My love of custom dolls

April 15, 2016 Lisa Press

This past week, I took the custom listings down from my site. Not because I don't love customs, but because I would like to refine the process, so that customers and I can more clearly mix and match all of the options and to make the process easier for both myself and most of all my customers.

But while I'm working on the customization worksheet I was also working on a few custom dolls. And well, as often happens, my customers come up with ideas that I love and would not have thought of.

Such as this girl. An artist Phoebe in her smock.

How lucky was I to have such an amazing request.

And soon I will have the customization work sheet.

More of the ExtraSmall Phoebe

April 6, 2016 Lisa Press

It's been a little over a week since the first extraSmall Phoebe was listed in my shop. A number of ExtraSmalls are now in their new homes. Some even have their own Instagram accounts. I love peeking into their lives.

I will continue to list ExtraSmall Phoebes and a few clothing sets over the next few weeks.

I have been asked by several people if there are custom ExtraSmalls. There are. I'm not a magician, but please send me your ideas and I am happy to let you know if it is possible.

ExtraSmall Phoebe before she flew off to her new home

Three winners of the Spoonflower Dollmaking Fabric

March 28, 2016 Lisa Press

Thank you everyone for commenting and entering

As promised, but definitely a week late, I have entered the names of everyone who commented (with an email address) into a random name generator and I have three winners. The winners are (winners were changed because the first two did not leave email addresses):

Linda Badurek

Julie Wiesler

and Bekki.

I will get in touch with each of you for an address.

A Preview of the New ExtraSmall Phoebes

March 21, 2016 Lisa Press

If you follow me on Instagram this may be old news. But after many requests, I have finally developed a small doll. A smaller line of Phoebes.

And that there will be an ExtraSmall Phoebe giveaway on Instagram.

New ExtraSmall Phoebe is a tiny bit over half of the size of regular sized Phoebe. She is just over a foot and weighs only a few ounces and one hand can fit easily around her tiny waist. Even a child sized hand.

Each doll will come with two outfits, and a playful trench coat and the tiniest little pair of shoes just like the regular sized Phoebe's shoes--100% wool felt Mary Janes with little buttons.

ExtraSmall phoebe Sets will be in my Etsy shop at the end of the week.

And...

The Giveaway will be one ExtraSmall Phoebe set. How to enter will appear on Instagram on Thursday. Contest will close Sunday morning. Exact times to be announced later.

Click here to find me on Instagram.

ExtraSmall Phoebe and Regular Sized Phoebe

A New Spring Doll

March 14, 2016 Lisa Press

This Phoebe doll is in celebration of spring. She was very refreshing to make. She felt like spring. Soft warm coloring in her hair and clothes.

She's shipping off tomorrow, but I'm making a listing in my shop for someone who would also like her, i would make a second one.

Baby dolls for a very special group of babies

March 7, 2016 Lisa Press

Phoebe&Egg makes and donates a doll to a child in need for every doll purchased.

Doll have been donated to foster care organizations and Family Promise organizations in Massachusetts, which is where I live.

But last fall through two friends who are social workers in Connecticut, I was connected with a foster care organization in the Greater New Haven area.

I have always tried to match the doll to the child, according to gender and age. This organization services a lot of children under two, many under one. My youngest was adopted at one, and had three transitions prior to joining our family, so I have some understanding of how hard it is for these children to bond with an adult only to be ripped away.

I am hoping the doll can serve as a bit of a security object, a transitional object.

The dolls for these children are designed for that age group. No small parts, very simple squeezable babies that are a not so small they will be lost, but a good size and weight for that age group.

Today I shipped my second box off to Connecticut and with the help of two amazing assistants, I have a crop of other baby dolls in production to be sent out soon.

Spoonflower Doll Giveaway

March 3, 2016 Lisa Press

For those of you unfamiliar with Spoonflower, you really should check it out. In a nutshell they print on fabric.

They can print your designs on fabric. Or you can buy others designs on fabric. and there are now so many types of fabric that they print on. Cottons, knits, linens, canvas, satin, faux suede.

I've had a number of things printed there, including Scrappy Phoebe. But I've also been eyeing other people's dolls on Spoonflower.

I especially love the dolls of Stacy Iest Hsu, a San Francisco based textile designer, whose work includes dolls and textiles on Spoonflower and at Moda fabrics. She also designs for Janie and Jack, GapKids, Target, and Tiny Prints. She recently did this Little Red Riding Hood line for Moda, which includes a doll, clothes and a wolf.

I fell in love with a set of dolls she designed on Spoonflower that are perfect for teaching a child to sew. They are just two pieces, many with a simple pet that is even easier to sew.

All of them are adorable.

The Spoonflower Doll Giveaway

I will be giving away three fat quarters, each with the unmade doll and kitten on them, ready to be sewn and stuffed.

How to enter?

Comment on this blog post, but be sure I have your email. The comment form has a place for you to fill out your email, but if you want to be sure include your email in the actual comment. I have set comments to be moderated/approved due to recent spam, so if you don't see your comment up there, it is for one of two reasons. either it didn't have an email, or it is awaiting approval. If it isn't up there after a few days, you can contact me with the contact form.

