Advance 9938: Barbie out on the town

I picked up this Advance pattern (9938) for the great chinoiserie inspired sheath dress, but Myra has been asking for a new coat for Barbie. This cute 60s swing coat was a must.

I made it out of fleece, which I think looks much more luxe at Barbie's scale. It almost looks like fur. It is a bit bulky though. Her collar is pretty full, even though I used black batiste for the undercollar. I also made her a quick little clutch to go with her outfit. It's just a square of satin with a pointed end for the envelope opening. I sewed a silver bead on as a "closure".

The coat closes with snaps, but I was thrilled to find these fab little buttons at Hobby Lobby. Aren't they perfect for a Barbie coat? Myra will love the sparkle.

Of course, I HAD to make the dress, too! Isn't it fun? The fabric is a prepleated polyester. It was a bit fussy to sew, but looks fabulous. I'm really pleased with how well this pattern fits as compared to other patterns I've used. The darts are all in the right place, and the amount of ease is much more appropriate. Even on the modern body type (which this Barbie has) the dress looks great.

The Asian style "opening" at the neck is actually just a decorative element. The dress is closed with velcro at center back. Much easier to get on and off than a traditional neckline opening! The ribbon is stitched on by machine, but I added the beads by hand. I also hand stitched the armhole hems. This was actually much easier and faster than doing it by machine.

The final piece of her outfit are her sleek black "satin" gloves. I used this pattern, but slimmed the wrist area significantly. The pattern comes out looking more like oven mitts than the elegant glove I was going for. The fabric is a heavy tricot, so it has a lot of stretch, making these easy to get on and off the doll, but still have a sleek fit. They were the devil to sew though. The finished gloves look pretty awesome, so I'm pleased.