Just look at this little Swedish sweetie! I found an image of the traditional costumes from Leksand, Dalarna, Sweden on Pinterest, and I thought, “Oooh! I wanna make that!” Traditional costumes are so bright and colorful anyway, but for some reason I was really drawn in by this particular style. I gathered a bunch of images on one of my Pinterest board called, “Swedish Traditional Costume (Dalarna)” and started drawing up patterns for my 18″ (American-Girl-knockoff) doll.
So next week I’ll begin sharing those patterns with you on ChellyWood.com.
Incidentally, I’m not Swedish. I just love to learn about cultural and ethnic groups, and this turned out to be a very interesting project indeed. The little purse you see strapped around my dolly’s waist is called a “pocket,” and the ladies in Dalarna hand-embroider these. This form of embroidery is called “folkdräkt” or “daladräkt” in Dalarna, and I’ll be showing you some fun embroidery videos as we learn how to make these pocket-purses along with the rest of the outfit.
I’m afraid I won’t be giving away this particular outfit, as it has already been given to the daughter of a friend of mine, fellow author, Jason Black, who wrote Pebblehoof, a book about a girl and a wild prairie horse. I’ve read Pebblehoof, and my oldest daughter (the one who loves Breyer horses) is reading it now. I recommend it to any girls who like books such as Black Beauty, Brighty of the Grand Canyon, and Misty of Chincoteague.
That’s adorable, very nice!
Wonderful! It is superb!
Wow. Thanks Sherelyn! I’m glad you like my creations. 😉
It’s lovely! I would love to recreate a Welsh costume for my 18″ doll. Any advice?
For my Swedish traditional costume, I just gathered a whole bunch of images together on a Pinterest board and worked from there. I advise you to do the same. Sort of create a mental picture of what you want your Welch costume to look like by creating an “inspiration board” on Pinterest. Then find patterns that you can alter to suit the image in your head.
Thanks, Chelly; I had thought of that…but the hat stumps me!
Can you send me a link to the image of the hat on Pinterest? Maybe I can help you come up with something.
Here is one: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/73887250114617949/
Here’s another: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/73887250114617890/
And to keep it really simple, I think I’d stick with a mob cap!
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/73887250114617797/
Plus, after looking at a lot of photos on Pinterest, it might be fairly simple to design a Welsh dress. Thanks for inspiring me! If I get one done I’ll send you a picture.
Yes! Please do! I’m so glad to have helped inspire you. You made my day!
Now that I’ve seen the images you’re working with, Loretta, I can see how the Swedish Traditional Costume I’ve made has a lot in common with these Welch costumes. Are you in a hurry to get it created? Because my patterns are ready to publish. I can always send my patterns to you early, via email.