Photography Project Journal: Creating Roslyn

After many years of staring longingly at Lillycat dolls, I was finally able to bring a Ninon home.



Although her faceup is lovely, I'm intending to try my own hand at painting her once the weather warms up and I purchase some sealant and a proper mask. I think? The best place to do that is going to be on the roof of my condo, since that's by far going to have the least foot traffic for my family and neighbors.

As for aesthetics, I really only have vague plans. I've named her Roslyn, after the Bon Iver song, which I have fond memories of listening to on the bus while watching the trees and ivy go by on my commutes. I was the type of kid that loved Cinderella's apron dress even more than her ballgown, so a lot of my focus at first is going to be on a more humble mori girl type of aesthetic.

Although I've been artist for decades, I don't have a ton of experience with physical media, so I'm expecting that I'll be redoing her faceup several times until I'm satisfied. I'm torn between something very natural with some freckles and a sort of sunburnt blushing across the cheeks and nose, and something a little more elaborate with the eye shadow.



So far, I've been teaching myself how to sew, and having a much better time than I expected! I've made her a pair of socks out of an old turtleneck, and some bloomers out of some elastic from a bedskirt. Most recently, I've purchased some patterns for a dress and apron on etsy, which I'll show progress on later. Hopefully, the trim I got on amazon will arrive soon so I can keep going on what I've sewn so far.

 

Dress progress! It's all gonna come out a bit wonky I expect, but pretty good for never having done any of this before! I think I'll make another dress with this pattern after I've finished this one and the apron, and maybe try yet another new craft and embroider something on it.

 

Thank you very much! I'm excited to dive deeper into this community and take advantage of all the generous resources. [x

 

Today I must report on yesterday's failures. What is this, a bodice for ants??

This pattern was made for MSD dolls, and I tried to improvise shrinking the patterns for the bodice to fit Roslyn better, but now that I'm at this stage in the instructions, I don't think it's going to fit. I'm also beginning to think that sewing a lining into the bodice without an iron is beyond my abilities.

So now, I'm at a crossroads. I can try seam ripping what I did yesterday and proceed with the dress without any lining, or I can begin with new fabric fully in the original MSD size and perhaps try my hand at taking the dress in a bit after I finish it. Or it's possible that the extra baggy look on Roslyn will look charming.

In any case, I've still learned a lot! I've found myself speculating on the construction of various garments while watching tv. A whole new world has opened up for me.

 

I've been spending this morning sketching some options for faceups as well as hair and eye colors. I think regardless of my other choices, I want to focus on lower lashes for her and include that sort of delicate translucent purple along the inner corners and out toward the eye bags. Prooooobably? I will not choose the green hair version because I have dreams of acquiring a Lillycat Chibbi Moon one day and shelling them into my oc Sorrel, who has that coloring.

I was originally only imagining Roslyn as the first option, but as I looked at her face I thought about how much she reminds me of this vampire thrall character that I drew a lot last year.




Hmmmm... Do you see the vision? I've seen faceup artists paint dolls with those really delicate white eyebrows and eyelashes and that is very tempting. The only problem with that is that if I shell her, inevitably I'm going to need to shell the vampire... I bet I would have the best luck with a feminine male head and female body hybrid. This is a dangerous hobby. xD

 

Oooh I will have to consider this

 

Thank you everyone for your encouragement! I think I will try to sew a band along the bottom like many of you have suggested. I'm pretty nervous to begin the gathering for the sleeves, but there's nothing to do but to do it, right?

I was considering seam ripping the lining out because the collar line became insanely bulky and messy, especially toward the back, but I think now it would be better for me to try to see this dress through, bulk and all.

 

Welp! The raw edge of the collar is disintegrating, and there isn't enough seam allowance for me to sew or glue everything without a bunch of frayed threads poking out. I'm gonna call time of death on this attempt. xD

I have already begun another attempt, and this time I'm taking what I've learned and using fabric glue to seal the edges of the fabric as I go. I'm making this dress out of an old pillow case, and I still have plenty left to redo the bodice.

 

fjlsdkjfkla auuuugh she's so cute with a wig! I'm not completely settled on what I want her usual hair color to be, but that's the beauty of cheap aliexpress wigs right? And honestly this wig is so soft ;w;

As for the dress, I'm making progress! I'll post photos when I'm further along though.

 

You're so sweet, thank you! Maybe I could figure out how to size up regular monster high patterns too, to take advantage of that slightly closer waist-to-hip ratio.

 

Thank you! I wasn't sure it was going to work out because I had had literally like three days of sewing experience ever when I tackled it, and the stitching inside is a hot mess, but I'm very pleased with how they turned out. cx

 

I finally got to the part I was most nervous for: sewing gathered fabric by hand.

A thing about me is that I am really anxious about pricking myself with pins, and this is a part where I really can't avoid using pins. But I figured out a solution, and I feel very clever about it!



