Doll Clothes Alterations

Below is an unfinished polka dot dress that I made with Simplicity #4654 that still needs a hem. Please note that the designated hem is only one quarter of an inch. Since I've revisited my childhood hobby of creating doll clothes, I've become dissatisfied with many of the patterns that I find. The clothes have a strange fit, or they're basically boring. This dress is too long:

I appreciate anyone's effort to create, period. But what I envision is simply different from anything I see. Once I hem the dress--and add the velcro to the opening down the back--the dress won't look much different.

I am trying to dress dolls as if they're kids, fashionable kids, at that. I don't see little girls wearing mid-calf or ankle-length dresses. Why would anyone dress American Girl or Madame Alexander in a long dress unless the doll is supposed to be a wearing period costume or a princess dress?

I'm going to hem this dress somewhere above the knee after I change the look of the dress with a pleat here and a tuck there. With a few tiny alterations and with some accessories, this dress will look vastly different, and much better. That is my aim, anyway.

Please check out my next blog entry to see the results.