Hi Barbie! Have you noticed the pink phenomenon that is spreading all over the world? It's a whole Barbie craze! And, I'm here for it. Gimme aaallll the pink. Have you seen the movie? I saw it twice. I made a dress and had to share it with you. Yay for Barbie sewing!

I grabbed the Barbara Bodice pattern from Gertie's Patreon. If you aren't a member, run, don't walk, and join now! She gives so much over there, even at the base level. The Barbara bodice is the updated version of her original Butterick 6453.

This, isn't a sew-along, but it's more of a show and tell. I want to show you the Barbie movie-inspired dress. If you've made a Barbie dress, shorts, PJs, or other inspirational item, tag me. I want to see what you made. I've seen a few goth Barbie outfits that are super fun too.

Let's dive in!

My thoughts on the Barbara bodice might not be the popular opinion. But, I much prefer the Butterick 6453. I like how the back fits me. It has a simple dart. The Barbara has a 2-piece back pattern. It's fine enough, but seems to be extra. 

Barbara has different cup sizes, which is awesome!! No more figuring out your FBA. For the busty gals, this is a huge plus! However, my bodice didn't fit, as flawlessly as the Butterick 6453. I had some extra armpit room, which is weird. I like the FBA I created for the Butterick pattern better. I plan on making another Barbara (I didn't make a mock-up for my Barbie dress) and I'll play with the pattern, fit, and sizing.

Gertie included 2 strap options with the Barbara Bodice. Self-tie straps that are thin, and wide gathered straps, for bra strap coverage. I opted to use the thin self-tie straps, and they covered my wide bra straps well enough. 

The Barbara doesn't have any facings, it's fully lined, which I'm a huge fan of! I definitely love the pattern and am a huge fan. Both the Butterick 6453 and Barbara come together so easily and are fun to sew. It's the perfect last-minute dress pattern. But, I'm still on the fence if I'm over the moon happy with the Barbara. 

Have you sewn it? If so, have you compared the two patterns side by side? The general consensus I've seen across the interwebs is that the Barbara is wonderful. But, as I've gone down the pattern-making black hole, I've become more of a pattern snob kabob. 

Gertie also created the Barbie movie skirt pattern to go with the bodice. It's a full box pleat skirt that uses aalll the fabric. When I ordered my fabric, I ordered 4 yards. However, the skirt alone uses over 4 yards. So, I went with plan B.

I opted to draft my own circle skirt, and of course, I added roomy pockets. I actually prefer circle skirts over gathered ones anyway. I have a fuller tummy and appreciate less fabric in that area. Plus, circle skirts are just fun! 

I've been learning pattern making as I mentioned above, and I'm taking it one step at a time. If you're interested, check out Tricia, she's the best teacher! And, her motto is "You don't need to be good at math for pattern making". Which I'm all about because mathing is hard. Haha :D

Welp, that's it. Do you love the dress? I sure do. I feel so girly in it and it'll be a February staple as well. I plan on wearing tights and a sweater, or a long sleeve underneath it.  

Not a Barbie fan? You can sew this 1950s-style swimsuit instead. It's the Bombshell and it's flattering on everybody.

Have you ever been interested in quilt making, but it looks intimidating? Read my blog post and you can sew one up in about a week. 



Thanks for hanging out today. Happy sewing of all things pink! 


XOXO,
​Annette

If you need a break from difficult sewing projects, I encourage you to grab the Butterick 6453 dress pattern. It was a easy and fun to sew! The only timely adjustment I needed to make was an FBA. After that was sorted out, it was all downhill.

This dress is fluffy and full, no need for a crinoline underneath. The princess seams are flattering. The straps are perfectly positioned. And, the back zip is a cinch. What are you waiting for? Grab the pattern and let's get started! 