I pulled out a bunch of erasers from mechanical pencils, and stabbed all the pins into them. >w< Now I don't have to worry about being stabbed, plus the pins are less likely to fall out as I'm turning the garment around.



With that method in use, and very generous amount of fabric glue to tame fraying edges and press seams into place without the use of an iron, I managed to sew a sleeve cuff that looks halfway decent.

I also got a couple of eyes in the mail. Unfortunately, the blue ones were sent in the wrong size, and the green ones... aren't green. I'm still glad Roslyn has eyes now, and it's not really worth returning cheap eyes from aliexpress so I'm just going to deal with it for now.





Here's my progress with her! I'm really proud of myself for getting this far.

 

Thank you so much!

 

;w; I really did it! I sewed a dress!

The next thing I'm doing to do is sew snaps on the back of the dress and probably on the back of her bloomers to improve the fit. After that, I haven't decided whether I'd like to try my hand at sewing some underwear or begin sewing an apron for her. For the underwear, I think I will want to acquire some ribbon or other trim, and for the apron I think I'll probably try to do a mock up with paper towel or cheap fabric first, since I have some very special fabric I'd like to use for it that I'm nervous about.

 

Thank you! I really feel like I have the sewing bug now, I want to create so many things for her! I was talking to my friends and partner about maybe adding some more embellishments to her dress, maybe decorative patches/elbow patches. I would just need to figure out if I have some fabric on hand that would suit it. But sewing on the snaps comes first. Well, actually, organizing the pile I've made on the floor of doll crafting stuff. My beloved washed out a plastic drawer set for me yesterday, so I can finally get things tidy again.

 

More progress! Since I know how to do running stitches now, I remade the bloomers and they fit much better over Roslyn's generous booty.

After that, I made the piece I've been excited to work on since I began sewing a few weeks ago: an apron! Specifically, an apron made out of a beautiful embroidered hand towel that my great grandma left me. It's been hidden away in my closet for years, so I'm really happy to have a way to display it now. Cx

I still need to finish securing the velcro on her bloomers, and I need to sew on snaps and maybe a sash onto her apron.

I think after that I'll work on sewing her a bra and panty set using the pattern I got on etsy for underwear that specifically fit Lillycat dolls.

 

Thank you so much! I've been looking forward to sewing that apron since I first started sewing, I just wanted to get a little bit of confidence first. I'm still shocked it turned out so well!

 

New project! I'm using an ikea pillow case and an ill fitting pair of pants for this underwear set. I'm already delayed though since I'm waiting on some green thread to arrive, so I'm going to poke around other patterns I've acquired and see what else I could work on today. Maybe a vest?

 

Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it because I'm having a blast. cx

 

Progress on the underwear! I sewed the lining onto the bra and panties, and so far my experience with sewing lining has continued to be fraught.



I spent well over an hour just trying to turn out the crotch through that narrow little channel. I tried pushing it through with a chop stick, with a small safety pin like I saw online. I even sewed a thread to the end of the crotch and fed the needle all the way between the layer and trying pulling it through that way, but the thread broke before I could get it through.

Finally, I just had to seam rip the side of the crotch to turn it out, and then I glued the seams in place and top stitched everything. Fabric glue is continuing to save my life!



There was supposed to be another tab on the left side of the underwear but it must have gotten eaten somewhere along the lining process as well. But it turned out to be ok because they still fit well when I sewed it all together.



Family guy death pose while fitting the panties.



And here's where I'm at now! Maybe later tonight after DND and watching the Pitt, I'll be able to sew snaps onto the back of the panties. After that, I'm waiting on some sewing supplies including ribbon to arrive, which I'll use to attach straps onto the bra. I might also add some other embellishments to them, but I'm not sure yet. The ruffles I have on hand currently don't really match the color theme.

Even though I struggled with the panties, I'm really pleased with how these are coming out. I'm proud of how I cut out the patterned pieces. I'll take a picture of the back of the panties later because they also came out really cute.

 

I finished sewing the snaps for the panties! And my doll stand came in so Roslyn is standing at last [x

 

I found this human sized pattern on etsy I'm thinking of getting once I have a fabric I'd like to use for it. I was able to resize the pattern for the apron from 1/4 scale to 1/6 scale without too much trouble, so I thiiiink I should be able to do the same for human scale patterns. I can't tell whether each pattern piece is going to be broken up to be printable in human scale though which I'm a little nervous about. On the listing previous there's an overview of the pattern pieces so maybe if those are all proportional to eachother I can use that.

 

I had amazing thrift store luck yesterday!



Starting off with Roslyn in her usual outfit, but with the addition of a fur collar from a Victorian Barbie, and a little bag I found on the floor of the Goodwill with some sprigs I cut from an old ikea fake plant I have (thank you to my partner for that idea!)



