Stacie Little Sister Pretty Ensemble

Having made Skipper an outfit using this pattern from the out of print Annie's Fashion Doll Sister and Me 87D21 it was only a matter of time before I got around to making one for Stacie as well since I proved last year with some minor adjustments of hook size the pattern can be used for both modern dolls.

This was made with Aunt Lydia's Crochet Thread size 10 in Mint Green and Red Heart Size 10 Crochet Thread White using a Tulip Etimo 1.25mm steel crochet hook. I've been pleased to find that I only have to adjust the hook and can continue with the size 10 thread. The size 10 is easier to source than the size 20 I've started to use for some of the "Barbie" projects.

Chelsea Drop Waist Dress with Flared Skirt

This was part of my folder of birthday patterns. DH asks me for a list and from that he selects patterns to buy me for gifts. I repeat lots of patterns but I love having new stuff to try. With some dolls I've needed to increase my pattern selection as they are new to me or they've changed size considerably from the older patterns I do have.

Chelsea is one of those dolls. I had patterns for the smaller Kelly and when I made them a decade ago they did fit the smaller doll. When I came back to Barbie's the larger Chelsea required new patterns because I found it was hard adjusting the smaller Kelly patterns because I couldn't increase the yarn size as the outfits became too bulky and if I increased the hoook size the gaps became too large. Last year I didn't do well dressing Chelsea for her journey to her new home. I've made a much better start this year. I started with free patterns and then decided to try some paid designers to see if I could get some variety.

I decided to try Charpatterns Chelsea patterns and put one on my birthday list. You can purchase this one here.

This pattern calls for Lizbeth size 20 Watermelon. I didn't have Lizbeth on hand but I did have solid color Size 20 from Creative Yarn source on hand and decided I wanted to see if I could get an idea of how easy the pattern would be to use while I searched for some variegated size 20 thread. After a quick search I realized Watermelon was not happening. I did eventually find some variegated Lizbeth 20 on sale at Joann's and hopefully when my order arrives I will try this pattern again giving it a slightly different look.

Notes:

I used Creative Yarn's size 20 thread French Blue, Bright Yellow and White. The pattern calls for a size 10 steel crochet hook but numbers are not as helpful as they once were and mm are actually a more stable measurement across hooks. I made the dress with a Tulip Etimo 1.25mm Steel Crochet Hook. I think I could have used a smaller hook. It's always a balance between a good fit and having it too hard to get on and off the doll for little hands. The smaller the doll the harder it is for kids to manipulate the clothes. I went down to my Tulip Steel .9mm for the hat, undies, and shoes.

Ken Shorts and Shirt

After using the shirt found in the out of print Crochet Wardrobe for 11 1/2 Inch Fashion Dolls Including a Complete Wedding Ensemble and Trousseau for a previous Ken project, I knew I'd be back to make the original short set. I've learned if a pattern works add it to the donation because it is hard to find easy to make patterns for Ken.

I used a C hook with Bernat Baby Grey and I'm honestly not sure what brand the Green was as I've been buying lots of baby yarn brands and I often lose the wrappers.

I reduced the second row of the shorts sc 4 decrease around. I added rows to the shorts as they were too short to split for the crotch with the original row count. I reversed rows after joining. I liked the texture/look of it.

I did not add the trim to the shirt. It gives a different look to the shirt and provides for more mixing and matching among outfits hopefully. While the basic skeleton of some of the shirts might be the same I'm hoping the looks will be some what different.

Ken Sweat Pants and T-Shirt

After making Ken's PJ bottoms I realized the pattern would work for sweat pants as well. As I've mentioned before it is challenging getting the older patterns I've collected for Ken to fit the smaller modern Ken dolls so when I find a pattern that does fit I'm trying to see if I can stretch it for more than one purpose.

