Evening Sun

Is there nothing better than the lighting at early morning or late evening? Nope! :) This was really an impulse photo shoot. I saw the great light when I got home and scrambled to get some pictures taken! You know you're a little obsessed when you can't pass up an opportunity to photograph your dolls. :/

Elizabeth and Ruthie time traveled for this photo shoot! If you haven't noticed already, I'm not very strict about keeping my dolls in their time periods. I do try, but they always end up in colonial gowns or a t-shirt and jeans at some point.

They're both wearing dresses made by Heritage Dolls Fashions. Elizabeth has a recreation of Samantha's icecream dress, which was seen in book illustrations. The red dress Ruthie is wearing is called the Toy Soldier. It's not explicitly made for the 1904 time period, but I thought it fit well enough.

Even the colors were nice in these; with Elizabeth's bright blue eyes, Ruthie's stunning red dress, and the black-eyed susan's in the background, I decided to put the photos in a sepia tone with a dark brown vignette. That's another one of my "obsessions" black and white/sepia photography. I just love old time feel.So Elizabeth and Ruthie ran around outside while I snapped pictures of their excursion. I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out, actually. I've kind of been looking in to getting a DSLR camera of some sort, but the price is scaring me a little, even though I know it would be a good investment. But my little Kodak digital camera seems to be doing just fine, even though it will act up on occasion.

I'd also like to thank everyone for all the super-nice comments I've been getting lately. I'm glad you guys like the descriptive stories that sometimes accompany my photos. I was thinking that it might be a little too much, but it seems I'm wrong! Sorry that I couldn't have one of those stories for this post as well, my muse is rather low at the moment.

Ranting aside, I hope you enjoy the post! Yeah, I've posted three times within the week! Unbelievable, right? I guess I've been re-bitten by the blogging bug.

-Brooke

Spring Time

A glance outside from the window, you see partial sun, green grass, seemingly nice weather. Step outside, and there's fifteen mile per hour winds, a temperature of forty degrees, and foreboding, dark rain clouds in the distance. Are you sure it's spring?

The dolls had been dying to get outside, so I had scheduled a "spring party" outdoors with the new picnic table this weekend. Unfortunately, on the account of rain, the spring party was transferred indoors. Though inside, Sonali, Gwen, Nicki, Emily, Marisol, Ruthie, Mia, and Jess still had a good time. They talked, ate cookies, and played games. The silly girls even began singing! :P



It figures that the rain stopped as soon as the party was coming to a close. Either way, I wasn't complaining. Everyone quickly headed outside to splash in puddles and pose for some photos.

You can see all the spring photos here. The pictures included in the post are just a teaser :)
Models:
-Ruthie Smithens: Electric Turquoise Drawstring Dress by The Heritage Clothesline
-Nicki Fleming: Eyelet Spring Dress by The Heritage Clothesline
-Jess McConnell: Precious Pink Party Dress by Melody Valerie Couture
-Sonali Matthews: Dainty Dots Dress by Melody Valerie Couture
-Gwen Thompson: Chrissa's Meet Dress by American Girl
-Emily Bennett: Kit's Blue Bell Dress by The Heritage Clothesline
-Marisol Luna: Flower Garden Dress by American Girl
-Mia St. Clair: Chrissa's Sundress Dress paired with Sonali's Meet T-Shirt by American Girl

As you may or may not notice, we have two new dresses from the Heritage Clothesline. Micah does an amazing job, the quality, customer service, and price are great. The Electric Turquoise Drawstring dress is shown on Ruthie, and the Eyelet Spring dress is shown on Nicki. A big thank-you to The Heritage Clothesline!

Thanks for reading,
-Brooke

Liberty Jane Patterns Take 2: Military Green Modeled By Amelia St. Clair

Our second shirt was made in a green fabric. I thought it was more of a military green, but possibly it's more olive colored. In the photos it looks almost gray, but in person it has much more of a green tone. Either way, it's another colour not used much by American Girl, so I'm glad to be able to add it to the dolls' wardrobe.

Anyways, all I can say about the second shirt is that it was a lot easier to make. The mint shirt took me about three to four hours (yeah, pretty sad), but this one only took an hour and half. I was able to fix the neckline, the sleeves came out better, there was no 'ruffle', and overall it turned out really nice. The fit on this version is better, too. I think it helped that I actually tried it on the doll as I was sewing :P There was only one careless mistake made, so I'm very pleased with this!

I know these shirts probably look extremely amateur and mediocre, especially to all you seamstresses out there, but I'm extremely proud of them since it's basically my first time making doll clothes, and they actually look good!

