Tonner Convention... Can't wait for Tylers Wedding!

This is the weekend for Tyler's Wedding in Chicago!
I am so anxious to see the wedding party and wish I could have attended!

I was able to attend the Halloween Convention last October along with my daughter Vanessa, and had the time of my life... especially meeting my favourite Doll People!
Jodi, LeeAnn, Marilyn, Deb, Mike, Deryl, & Cheryl...
Love you Guys~

Robert certainly knows how to throw a party, so I am certain that this will be THE wedding of the century! weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Challenge # 7 The Veronique Challenge
Day 1 (Wednesday August 8th)

Well looks like I have some major thinking to do on this one... I don't have a 'feeling' about this challenge...
'Joie De Vivre' 'Claie De Lune' what do these phrases mean to ME?

Day 2 (Thursday)
Many ideas running through my head today... I find that this challenge has too many themes... it is pulling me in many directions.
Veronique's personality is the first thing to consider... I haven't followed the Fashion Royalty storyline so this is going to take some research...
'Joie De Vivre' has a few meanings to me... living life to the fullest... smelling the roses... dancing for joy... etc... so I should be able to come up with something appropriate.

Day 3 (Friday)
I have made a decision today about my colour choices... I have decided to go with SILVER & GOLD
I will head to the Fabric store to see what I can find.

Day 4 (Saturday)
After much thought, I chose to make an outfit using pants... not just any pants... but pants with a wide leg and with a high waist reminiscent of the ones Katherine Hepburn wore in the 1940's... Of course these will be for evening wear and will be made of an appropriate fabric (which I haven't chosen yet)
I also want to add pockets in the side seams, just for a more casual look without the jacket...
I think a 'bustier' and a jacket of some kind will work... Off to the fabric store!

Day 5 (Sunday)
I Bought my fabric and am thrilled with what I found! I only have one Fabric store locally, so my choices are pretty limited... I purchased a gorgeous GOLD satin with a perfect weight for the pants, as well as a sheen for catching the light... The bustier will be made from a matte SILVER satin that is a little firmer, and the Jacket will be sheer... It is a sheer polyester fabric that has a glisten to it...

6pm:
I have designed and made up my patterns for the 3 pieces and will be sewing most of the night...

Day 6 (Monday)
I managed to complete the pants and bustier last night, except for hand sewing and they turned out exactly how I had imagined! :)
I won't be sewing today as we are going on a family trip to look at some property.

Day 7 (Tuesday)
Well... after we returned home, I stayed up most of the night and finished the Jacket... I know the deadline is closing in on me... I am very happy with the way I finished off the front of it...
Since I used a sheer fabric I didn't want to use a facing as it would show through, and I couldn't do a rolled hem as the fabric is stiff... like working with paper... LOL
I decided that I would use satin ribbon, and I was very lucky that I had the exact same shade of silver on hand... I stitched it along the 'facing' line and then with another row of stitching I sewed it close to the outer edge... trimmed off the excess fabric close to the ribbon and used 'fray check' along the edge...
Voila! It looks professional and tidy.
Today I will be hand sewing GOLD & SILVER tiny sequins onto the front (not sure how yet) and the cuffs just to give it some 'Glitz'.

Day8 (Wednesday)
Jacket is complete! I am very happy with it, and the sequins add just the 'glitz' I wanted! I feel that a Centerpiece Doll needs to show some DRAMA... :)
I had wanted to make up a 'Top Hat' to complete the look for my 'Dance' theme, if I had time... well, I made time LOL... What a challenge this was! It was tedious work, but overall I am happy with the final result, although I am sure a 'factory' hat will turn out much better!
Sent Overnight by Purolator

