Sewing Fantasy Threads: Patterns and Progress on Medieval/Renaissance Fantasy Designs

I am positively gobsmacked. Monica's gown is amazing, quite .

 

Absolutely stunning

Teddy

 

@shadow_takatori - Thank you! I'm quite happy with it.
@mrsporkspeaks - Thank you! It was quite the challenge deciding on the fabrics and trims, since there's really not much variety available in stores anymore. So it allocate out of my stash - except the beads.
@starlady - Thank you! I find that I'm having to get used to it on her, since I used an Iplehouse FID as the model, since I wanted it to fit both sizes of doll. Which it does.
@Teddy - Thank you! Now to take some festive photos with the two of them.

 

@MB Lilac Martha. that is utterly magnificent. As always. I'm completely green with envy.

 

So beautiful!

Ryu

 

Decided to have an official knighting ceremony....

 

I love this so much. Can you tell me a little bit about the backdrop pieces and where you got them @MB Lilac ?
I am in some dire need of ideas to set together a fantasy or period backdrop.

 

Well, it's actually the bottom of my dining room china cabinet. Then piled some old wooden shelves in front against it to make steps. The 'throne' is actually a Victorian armchair, with some furs. The wall hanging behind is one I made some thirty years ago for the Barbie castle in the basement, and I hung it over my doll's fireplace my husband made a few years ago. The candles are from the Party store, and the stands were from the Thrift store for my Phantom series. I did take some shots further back to show the set-up, but it's not posted on my website yet, so I can't link to it yet. Once it's there, I can show you.

But I find it too hard to get down on the floor to take photos anymore, so plan on making a castle interior for on top of my table. That will be a Loy easier.

 

Awesome! Thank you bunches! No wonder the back wall was so lovely. Those stands were a great thrift find, too. I'll have to keep my eyes peeled.

I look forward to the picture then!

 

Gorgeous!

Teddy

 

Here's the set up for the knighting ceremony....


I'm currently working on making some miniature Medieval food....two meat pies, and birds baked in pastry....


I still have to touch them up so they look 'baked'

 

@MB Lilac Oh wow, they're almost taller then the cabinet space used. Although that gets me thinking for what kind of backdrops I can use.

I also love the baked goods so far! The peacock is a treasure and I hope painting them is relatively painless.
I mistook some of the sculpting tools for rolling pins, I imagine even using the scraps for the backdrop of a kitchen would work pretty well.

 

That feast table is going to look spectacular

Teddy

 

@Mutation - finding good backgrounds is all about focusing on the smaller space and ignoring the bigger picture - and shooting the photos down at the doll's eye level.
@Teddy - Thanks! I figured with all the new Medieval costumes I should really make some appropriate food items. Most of the 'food' items I already have are just modern desserts. Next up is to try recreate some roast turkey legs.

 

{grin!} Goose would be more medieval - good thing this is the fantasy thread. Not that the roast legs would look significantly different. (Sorry - I've obviously spent too long helping cook and serve medieval feasts and banquets fro various reenactment groups over the years).

I'm looking forward to seeing the new green gown when you have it done. Not getting around to much doll sewing myself at the moment so living vicariously through the creativity of others.

Teddy

 

Well yes, 'goose'. But they don't look all that different. Same with pheasant. I don't feel like sculpting one of those, and I already have a 'turkey', which is on the small side, so I'm thinking I'll just make a bunch of pheasant tail feathers to stick out the rump end. One thing I'm not doing is a suckling pig or boar's head. Those things creep me out.

 

And I have three Medieval entrees. They turned out a touch dark, but I do prefer my food well done..... LOL....


And going back to the 'goose' conversation..... I think the reason I automatically thought turkey for a Medieval feast, is that here in North America they always have turkey legs at the Renaissance Festivals. Which is actually ironic, since they are trying to recreate life in Medieval England, and there would have been geese. So I guess I come by it honestly - even if incorrectly.

 

Oh they look splendid!

My thought would have been Hollywood who have perpetrated some horrible acts of historical misinformation on the viewing public over the years.

