Last week I shared the first version of the bra I made for my Disney Princess fashion doll. As you can see in the image above, it didn’t turn out right. So I re-made it this past week, with these two goals in mind:
- I wanted to alter the pattern so it’s narrower (vertically)
- I wanted to give the garment a lining (to prevent the hem from popping up)
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My original “bra” pattern was the View 4 bikini top for vintage Barbie. This was made using the view 4 pattern, from (as you can see above) Simplicity 9054.
But after making the floppy, over-sized green and white striped version, using a very stretchy jersey fabric, I decided to make my second attempt at sewing a Disney Princess bra significantly different.
If you’re new to sewing, when we take an original pattern and mix it up, making it our own version of the original design, we call this an “alteration.” So my intention was to alter the original pattern by making it narrower vertically (from what would be the doll’s sternum to the doll’s belly button).
In figure 1 above, you can see that the newer version has been cut smaller than the pattern, not just vertically, but also in the back.
Last week’s version had a Velcro closure at the back of the bra. Since I had followed the Simplicity 9054 pattern as it was originally designed, I thought it would be enough to slap a little elastic at the back of it, so my Disney Princess Merida doll could wear it.
And while this did make it possible to close the bra around her bosom, it didn’t look too snazzy. It overlapped quite a bit, as you can see below.
So in the new version, I made it not just narrower vertically, but narrower horizontally too.
Then, as I often show in my evening gown tutorial videos on YouTube, I placed the bra on my doll inside-out (with the lace lining facing out) before pinning elastic to the bra, to help hold the whole thing up.
By giving this version of the bra a lining (yet another alteration to the original pattern), it seemed to thicken the material so it wasn’t as droopy as the extra stretchy jersey fabric had been.
As you can see, the straps looked like they were going to fit perfectly. Unfortunately, since this is an alteration to the Simplicity 9054 pattern, I didn’t have any instructions to tell me when to put the snaps on, to close the thing in back.
I added the snaps before I tried to sew the straps on, and that didn’t go too well. I tried to make an X-shape with my sewing machine stitches, to hold the straps in place, but the presser foot didn’t want to go over the top of the male snap at all.
So if I was to do this alteration over again, I’d definitely sew the snaps on last, instead of trying to work around a lumpy snap while sewing the straps in place.
I’ve written over 900 words for today’s blog post, so the making of the bikini bottoms or underpants from Simplicity 9054 (view 4) will have to wait for another day, I’m afraid. But I’d love to hear your thoughts on sewing swimsuits and/or undergarments for dolls!
Questions:
Have you ever made a fashion doll’s swimsuit/bikini or underpants/bras? And if so, what were some of the lessons you learned, that you can share with the rest of us? Please leave your response in the comments section below.
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Chelly Wood and the ChellyWood.com website are not affiliated with the pattern company or companies mentioned in this blog post, but Chelly finds inspiration in the doll clothes designed by these pattern companies. To purchase patterns from Simplicity, McCall’s, Butterick, Vogue, or other pattern companies shown and discussed in this blog post, please click on the links provided here. These links below the “Disclaimer” section do not help raise money for this free pattern website; they are only offered to give credit to the company that made these patterns.