11:30 pm
I have decided to go with 'Grace Kelly' in 'Rear Window' by Alfred Hitchcock..
Using her opening scene with the Black & White full skirted cocktail dress...
Now the work begins... I have some thoughts on style of dress and fabrics... I'll be heading out to the Fabric Store tomorrow.
I am going to watch the movie right now!
Day 3 (Saturday)
Watching 'Rear Window' last night really helped me to better understand why a Black & White Cocktail dress was used for her opening scene... I got a sense that 'Lisa' was to appear 'Fresh' and 'Vibrant' in contrast to the Muted Tones of the very hot and humid surroundings... It worked effectively to bring her to the center of the scene. Definitely a Character Defining dress!
I have many ideas spinning around in my head and my trip to the Fabric store today should help eliminate some of them.
10 pm
I was able to buy some wonderful fabrics today... Just in case I decide to use them...
There was a huge sale on so, of course I bought way more than I went for! LOL
I have pretty much decided to stay with the Black & White theme for this dress for several reasons:
It works!
Black & White are extremely classic and most of the ICONIC dresses that we know of today are Black, White and of course there is that PINK one... ;)
They are 'Crisp' colours... not muddy, which contrast beautifully with the background of muted tones in her opening scene.
Since this is to be a 'Paris' original dress from 1954 I feel that Black &/or White would be a perfect choice for a couture dress.
I will also keep the basic idea of a Full skirt and a fitted bodice... I may use some lace overlay... still deciding on that... Hope to make up the pattern tomorrow and start sewing!
Day 4 (Sunday)
No sewing today... Grandkids came for the day...
Still no firm decision on what I want to Make! Hope I can figure this out by tomorrow... time is running out ACK!
Day 5 (Monday)
7 am
I managed to get going on my dress last night once my grandkids left ...
I stayed up all night! I am glad I did, as I made progress and feel confident that I am making a dress that will be perfect for 'Lisa'!
I decided on a wonderful Black/White polka dotted textured chiffon... The dots are larger than scale... I love the look and I think it works perfectly... I have the dress bodice and skirt done and sewn together... The 'collar' detail will be made from satin lycra material.
Off to nap for a few hours...
Day 6 (Tuesday)
I completed the dress except for snaps and hand sewing last night... what a job it was hemming it, as the skirt is really full... 2 complete circles wide!
I also made up a pearl necklace and drop earrings and a black patent clutch bag with bow detail... I lined the clutch in RED as my favorite vintage patent purses from the 50's always have red lining!
I also made a pair of short gloves... first I made white ones, but they looked horrible on Alex... her hands are huge! I then made up a pair of black mesh gloves and they look much better... I added 3 tiny pearl beads to each glove as well as a 'tuck' down the center mimicking vintage gloves that I have in my own collection. I added a piece of white Tulle as a wrap, as in the movie she removes her wrap, and gloves in this scene so I felt they were both necessary.
Day 7 (Wednesday)
Busy day today!
Pictures were done by 1:30 and they turned out great!
I took some pictures of Alex in the dress and felt they were ok, but I also own a Brenda Starr doll that my daughter Vanessa painted for me to resemble Grace Kelly... Once I put the dress on her I knew it was exactly what I was trying to achieve! :) It is amazing how a doll can make such a difference to the outfit!
Dress and Accessories wrapped up ready to go to Purolator...
*Sent by 4 pm Overnight to NY

Challenge #6 Alex Challenge
Day 1 (Thursday July 19th )
This Challenge is quite unique... and a little confusing to me... ???
We are to create an ICON dress that relates to a particular scene in a movie of our choice.
I am not really sure what is expected?
I will have to do a lot of thinking on this one!
Day 2 (Friday)
We are expected to choose our Actress/Movie/Scene right away and let Ted know...
I hope I can decide today so that I can get the one I want.
I have to research many things before I decide what dress I want to use for this Challenge...
Dress ideas... fabrics... actors and movies
I have many favourite actresses and movies so it may be tough... Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly are my top 3 picks...

WOW!!! I WON the Susie Challenge! Woo Hoo!

I had so much fun with this challenge and I know that the Judges had a tough time choosing a winner as all of the entries were amazing! :)

I wanted to share the Judges Q&A's here:

1)What was your concept for this outfit?

