Dolls Eye View: Golden Globes 2025

 

As usual, I anxiously await the first red carpet year of the year.....The Golden Globe Awards. This year, the women were more tastefully dressed than the usual barely there frocks and in your face costumes. But the pendulum seemed to have swung very far into the range of minimalism. Understand, I have nothing against simplicity. In fact, it can be a sort of "palette cleanser" after so many years of excess. However...with more simple styles comes the challenge to find a way to maintain a certain degree of glamour. And that is what this year's edition of GG red carpet trends is about.

Anna Sawai's 2-piece Dior sheath dress is certainly tasteful, but to my eyes, it doesn't command the room. Compare her to my girl Veronique. I chose an oyster white fabric instead of white (which looks a lot less "wedding dress). Veronique's dress is actually a two piece dress as well, but at the last minute, I added a circle to the front. That circle can be turned so that it falls on the diagonal, and thus conforms to the curve of the doll's body. It is tacked to the back of the bodice. I also added a stole...a simple piece of fabric over which I fashioned folds and drapes. 

In effect, I did something similar here. While respecting the simple silhouette of Kristen Bell's Ashi Studio's two-piece, lurex sheath dress, this time I decided to swap in a metal corset. I used aluminum from the neck of a champagne bottle and crushed it to fit over the Gina's curves. I used metal eyelets and a gold ribbon to hold it to her body in the back. For her skirt, I started out with a gold lurex skirt, but it looked a little cheap. So I decided gold satin would do more to elevate this look into something very couture! All by itself, the dress alone is quite interesting, but I felt Gina's arrival on the red carpet should have something tossed over her shoulders, like a great big silk striped shawl. It makes her look more like fashion and less like a golden statuette. 

Here's where my heart sank... After years of attending Yves Saint Laurent's catwalk shows while he was still alive....to see a dress worn by Zoe Kravitz with the famous couturier's name did not sit well with me. He would never have designed something so skimpy. It looks as if the designer ran out of material. So...for my girl Bella, we started out with the same black velvet strapless gown, but we invested in a more substantial white satin cummerbund and added a circle of white satin at the back instead of the wimpy train of the original dress. 

Now this dress I really liked and made not changes to the original design. Silk satin gliding over the body like a cool drink of water. It's Anya Taylor in vintage Dior. I definitely wanted this for my girl, Kym. But what a challenge! There is a post here on how to draft the cowl neckline, but it is using a stretch material and Kym's dress is not stretch which means it will not drape as beautifully. So even though I used the classic cowl neck pattern for this dress, the fact that it is 1/6 scale meant that there's not enough fabric for the fabric to hang so beautifully. I had to manually manipulate and tack down the folds and this was the best I could do! It's not at all like the Dior dress, but it does capture the essence. 

Nicole Kidman in Balenciaga is another dress I loved but found challenging to replicate on this scale. Again because1/6 scale does not a yield a lot of real estate to achieve the same effect. Still, I tried, with Christie as my model. I used a light silver lame stretch fabric for her dress but again, I had to do a lot of manipulation and tacking down to get something similar. I couldn't use the volume of fabric to get all of those beautiful folds in the original because of bulk. To make up for my efforts...I gave her a stole of silver "eyelash" fabric.

Sequins all by themselves aren't all that special. Though Mikey Madison is wearing a bronze sequined strapless sheath dress...truth is...you could copy it fairly easily with a length of stretch sequin fabric from the craft store! For Natasha's version, I started out with some very interesting fabric which has two sizes of sequins incorporated on a non-stretch base. To that I added irregular sequins I made from hot glue and sheets of matching foil. I placed them to cascade down the left side of the dress. Uneven sequins or various sizes of sequins mixed together in the same look is always more interesting than when they are predictably placed side by side. All by itself, it's quite beautiful. But this is the red carpet, so I made a classic straight coat out of a copper tone brocade to throw over her shoulders.

I almost did not make this St. Laurent dress worn by Ms. Saldana. It is again...another sequined dress... and it has a very popular neckline which normally I don't care for, nor is it easy for the doll to wear. But since I was working with sequins on a tulle base....which means I can break the rules in dolly dress construction, I decided to experiment. The dress my girl Lynn is wearing is really two-pieces. For the top, I used the foil from a bottle of wine to wrap around the body, serving as an understructure. I molded the shape to fit the doll's body, then cut the plunging neckline. I glued the sequined fabric to this metal base. Note: there was not enough foil to completely wrap around the doll which was okay because, I cut enough of the fabric to extend over the back and fasten with a hook & eye fastener. (I am going to experiment further to see if the understructure can be used with other fabrics.) The end result...the dress has that plunging neckline which holds up to the body without the need to tape the bodice to the doll!

