A random surprise!

Yesterday I had to pick up a few supplies at the fabric store, and when I overheard the other lady at the cutting counter explaining that she works with dolls, I just had to ask. Turns out, it was Erin of Cupcake Cutie Pie! (You can check out her Etsy here.) I had heard her name thrown around a fair bit, but never expected to meet her in person!

Once we figured out who each other were, there may have been a little mutual “squee”-ing. 🙂

Erin, it was so delightful to meet another one of us crazy people who sew for dolls!

In other news:

things have been stirring in the studio!  We have a couple new patterns in the works — so look for a couple delicious teaser pics in the days to come…

–Melinda

Announcing: the Couture Sewing Academy

Hi everyone!

I’m super excited to announce the launch of one of our latest joint Melody Valerie/Liberty Jane projects: the Couture Sewing Academy!

If you’ve ever wanted to get “inside” a Melody Valerie design, this is a great chance to do it! I’m the instructor for this class, and I’d love to have you join me in the Melody Valerie studio as I talk about what haute couture is, and how you can start applying couture techniques — and the couture mindset — to your own work. Plus, I’ll talk about the specific challenges (and perks) of sewing doll couture, and share lots of helpful tips I’ve learned along the way. There are plenty of examples and exercises along the way to inspire you, and to cement what you’ve been learning.

You can click here, or on the photo above, for more information!

This class consist of nine videos that you can stream or download, as well as an extensive course packet. And, the cost is just $59. You can work through it on your own time, and if you do the exercises, you’ll have a notebook sampler of techniques to refer back to in years to come. Putting this class together has been a really amazing experience, and I hope you’ll consider joining me as we journey through the fascinating and wonderful world of doll couture!

–Melinda

flash sale items coming tomorrow!

Hello everyone!

Just a friendly reminder, we’ll be putting up a couple items in our Etsy shop tomorrow morning! Melody did her annual ‘closet purge’ and found some more treasures she’s excited to share with you…. hope you can join us!

Click here to visit our Etsy shop!

Until tomorrow!

Melinda & Melody

Melody’s Secret Closet: Flash Sale is Coming!

Hello all!

Yes, it’s true — Melody has once again cleaned out her closet, and will be sharing her treasures with you! Just in time for Christmas!

It’s going to be exciting! Thanks so much everyone!

Love,
Melinda and Melody

PS: Sorry for the earlier email/post that went out — bit of a glitch on our end. This is the official post!! 🙂

A little Pinterest sparkle

Because, quite honestly, it is hard to beat a good dose of bling. Gotta love Pinterest for some inspiration!

Boardwalk Patterns are here!

Hello all,

Well, after some feverish work, we have got the patterns for Seashells, the Wild Side, and Gelato Stand up and available on Pixie Faire!

Seashells: designed for soft, lightweight knits, this cozy little beauty features raglan sleeves, a lined bodice, some clever bindings, and an optional skirt applique!

 

The Wild Side: spice up an otherwise ordinary little frock with tabs and topstitching, slightly reminiscent of military garb. Rows of ruffles, made from trim or ribbon, add a fun girly flair.

 Gelato Stand: it doesn’t get much more classic and elegant than this! Clean, straight lines; a contrast yoke with a clever standing collar; and an optional sparkly buckle atop a classic silhouette. Works up nicely in mid-weight, slightly crisp fabrics.

They are all lovely patterns, with clear pictures and step-by-step instructions to help make construction easy! We’re so thrilled with how they came out, and we think you will be too.

If you make these patterns, give us a shout-out — we’d love to see what your version looks like! Either comment here, or drop us an email: melodyvalerie [at] live.com !

Wishing you all a lovely spring,

Melinda and Melody

Thank you!

Well, the auctions are over — what a week it was! Thank you everyone who bid, watched, or even just enjoyed looking at the dresses. It means so much to us, to have you following along and participating. We got the dresses all packaged and sent off in the mail today; they’re on their way to their new home!

Also, on a related note, thanks to all our new subscribers! I keep finding emails in my inbox, saying someone else likes our blog enough to subscribe for updates. That’s pretty cool! We love sharing these adventures in fabric with you.

And now: can anyone guess what we did this morning? (Besides taking the Spring line to the post office, of course.)

You guessed it! That’s the pattern proof for our “Seashells” pattern. It’s a neat little pattern, if we do say so ourselves; simple in essence, but full of those quirky little construction details that you just have to love. And I also love the ‘punky’ vibe this color combination has. So many options, so many different looks, so little time… so, let’s just say I’m looking forward to seeing what color combinations you seamstresses will come up with!

 

Until next time,
Melinda (and Melody!)