Sleeveless Bodysuits and Bottoms for Made to Move Original Dolls, Hagrid Capsule Wardrobe and Momoko

Hey, dollings! I hope all is well with you for the last few months. Over here at my atelier, although I thought I had been slacking off again, things are actually going great, production-wise. 

I actually started the year with a plan to continue working to list 100 products at my Etsy shop. And for the last few months, I've been actually working on this goal!

The Haggy Wardrobe

My dear friend Yvonne from Germany had been wanting to dress up her Hagrid doll but sewing patterns for this poor guy's wardrobe is quite scarce in doll crafting marketplaces. (I just checked Etsy now and there's literally none). Yvonne then asked me if I could develop a few pieces. Although the idea excited me, I couldn't start the project since I didn't have a Hagrid doll with me to use as a model. Somehow Hagrid is hard to find here in the Philippines so Yvonne kindly gifted me one of her two Hagrid dolls.

Over the last few months, I developed a pullover, two types of trousers, and a summer shirt. I am also to come up with a jacket and a pair of shoes to complete a small capsule wardrobe for the dude. I also plan on providing a shorter length option for the trousers so one can make shorts, too.

I'm glad I took on this challenge as aside from adding a new character is fun, I was able to try and finally try and study how "velcro" tape closures can help with doll clothes making. I think they are best used with fabrics with less form on their own - thin and flimsy ones. I use these types of fabrics in pullovers, and unlined garments like blouses, skirts, and dresses. Here's one unlined skirt made from thin cotton fabric.

I'm looking forward to using more of these "velcro" tapes in the future. I'll surely let you guys know the advantages and disadvantages in a future blog post.

Made-to-Move Sleeveless Bodysuits

This project was a part of my older goal, which is to have tops that can be easily matched with many pieces in my doll wardrobe. This is my second doll size to release so far. 

The previous one was for the Curvy doll which I started in late 2022 but only completed earlier this year, thus adding to my 100-listing goal.

I thought that creating for another size was a perfect project to get my hands into while I have so many things going on personally (traveled twice this year already) because it can leverage a lot of my existing digital assets - the same sewing procedures (mostly), and the bodice and torso part uses the previous long-sleeved bodysuit pattern. I only had to make sure the necklines and armholes are perfect and we were good to release.

This ongoing trend for bodysuits is such a blessing for me as a designer because I have always loved to wear non-complicated tops. I am such a boring person hahaha but really I think this is because I don't have wide hips to balance a complicated top. Imagine this - me in a frilly, ruffled top with small hips at the bottom part. I will easily fall down in your imagination, right? However... Most of my dolls are not me, so I wanted to create characters that will allow for more fun in styling ventures. I'm so excited actually to develop characters for my dolls.  

New-ish Designs for Shorts, Skirts, and Trousers 

In my quest to take new photos of my girls in their new sleeveless bodysuits, I thought making new bottoms to style with would be lovely. I initially wanted to only have Lua model this bundle as I thought this was her color - a toned-down green stretchy fabric, but later realized trying them out on other dolls would be fun. I commissioned my two other MTMO dolls Tamica and Luna to help out.

I love how this pair of wide-leg pants on Tamica is working so I'm gonna list it at the shop soon as trousers, culottes, and shorts.

I'm happy with the slip skirt already, but the ruffled one - I may need to refine it a bit more in the future. 

The pleated pants and shorts also will need some polishing still, or maybe I'll try them on different types of fabrics and see. 

Lastly, this pair of beach wrap pants - I'm just gonna trim a few parts here and there and it should be perfect.

I love that the sleeveless bundle project compelled me to prototype these bottoms - they made me see my visions come to life as soon as needed. I'm the type who thinks too long about things, and I don't have a strict boss to oblige me to do things right away. These projects act as my driving force to work harder.

Almost forgotten Momoko Doll 

I actually ordered a new doll last Christmas, a present from my hubs. 

She's tan and blonde so she's perfect for the gyaru character that I will add to my roster of models here at atelierniSHASHA. I haven't introduced her to you sooner because I wanted to craft the perfect wardrobe for her. But like I always am - more on dreaming and less on actual work. I will focus on this girl next year and I gotta have that plan implemented for real. Pinky promise.

June 2023 plans

As I've mentioned earlier, I have aimed at and am still working on listing 100 products at my Etsy shop. I intend to accomplish this by the end of this month so that in July I can start working on another goal. This next goal shouldn't be as grand as a hundred listings - it's something I would love to see done in two months. I think July and August shouldn't be too busy for me (personal life-wise) so I think we can do this haha!

I currently have 81 products listed, so I need to add 19 more. I initially wanted to take it easy and mainly just bundle up old patterns into complete outfits but it feels like cheating TBH. So I planned to build the remaining 19 patterns from a combination of new patterns and some bundles. The ones on my list include the wide-leg pants for MTMO, the capsule wardrobe for Hagrid, and the complete ensemble bundles. I think that's a nice plan for this month - a good balance of prototyping and digital work in my daily routine.

So, yeah - that's how it was for the last few months I've been MIA, guys! How about you? Were you crafting enough? Were you hard on yourself like I was? Hahaha! It's so funny how we seem to beat ourselves up with that high bar of "ENOUGH", but in the end, find it fascinating that somehow we have done something. And that something is already enough, no matter how small or massive the final outcome is. We all do enough, we all are enough so let's not be too hard on ourselves, okies?

Love you all and thank you for always coming back here, dolling.

Warm regards from sunny Philippines,

shasha