Susie is quite an inspirational Doll, being a worldwide traveler... My immediate thought was for Susie to fly off to somewhere in Britain... I love the wonderful tartans that are available throughout the UK. Scotland was my first choice, but after ruling that out I decided on LONDON.
My inspiration was the 'British Royal Guard' uniform... Once deciding on that I also wanted to incorporate a MOD element (Mary Quant) as well as a bit of contemporary London (Burberry) into my design.

2) Why did you choose that particular fabric?

I used 4 different fabrics for this outfit... The first thing I chose was the 'Burberry' style plaid for her jumper, as I feel that it screams LONDON... I happened to have some cotton/poly blend fabric with the proper scale plaid for Susie on hand... I also love the colours in it.
I used a black stretch lace for her little cap sleeved tank top, as I wanted something very sheer, not bulky and modern.
For the Jacket I chose a wonderful bright red Cotton Twill which I think stepped the cropped jacket up to the 'uniform' level...
I had originally wanted to use wool suiting, but I felt it would be difficult to work with trimming such tiny seams, and also is wasn't going to work with the cotton jumper... It turns out that I was right, it was tedious to say the least working with such tiny seams.
I used Black thin wale corduroy for the collar and cuffs of the jacket... I would have used Velvet for collar/cuffs if I had decided on using the wool, so the black corduroy was a natural choice for the cotton twill.
I also used the Black Corduroy for the poorboy cap for the same reason.

3)Why did you choose that color?

The Burberry style plaid set the stage for my colour choices... I
love the colours in it and chose it as I feel it best represents
LONDON.
Red was a given for her jacket once I decided on using the
British Royal Guard as my inspiration, and the black was used to
balance out my idea.

4) What element do you think distinguishes your design and sets it apart from others? Cut? Fit? Embellishment? Color choice?

I feel that the jacket I designed for Susie is quite unique with the
little details... gold/black braiding, brass buttons and the nice
snug fit. It is the element that 'makes' the outfit work.

5) What element of this challenge was the most difficult for you?

I would have to say that the jacket caused me a little stress... not that it was difficult, but just tedious. I had made up these great turn up cuffs out of the corduroy and then once the jacket was sewn together, I couldn't turn the sleeves right side out! I had to take it all apart and create new 'cuffs' that would work. I am pretty stubborn and won't let little nuisances get me down... I just keep going and am confident that I CAN DO THIS... LOL

6) What element of this challenge was the most enjoyable?

I would have to say creating Susies poorboy cap was very rewarding... I have never made one of these and felt that in creating the crown that all those little pieces would be almost impossible to sew together and I'd have bulky seam allowances... well... I played around with my ideas for about an hour or so and figured out how to make one out of one piece of fabric! I was ecstatic... especially when it actually worked!

7) If you could change one thing about your ensemble what would it be?

One thing that bugged me once I was finished sewing the jumper was that the back of it didn't snap in the center...
The reason for this, is that I wanted to match up the black part of the plaid... so even though that did work out, I was slightly annoyed.

Day 3 (Saturday)

Scrapped the Scotland idea... I decided that black watch tartan would not photograph very well... and that this outfit may be a little too traditional ... and, in fact boring...
After discussing this with my daughter Vanessa (who is my confidant) I felt quite confident that I should change Susie's destination... :)
I mentioned to her about using LONDON and that I had this great small scale 'Burberry' looking plaid fabric... Her suggestion was to use the British Royal Guards as inspiration... I took off from there!
I would still use my jumper idea, but make a little Black lace cap sleeved tank to wear under it... some black fishnet stockings, and of course a RED military style jacket... It would be cropped to bring it up to modern standards as well as fit with the empire line of her jumper...
YES... this will work!

Day 4 (Sunday)

I cut out and made up the jumper today... I am extremely happy with the way it turned out... especially the fit... I have to say that Susie is THE smallest doll I have ever sewn for and I was intimidated by her when I first held her in my hands... what made her easier to work with was her articulation... thank goodness for that!
9 pm: Just finished up her little lace top and stockings... this is coming together nicely.
I added a little black patent belt with a gold buckle and I must say it's perfect!