This was kind of fun. Miley Cyrus in Celine. When making this for my girl, Emanuela, I thought the way to go was to cut out the pattern pieces then dip the edges in silver sparkles. That was so messy!!! So...I started all over, this time, sewing silver beads to the edges of the triangular pieces of the bodice. It is not the same scale and thus yielded a different look. But I still liked it a lot and left it alone. I also thought the opera length fingerless gloves elevated the look while maintaining a certain edginess.

I loved the texture of this dress worn by Ali Wong in Balenciaga. I didn't care for the bow at the waist no the black accessories (which I thought lent a Halloween aura to it). But I did love the ripped pieces aspect. So, my girl's Liu's dress began with a strapless sheath over which I added rows of ripped silk chiffon in flame red. I didn't cut the strips smaller because I didn't want Liu to end up resembling a rag doll AND...I felt the width of the slats was just the right scale to add an element of airiness to the overall look. For that reason, I also decided against the giving her gloves as well.

With this look, we get into a bit more volume. Sophia Vargara's dress is perfectly fine. We just thought the draping within the body of the dress, but especially within the skirt could be a little more interesting. And that's where we took liberties.

The ultimate fishtail dress....Michelle Yeoh in Balenciaga... I pretty much stuck to the lines of the original dress for my girl, Yoon. To a straight sheath, I added lots of triangles of silk at the point of the knees which adds movement as well as volume. Also, instead of a turtle neck, I chose a draped neckline suspended from a strap that ties in the back.

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Dolly Dozen

 

It's been awhile..... I'm sorry to be so silent for so long..... Last year was tough. Life definitely got in the way of doll play....

In addition to caring for a family member with dementia, there were other family members with major health issues. And of course, it was my shoulder everyone turned to..... A rental property owned by my dad that had been vacant for a number of years...it was me who had to finally get it ready to put it up for sale. As if all of this wasn't enough...that most contentious and unescapable presidential election season in the US zapped what little creative juices I had left, leaving me completely uninspired and dry...

I was able to eke out a couple Dolly Red Carpet fashion reports last year. But the various fashion weeks have been a bust. Most of the masters of fashion have left this earth or retired, leaving in their wake,  designers trying to show what terrific "artists" they are without creating any real stylish clothes. One has the feeling that the world is in turmoil from a radically changing ideology to ridiculous costumes passed off as fashion. In any case, it's been challenging, and my girls have been grumbling all year long!!!

On the other hand, they were ecstatic that only three new faces arrived on our doorstep:

The newest girl to arrive, say hello to Gwen (named after Gwen Stefani). She's Integrity Toys' Baby Blue Imogen Lennox

Gina (named after Gina Lollobrigida). She's Integrity Toys' Holiday Spot Dania.

Colleen (named after 1960's super model, Colleen Corby). She's Après Ski Poppy Parker.

I was not tempted by any more than these three beauties. First of all, I've been collecting now for over 12 years so I'm looking for something different from the girls I have already and...as everything else in fashion....aesthetics have changed and I'm not always attracted by the new faces proposed by IT. 

I probably should not count the past year towards this year's anniversary. I was tempted not to acknowledge year #12. Last year, there were only four posts. I haven't been on Instagram either, though from time to time, I do put a little something up on our Facebook page (new doll arrivals, Dolly Advent Calendar).

I cannot predict what 2025 will bring. Here in the US, things have gotten off to a bad start (terrorist attack in New Orleans, fires in Los Angeles, plane crashs and toxic politics). HOWEVER...I was finally able to muster up some creative juices and put together not only this post but the one which follows immediately after!

If you're reading this, it means you still care about us and I appreciate that. Please know that I am eternally grateful for your friendship. We're still around....it's just that it's taking me a little longer to get things together and come back to play...

With love from me and the girls..

April

Oscar Buzz 24 (Updated)

 

Normally, I am able to post my Oscar girls no more than 2 weeks after the event. But this year, I saw quite a number of dresses that inspired me. As a result, I became VERY AMBITIOUS! It was all I could do to get this up before the end of the month. And truth be known....there were still about 3-4 more gowns I wanted to make. But as you will notice, in most cases I took a LOT of liberties!  Sometimes, it had to do with "tweaking" the original look but in other cases, there was something about the original look that didn't sync with the proportion of the doll. Still....this year's Academy Awards red carpet provided a feast of ideas.