I immediately chose Mia to model this because of her pretty hazel eyes. They go great with the colour of the shirt. We paired the shirt with some distressed Liberty Jane jeans, flip flops, and accessorized with a blue necklace. I actually made the necklace last night as well. The beads were incredibly small, but it looks very nice.Both shirts turned out surprisingly well. I'm actually kind of amazed at how good they actually look! There's a lot of people to thank for the recent inspiration, including Libby/Nicki, Rose, Melody Valerie, and Sitara, among others. And of course, a HUGE thank-you to Liberty Jane for the pattern. It fun, easy to follow, and there were great results!

Liberty Jane Patterns Take 1: Cool Mint Modeled by Nicolette Fleming

Due to various things, I was feeling rather crafty last night, and well... decided to try my hand at sewing.

Basically this was my first attempt at sewing doll clothes, and, though it isn't perfect, I'm very pleased with the outcome. Not too bad for someone who barely know show to operate a sewing machine!

The first shirt I made is in a cool, green/blue mint colour, perfect for summer. The shade almost reminds me of a breeze, or perhaps the crash of waves... Either way, I really like the fabric, which can look more green or blue in different lighting (in the photos, it's taking on more of a blue tone, but in reality it is more green). It is a relatively light weight, knit cotton that I thought would work nicely. The dolls here are in desperate need of some casual warm weather clothes, and I jumped at the opportunity to use a colour that American Girl rarely does.

After choosing my fabric, the next step was the pattern. I'm using the Liberty Jane T-Shirt pattern, and overall, it was really nice. They include good, step by step directions that are easy to follow (even for me, and that's saying something!). The sleeves were a bit of issue, but I was able to do all right, I suppose. I did have some trouble with the neckline, though, and getting the shirt to lay right. It was bunching up, and just kind of... wrong, for lack of a better word. I had to a little 'creative', per say, in the back with the snap closure to get it looking right.

Well, several somewhat frustrating hours later, we have a slightly wonky, but definitely acceptable shirt! It actually turned out quite nice, I have to say. Not couture quality, that's for sure, but a good start, considering it is our first.

The fabric, when hemming the bottom, actually 'ruffled' a bit. I think it was because the type of material used. It wasn't supposed to do that, but I actually kind of like it. The ruffle at the bottom gives it a nice touch, though it may be a little too young and girly looking. It makes our shirt a bit more unique, since everyone and their mother/sister/cousin/aunt/friend/etc. is using the pattern to make their own shirt. Liberty Jane warns about the type of fabric that stretches, and I think that was the kind we used, which is why the shirt has the weird looking bottom hem.

Nicolette, more commonly known as Nicki, was glad to model the new shirt. She got outside for a photo shoot, wearing the new top. We paired it with a jean skirt and western style boots for the warmer weather, and accessorized with a simple green necklace. I was surprised Miss Fleming actually wore a skirt, let alone her hair down, since she's quite the tom-boy. Nicki is one of those dolls that just loves to be outside. As she spends more time in the sun this spring, her freckles are getting darker and more apparent, and her sandy blond hair is lightening up a bit. Though, we weren't able to stay outside long because of rain!
Anyways, I think it turned out pretty good for our first real attempt at sewing any type of doll clothes. What do you think?

Up next: Liberty Jane Patterns Take 2: Military Green Modeled By Amelia St. Clair

Melody Valerie- Ivy Cape

Melody Valerie Couture- The Ivy Cape

An absolutely wonderful piece of couture, Ruthie quickly claimed it. Melody Valerie does not disappoint! The Ivy Cape is made of lovely, dark green fabric with a shiny silver lining. The clasps are beautiful, pearly white buttons with loop holes, and the hood has amazing detail.

I (Brooke) took Ruthie out into the woods today. We *finally* have a a somewhat substantial amount of snow, and she was glad to have her warm cloak! She is wearing this over her Holiday Dress, if you're wondering.

Hope you enjoy the pictures! Thanks, Melody Valerie!
-Brooke

The surprise!

I'm posting this late, but, as promised, a post on our surprise items! Picture heavy post to follow.

The surprise was... couture! Two Heritage Clothesline dresses to be exact. Brooke ordered Samantha her ice cream dress and Jess a lovely, red frock. Both are stunning, and we are so happy to have these two new dresses for the holidays!


First is the ice cream dress, inspired by book illustrations.

It is a lovely, crisp, and white with beautiful black ribbon detailing. Very, very pretty! Amazing quality, and looks just like it does in the book! This has to be one of the prettiest Edwardian-era dresses I've seen, even better than those made by American Girl! Samantha looks so beautiful with her dark hair and eyes against the white dress. This dress seems to work for both winter and spring, which is very nice. Samantha is so happy to have her new dress!