I found this jewelry box on another Goodwill trip, but today I organized all the sewing supplies I got yesterday into it, as well as Roslyn's extra pair of eyes and some hands and jewelry from my Kikagoods dolls. I won't need thread for a long long time!



I also got some Pacific Northwest themed wine glass charms. x'D I plan on making doll jewelry out of them. I think as they are now I could even fasten them around Roslyn's neck as a choker, but I would definitely like them better on a longer chain.

Speaking of chokers, I got this cameo choker off of a porcelain doll, and it's my absolute favorite doll related thrift find so far. I was just thinking the other day how much I would love a doll sized cameo, and was doubting I'd ever find one, and here it is! I'll consult my partner to see if they have any jewelry closures I could use, but otherwise I think I'll just superglue the ribbon to the back of the cameo and then just sew a snap closure.



I also got this white cape that I'm showing with an ocean themed dress I found on another trip, and a pair of socks that are a bit too big, but I can easily take them in. I like how delicate the fabric is on them. cx



I've been looking for another larger jewelry cabinet to turn into a doll wardobe. This one is going to take some love, with the broken pieces on the door, and how dusty and stained it is on the inside, but for only $6 I think it'll be worth it.

I need to decide whether to snip out the wood work and replace it with glass or plastic, or if I should just snip the broken bits off, or try to repair the design. Maybe I can also put some fabric or wallpaper or something to make it look nicer inside. There's already rotating hooks for hanging necklaces, but I think I'm going to take those out and replace it with a dowel so I can hang doll sized hangers.

I've never done a project like this, but I'm really excited!



Last but not least, fabric! These dressed I found off of porcelain dolls are soooo pretty. I'm hoping to downsize them into new dresses. I think I might even be able to cut the sleeves on the right off below the mutton chop part and have them be the right length, but on the other hand maybe I should try to downsize the poofs as well, I think that would look really darling. I'm proobably going to take the lacey net fabric off the sleeves since it's kind of scratchy and I prefer everything I make for my dolls to be nice to touch.

I'm incredibly pleased with what I was able to find fabric wise. As a fat person, it's pretty vindicating to be able to finally make use of all the gorgeous fabric that folks in the XS-M range have regular access to, I gotta say. I think I'm going to be able to make so many sweet, romantic, foresty outfits out of this stuff. >w<

 

Thank you, I'm glad it's been fun to read through. cx

Yeah, it would be a shame to remove all that beautiful woodwork on the doors. I'm hoping that if I put a piece of plastic behind them it will make it easier to secure replacement pieces, and hopefully with make it less likely that more will break.

 

Today I got some exciting things in the mail!



First, some pretty fabric and a bunch of trim, ribbon, teeny buttons, etc. I should be able to embellish that underwear set I made now and add the straps to the bra. I was thinking either the pink ribbon and ruffles, or the cream ruffles and one of the narrow cream colored laces as the straps?

Next, I received Roslyn's first pair of shoes and a gorgeous belt bag! All thanks to my friend who was able to send the package on to me since the seller isn't currently able to ship to the US.




At last, Roslyn has a complete outfit! I'm so in love with those shoes. ;w; I may acquire more shoes eventually (actually my cousin said she wants to sculpt me some shoes out of clay for her which is very exciting), but I honestly see these shoes going well with any outfit I would want to make for her. Ugh! I love them so much.

I love the fantasy vibe of the belt bag so so much, and that tiny little pinecone charm is so perfect. ;o; It's so versatile too! I like that I can put it around her waist or her shoulder.



I also have some updates on projects! I got the top stitching done for this vest. It's... not great looking. x'D I'm not happy with how messy the edges are. The corduroy fabric turned out to be incredibly hard to work with, so even though I was originally planning on sewing a matching pair of shorts or pants, I don't think that's going to happen after all. I might be able to salvage this though?

I've been doing a little poking around about the possibility of sewing teeny tiny bias tape around the edges to clean them up. Does anyone think that's a viable option? I haven't looked into, like, how to sew bias tape or anything yet, just confirmed that it's a thing. The scale might make it too hard to manage, I don't know.

My OTHER thought was that I could maybe pick up some embroidery thread and just like whip stitch the absolute bejeezus out of the edges?

I'd really love to hear thoughts about those options, or anything else that you think could work.



Since I ran into a roadblock with the vest, I started working on turning a toddler skirt I got at Goodwill into a Roslyn skirt. c: This is whipping up fairly quickly and I'm excited to see it on her. Giving her a skirt does bring to light that she doesn't currently have any shirts to wear it with, so maybe that should be something I work on soon. Maybe a cream or white blouse with some puffy sleeves? I do have those teeeeeeny tiny buttons now. I'm not sure if I have a pattern yet for something like that, but I'll poke around.

 

Oooh ok I'll look into that, thank you!

 

Her bra and panties are complete at last! \o/

 

Thank you! >w< That's exactly what I'm going for.