What could be more glamorous than this modern rendition of a famous 1950's  Balenciaga gown! As simple as it looks, this was not something I could whip out in a few hours. Au contraire! I used a stretch velvet because I felt it would give me a perfect fit--which it did. HOWEVER...(and this is a big however) the sweetheart neckline and the scallops at the hem contributed to the headache! The fabric is soft and the scallops went limp. I used hem tape to add a little body. It would have been easier to cut the neckline straight then pinch in between the busts. On a doll with small breasts there would not have been the same issue. But Nadja has full breasts. I used tulle to face the top of the dress. After attempting to tack on the tulle lower skirt to the dress, I gave up and finally decided this dress--originally conceived by the master couturier himself, Cristobal Balenciaga--would have been made with an underskirt! The underskirt is tulle held in place at the waist. 

This dress, designed by the house of Dolce Gabanna, is so elegant and looked so good on actress/dancer, Rita Moreno. I had to make the decision to follow this design line by line or to simplify. I think the original dress might be a wrap dress with its grand collar of ruffles that cascade down to the ankles. But I felt the that was too much volume on Veronique's tiny body. For me, that regal pile of ruffles framing her face so beautifully was the real story so I decided to start out with a simple black velvet sheath and add a taffeta collar with a few trailing ruffles down the front. 

The simplicity of this Dior Couture dress is what caught my eye. It's as if she's wearing a silk satin scarf twisted around her breasts and shoulders. Again, this dress is more complicated than it looks. I ended up making two dresses in different fabrics. The original dress was described as a "light silver satin." I used a silver satin  (for the dress above) but after photographing it, the sheen distracted the eye from the details of the dress bodice (as seen below).

So I cut another...this time using a soft pink silk satin. This version comes close to the original dress. However, the tiny proportions of the doll will never lend itself to exactly the way it falls around the bust of the actress. 

A strapless sheath of black sequins with a little sash at the hips by Versace worn by Margot Robbie is lovely for "ordinary folk dressed up," but for couture, I feel it is too simple, too boring. For me it lacks those special little details that distinguish it from expensive off-the-rack dresses. So for my girl, Charlize, I did a gown cut from iridescent mini sequins, dotted with regular sequins and paillettes at the hemline. If you look closely...instead of a sash, I did three rows of black sequins in a trompe l'oeil effect resembling a chain belt! She's holding a shawl made from embroidered tulle.

For the Balenciaga gown worn by actress, Michelle Yeoh, I used lame instead of the 2-toned silver sequins because I didn't have the right fabric on hand. It was fairly easy to make--an asymmetrical bodice with train over a sheath skirt. But when I finished, I was quite underwhelmed and almost didn't include this dress in this lineup. The top came out the way I envisioned, but the light grey lame did not. Just before abandoning this dress, I decided to rub in some silver glitter and photograph it outside in the sun. In person, I like it better. But for some odd reason, it didn't make a difference in the photograph.

 On the subject of silver.... I do love silver dresses and this one translated well for the doll. Naomi's version of DJ Kiss' Jovana Louis gown, is in three parts. A silver bustier, a skirt with train and a sash belted at the waist. 

The other challenge this year... curvy lady fashions reinterpreted for our skinny vinyl divas. I did not have the baby blue sequins the original Louis Vuitton gown called for. And that was okay because I am sure I would not have liked it as much as the dress I ultimately created for Shakira. Actress, Da' Vine Joy Randolf's proportions call for simplicity in design. So the sequins with the dramatic ripped sleeves is just the right look for her. That said.... my doll has smaller proportions and we can play more with the details of this look. Instead of a strapless sheath, I made the body of the dress using a twill acetate (usually used for lining) that I wet, crushed and let dry. You don't have to think about darts or construction because when you unravel it, it will cling where you want. If there are any gaps, simply tack in place. I added a train of un-crumbled fabric. But then, instead of the ripped fabric sleeves--which I started to make out of tulle--I used the rag jacket we make a while ago out of ripped denim. How much fun is that!

Producer Ava Duvernay's gown, in a word, was.....boring! But the straps and the color screamed "denim" to me. So... I decided to have some fun and created this denim gown for Pat. Her dress was made from a pocket I ripped off my father's old jeans. A created long fringe out of another piece and added that to the bottom of the dress. The straps are leather.

