Clothes: Hand made or mass produced?

I make my own. I'll buy some stuff if I really like it if I could make it or not though. It depends on what catches my eye be it outfit or fabric.

 

I love making clothes for my gang, but with other sewing to do and around 20 BJD's (as well as other dolls and toys) to dress, bought clothes have to featuure because time is limited.

I tend to buy stuff I would find too boring to make (jeans, t-shirts, most modern basics, which means mostly mass produced, occasional custom-made) and stuff I wouldn't have the patience and/or skill for (embroidered details, smocking, knitted stuff - which means handmade).

I make the stuff that interests me and which can't be found easily to buy (period costumes, pretty dresses that aren't goth or lolitoa or covered in synthetic lace, classic/old-fashioned styles for child dolls - ditto the "no synthetic lace" commment)

But time is ever the issue so there's alot of unfinished projects hanging around the sewing room.

Teddy

 

I actually do a little of both. Everything my boy is wearing has either been made by me or I have bought it off of the Marketplace. The only time I bought from a company was when I bought my boy's wig from Dollmore.

Part of the reason I bought him was so that I could sew and get better at it. So, that's what I intend to do. Anything I can't make for him I'll go look and see if I can find here. Much cheaper that way, LOL.

 

I usually like to make my own, because I don't see much of what I need in fantasy clothing such as, elf and faerie themed

 

About half of my doll clothes were purchased from companies like Luts or Volks etc... I made the other half. Honestly, I prefer to make my own clothes for the most part, because then I can choose the color, fabric type, etc...

 

I prefer mass produced clothes much more, simply for I can get better quality in lower price. Also lots of hand made clothes on Y!JA are too delicate for me ...

 

I can make a lot of things. I tend to collect garment-making and related skills, so the question of 'can I?' is only a factor for certain items, and it's often related to technical considerations -- like not having a serger, and at the moment, not having a working sewing machine easily at hand.

Usually, it's a matter of, 'is it worth what they're asking to not go through the trouble of making {thing}'. For things I tend to find uninspiring -- basic tee shirts, 3 piece suits, jeans -- I will buy them. The weirder stuff I long ago resigned myself to having to make most of the time anyway. It's surprising how much of the odder stuff -is- available either from custom orders, or from the companies themselves, though, for those who aren't keen on making things on their own -- and I think that's a wonderful thing.

 

I'm not good at sewing, but have made a couple simple things my dolls wear regularly and hope to get better and be able to make more things eventually. For purchasing I use anything and everything I can get. I have really nice handmade stuff from the marketplace here both bought and commissioned, commercially made BJD clothes, clothes from dolls like Teen Trends, Barbie, Kelly and Friends2Bmade, a Madame Alexander coat found at a thrift store... if it looks like it will fit and suit my dolls and I can afford it, I'm on it. Even if it's a Ty Girlz dress from the drugstore worn over a pair of Brennil Jeans with a Barbie sweater (my Shushu's most common outfit at the moment). I prefer really high quality stuff, but my budget often doesn't - and it's the look that's most important to me. If it suits the character, fits well enough and looks good, I'll use it.

 

Although it would certainly be a lot easier to buy them, since I can sew I've decided to make all of my boy's clothes. It also gives me a lot more freedom with how I want his clothes to look and fit. I can also finally use up all the extra pieces of fabric I have lying around from costumes ^^;.

I did originally consider buying shoes for him but saw the prices and ended up teaching myself how to make them in order to save money. They weren't overly expensive but seeing as I'm currently going through a rough patch financially and just fell in love with a doll I hadn't planned on buying (she's a limited though so no other chance ), it was a good idea.

I know a lot of the mass-produced things might be more perfect or fancier looking and sometimes I would want things for my doll to be that nice. I just find that if I were to buy clothes for him, I'd never make any because it would be too much effort compared to clicking on a "Buy" button. It's also giving me a great chance to improve my sewing technique and hopefully that will lead to being able to do commissions for hard to find clothes or costumes.

It's great to see people's responses to this thread ^^.

 

I do both. I tend to make things which I can't find anywhere else, or if I find some fabric that is perfect for one of my dolls. I usually buy odd basic pieces for my dolls to share, or things that are well made that I don't have time to make. I buy a lot of suits because I feel I'm still perfecting my doll size tailoring.

 

I hand sew all the clothes my girls have (and a few of their wigs). But I really enjoy that kind of thing. @_@ The only undertaking I refuse is shoes. I ordered those.

 

I make my own doll clothes. I have the skills and lots of fabrics left over from my own costuming/cosplay projects so I don't have to buy any fabric for doll clothes for years to come, unless I want to make something really extravagant using some expensive type of fabric.
But I did buy some things made by a couple of friends, like my boy's underwear and a little cap. It's also because of my intention to buy something from their stand everytime I meet them at events like anime cons. And I recently bought him a pair of sneakers. But his LARP boots are made by me . I've got a huge pile of leather cut from old couches and sewing leather using a normal sewing machine works really well. You only need to get leather needles. They are the same size as standard needles.

 

I would buy handmade clothes becuase they aren't as common.

 

I always have made my doll's clothes. Half of the time I can't find company clothes that fit my style and I also just enjoy sewing. Making my own clothes is so much cheaper than paying for the item and then shipping. I get more enjoyment from the dolls who have handmade clothes rather than store bought, mass produced articles. If you can sew, why not?? Saves me money and I get to dress my dolls exactly how I want them to. The only things I have bought are wigs and shoes. If I could buy my own fur then I'd surely make my own wigs too.... And shoes.... Haha.

 

I love to sew for Yeyo. I adore hunting for fabrics I think will look good on her. Plus, I know another doll wont be wearing the same thing. BUT, it is nice to be able to order something more complicated, like shoes or a coat, and have it done really well.

 

I like handmade stuff, so I usually either make the clothes myself or I buy things off Etsy. That said, if a mass-produced outfit catches my eye and I can afford it, I get it! Anything goes with the Flock.

 

I'd love to sew my own outfits but I'm stuck buying clothes until I figure out how to use a needle & thread lol. Not that that's bad - there's so much gorgeous stuff available! I've already received three boxes of clothes for my doll and it all looks so high quality and detailed I'm almost intimidated to start making my own stuff now.

 

I like a good variety of sources, from mass produced to limited items to Etsy sellers to making them my own. It's very rare that I like an entire fullset outfit, I really like to mix and match, so have a large variety of options is important to me.

 

I sew most of my dolls' clothes myself. I have purchased two handmade outfits for my smaller dolls, as I can't sew by hand and have it look that nice. Since most of my dolls are mature tinies, I have a few mass produced clothes as well, which were inexpensive, or really I have a sewing machine, and have gotten pretty good at using it to make doll clothes.