The pants pattern for this set was found in an out of print Crochet World's Fashion Doll Showcase #1. I had a slighlty different guage using Aunt Lydia's Size 10 Navy thread and ended up using a Tulip 1.75mm hook for this set of pants. Not sure why the thread was different but I'm making a note of it hear for myself because I will likely return to my stash and this pattern next year and it will matter.

Having made the pants I wanted a simple top to finish the set. I turned to another out of print leaflet from House of White Birches Crochet Wardrobe for 11 1/2 inch Fashion Dolls Including a complete Wedding Ensemble and Trousseau. This pattern is a simple short and top set and I will be returning to make the short set at a later point. As I've said if something fits I'm going to use it for the donation this year. Ken is one of my more challenging dolls to fit.

I used a C rather than the suggested D hook with Bernat Baby Sport Blue and White. I used the suggested number of rows for the shirt and sleeves.

Ken PJ's and Robe

I tend to buy multiples of Barbies, Ken's etc. so I can adapt patterns and donate them for a few years without having to start over with a new doll and new dimensions.

I stil have a few more years with the Ken Dentist Doll and then I'll have to hunt for a new model as I suspect he'll have been retired. I looked this year just out of curiousity and picked up a few Barbie Zoologists as my doll when I run out of Barbie Vet dolls. I was concerned as I looked at the dimensions for the Ken professional dolls that he keeps getting smaller. This makes fitting clothes for him from the old Ken patterns increasingly more challenging.

This is another pattern I found in the out of print Crochet World's Fashion Doll Showcase #1.

There is always a challenge when you adapt older patterns for dolls but with the changing sizes of the Barbie doll family there is an additional challenge that it just isn't a change in available fibers it also means you are adapting for different sizes not just in height but in other proportions as well. This is why when possible I do try to buy several versions of a specific doll to donate so when I adapt a pattern I get to use it for a couple of years before having to refit it to a new model.

I needed my Tulip Etimo Steel .9mm Hook to make this fit Ken. The original pattern calls for a C hook to give you an idea of contrast. I used Red Heart's Size 10 Thread White and Aunt Lydia's Size 10 Delft

The pants were easy to make and I'm thinking these would make great sweat pants in another color with a shirt. I struggled last year to find enough patterns that would fit Ken so I'm going to expand where I can on patterns that fit.

Stacie Sunday Best

I have a preposted donation list to help me track all the items made to keep me on track. I started it last year late in the year and this year I started it from the first project made and it has helped me to focus on dolls in need of dressing.

I started out well with Barbie's clan in January. Barbie and Chelsea have a good start. This is promising since last year poor Chelsea left with only one outfit. However, Stacie prior to this project had but one outfit and Ken and Skipper still have only the clothes they came in so I have some work to do not to have that what was I thinking moment in the fall when I realize I've forgotten to include enough outfits for a doll.

I started making Barbie clothes for my now adult nieces before moving on adding Barbies to the donation recently. During the years my nieces were younger I hunted the Internet searching for out of print leaflets and magazines devoted to crocheting for Barbie and her clan. While adjustments sometimes have to be made for the changes in doll sizes, available yarn/thread, and my own guage, I find I'm often able to make the patterns work for even the modern Barbie line.

This pattern comes Crochet World's Fashion Doll Showcase #1 published in 1988. It has a wide range of patterns from leisure to more formal outfits. I started with this one because I wanted something for Stacie and I thought it would give me an idea of what I was working with for guage.

The pattern calls for Knit-Cro-Sheen and a Size 1 steel crochet hook. I used Aunt Lydia's and Red Heart Thread and traded back between my Tulip thread hooks 1.8mm and 1.25mm.

The pattern shows the picture for the dress but not the coat. I shortened the coat because I found the longer coat didn't fit well over the dress. Without a picture to see how the designer intended it to fit it was hard to determine how it was supposed to fit but I liked the short sweater look for the outfit.

Barbie Two Color Sundress

I finished another outfit for the Barbie Pet Vet donation doll. This was made with another free pattern found here. This free pattern uses UK terms so you will need to be aware of that if you are used to US crochet terms.

