Lots to Love 10 Inch Bathing Suit

Last year I adapted a pattern I'd previously used with the Lots to Love 8 Inch Doll From Annie Potter Presents Sweet Baby Doll Layette to give this doll a swim suit.

It was cute but I really preferred the look I got making Char's swim suit for the Lots to Love 8 inch doll this year. It just had a better fit.

I hadn't seen one for the larger doll and I really didn't feel like trying to adapt a thread pattern when I received a coupon from Char's Etsy store and decided to see if there were any patterns that would be of use for the donation.

Sure enough she had the pattern in the larger size for the Lots to Love 10 inch Baby Doll and Berenguer Baby Steps Doll. I've seen pictures and patterns for the Baby Steps doll but I've never actually seen the doll. However, the directions for both dolls are included along with a baby bikini pattern. You can purchase the pattern here.

Notes: I used Aunt Lydia's Fashion Crochet Thread 3 Soft Mauve for the primary portion of this pattern.

The contrasting color is two strands of DMC size 10 thread used together I can no longer locate.

The pattern suggests an f hook I went with an e hook as I missed that in the directions and I've traditionally used an e hook with this thread. In the future I might try the f to make it just a tad loser on the swim suit and the cover. I'd stick with an e for the sandals and the hat.

This pattern includes a beach blanket and a bag along with additional bikini patterns. I chose to make the blanket but a bag for the baby seemed odd. I used Bernat Baby Big Ball Sport yarn in Pink and White for the blanket with a G hook. She has a really fun interesting pattern for the blanket that creates a neat texture.

Just a note for those who might be interested the smaller Lots to Love dolls are not widely available for in store or even online toy store purchases. However, since they are a good size for families who may not have room for the larger dolls I've continued to seek them out. Education stores that sell to non-school markets still often have the Lots to Love 10 inch dolls. Some online craft stores still sell the Lots Love 8 inch dolls as people still use them for holiday decorations. The Lots to Love 14 inch and the JC 16 inch dolls are still pretty widely available online. I rarely buy dolls in store any longer with the exception of the 18 inch dolls which are sometimes cheaper when I can get them in store.