Here's another boring dress we decided to have a bit of fun with. Jennifer Lawrence wears a Dior couture gown--simple bodice with full skirt gathered into the waistline--tasteful but boring. Morgan's dress is in three pieces. I had more fun by draping at random, the polka dotted sheer fabric over a strapless bodice. I added a gathered skirt. BUT....I make an over-skirt of black tulle and scraps of dotted sheer that it tied to one side over the rest of the dress! If you are going to do polka dots....make them dance!

I found this dress very interesting!!!!  I love the swirl of black and white around the bottom of the dress. The under dress is a simple black velvet gown that I duplicated using stretch velvet. But it is the black and white satin draping around the hips and the train that is most intriguing. It is also one of those rare dresses that you really need to see in person to figure out exactly how it is made. I cannot tell you how many times and how many different ways I tried to drape this detail to no avail. Though it appears to be one big piece of fabric wound around the hips in a swirl, I believe there are several pieces incorporated to achieve the end result. In this case, I had to close my eyes to the original dress and focus on what I most love about the look. Then....drape in the spirit of the original. It's not the same, but it exudes the same emotion!

Arianna Grande appeared on both the best and worst dressed lists because of this dress from the house of Giambattista Valli. The actress is cute as a button and there was something terribly adorable about her in this Barbie pink gown. To my eyes, she emerged as princess dressed like a pink bumblebee struggling under all of that fabric! This is a perfect example of what happens when you design for a photo, for that moment on stage. Unfortunately when you don't think about how the woman will get between point A to point B....this is the result. But still, we couldn't pass up on her. I wanted to keep the spirit of "Hello Barbie" but lighten it up as if our heroine was emerging from a sky filled pink airy clouds. The strapless gown is nice, but inasmuch as she has such a teenager silhouette, I felt that dress should be something less heavy; something that doesn't point to the curves she doesn't have. I kept the drapes but there are fewer of them and the dress itself is cut from a sheer fabric. The over-piece of the original dress is cut from silk and again is so heavy...it looks like she gathered her bed sheets around her. So....I used sheer polyester organza (from a package of gift bags I found at the Dollar store), to create a series of poufs tacked together into a cloak of sorts. Everything is light and airy as an early summer evening. 

And for the final dress of this series, I chose Laverne Cox in a velvet gown from Mugler. From the bottom up...this is a black fishtail skirt topped with a bustier made from.....the foil from a champagne bottle, sculpted to Amalia's body. This is the second one I made. The first one corresponded to the proportions of the original dress. However, I didn't like the end results as much as when I added more length. The scarf over the shoulders....this is the one in two pieces that I did in the post just before this one! 

(April 18 Update... Here are the dresses we added on after this was published. They were also featured on our Facebook page as well.)

Melissa McCarthy

Danielle Brooks in Dolce & Gabbana

Leah Lewis in Lever Couture

Lisa Koshy in Marchesa.

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Simply That! One Basic Dress, Ten Great Looks

One major trend emerging from the past few season is something called "Quiet Luxury." In another era, this was a conservative look simply known as "classic." There has been so much smoke and fire, so many clown shows at the collections that have turned me off from fashion...I will admit...at first glance, I welcomed the calm of it all. But when this "quiet luxury" began to surface at the red carpet events, I felt it was way too simple to the point of being...well.....boring. While putting together the Golden Globes red carpet post, I noticed how many of the gowns were similar. A little change in the neckline; the addition of a sleeve....each dress seemed to be built on a simple base, only distinguishable by a single element. So that got me thinking....

Eleven years ago when I launched this blog, it was with the idea that using basic patterns, almost any fashion could be created. To that original idea, I decided to start this year with a basic primer on styling. For anyone who has followed this blog long enough, you will not learn anything new to make but rather, my aim is to provide ideas as to how you can whip up a variety of looks quickly and easily with little effort. All of the dresses here are black...another throw back to my love of "the little black dress" especially with an eye towards the up and coming Oscars red carpet. I also kept my palate simple as a way of drawing attention to the general idea of how elements can be added to create an entirely new look without distraction. But feel free to take these ideas and run with it by using any color or combination of colors. 

For this exercise, my base is the strapless sheath, featured here in stretch velvet. (Velvet also appears to be on trend!) This is a fun fabric in the sense that if you are an experienced sewer, you'll use the pattern to ensure a good fit. But if you are doing your best to make something simple...you can make a simple tube that stretches over the doll's body! All by itself, worn with a pair of opera length gloves and a "diamond" necklace...it's a great look that goes everywhere. But why stop there. 