I made some changes to help with the fit of the dress as I found it was too large with any of the weights of yarn I had on hand. I switched to Aunt Lydia's Fashion Crochet, Cotton Size 3, Warm Rose and Sage. I used a 3mm hook through out the dress and ended up adding a row to the top to reduce it. I would use a c or b hook for the top the next time I try this dress for the top and then use the next size up for the skirt to get a slightly better fit.

I chose not to join as I went and instead sewed the seem up through the first color change. I tried joining but I found it didn't work well. As much as I try to avoid sewing when possible this was a better option for this dress. I closed the top with a snap after finishing the opening.

Barbie Crochet Strapless Flared Dress

As I've become more comfortable using thread I've found more free Barbie patterns to use for the donation. I came across Be a Crafter who has several free Barbie patterns. You can find this one here.

I used the suggested size 10 thread and size 2 crochet thread hook for this project. I wasn't able to get the elastic to work but I did decrease the rows on the top to make the top section fit tighter. The waist line is a bit loose. If I make this again I might decrease more at the top and increase out as I go to make the waist looser.

Chelsea Dress

I mentioned in the previous Stacie post that I was trying to use an old free Fibre Craft Cindy pattern, found here, to make a dress for Barbie's Chelsea Can Be Builder Doll . Clearly since I made a Stacie post out of my first attempt I had to make a second try to get it to fit .

I'd purchased a selection of size 20 thread from Creative Yarn Source last year for making Barbie clothes. It proved the right choice for making this outfit work for Chelsea. I needed my .4mm thread hook to get the size right for Chelsea. I also added two rows of purple prior to changing to yellow to give the dress the length it lacked likely from the smaller thread size and the smaller hook size. I chose not to use the collar or the buttons suggested for the Cindy doll. I tried the collar on the Stacie outfit and found it was too large. The Cindy doll has a slightly larger rounder head and the collar fits better on her.

I will be keeping this pattern for both Stacie and Chelsea. I have my notes on my blog and the printed copy of the pattern for both dolls so I should be able to find them again and repeat for future donation projects. I'm working on hunting down more easy to make Chelsea patterns as I did feel bad she left with only one dress last year.

Along with getting a dress made earlier in the donation cycle I'm also pleased to say I found some Mattel branded Barbie items specific to Chelsea at the Dollar Tree that will be headed out with the donation as well. I've had luck there for Barbie with shoes and other various Mattel specific accessories but this January was the first time I'd seen stuff targeted to Chelsea so I stocked up for this year and to have stuff for future donations in case this was a one time only situation.

Barbie Peach Gown

I often tell people if you see a pattern, download it, save it, and print a copy because sites disappear or people remove patterns. This pattern was available as a Ravelry download here but is currently unavailable. I list the link because it could go live again. If I find the pattern I will add a link for my own records and to share with others.

For this pattern I started with Bernat Baby Big Ball Sport Yarn, Peach Blossom but I needed a heavier weight yarn for the project. I had a free shipping coupon for Herrschners a while back and after discovering that the yarn works well for the smaller dolls I picked up a supply in various sizes. I wanted to stay with peach and decided to try out the Herrschners Baby Yarn that is a 3 weight. This proved to be a better fit.

Since the Barbie Farmer doll was no longer available to purchase I moved to the Barbie Pet Vet for this year's donation and am finding like last year the doll is a different size to fit than my old doll.

As with all Barbie/fashion doll patterns you need to fit the pattern to the doll. You can never make the outfit thinking it will fit. I also made some changes do to how I prefer to construct outfits.

I used an e hook for this project. To make this outfit fit this particular Barbie I kept the stitch count for the bodice at 22 and did not do the decreases from rows 8-12. When I tried the decreases the dress was too small. I continued on with the increases as written. For my own preferences I joined the dress after the first 4 rows and worked the dress in the round not joining with slip stitches as I didn't like the line the ss left on the dress. I used a snap to close the top of the dress.