We have the same issues over here with food available from vendors at public events. Although many of the reenactment groups have "kitchen" displays and prepare period-correct food for their members. One of the groups I play with performs a display piece called "Mess of Manners" where we give an idea of how a meal for Medieval gentry would have been (it was developed with much advice from someone who works in the Tudor Kitchens at Hampton Court Palace). The difficult part for the servers and diners is to carry on playing the parts as if unobserved, rather than reacting to the narration.

Teddy

 

Oh they look amazing!!!! I'm looking forward to seeing the whole feast set up so much!!!! I've also been thinking how nice it would be to have a whole banquet on a table - a Christmas feast I was thinking - but since I have no sculpting skills whatsoever, I'll just have to live vicariously through you! They literally look good enough to eat!!!

 

I finished another gown today. It was originally supposed to be a green version of the first red one, but it fought me every step along the way - some outfits can be like that - so it ended up much simpler.


The skirt photographs more on the blue side, but in real life it's a closer match.

 

It looks like in the end you won the fight, @MB Lilac !

 

Despite the fight, it turned out gorgeous.

Teddy

 

@MB Lilac My love of greens appreciates the fact you fought the fight. I really adore the fabric for the skirt portion.

 

Thank you! I'm on a roll, with another gown finished. This one is more Italian Renaissance, and is made from a sari....

 

Finally finished the gold medieval gown. It's supposed to be for another doll, which hasn't arrived yet, so Bianca gets to model it for now....

 

Beautiful.

Teddy

 

She looks like a Da Vinci angel @MB Lilac .

 

@Teddy - Thank you. This one seemed to take forever due to all the beading.
@Victoria Victrix - especially so in her close-ups.......

 

@Victoria Victrix is right - just like a Renaissance painting.

You're still waaaay more productive than I am.

Teddy

 

Probably because my husband and I are retired, and I don't really have much else to do.

 

That would be my dream... All those doll outfits I could get around to working on.

Teddy

 

She does look like a Renaissance painting!
She is lovely, her gown is incredibly beautiful and so is your photograph, Martha.

 

@Teddy - Definitely. Of course, even with almost all the time in the world to work on doll costumes, it still takes a while to finish one. If I'm really focussed, I find I can finish maybe two like that in a month.
@rosehollow - Thank you. I'm hoping to take more medieval photo stories once my two new ladies arrive. I had to resist doing everything I have in mind with just Bianca, so switched Rex out of the knight costume and gave it back to Baron, now that he's back home from the spa. Rex is going to need his own knight outfit as well, and I hope to get to that as soon as I finish the new project I'm working on.

 

I've been playing with lighting coming from the sun through the window. Unfortunately the background isn't exactly period appropriate, but I was more interested in the way the doll looked in the sun.....

 

Wish I could do something a lil bit like any of your designs. All of them are incredible!

I can only imagine how much work and effort you put on them.

You have all my admiration.

 

It's certainly a pretty effect

Teddy

 

@MB Lilac a person could be forgiven for thinking that was a full-sized human standing there.

 

Agreed! My goodness, what a beautiful shot! @MB Lilac you're an inspiration to us all.

 

@Dendra77 - This gold gown took forever to finish......at least in my timeframe. The machine sewing was fast enough, but every edge was hand-beaded with super tiny beads, and that's what took two whole weeks. My plan is to release the patterns for all the Medieval style costumes I've been making, but they would be 'Just Patterns' and not full tutorials with instructions. Free, like usual. But I figure anyone who can sew should still be able to use them. I don't know yet when I'll get around to it, but I will announce it here when they are up.
@Teddy - Thanks. It all started when I took the chance with a doll dressed all in white, fully expecting her be totally blown out by the sun, but the photos turned out amazing. So I had to try shooting some more dolls the same way.
@Victoria Victrix - Thanks. I find that particular photo reminds me a lot of a Waterhouse painting.
@GammaVector - Thank you so much!

Here's one more 'window shot', but with my FID Lawrence, and Raccoon Monica. This time I did change the background to be more period appropriate....

 

Awww that's so cool, you're amazing!
But I should said " Wish I was a lil bit talented as you"
Anyways I'll keep an eye on your posts, your patterns are a treasure to have.

I'm close to a few seamstress, they are teachers where I work and I know is not an easy job and even harder if we talk about doll's costumes, the details are tinier and you have to sew them with a lot of patience and care.

