poncho and Pants

This poncho pattern is one of Michelle Ratman's that is currently unavailable. She does sell quite a few Barbie style poncho patterns on Etsy but I purchased this one a few years ago and found it works well for both Barbie and Skipper.

The pants were made using an out of print House of White Birches leaflet Crochet Wardrobe for 11 1/2 inch Fashion Dolls skiing pattern. A note to myself the Barbie pattern fits Skipper well, the Ken pattern is required for both Barbie and Ken with a few row additions.

Notes:

The poncho was made with the Red Heart Unforgettable Candied yarn I had left over from the Lil Cuties Mermaid project.

I've slowly stocked up not just on Tulip Etimo hooks specifically the red for my lighter weight yarns or yarns like Unforgettable which tend to catch and tangle more easily. I'm still not a fan of them for traditional worsted projects but I've noticed a difference using them for my under 4 weight projects.

I used the 2.75 mm hook which is the C equivelent with the Knit Picks Palette yarn for the pants. While the Barbie pants fit Skipper better I still need to add rows to get the length correct. Not sure if this is because of a change in fiber or the original Barbie this was designed for was different.

When I made this previously for Skipper I used Shine sport and needed a larger hook for the head opening. With the Unforgettable the E hook worked well for the whole project.