Take two 10x10 inch (25x25mm) squares of fabric and attached them together at one corner. For my dresses, I left the edges rough cut to add an element of texture. Perhaps you might prefer them rolled and sewn down. I also found a small rhinestone broach which will be used at the center of these panels.

There are three points where you can add this to the dress. In the back it makes a lovely train. In the front, off to one side, it adds a bit of drama and flare. And then you can always drape it over the front of the neck, letting it trail over the shoulders into a train! 

Let's go back to our basic dress and modify it a bit with a little touch of "Chanel" using a little bit of satin ribbon.

The satin ribbon can be folded over the top of the neckline of your dress. Keep in mind, the ribbon will not stretch so you will need to incorporate a back opening. Extend the ribbon over that opening so that it will overlap. On the overlap, you can sew on a hook&eye. If you are really sewing challenged and want to add another element without too much drama... a length of 1-1/2" to 2" wide (4mm) is all you need to stream over dolly's shoulders! But lets not stop there....

Keep the same dress and add two giant bows, one on each side!

What I've done here was to cut two strips of fabric and fray the edges. Fold each strip over and using a very narrow ribbon, tie it around the folded strip to form a bow. 

Attach each bow to each side of the dress. And voila....you have another gown with a Chanel vibe!

What is great about this look is that you can do no wrong. Nothing has to be perfect when it comes to the bows. It all adds to the "creative look."

But don't stop there...... Let's go back to the basic, white trimmed black velvet gown.

I've augmented the neckline trim with my 1-1/2" satin trim. Use tucks and pinches to the ribbon trim on the neckline below. Pin as you go along. Then, make several large loops and pin in place. Part of the ribbon will trail over the front, the other part down the back of the shoulder. When you are happy with the look, tack everything down in place.

 Let's go back to our original basic black dress..... 

All this is...is a length of fabric with a ribbon tied in the middle. Add a small piece of 1/2" (2cm) ribbon to one shoulder of your sheath, then pin this train in place! That's all!

The addition of removable sleeves is another way to add style to a simple dress. It also adds versatility to the dress and can be used to compliment other strapless or sleeveless garments!

1. For this puff sleeve with train, I used a contrasting taffeta. It is constructed in two parts: a a narrow tube that serves as the base of the sleeve; and a larger square of fabric to be gathered and made into the pouf.

2. Both the tube and the pouf have the top and bottom edges turned down and stitched. The back edge is stitched down the seam line.

3-4. For the pouf, a running stitch is made at the top and bottom edges. Pull the string to form the gathers then slide over the base of the sleeve tube.

5. Pin in place and adjust the gathers, leaving space at the top and bottom.

6. You can use as is or add another panel at the bottom underside of the pouf.

7. The finished sleeve will look like this or something similar, depending on how big or small you want your pouf to be.

8. What I love about this look is that you've not only added a sleeve but a train as well!

We can also capture the mood with existing elements like the following "flower blossom" sleeve. It's made with a tube of stretch velvet onto which petals from silk flowers have been added (inspired by J-Lo's pink gown from the Golden Globes)!

Unless you want to, you don't have to be stuck with such a simple neckline or silhouette either. And you don't have to follow a fancy pattern either to get the effect.

Easy sweetheart neckline is a hack I've used often. Take a needle and thread, make a few stitched down 1/2" (1cm) the center front and pull into gathers. Then turn the needle around and make another stitch to secure. 

Easy fishtail. Honestly, I detest fishtail gowns, but there are a few times when copying a celebrity red carpet look, that I've had to resort to this hack! It's as simple as cutting a rectangle of fabric and hemming the top and bottom. Sew together the single seam at the back. Place a running stitch at the top and gather. Slide onto the dress and tack in place. If you want..you can add a ribbon along the stitch line. 

A quick and easy, down and dirty pouf sleeve is as simple as making a tube for the sleeve and tacking on a bit of fabric that has been twisted and tacked onto the base.

Put all three EZ hacks together and you end up with this off the shoulder, retro glam look, here pictured in velvet! 

Let's do one more but this time I've changed up the fabric and used a polyester organza. It occurred to me that instead of buying and using silk flowers for your sleeves, some of you might want to make your own. I made petals from the organza and tacked them onto small sleeve tubes to create this look.

And then I decided to add a train. Again, in a pinch when you don't have lots of time or are simply too lazy to make a proper train, you can take the easy way out with a length of fabric tied with a piece of ribbon which is then tacked to the back of the dress.

Put the two together and voila!!! A magnificent dress that started out so simply!!!!

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