Thank you so much!

 

Oh my god. I thought I loved that red gown before, but now I'm just. Completely blown away. This photo looks like a movie screencap or something. I can't stop staring at it!

 

Thank you. I was really happy with the photos with the sun coming in through the window.

My two new Iplehouse FIDs finally arrived recently. This one is Grace. She borrowed the bow and arrows off a friend, and I think she needs her own set....

 

She's so gorgeous and the dress is just amazing and perfect!!

 

@MB Lilac LOVE her! She looks like Merida all grown up and ready to show the menfolk what a woman can do.

 

And doesn't the gown look good on her too... But yes, she should have her own bow and arrows.

Teddy

 

@Dendra77 - Thanks. I ordered Grace to replace the Raccoon girl that I had wearing this dress and wig. I much prefer the Iplehouse FIDs,
@Khell - Thanks. I thought the red hair with the green gown had a definite 'Brave' vibe to it, so borrowed the bow and arrows off someone else for the photos.
@Teddy - Thanks. I find this gown looks great on everyone, but Grace will be the one keeping it for now. And yes, she definitely needs her own set of weapons.

 

@MB Lilac I bow down to your incredible talent and skill!! All your pieces are absolute works of art. So inspiring! That is the type of look that I am aiming for with my crew, especially your knights! -swoon- Thank you for sharing them with us! And the sunlight photos are just to die for.

 

Love the Merida vibes! She looks like she means bussiness

 

@MB Lilac one of the things I love about this gown is how you took fairly...less than optimal upholstery trim, and made it stunning with your hand beading. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have the patience.

 

@Moontouched - Thank you. I've been meaning to put the patterns up, and just haven't made the time yet. There is a 'Creative Journey' page on my knight costumes, but it doesn't;t have patterns - Lawrence & Baron's Creative Journey - Tutorials

@elfy016 - My plan was to make her something along the lines of Sorcha in the movie Willow, but maybe I'll rethink and make something a grown up Merida would wear.

@Victoria Victrix - Thanks. However, it's not exactly 'upholstery trim', since these dolls are just MSD size, so that trim is actually quite small. I used to have it in all kinds of colours but the stores that sold it have long gone. But, yes, I know what you mean. In fact it's the beading and embellishing that's my favourite part.

Here's several of my dolls together....

 

@MB Lilac I had no idea those dolls were MSD size! If I were to do it over again, and those manly men were available in MSD, that's the size I would have gone with rather than SD. Do you bead that trim before or after you put it on the garment?

 

Most of the beading gets done after the outfit is partly sewn, and then it's finished along seams after they are sewn.

In some ways it's a good thing the MSD Fashion size dolls weren't available way back when I first got into BJDs or I likely would never have gotten most of the dolls I do have. I do have a few of the bigger dolls but always found them way too big to handle easily, so never gave into temptation for more bigger ones. But now that Iplehouse offers so many of their large dolls in the Fashion size, it's exactly what I have always wanted - beautiful realistic smaller dolls for dressing in beautiful costumes.

Here's all the dolls that currently have Medieval costumes....


I'm finding there girl in gold is looking too washed out in photos so have started making a new blue gown. And I tried some of my smaller children with them, and they work okay, so I'll have to make some more smaller outfits now as well. One thing just leads to another, and another......

 

The new blue gown....

 

So gorgeous!

 

Stunning. The underskirt and sleeve fabric is lovely.

Teddy

 

Simply beautiful!

 

@MB Lilac that color combination is really perfect for her.

 

Thank you. Now I'm working on dressing the kids. They are more Renaissance, but since it's a Fantasy world, I don't mind mixing styles....

 

@MB Lilac Your work is stunning. I love how the little ones dresses turned out, I'm a sucker for exposed sleeves

Not at MB Lilac's level, but I'm working on my Pukipuki's kit. Newt's is inspired by Viking Apron dresses and Goblin is a mix of Anglo Saxon and Viking.
It's lost under the belt, but Goblins coat has a pair of arrows on each side. I've been trying to fancy up Goblins clothes a bit.

 

Absolutely adorable - especially Newt's "brooches" and beads.

Teddy