Size DOES Matter

When it comes to Doll clothes anyway! Sew Chic Doll Boutique

Shortly after I started researching doll clothes I noticed that many people advertised that their clothing fit both the American Girl 18" doll AND the Bitty Baby/Bitty Twins 15" dolls. My first instinct told me that this was wrong. Why would Pleasant Company and then Mattel develop two completely separate lines of dolls if their items were interchangeable?

I only had 18" dolls and had no way to prove or disprove the claims but I was reluctant to claim that my items would fit any other doll, regardless of what others had said. Luck was on my side and I didn't have to wait long to find the truth. I was in the second hand store and I found a used Bitty Baby for $15. This is a significant discount from the original sale price, and even the going rate on ebay which hovers around $25 I believe.

I took my new baby home and tried on it some of the 18" doll clothing. I found that, while some of the items did fit, the majority did NOT. Some of the problems were obvious such as the pants weren't the right length and the difference in neck circumference is about an inch which makes 18" doll shirts tight around Bitty Baby's neck. Most of the differences in fit are more subtle. Below is a list of select measurements taken from the dolls. The measurements are approximate, and meant to illustrate where the size differences are most emphasized.

Attribute.....................18" doll.....Bitty Baby/Bitty Twin.....Difference
Height.............................18".....................15".........................3 "
Head Circumference.........12"....................12.5 ".........................0.5"
Neck Circumference......6"......................6.5".........................0.5"
Waist Circumference.......11".....................12".........................1"
Total Body Length..........8.5".....................7".........................1.5"
(neck to crotch)
Arm Length.........................7".....................7".........................0"
Bicep Circumference........4.25"...................4.5"......................0.25"
Leg Length (waist to floor)......10"...................9".........................1"
Thigh Circumference...........6"...................6.5".........................0.5"
Body Depth........................3"..................2.5".........................0.5"

These are not the only differences. Bitty Baby and Bitty Twin, aside from the new head mold and added hair, do have 1 huge difference. It is in how the backside of the doll is sewn. Bitty Twin is sewed up in a way that makes the doll sit on its own. Bitty Baby is sew in a way that allows it to lay down. I am not sure how this affects the way certain clothing items fit the dolls but intend to find out. I will report more on this later. Hopefully I can upload some pictures tomorrow to more clearly illustrate what I am referring to.

The 18" dolls also have "more junk in the trunk" as one woman put it to me.

In general, I would be wary of anyone who claims their items fit both dolls, while it is entirely likely that they do, you may not get the fit that is shown on the other doll. I would always ask for pictures of how an item fits the specific doll you want it to, before purchasing any item claiming to fit both dolls.

Sew Chic Doll Boutique Custom Doll Clothing and Accessories

Researching Gymboree Lines

Sew Chic Doll Boutique

I began looking into Gymboree and American Girl dolls to see if there was a market for such items and I found that there was! In fact there were a very few who had tapped in to this seemingly unknown market. It appeared that even the potential buyers of such items themselves were unaware of the possibilities.

I made some clothes as an experiment before Christmas, and sold them on ebay. They sold quite well, in fact they may have sold too well, because now it seems that every doll clothing maker on ebay has figured out that this market exists. Fortunately the communities, of Gymboree lovers and of American Girl doll lovers, are large enough, and there is enough overlap, that it seems there is enough customer base to go around. Also I think the competition is going to be good for all parties involved. Competition will help keep the sellers on their toes, and help ensure that buyers are getting a quality product. There actually have been some quite nice customs showing up on ebay and etsy, which makes me excited to see where my line takes me!

As I began looking into the older Gymboree lines, to possibly make made to match customs, and I realized that there are endless possibilities with this line. Sometimes Gymboree introduces a new line as often as twice a month! The most recent girl line that I really looked in to is called Garden Friends, all Gymboree lines are named, and in this 1 line there are 100 items! This could get overwhelming.

I decided to take it slow, 1 custom at a time. While I would love to recreate each and every piece Gymboree makes in a smaller perfectly recreated doll version there is simply no way that would be possible.

My first custom re-create is a bathing suit called "Pretty By the Pool" and should be available in my etsy store next week. It will only be available in limited quantites. The prototype is pictured in this post.