Ken Ski Outfit

I previously made this outfit for Ken back in 2021 using the pattern found in the out of print House of White Birches Crochet Wardrobe for 11 1/2" Fashion Doll Including a complete Wedding Ensemble and Trousseau.

This is a black and white newsprint leaflet but I love it for this project because for the most part the patterns are designed for people who want to make a wardrobe for a child to play with rather than an adult who will display the dolls. I have been exploring the patterns a bit more this year and returning to some like this one I hadn't used in a few years. I'm trying to get better about notations so when I do return to a project I have a starting point.

One challenge I have had is that the sizes on the model dolls change. Sometimes significantly and sometimes in a minor way. The first Ken I used for the donation is more similiar to the current model I'm using now. The middle one, the Vet was smaller and required significantly more changes to the old fashion doll patterns to get the clothing to fit. Sadly, this Ken looks like he's been discontinued so I will have to start searching for a new model. I'm hoping to find one similiar in size to this one because so far the old patterns fit him pretty well.

Notes:

I used Knit Picks Fingering Palette and a C hook for all items I would suggest using a D or E hook for the hat as it is tight.

Sweater:

I've played with changing colors at the top. I like this look better than the previous look. The single strand stripe got lost at the top. The double stripe looks cleaner.

Don't decrease sleeves at row 11. While it gives a more realistic cuff look the hand does not fit through the cuff once the count is reduced. I think I realized this before but without notes I tried the reduction and pulled it out. Pallete doesn't always love being pulled out.

Pants:

I end up crocheting around to cover the elastic and then reducing. I waited to reduce after making the legs. I think in the future I would experiment with reducing after finishing the elastic row as the pants get puffier the longer the additional stitches remain. I did get down to 15 stitches for each leg and that was a good fit once I reached it to get them easily on and off.

As I mentioned earlier these dolls seem to be slightly different in size. I needed to add rows to 18 to get the legs long enough for Ken's pants.

Hat:

After realizing Ken's hat was tight I went back to see if I left any instructions for Skipper's hat I'd made earlier and sure enough I had so for next year's project I leave myself the reminder from Skipper's project. I'd also seriously consider going up to a D hook as this was snug.

I added one 2 dc in one dc in next row for the hat after reading my previous project notes and I found this made the hat fit better with the doll's hair.

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.