Handmade By The Haags

Mermaid Pattern Review

4/26/2020

A Mermaid Tail by Doll Tag Clothing

I love making Disney style outfits for my dolls and my Felicity needed to turn into Ariel! I've had this pattern for awhile and made a bunch of out fabric I had left over from other projects and some fat quarters. So I decided to review this pattern for all of you!

This pattern can be made of Woven or Stretch fabric which is awesome. I made my blue one with two fat quarters of fabric and the Ariel inspired one with sewquined fabric for the bottom with a little stretch, and cotton scrap for the top. You're supposed to put a thin layer of batting in the tail but I couldn't get any due to Corona shutting everything down, so mine isn't as full on the fin as theirs seems to be.

Pattern Sizing

The fit on this pattern is perfect! It fits my large and small dolls perfectly. The elastic in the waist and top make it easy to fit all sizes of 18" dolls. The brown haired doll is my largest size and I got her into the outfit without any problems. If you go on Pixie Faire you can also buy this in multiple doll sizes, and I'm assuming the fit will be just as good.

Were the Instructions Easy to Follow?

Yes they were. I loved that they split everything into easy to follow steps. Every step was numbered and had a corresponding photo for the most part. They used real photos with markups so you could see the lines easily.

What Did You Like About the Pattern?

Well the fit is probably my favorite part. As you know, I have trouble getting one pattern to fit all my dolls, and this one seems to, so that's awesome. I do like how it can be made of pretty much any type of fabric as well. Plus it takes very little fabric to make! I used two fat quarters for the blue one (see photos below for placement), and scraps for the Ariel-inspired look.

What did you not like about the pattern?

The only thing I didn't like about the pattern was the top. I didn't gather mine in the center because I felt that made the top too tiny. I wanted more coverage. I also think I'd change it to have a tie in the back next time instead of elastic. With the elastic you need to go over the legs to get it on the doll. Having a tie or Velcro back would make it much easier for little kids to dress and undress their dolls.

Did it look like the photos when you were done sewing?

Yes it did! Minus the not having batting for the tail and not gathering the top it turned out exactly like the pattern.

Would you make it again or recommend it to others?

I would definitely recommend this pattern. In fact, I'm even going to link to where you can buy it since I loved it so much! LINK

Conclusion

This is a great pattern and is very easy to sew and the outcome is amazing. I would say this is a beginner pattern and even kids should be able to sew it.

Hope you enjoyed the review! I'll be trying to post a new one every Monday, if not sooner.

0 Comments

The Versatility Dress Pattern

6/11/2019

3 Comments

Hello everyone! I'm so excited to start this blog. I've been sewing for years and after having problems with many doll clothes patterns and not finding anything online to help, I decided I'd start reviewing 18 inch doll clothes patterns here on my blog.

The first pattern I'm reviewing is from Pixie Faire, an online store that's all about patterns for doll clothes and accessories. I've bought many patterns off Pixie Faire and they do have reviews on their website for most of the patterns, but I thought it would be nice to go a little more in depth into this pattern. The Versatility Dress Pattern by Forever 18 Inches.

The Versatility Dress Pattern is a sleeveless dress for 18” dolls with a variety of options including two bodice styles, three skirt styles, and three belt styles. It can be made in knit or woven fabrics.

So let's dive right into the pattern! I made three versions. The Dark Blue is a cotton fabric with a lined bodice and a circle skirt. The Light Teal dress is a knit fabric with an unlined simple bodice and a circle skirt. And finally the White dress is a lined bodice with a gathered skirt and a sash tie belt you'll see in future photos.

Pattern Sizing:
Most patterns are one size fits all for Doll Clothes but I've often had problems where my dolls barely fit into the completed clothes. This pattern they told me ahead of time the measurements of the doll used to create the pattern. That allowed me to compare it to my doll's measurements. I realized that my 2008 doll (the newest one I currently own) was about an inch thicker and needed extra fabric added to the center back of the dress to make it fit correctly. I really liked that they had this feature. I added about 5/8" to the center back of the pattern pieces before cutting them out.

Were the instructions easy to follow?

I personally feel the instructions were a too detailed and too long. There are over sixty pages of instructions! That's a lot for you to print and read through. I understand there are a lot of variations but it still seemed like a lot for me. Fewer details would have made the instructions easier to follow. That being said, they had photos of almost every step in there so even if the words confused you you could follow the photos to see what you were doing.

They also had a great tutorial for how to sew a lined bodice that would be extremely helpful for first time sewers.

What did you like about the pattern?

I really liked the fitted bodice with the princess seams. It has a lovely look and lays very nicely on the doll, giving them the illusion of a waist. The circle skirt and gathered skirt options as well as the ties make it nice to be able to change up the look of the pattern. They also told you which style to use for which types of fabrics.

I liked that they have the measurements of their doll so you could compare and make sure it would fit your own doll as well.

The pattern pieces all came together very easily and looked professional.

What did you not like about the pattern?

The instructions seemed a bit confusing when I think they could have been simplified. I also wish there were sleeve options although it shouldn't be too hard to add sleeves from another pattern. I'll update this when I try that out soon!

There are almost seventy pages to the pattern which is a lot to read through, print out, and follow along with. It seemed a bit excessive.

Did it look like the photos once you were done sewing?
Overall it looked very close. The woven fabric dresses I feel turned out almost identical to the pattern. The knit dresses weren't as neat and I'm not sure if that's because I did the unlined simple bodice or if it was my fabric choice. I think next time I'll try lining the knit fabric and see if it works out any better.

Pattern Alterations/Design Changes
Added 5/8” to the center back seams so it would fit nicely on my older dolls.

Would you sew it again or recommend it to others? Yes. I wouldn’t suggest it be the first pattern you sew, but especially if you already know the basics of making doll clothes it’s a great pattern. I especially liked the lined bodice and plan on making more styles with this pattern, weather in cotton or knit.

Conclusion: A very cute pattern that fits the doll nicely and comes together really well. A staple for any doll wardrobe.