Madame Alexander vs. American Girl

I have an unabashed love for Madame Alexander because her face is so beautiful. Her lips are large, and so are her wide-set eyes. This doll is called "Favorite Friends First Day of School," and she's listed at the Madame Alexander site for $44.95. There are 13 "Favorite Friends" available at the above M.A. page. I particularly like this one:

I will frequently compare Madame Alexander to American Girl because there are differences. One notable one is that Madame Alexander's cloth body is seamed at the chest; whereas American Girl is seamed at the neck, making this seam visible with any open-necked outfit. However, Madame Alexander's chest seam creates a funny dent--noticeable to a seamstress--that gives her slightly funny posture. I actually tried to return my first 18-inch M.A. doll until I realized they're all designed in this manner.

Therefore, I consider the physique of American Girl to be superior. Yet, that funny seam at A.G.'s neck annoys me--but then so does the indented chest of M.A. Suffice it to say, a girl child won't care about either of these seams. And American Girl is twice as costly as Madame Alexander.

Both brands of dolls celebrate racial differences--as you can observe the different skin colors among the 13 dolls at the M.A. link that I provided above. American Girl gives the buyer a lovely opportunity to choose hair, eye and skin color. You can purchase a doll that resembles your child (somewhat). You can even choose to get the doll's ears pierced for an additional $15. However, the base price of the doll is $100 ($115 with pierced ears). The A.G. doll is a pricey toy, well worth the cost if your child plays with it for several years.

Some parents do not have $100 or even $45 to spend on a doll. There are cheaper brands, like Springfield dolls that can be found at Michael's. Springfield dolls are a cheap "knock-off" of the popular American Doll. You may also find it at Amazon--for about $17--but if get a 50 percent discount coupon for Michael's, you can get the Springfield doll for around $8. I won't spend significant time on Springfield dolls or any other brand that emerges as a trend or fad, unless it becomes more popular. If you or your child has a Springfield

 

doll, I'd be curious to hear about your experience and your opinion of the doll. My aim is to provide ample information to properly dress the 18-inch doll. American Girl will be the default doll when sizing patterns.

Choosing Fabric

My goal is to make beautiful doll clothes, spending only pennies. Fabric can be expensive these days but remnants are cheap. I've found nice remnants at both  JoAnn Fabrics and Walmart; I'm using either remnants or scraps from past projects.

First I purchased a few cute doll shoes and accessories, and I kept these colors in mind when sifting through remnants. I have grouped similar colors together to help me put together a "look." I will probably make a skirt with box pleats out of the silver drape fabric on the right. Those silver shoes have ankle straps; the little slippers are lavender.

I need to adjust my taste in fabric somewhat and quit selecting colors that I'd wear myself. I love muted colors, but I think both deep and bright colors are more appropriate for dolls. I love black and white, and I love polka dots (for both me and the dolls). See below:

I would never buy black fabric (toward the right) with the shiny thingies, but these remnants give me the opportunity to try something different, even expensive. My American Girl doll Julie is supposed to be a hippie, so I will probably use the above tie-dyed print for her. The polka dots will be cute with a red belt. The pin striped fabric on the right is probably lining but I can use it for a short vest. Or I can make a black vest and line it with the pin stripes.

Aren't these saddle shoes and Mary Jane shoes adorable? These cute little shoes can be the start of a doll's look.

I have a closet full of clothes in the color palette below. I like to match hair and clothes. Unfortunately, only one of my dolls has brown hair, and it looks more black. I'm thinking of adding highlights to the doll with the brown hair. Has anyone ever colored a doll's hair? I could probably highlight with tea, but I'm afraid of staining the doll's skin.

These are lovely browns for sure. The two pieces on the left are faux leather; I have plenty of each so I can make pants or a skirt or a vest.

This last group is blues. The middle piece is six inches of denim. You can use leftover legs from cut-offs. The prints on the right remind me of Katy Perry who is very smart the way she uses color, the way she dresses "retro."

I plan to have some fun, creating my fashion line for these dolls. Lots of polka dots. Lots of hats. Lots of gloves. Lots of wild hair. I'm having fun with this blog.

My 18-inch Dolls

American Girl manufactures the most popular 18-inch doll. In my opinion their construction is superior to that of other dolls of the same size, but they are pricey at $100 each. When purchasing an A.G. doll, you can choose hair color, hair length, shade of skin and eye color. Your little girl can play with a doll that resembles her in many important ways.

I own one American Girl doll that is known as Julie. She's the center doll below with the long blonde braid, and she represents the 1970s when flower power and love influenced both style and ideals. The fictional "Julie" lives in San Francisco. The embroidered blouse that her friend wears belongs to Julie.

I prefer the face of Madame Alexander hands down. M.A. dolls have larger eyes and fuller lips than American Girl. Although I will always create patterns and clothes to fit the measurements of the popular A.G. doll, I will make it easy to adjust clothes to fit Madame Alexander. I will talk about the differences in sizes at a later date.

Although I simply adore M.A., I have noticed that the construction in general of American Girl is superior. Her hair has more root holes, so it is thicker, and her body has better proportions.

Below are two dolls by Madame of Alexander that I simply adore. I call the doll on the left "Brandi" because she resembles my daughter-in-law with the same name who is also bi-racial. Recently, Madame Alexander has manufactured its 18-inch dolls in small batches of unique dolls. The doll on the right is quite a find. Look at her full lips and massive hair. I can't wait to sew for these dolls!

The dolls I include in this blog have traded some articles of clothing. I threw away some clothes that came in the box because they were utt-bugly. By the way, I am not a lover of the clothes that are available for these dolls, and that's what this blog is all about. I want to try something different. I can't wait to do some wild things with the doll hair as well.

Stay tuned for more info about dressing 18-inch dolls and the people who love them.

Ballerina and Fairy Dolls

The Madame Alexander 10-inch doll has the most exquisite face. Once I fell in love with her, Barbie made no sense. I remember Madame Alexander in costumes from various countries, but through the years, the 10-inch doll has appeared as Scarlett O'Hara, Jackie Kennedy and other historical figures.

I found my own dolls under the Christmas tree, one at a time, without a fancy outfit. As I recall, my doll either came in underwear or a generic dress which made her a great candidate for homemade clothes. In those days, I wasn't much of a collector, and with five children in our family, my dolls eventually lost their heads.

As an adult, I've gravitated to the same beautiful face of the 10-inch Madame Alexander Doll. She no longer is available in her skivvies so through the years I've bought them in their costumes. I have two Scarletts, and a Pollyanna but I lean toward ballerinas.

I'm actually in awe of this doll. I want to look at her, stare at her, but I must keep her tucked away to protect her from dust. One of these days I may get a display case. This doll is called "Fairy of Wind."

Here are two dancers called: "Russian Ballerina" and "Polka Dot Plié." I love the detail on these costumes. The dancer on the left is a prima ballerina who has received flowers after her performance.

Here is Madame Alexander's version of "Tinker Bell." If you look closely, you can see her wings and her wand.

Although I adore these dolls, they are far too fancy to play with, and I want to work with dolls that my granddaughter can carry with her everywhere she goes. I will dress larger dolls--larger than the 10-inch dolls of my past--so that a set-in sleeve or lapel collar is do-able. I now love the 18-inch doll manufactured by both American Girl and Madame Alexander. I will discuss the differences among dolls of this size as I begin dressing them.

I wanted to share my first love of dolls before embarking on this project to dress the larger American Girl and her Madame Alexander sisters.