Glitter Girl Linda Dress

I added the Glitter Girl dolls to the donation for a couple of reasons. One they are a smaller alternative for girls who like the larger 18 inch dolls but lack the space those dolls require for storage. When I saw the American Girl Wellie Wishers I liked the style of the doll but clearly it wasn't an ecomonic reality for a charity donation. I came across the Glitter Girl dolls and that was more within the price range I could afford.

The second reason was more personal I had seen Wellie Wisher crochet patterns and wanted to see how well I could adapt them to the Glitter Girl dolls. As with the 18 Inch dolls not all patterns fit all the dolls equally well and some require more adaptations than others.

Now what I find interesting is the Wellie Wishers dolls are listed as being 14.5 inches and the Glitter Girl Dolls are listed as being 14 inch dolls. However I've found I still need to adapt patterns for patterns listed as Wellie Wisher/14.5 inch dolls or 14 inch dolls. That brings me to this pattern. This is one of Adoring Doll's patterns. You can buy the set with the 18 and 14 inch dolls which I have here or just the 14 inch doll here.

My guage is often odd but this outfit has more changes than normal for me.

Notes:

I used the suggested g hook for the shrug. I had not previously made a shrug so my only note to myself is trust the directions it works.

The dress was challenging as it suggests joining at the first row and I found it impossible to get the dress to slide over the doll's hips until I waited to join until completing row 9. This meant stopping after every row and returning to the starting point to keep the look as if I was working in the round. More ends to sew in but it was worth being able to get the outfit to fit.

Even with that change I used an I hook for the dress. I often use an I hook for her patterns as our guages are different.

I used a g hook for the purse and shoes. I might consider an e for the purse and start with an f for the shoes next time. It felt both were a bit larger than I wanted. I left off rows on the purse as it was becoming a go bag. I think I'd also opt for a flower button the next time.

Yarn:

Red Heart Super Saver Bright Yellow, White, Ombres Green Apple

Glitter Girl Spring Petal Dress

I've been keeping my eye out for more Wellie Wishers patterns as they seem the closest to fitting the Glitter Girl dolls. The Spring Petals Pattern can be purchased here.

This pattern calls for Knit Picks Fingering Yarn. I had some yellow Pallette on hand and it did make guage but it was tight under the arms and if I'd liked the color I might have played more with hook size to make it work but I really didn't like the color for the outfit. I've been complaining for years that I needed to finish off my Palette, as I'd stopped using it when I stopped making Barbie clothes for my nieces, I've since solved that problem. I recently reordered Pallette during one of their sales but I didn't want to wait to try this dress.

I went with Baby Bernat Sport Blue and it wasn't a bad choice. I liked the color. I can see where fingering would make for a lighter dress. When my shipment comes in from Knit Picks I'll likely make a second dress to send along for the donation and play with the gauge to see what works.

As for this dress I started with an e hook to get the arms to fit more comfortably. I like the outfits to be easy for little hands to take on and off. I found I needed to move to a D hook for the skirt as it quickly poofed out. This is where the fingering yarn likely would be a better option if I can play with the guage on the top to get it to fit better.

The patterns and textures on this dress are beautifully designed. I will be looking to find other patterns to try from this designer as I was pleased with my first pattern I purchased.

Glitter Girl Doll Bathing Suit

I mentioned in yesterday's blog after a cold winter January storm I decided I'd think warm thoughts and outfit some of the donation dolls with bathing suits. Next up is the Glitter Girls Doll with another Wellie Wisher pattern designed by Char that you can purchase here.

I used Aunt Lydia's Fashion Crochet, Cotton Size 3, Warm Blue for the main part of the outfit. The challenge is finding variagated thread in size 3. The pattern suggests Lizbeth and I do have some on order but since you can also use 2 pieces of size 10 crochet thread together I scrambled to find two of the same variagated thread cones to finish off the swimsuit and the visor. I ended up using Aunt Lydia's Crochet Thread Size 10-Monet and it was a nice contrast to the blue.

As unusual as it may be for me I worked this pattern as written. After finishing this pattern I actually have a better feel for the Lil Cutesies pattern and will use that information for the Lots to Love 8 inch doll bathing suit which is on my to make list.

I have a couple more of Char's Wellie Wishers patterns to make for the Glitter Girl doll but I'm hoping to wait until my Lizbeth order arrives. While I didn't mind the look and feel of the two strands together for a trim, I'm not sure I'd be thrilled trying to work a main section of a pattern with 2 strands of thread. Both patterns have main sections with variageted sections so I'd rather wait. I still have bathing suits for the other dolls to make so I have time for my order to arrive.