Next is the Toy Soldier red dress, which was promptly claimed by Jess. I think it looks very nice on her, red looks very great with her coloring. The dress is made from a rich, red fabric that has white lace detailing. Everything is absolutely gorgeous! This is a great holiday dress.














Well, these aren't the greatest pictures. Sorry for not posting much these past few days!
-Avery

Samantha's new couture coat!

Hello, everyone! I know Avery usually posts on this blog, but today she is letting me! I'm Samantha Parkington, Avery may have mentioned me before.
I have a new coat for this winter season! :) Brooke found it at a craft show this weekend for a great price. It came with a velvet hat, and she added Kirsten's mittens (not shown very well in the photos, sorry).
I'm not sure if this would be considered a couture item or not... The definition of couture, according to dictionary.com is:
Created or produced by a fashion designer; being, having, or suggesting the style, quality, etc., of a fashion designer; very fashionable.
Either way, I think it's very cute! It isn't totally historically accurate, though. It looks fine for the early 1900's, but the body of the coat (red fabric) is made of synthetic polar fleece, which wasn't even around in 1904! The cuffs and collar are made of velvet, and the hat is velvet as well. The coat has real working buttons instead of snaps or velcro.
I'm so glad to have a coat, even if it isn't perfect. Plus, my favorite color is red, so that works out well!

Enjoy the photos! They were took rather quickly, and not edited much :P



Guest Blogger,
-Samantha Parkington

Happy Birthday, Nellie!

Happy Birthday, Nellie Jaclyn O' Malley!

October 15th was Nellie's birthday! :) She had a great day! Samantha, Lydia, and I threw her a small party. And guess what? Since poor Nellie doesn't have ANY clothes except her PJ's, meet dress, and winter coat, Brooke is getting her a dress for her birthday!

Brooke is letting her choose whichever one she wants, but Nellie's having a hard time deciding. We've narrowed down to two dresses from the Dollies' Dressmaker and one from terristouch. Personally, I like the striped one, just because I think it'd look better with Nellie's coloring. But I think any of them would look lovely on her. Which one do you like? Dress #1, the plaid one with the pinafore from terristouch, Dress #2, the floral green one from the Dollies' Dressmaker, or Dress #3, the striped one from the Dollies' Dressmaker? I'm making it into a poll on the sidebar (be sure to vote!). I'm not promising we'll get the one that wins, but I'm interested to see what others think.



And, another thing:
One of the main reasons Brooke founded this blog was to "get to know" me again. Brooke kind of drifted out of AG's for over a year. Then she came back strong! So, she made this blog kind of reconnect with me. She had to think about my personality, my interests, take photos, etc. Now that Brooke is selling some dolls, I think I will begin to share my blog with all the other girls here at Mondale (our school). I think it would be a lot of fun, more interesting, and give them a chance for some attention too.

~Avery~

The surprise outfit- Liberty Jane duds!

On this dismal, rainy, and blustery day, a small white package arrived on our doorstep, a bright spot against the dark clouds.
"I wonder what this could be?" Jess thought. After a long day of biology and algebra classes, she was relieved to finally be at her dorm. Boy, was she surprised when she opened the box to reveal a lovely Liberty Jane Clothing outfit! A very trendy pair of distressed jeans, lacy white tank, graphic tee, and cute converse sneakers lay inside. She quickly changed into these magnificent duds, and took some pictures.

Presenting the surprise outfit- "our version" of Code Red by Liberty Jane Clothing! Cinnamon was wonderful, and worked with us until we found our perfect outfit. Substituting the skinny jeans for dark destroyed denim, replacing the sparkly silver cons with these new circle ones, and leaving the vest out entirely gives this outfit a whole new look! Originally it was going to be for Sonali, but Jess couldn't resist. It's just her style too.

This outfit is absolutely wonderful. I could swear that it was made for a real girl! The jeans are super cute, and have ripped and bleached areas to give them the destroyed look. They have a perfect fit, but still go on easily. The two shirts are great, and have a lot of mix and match potential! The white tank top has lace accents at the bottom, and looks great with the graphic t-shirt to make the layered look. Speak of that t-shirt, it's amazing! The fabric is adorable, I love the funky print. We also got a pair of circle converse shoes, they're too cute! I can't get over AG shoes, they're the sweetest things.

Amazing quality and attention to detail, I love this outfit!

This outfit gets an A+ from Jess and I! This is my first Liberty Jane outfit, and I couldn't be more thrilled.