Day 5 (Monday)

Stayed up most of the night working on the red cropped jacket... I was so inspired after fitting the jumper and lace top on her that I couldn't wait to get her jacket cut out and made up!
I decided on using a bright red cotton twill and black corduroy for the collar and cuffs...
Well... it is certainly TINY... and boy did I have a hard time turning the sleeves right side out!
I made up cuffs that were actually 'turned up'... but there was no way I could turn those sleeves right side out! ACK... so I ended up taking them all apart and adding a fake cuff to the bottom of the sleeve... it worked! I did have one little problem... I accidentally clipped the lining of the jacket near the sleeve and had to cut it away... there is just no time to re-make that lining!
I also customized some knee high red vinyl boots for Susie... These were originally Ru Paul's Thigh High boots... I cut them to the knee and added a black patent strap to the top with a gold stud... I'm happy I had these in the house, as I really didn't have shoes to fit her. Sometimes things just work out!

Day 6 Tuesday

Today was spent doing all the little 'details' that needed to be done to complete the jacket...
I sewed black/gold braid (which I braided myself) onto the cuffs and as a little belt on the back of the jacket... the epaulets are also made from the same braid... I added teeny tiny gold studs (brass buttons) down the front and on each end of the back belt, and the epaulets...
this took hours... I wouldn't want to sew for such a tiny doll exclusively!
Oh Man... I am thrilled with the way this Jacket came out! I haven't been this excited about an outfit I have made in this competition... I think the biggest thrill for me is that I made it fit so well too... :)
7 pm
Just finished up a hat for Susie... I wanted a hat that would mimic the 'Bear' fur hats that the Royal Guards wear... I decided on a 'poorboy' style cap that would also relate to the MOD style of London... I wasn't sure how to make this up and keep it so fitted... but... It just came to me... I created a one piece pattern that worked like a charm, and now I can use this same formula for all sizes of doll heads... Although this was a tedious task, the result was Fabulous! I used the black corduroy and trimmed the brim with red embroidery floss that I twisted like a rope... I used a little red stud at the top and Voila... perfect poorboy cap!
I also made up a shopping bag for Susie to take along to High Street... It is made of Clear Vinyl with black stitching and a Red vinyl clasp that locks into a lucite bead... I added clear handles and a 'Mary Quant' flower to the front of it... I think it's just the thing to complete her little outfit!
Well... I am pretty much ready for pics!

Day 7 (Wednesday)

Oh Man... I tried to take my pictures last night before dark... my Son and Grandson came for a swim, and so I lost all track of time... They didn't turn out... :(
Have to take them again this morning and get this all packed up to ship by 4 pm... Yikes!
After dressing Susie for pictures last night, I thought about adding a little 'bar pin' to her jacket... I searched everywhere in my stash for something small enough... I ended up taking this teeny filigree ball apart and flattening it... I used a teeny tiny gold bead and hung it from it... sewed it to her jacket... Just the effect I wanted!
oh... I forgot that she had no undies to wear with this outfit... Just made up a little pair of red thong underwear... :)

6 pm

Susie's Cool outfit is on it's way to New York... Sent by XPRESSPOST 4pm...
I was a little panicked this afternoon, but it all worked out great!
I would have to say that this is the Challenge that I feel most confident about! Even if I dont win this Challenge, I am extremely proud of what I accomplished!

Challenge #5 SUSIE Momoko
Client (Location) Challenge

Day 1 (July)

Rec'd the Susie Challenge this morning...
Interesting Challenge... my immediate thought is MOD... LONDON... and will be focusing on that for the day...

Day 2

Still thinking... I have done nothing but think about this challenge... (and float around in the pool ) It's HOT here!
Today I have decided on 'SCOTLAND'.. My Mom was as Campbell so I thought maybe I'd use the Campbell Tartan (Black Watch) and make up an empire line mini jumper with a 'kilt' pleated skirt, complete with kilt pin...
I would make a lacy white blouse and a handbag that resembled the 'kilt bags' worn around the waist and huge cuffed knee socks... Doc Martens... ?
I made up the pleated section of the jumper and after looking at it for a few hours made my decision to go back to the drawing board...