DollsArtCats

Someone (I think it might have been Pegapup ) told me that the set of pattern drawings (in the instruction sheets) on commercial patterns is to scale, and if you scan them and scale them up about ten times, they will be close to Super Dollfie size. I need to make the same coat for "Captain Davon" that I did for J, but of course the scale of the pattern I have is too big, since it's for a human (Simplicity 0857_Halloween). So I went ahead and scanned the instruction sheet, sized it up by ten, and then laboriously selected printable sections in Photoshop, and printed them out and taped the pieces together. I was encouraged that the pattern pieces do indeed seem to fit together: Here I did some alterations--I added seam allowance around the edges of the pieces, and as the Granado dolls are tall, I lengthened the coat and the sleeves, and I added the lapels and the extra cuff piece that is on the Royal Navy uniforms for a captain. I still need to figure out how to add a st...

The hat brim pattern is just a circle, about 8.5 inches in diameter. (I used a 2 quart pot lid as a template), and the center hole I figured out by taping a piece of paper around Davon's head, lifting it off, and putting it in the center of the larger circle, and then traced around inside that by 1/4 of an inch (just enough for seam allowance). I then opened up the piece I had used for his head measurement and used that for a guide to make a rectangle 1/3 taller than the side of his head, then I folded down the top edges and stitched them together to make the top of the hat. I don't recommend this--it works for wigs, but for a hat it's better to just cut another small circle and stitch it onto the top of the side piece. Then you decorate the underside of the brim, and pin it up in three places to make the "tricorne". The hat is made of craft felt, which is easy to work with.

Holy Mackerel! I bet they don't take layaway, either.

And the knitter of the sheep: Go to Cat Carlisle's blog for directions; she also made (and has directions for) a couple of versions of Jack Aubrey's uniform (that's her modelling it in 2007), and photos from her visit to the Surprise in San Diego. She is another cool Cat. :D Link: The Crafty Cattery I suspect her later RN uniform is about 10 pounds lighter than the Admiral's --it is about 40 years later, too.