1. A whole lotta fabric, this dress is a fabric hog. 4-5 yards is needed
2. Interfacing
3. Matching or contrasting thread
4. Sewing machine and notions
5. Serger, pinking shears, or a zigzag machine to finish the raw edges
6. 16" or longer zipper
7. Seam ripper because... sewing
8. Rings and sliders for adjustable straps

• This dress is super easy and only has 10 pattern pieces! This was wonderful news because I made the Hooded Princess Coat before this dress and that was a beast. Read the post if you've always wanted to make your own raincoat. Gertie did a wonderful job with the pattern.
• I chose double-faced linen. It was a little heavy for this exact dress but, I love it nonetheless. It'll be warm enough to wear in the fall paired with tights and a sweater. I suggest using regular linen, cotton, gingham, etc. Check the pattern envelope for fabric options.
• Shorten or lengthen to fit your torso. I shortened the bodice pieces by 1.5" because I have a short torso. I could have gone a little shorter.
• Size down 1-2 sizes at least. I sized down but, in the end, the dress was still too big. Four inches on each side, too big! I have to take in everything. Ugh. Honestly, I threw on a little belt and it was fine to wear. But, I plan on taking in the side seams, princess seams, waist, etc. Cue the tears.
• Widen the straps if you wear larger bras. Us gals with bigger cup sizes know the wide bra strap game all too well. I made my dress straps 1" wide and they cover my bra straps perfectly.

Happy March!! Hope you are staying safe and healthy, and have enough toilet paper! Ha! Nevert thought I'd say that. Whew, what a world we live in right now. This month has not gone as planned for anyone, I'm sure. We were supposed to leave for a family cruise, but that was cancelled along with school, life, and everything else. 

When life gives you lemons, get the peeler and enjoy the process.
I'm enjoying the time with my kids instead of having to drop off and pickup from school. We even have enough toilet paper. We luckily bought ours before the crazy hit the fan. LOL

I worked on this Butterick top all week and after trial and error, I finally got the sizing correct and finished it. For the cruise. That was cancelled. :/

I wanted to spend more time on the boning portion of this pattern for you guys. Do you search for tutorials before you make something new? It's nice to get a feel for things before getting your head in the game, right? I didn't see any in depth tutorials on how to insert boning. I wanted to spend time on the boning portion with this post. The pattern is pretty easy and straight forward otherwise.

Pattern time

• 1 yard of fabric + lining. 
• 7" Separating zipper
• Thread
• 2 1/5" yards of boning. I opted for plastic this time because this top will be used during warmer weather and I didn't want the bulk of the stainless steel boning. I grabbed 2 packs from my local craft shop. Each package only has 2 yards.
• 2 Buttons
• All your sewing notions and machine
• Scissors for cutting plastic boning that aren't your fabric ones.
• Buttonhole foot 
• Zipper foot
• Hand sewing needle and thread

According to the pattern envelope, I needed a size 14. I also made an FBA (full bust adjustment) after my first muslin seemed snug. Well, it ended up being huuuge. No, I couldn't just take in a little at the side seams. This was big enough to fit the movie snacks, popcorn, sodas and my kids!! Face-palm!

But at this point, I accepted the challenge. Game on!

"It's not sewing unless you use your seam ripper."

I unpicked the bodice, lining, and boning casings. I then re-cut to a size 14 minus the FBA. Sewed it up and it was still big. I could fit the snacks only, this time.
So, I unpicked it again and cut a size 12, no FBA. Size 12 fit good enough. I might try a size 10 next time.

I had this fancy looking fabric laying around and used it for the Butterick 5882 dress pattern. It turned out well enough but, next time, I'll make some adjustments.


My family and I are going on a cruise this spring and I needed  fancy dress. I wanted to make my own dress. Cue the Butterick pattern that I've had in my pattern arsenal for a while. I had yards and yards of fabric leftover from a Halloween project. 

I decided to make the B5882 dress because I had nothing to lose. My fabric wasn't anything I had an attachment to so, I just dove in! I did make a bodice muslin first because I almost always have to do an FBA. But, no FBA was needed this time. Shock and awe!

​Let's get sewing.

Supply List:

• Sewing machine and all that jazz
• 14" zipper
• Boning 
• Interfacing
• Fabric and lining
• Patience
• Grosgrain ribbon
• Hook and eye set
• Matching threads
• Butterick Pattern B5882
• 
  

My mama gave me a small bag of vintage sewing items she found while rummaging through the garage. She thought I might like them, and she was right, and I had to share.