Behind the photography with small lesson:
Fashion photography has been an increasing interest of mine, and to get these 3 shots (which, I have to admit, I'm very proud of!) took me about 45 minutes to an hour. First off, you have to get your doll looking perfect. Then, I had to set up the scene. I have an nice spot in my house with decent lighting from a window and sliding glass door (which is why a lot of indoor photos have the same background, sorry!). I also have a table craft light I use to get a nice look. Lighting is everything! Then, I take about 30 pictures, at least. Some with flash, some without, just experiment with everything. I then load them onto the computer and delete the ones I don't like as well. Seeing it on the large monitor helps to see which shots are your best. After deleting some it is narrowed down to about 10 shots. I put them on flickr.com (love this website) and they have an excellent editing program called piknik. I cannot recommend piknik enough! You have to have a good photo to start with, but editing it well on the computer can make all the difference. For these photos I added text, toyed around with brightness levels, sharpened, and enhanced the colors to really make them pop. It helps a lot! You don't have to have the most expensive, fancy camera to get nice looking pictures.

Thanks for reading! We love the new outfit!

-Brooke

Historical Dolls...

...are quite complex creatures, sometimes I don't fully understand them. I guess it's just because I'm modern, where as a time traveler, or another historical, wouldn't have any trouble adjusting to them. I've been hanging around with Nellie lately, and she's nice, but just so different.
Well, that was completely random! :P

On another note, Brooke has been stressing out. She's overwhelmed by new things... She wants so many of the new AG items, and couture, and she knows she can't possibly get it all, if any of it. AG collecting is a viscous cycle, you think you're happy with your collection, then they have to come out with a bunch of new items that you like. She's completely freaking out over "needing" to get things before they are gone, like Chrissa, her outfits, Gwen, limited edition couture, the 3 JLY's that she thought were retiring, outfits she think might retire, etc. Then AG throws all these new things in, plus her crazy everyday life/problems. It's just insane!

On yet another note, school starts for me on Tuesday! I'll post about it soon!

This post was basically just to update everyone...
~Avery~

Melody Valerie Fall Line! :)

The Melody Valerie fall line launch was today, and everything is gorgeous! I was not disappointed! I have been waiting for this day for a long time, and now it's finally here, with all the new designs for the fall and winter seasons.
It includes the "Statement in Taffeta" elegant blue dress, shown above. This ensemble is gorgeous, I love the fabric colors.

The Fall Line also features the "Wintry Meadows dress", in a lovely dark green wool, and the "School Girl", both pictured below.


The 4th and final "new" design is the stunning white and blue "Snowflake dress"! It is perfect for the holidays.

The fall line also includes 3 designs from the previous fall/winter season.
The gorgeous "Coppery Delight Dress",

"Crimson Bouquet Dress" ,

And the "Fall Colors Dress".

All are beautiful, and I'm glad that Melinda made more since last year!

I like quite a few of these dresses, they're all stunning, and perfect for the colder weather (the dolls are really lacking a fall and winter wardrobe...) Hopefully I'll be able to get some of them, since they're all absolutely stunning!
Great work Melinda, Melody, Lisette, Samantha, and mysterious model of the snowflake dress that looks like Kirsten! (haha, sorry we don't know who you are, but you're stunning!)

Go check out their Etsy shop, and their website!
-Brooke (and Avery)

*Note, the pictures are not mine, they are stock photos from Melody Valerie Couture!

The insanely large couture list

Notre extrêmement longue liste de couture.
Les morceaux de couture que nous voulons, dans aucun ordre particulieret, pourquoi nous les voulons.
(Our extremely long list of couture. The pieces of couture which we want, in no particular order, and why we want them. Sorry, my French is a little off)
This is the very, very large mater couture list. We will definitely not be getting everything, if anything, from this list. This is just the "dream list" of things we like.

"County Charm" by sdls275/Heirloom Doll Designs

photo credit: sdls275 auction photo
This dress is perfect for the pioneer days! It comes with a lot of things, like the dress, apron, shawl (not shown), and bonnet. I love the pattern of the dress.

1910's style for Rebecca by sdls275/Heirloom Doll Designs

photo credit: sdls275 auction photo

This is an amazing dress! I love the pleating and dark wool contrast. The hat is adorable!

School dress and coat for Emily by Keepers Dolly Duds

photo credit: Keepers Dolly Duds auction photo
An adorable ensemble for Emily! I love the checkered pattern of the dress and the criss-cross detail and buttons (on back of dress, not pictured). The coat looks so thick and warm!

Summer #2 "In The Spotlight" by Liberty Jane Clothing
photo credit: Liberty Jane auction picture
I love this outfit! I think it is very trendy and looks like something real girls would wear. I like the fact that it is casual, yet dressy.