Giveaway ends March 17, 2016. I will pick the three with a random number generator

A Collection of Liberty Doll Dress Sets

February 29, 2016 Lisa Press

A peek at the new Phoebe&Egg Liberty Collection

After the holidays I was in NYC and of course also in Purl Soho. And lets just say I bought a few pieces of Liberty Fabric.

Flash forward a month or two and in between other things, i started sewing these little Liberty dress sets. It went from an experiment, to smitten, to well..a collection is what I will call it.

Introducing the Phoebe&Egg Liberty Collection. Four or five of the sets are already in my Etsy shop and more are coming.

Dress sets come with leggings, sweaters, shoes, peasant blouses and of course the Liberty Dress and bloomers. All right here.

I'm the featured shop on Etsy!

February 22, 2016 Lisa Press

Lisa Press, me, owner of Phoebe&Egg, photo by Cynthia August

I'm not a selfie taker. I don't like being in pictures, I'm more about taking pictures of my kids and my work. But I could not pass up the opportunity when Etsy asked me last November to be their Featured Shop.

The preparation, photoshoot with Cynthia August, who is fabulous, and I mean fabulous, and the interview were all fun and helped me see my business in new ways.

Here's my story on the Esty site:

Featured Shop: Phoebe&Egg

The Phoebe&Egg Studio, photo by Cynthia August

Behind the scenes at Phoebe&Egg, photo by Cynthia August

Doll Dressmaking Series: Long Sleeves

February 10, 2016 Lisa Press

Sleeves are an easy way to switch up a dress and completely change the look.

So far in this series we have covered basic shorts sleeves, short puffed sleeves and a ruffle sleeve. But there are quite a few more sleeve options that are easy to make on a small scale.

This tutorial will focus on the basic doll long sleeve. Most long sleeves on doll clothes have elastic at the wrist 9this pattern does). That is because dolls hands are big and that makes it hard to get them through a long sleeve with a narrow end. Plastic dolls hands cant's squeeze in. The hands and arms of cloth dolls are hard to push through the tunnel of a long straight sleeve. So the elastic at the end solves both of these problems. It allows the wrist to stretch out and the sleeve itself to be a bit wider.

The pattern for this dress and all of the others in the series is available through my newsletter. Sign up form is at the end of this post.

I used the basic dress pattern and the retro collar, all have been part of past tutorials and are available through my newsletter. The dress is lined.

1. Until the sleeves I am basically following the directions of the retro collar tutorial. This starts with sewing the shoulder seams together and then the collar pieces together and sewing them onto the dress neckline.

2. Sew the lining should seams together.

3. Place the dress with the collar on top of the lining with right sides together. Pin or wonderclip up one back edge around the neck and down the other back edge. Sew the lining to the dress making sure you sew deeper than the collar attachment seam so it does not show. Tirn right side out.

Sew the sleeve edge of the dress to the sleeve edge of the lining. This is to keep them in place and together when you sew the sleeve on.

Hemming the sleeves and making a casing:

1. Turn the ends of the sleeves up 1/4 inch and stitch.

2. Turn the bottoms up 1/2 inch and stitch again. this is the casing for your elastic for the "cuff" at the wrist.

Easing for the Sleeve Cap

The next few steps are similar to the gathering of the sleeve cap done on the puffed sleeve dress. Except this is called easing. Easing is step down from gathering. it is done to get the sleeve to curve slightly better at the shoulder of the armhole, which makes more of a shoulder shape. it is also done to obtain a better fit in the armhole.

1. Stitch about two inches of long stitches at the cap of each sleeve. As in gathering, leave one end without reverse stitching and leave the threads long, so you can pull one.

2. Pull one of the threads slightly to puff the cap of the sleeve slightly.

3. measure the sleeve cap to the armhole, when it seems the right length, secure the thread by wrapping around a pin.

4. Fit and pin into the armhole, adjusting the ease if needed.

Sew sleeves in. make sure you've put your stitch length back to regular.

You are almost done. Next is the sleeve casing for the wrist.

1. Cut two pieces of elastic, each approximately the width of the bottom of the sleeve.

2. You will need to use something to thread the elastic. I use this tool, but a safety pin works fine.

3. Thread the elastic through the casing, securing it at the starting end with a few machine stitches.

4. Pull to desired length. I pull to 4 inches for Phoebe. For Sasha, 3.5 should do. For AG and Waldorf, 4.5-5 inches. stitch done the other end of the elastic to secure.

Sew up the side seams, hem and you are done!

The pattern pieces for this dress and all other dresses are available through my newsletter. When you sign up, you will receive a second email asking you to confirm, after you do that you will receive another email with the base pattern downloads and a link to pattern pieces that came through previous newsletters.

Please check your spam first before emailing me if you do not receive this.

The long sleeve pattern piece will be available in this Friday's newsletter.