Doll's Eye View: London Spring/Summer 2021 Trends

The girls were debating whether or not it was worth their while to stop in London this season. And for good reason. London fashion was not nearly as pretty as New York. Most of the designers seem to turn a blind eye to the pandemic and how it has impacted our lifestyles. It was business as usual: lots of crazy experimentation, designing from their ivory towers as though nothing had changed. And much of it looked so wrong. My dolls just want to look and feel good. It's as simple as that! Consequently their report on the Brits is short. (Only four themes!) There was a fifth group but frankly, at the last minute the girls were not in the mood for vinyl stretch jeans or tight plastic dresses. 

Candy Stripes and Coconut

There is something very refreshing about these dresses that recall how women once dressed on a hot summer day back in the late 1950s, early 1960s. Crisp cottons in a fruity stripes, patterns or simply pure whites shaped into easy silhouettes pinched in at the waist...it was a very pretty, easy look. 

Katoucha was instantly drawn to this striped cotton dress designed by Duro Olowu. The dress is super simple...a simple princess line bodice with a gathered skirt. As you can see, I had fun with the stripes, once again, relying on my textile markers to copy the pattern onto unbleached cotton. 

Crispy Cremes

Uncomplicated, easy to wear...this is another classic way to dress on a typical spring or summer day. The pants are loose and so is the jacket. And it can be as crisp or as fluid as you want.

So here's what happened... Nadja already had a classic, double breasted linen jacket. So I thought I only needed to make was this special style skirt/shorts. But I didn't consult the photo when I cut the shorts, so the proportions appeared too short. And the wider jacket seemed to overpower the doll. As a human, this is the jacket I would like wear right now. But for Nadja, she wasn't so sure so I decided to make her another jacket...this time a fitted blazer. The result... two completely different takes on the original look. Underneath it all, Nadja wears a T-shirt and the combination of a skirt with patch pockets over shorts. 

The Bra

Once again, the bra comes out from hiding and takes center stage for next summer. Granted these are looks for the very young! But hey....many of us have Barbies that are looking for something fun to wear. My more sophisticated dolls also like this look, but for them there's the addition of a jacket or another fun detail like the pleated skirt that tops pencil trousers. 

This is such a fun look that borrows a little from the 1970's at a time when mini dresses were worn over pants in a total look. Instead of a dress, Iman opts for a halter neck bra top and pleated micro mini skirt over stovepipe pants in a bright cherry red. 

When you're a teenager, you can get away with almost anything! This is just bra top (with a bow added) worn with a gathered skirt. Here Kimora does her babydoll look with a bow in her hair and little black heeled sandals. But most days, she's going to slip this look with a pair of sneakers instead!

Fade to Black

And so....we end our journey with another series of little black dresses. This just seems to be the easiest, most effortless way to pull off night time looks. 

A simple tube dress, I made in two options for Kym. Using one of the patterns in my Notorious LBD post, I cut the black dress out of a sweater knit fabric. I accidentally cut the pattern too small for my FR dolls. But it still fit Kym's impeccable figure! However, we both liked the look and fit so much, neither one of us really wanted to cut the center slit as seen in the original dress. For the human, this silhouette looks chic as well, though madame cannot walk because the dress is too restrictive around the knees and calves! So.... I cut another dress, this time using a polyester ribbed material from an old men's knee high sock! The knit has enough body to it that you don't have to worry about finishing the edges. And this time I cut it in the correct size which has more ease through the torso. I carefully cut the slit in between the ribbing. The end result is a bit wider on Kym, which I believe, is how this dress was designed fit. Incidentally, I saw this dress as something that could be worn in the daytime.

My girls can never have too many little black dresses AND I was somewhat intrigued by this little scrap of a dress by Vivienne Westwood. It looks a bit like a rag on her curious choice of model. But me and Zoe figured I could "clean it up" somewhat. It is a jersey dress with shirring on both sides. There is another piece of fabric that ties onto the main dress, stretches over one shoulder and across the bust. The dress actually fits Zoe better around the underarm on the left, but I pulled it down to better show off the detailing over the bust.

Well that was short and sweet. But we have bigger fish to catch in Italy....at least we hope! Catch up with us later as the girls head to Milan. Stay safe. Mask up!!!

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