Spring #7 "Cammi and Cut-offs" by Liberty Jane Clothing
photo credit: Liberty Jane auction picture
This outfit is perfect for being outdoors! I like how there is a lot of mix and match potential.

"Blue Plaid" by Liberty Jane Clothing
photo credit: Liberty Jane auction picture
This outfit is simple, but I think that it is adorable! It is great for the summer heat.

Spring #5 "Boho Dress" by Liberty Jane Clothing
photo credit: Liberty Jane auction picture
This dress is very chic, and I love the pattern. Paired with some leggings it would look amazing!
update: I think this dress is now sold out

Spring #8 "Purple and Silver" by Liberty Jane Clothing
photo credit: Liberty Jane auction picture
This fashionable ensemble is gorgeous! I love the color combination of dark purple and silver.

Summer #1 "Summertime Chic" by Liberty Jane Clothing
photo credit: Liberty Jane auction picture
This design is fabulous! All the pieces in this outfit look great together, or on their own.

Spring Line "Alice in Candyland" by Melody Valerie Couture
photo credit: Melody Valerie Etsy stock photo
This dress is very stylish! The plaid fabric is adorable, and I love the signature bow!

Recreation of Felicity's Town Fair Dress by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies' Dressmaker stock photo
This dress is perfect for Felicity! All the detail is beautiful. It looks just like her retired town fair dress, too.

Recreation of Felicity's Work Gown by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies Dressmaker stock photo
Another recreation dress, this one of Felicity's retired work gown, which I like better than the original! I love color, it would look great with Felicity's eyes.

Illustration Creation: Felicity's Blue Striped Dress by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies' Dressmaker stock photo
This dress is seen frequently in Felicity's books, yet AG never made it? I think it's one of Felicity's core outfits. I love the pattern and the ruffles.

Felicity's or Elizabeth's Striped Purple Dress by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies' Dressmaker stock photo
I love the color of this dress, and the little bow and ruffles are too cute!

Illustration Creation: Kit's Orange Dress by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies' Dressmaker stock photo
As seen in the book "Kit's Surprise". The pleating is great, and the pocket, belt, and ribbon bow detail really make the dress. It's a nice warm, cinnamon orange color which is lovely!

Illustration Creation: Kit's Flannel Dress and Apron by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies' Dressmaker stock photo
Also seen in Kit's Surprise, this blue plaid flannel dress is great for when the weather turns a little chilly. The buttons adds the finishing touch. Her apron is made out of vintage muslin-type fabric.

Illustration Creation: Molly's Purple Dress by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies' Dressmaker stock photo
Seen in the book "Meet Molly" this lovely dress is perfect for the 1940's. I love the color, sleeves, collar, lace, and button detail, so basically everything!

Illustration Creation: Samantha's Green Floral Dress by The Dollies' Dressmaker
photo credit: Dollies' Dressmaker stock photo
Seen in the book "Samantha Learns a Lesson". I love the collar and gimp trim on this dress, and the pattern with small pink and yellow roses are precious!

Illustration/Movie Creation: Samantha's School Uniform by Terristouch















photo credit: Terristouch Etsy stock photo

This dress is perfect, and just like in the movie! I love the flannel fabric and detailed pinafore.

Blue Floral Halter Dress by The Doll Closet
photo credit: dollcloset Etsy stock photo
The perfect summer dress! The blue and white floral pattern is really fun, and I like how the dress is halter style.

Combination Outfit: Peasant Top in Sky Blue by The Doll Closet and Distressed Denim Jeans by Liberty Jane Clothing

photo credit: Sitara and The Couture Review, dollcloset Etsy stock photo
A very cute 70's inspired top in a lovely pattern paired with denim jeans, what could be better? I love the distressed detailing the jeans and the colors in the shirt.

These aren't exactly couture, but they're handmade needle felted small animals, the perfect size for AG's to use as toys. I like the elephant, hedgehog, and bunny. The elephant is a OOAK, but you can get the hedgehogs in a girl, which has a bow, and a bow, which doesn't. The bunnies also come in 4 different colors, white, light gray, dark gray/black, and mixed white and gray. Aren't they cute?

photo credit: BeneathTheRowanTree Etsy stock photo

And, that's it. Well, isn't that a lot of couture?!?!
I will definitely not be getting all if it. I'm not sure if I'll even be getting any! It's fun to dream though...

None of the photos are mine, most are stock photos from the couture websites, auctions, or listings. I posted a "photo credit" beside each picture and linked to the place where I got the photo to let you know whose it is.

-Brooke