The Blue Robins' Nest: Elements of Design: A Barbie Gown Deconstructed

I won the Barbie Project Runway challenge by only two votes. There were many designs that were superb, and the competition was cutthroat. I loved the ideas and the executions I saw lined up on the coffee table turned runway. I wanted to know everyone’s thought process, but the party didn’t lend itself to a good discussion on where people started and where they finished. I can only think for myself, but I wanted to take a Barbie design from the ground up and show where I start and finish. It all begins, for me, at the drawing board, literally. I begin sketching not only to come up with ideas, but to see how I liked them. When you draw a lot, you have time to really think about working the ideas over in fabric. Here are a few of my Sketches for the 2012 Peaches n’ Cream update challenge:

I can tell you from all my sketches (and there were many, many others) that I tended to like the idea of a full skirt with a hemline high enough to show off a fancy pair of shoes. I also began to really fancy the idea of a white dress with the pop of peach color coming through a bit of floral work. The next thing I need is a doll. After Roberta Sanchez, I doubted I would ever work with another model. But in the 2010 challenge, I tried working with another doll I named Pamela, and I thought it was a success. Roberta has a lot of personality that I find a little distracting when I design from scratch. I found myself designing audacious things for Roberta whereas Pamela, a blank doll devoid of the personality Roberta had, allowed me to freely design a look with my own idea of taste and sophistication. Roberta isn’t exactly sophisticated.

The new doll came from Amazon.com because she comes from a line of Barbies, like Pamela, that make great fashion dolls. These are the Barbie Basics line (which is unfortunately out of commission). Not only are Barbie Basics dolls designed to look like supermodels, they also come with stands so they can showcase our while standing virtually on their own. Amazon.com still carries these dolls, but some are more expensive than others based on availability.

I liked the new doll. She had a sweet face and a fresh look I found appealing. Her bangs and her brunette hair, I thought, would complement a peach-and-white design better than a redhead (which would clash) or a blonde (which would be washed out by the colors). I decided to name her Thalia. Now, the sketches rarely look exactly like my actual dresses or outfits. The sketches are the rough drafts. When I start working with actual materials, the idea takes shape with its own quirks and perks. This party was ill-timed for us. We were trying to budget and we had very little money left after each pay check to pay for things like material or notions. So, in a quick fit of inspiration, I decided I couldn’t wait for fabric; I had to design right now.

I took a piece of paper from our printer and crumpled it up, straightened it, and crumpled it again. I did this over and over until the paper was pliant and held a fold without looking like a fold. Then, with this paper, I began to play with shape on Thalia’s body. I had the overall bodice, neckline, and skirt length down when I rummaged through my cupboards and found my small cupcake papers. These I layered to build up a skirt. I couldn’t help but to use the cupcake papers for adding architectural interest to my design.

When the money finally did find its way to the craft store, I bought embellishments for the gown Thalia was already wearing. I found paper flowers in the scrapbook aisle in varying shades of peach. I arranged these in an ombre fade on the gown with my trusty Aleene’s Tacky Glue. Joseph found shimmery fabric in two different shades of peach for me to use as the underskirts. I layered these from lighter to dark to carry over the ombre look.