Pajama Party Time!

One of the funny things about doll collecting is the dichotomy between preserving the condition of your dolls and also being able to display and enjoy them. Clothing is one of the places where this particularly becomes a problem.

The vinyl that many dolls are made of has a tendency to stain, particularly when left in contact with dark colored clothing or shoes. So, in order to preserve a doll's coloring, she should be stored in a way that prevents contact with dark colored fabric or leather. Some collectors store their dolls nude, but I like to see my dolls, so I decided to make them some clothing that would be cute, but safe to store them in.

Light colored PJs seemed like the perfect compromise! I thought it would be fun for the J-dolls to have a little slumber party. I recently got the book Dolly Bureau, Volume 2, which includes patterns for Momoko and 10.5 inch dolls. It's a good place to start for these petite girls.

But even before I acquired Dolly Bureau, my friend Kristine sent me a Skipper pattern (Simplicity 5861), which actually is an excellent fit for my J-dolls with only minor length adjustments! So I made a few pairs of comfy jersey knit pants for the girls to wear with their handknit sweaters.

Adeline thinks her soft pink wool sweater and lounge pants are perfect for a PJ party. I agree.

Aria is also wearing Simplicity 5861 pants, made shorts length. The fabric is a reclaimed baby shirt that had a cute lettuce edge hem. I used the lettuce edge for the shorts hem. The top is from the Dolly Bureau book. It's sized for Momoko, so it's a bit big in the shoulders for Aria, but fits her well otherwise. It is also made with the reclaimed baby shirt, trimmed with baby rick rack and stretch lace.

After Aria's outfit, I still had a sleeve left of the baby shirt. I decided to make Talulah a simple tube dress. I trimmed the bodice with wide stretch lace and inserted elastic at the upper edge and waist. The hem was cut on the shirt's lettuce edge hem.

Next up is Marti's baby doll dress. It is also from Dolly Bureau. This pattern is labelled 1:6 scale doll, but is modeled in the book on a baby doll BJD, so I wasn't sure what to expect with the sizing. I thought it might be a bit big. The neckline gapes a little on Marti, but it's still pretty sweet.

The pattern includes bloomers, which just escalated the sweet factor off the scale. The fabric is a handkerchief weight linen from my stash. I love the texture it has.

The final outfit is Christa's two piece set. Again from Dolly Bureau, these pieces are sized for 10.5 inch "super skinny" dolls like Monster High and Ever After High. While the height is right for my girls, J-dolls are bustier than MH/EAH, so I made these pieces out of knit to take advantage of the negative ease. The robe is a cheetah print french terry. It doesn't have a ton of stretch, so it's a good thing Christa's hands are removable or she'd never be able to get it on.

Under the robe, Christa wears a knit tank dress. This is my favorite piece of the collection. I love the way it fits her and the cute ribbon detail on the bib front makes me happy.

I'm do happy that the girls have cute clothes that I can safely store and display them in. They seem to be enjoying themselves.

Now if only Christa would stop texting her boyfriend...