How do you build your doll's wardrobe?

Sales and homemade clothes have really helped me. Alice Collection often has sales and that's where I get a lot of my dolls' clothes now.

Each of my dolls have their own style so I don't ~want~ to share clothes between them but sometimes it happens. Especially if the outfit doesn't fit the one I had intended it for, it'll go to a different doll. (as long as it's not too weird for their sense of style.

 

I buy only a few clothes, most of them I like to make myself :3
only shoes and knitted things is something I will buy. Alice Collections just had an event and I bought some shoes. I think I will be good now with buying clothes for the time being :3

If my dolls can, they will share their clothes, if it is too weird for their style than they won't.

 

I have a lot of trouble styling my older doll because even now I am unsure where I want her to be stylistically. I am learning to sew, so she ends up with one piece of several different (more often than not clashing) styles. This results in a lot of "meh" feelings on my part. I love her but her fashion is... questionable.

I am still paying off both of my dolls so I try really hard not to buy a whole lot from shops but it happens anyway. Sewing and it.... it's not a good match... but I am still attempting it so I can save money until I know what I want her to look like. Generally I try to only buy 1-3 individual pieces a month and keep it around 20 dollars each.

My newer doll was easy for me because I knew who she was and where she was going and have a couple key pieces that I build from with accessories. I also sort of prioritize seasonal wear because I like to share photos of them on instagram so I want them to seem as if they are living their real time lives.

 

I sew. I buy 2nd hand at doll meets. I buy from dealers when I've got money. But mainly I sew Same as how I get my OWN clothes LOL... Oh, I also mix & match (cosplay especially).

 

I'm cheap when it comes to buying clothes for my dolls and basically only buy them one outfit each (sometimes I mash up different outfits to create new ones) Other than that I am planning on sewing more for my dolls when I finally find the time and motivation.

 

I have very set and firm characters. The first they get is their superhero outfit, and then I see what matches that specific character. E.g. Loki would not wear sweatpants and sneakers and a simple t-shirt, he is more of the glamorous or rocker type. Whereas Capt or Hawkeye are guys whoe loke to work out. However, I can Hawkeye also wearing a business suit for certain occassions when his wife forces him to put one on.

As the body types of my dolls are all pretty similar, they can share many clothes. So it is really relaxing to put their different wardrobes together. If one does not want to wear a piece of clothing any longer, somebody else might like it.

 

Except for footwear, I am comfortable with designing and making my dolls' clothes. Even though my girl's wardrobe is spread 50/50 as bought premade and something I made myself, my boy's clothes were all made by me. I do this primarily because I have a specific look I wanted, and then there's the issue with their bodies. They're of the more realistically proportioned sort (with wide hips for the girl), and there are few readily available clothes that actually fit them.

While my boy and my girl have a similar style, I can't exactly swap clothes between the two of them for obvious reasons. ^_^;

 

I tend to buy most of the clothes for my dolls. I can sew but all of my sewing is done by hand so that takes quite a while to get things done. Since most them are similar in size, my dolls often swap clothes but some of them have pieces that are specifically for them such as jackets and other little accessories. Like one character might have a crazy colorful piece in their outfit that someone else wouldn't wear.

 

I've bought most of my clothing items so far, with the exception of the pieces I made once I had them at home and could make patterns using their sizes. It's fun to mix and match though!


For example, I got a set for my sd girl because it's pretty and I liked the way it looked in the promo photos...but once I got it home, I found that most of it didn't suit my girl at all -- the dress went to her (and honestly, it's more my future girl's style than hers), and the leggings, shrug and scarf went to my sd boy. He looks great in them, like a modern dancer, and they suit his character more than my spunky girl.

 

I make or buy clothing depending on the project I want to do. I have dolls of various sizes, they have at least one outfit just in case of a dollmeet. After finishing the project I sell/give away the outfit, because I'm not interested in it anymore.

 

I can't sew... :cry: so i'm only left with buying. mostly 2nd hand from local sellers (which is really few from where I come from) and sometimes, I get from etsy, ebay or taobao. I just got my first SD girl body and I want to create this sleek looking leather-donned vampire theme for her, but I'm not making any progress since most sellers with those clothes are selling way above my budget.. I'm sorry I'm cheap with doll clothes..

 

Well, some of my dolls, like Ilya and Toshi, really only wear one (specialized) outfit all the time, so I don't really have to worry about building their wardrobes. For the ones like Aelic, Lacey, and Nikolai that do wear different clothes, I generally try to buy outfits at a time, instead of a bunch of separates at once. (And they can't really share; Aelic and Lacey have completely different styles and sizing, and Nikolai is waaaaay too big for my MSD clothes.) When I want someone to have a new outfit, I'll choose a store, usually an Etsy shop or Alice's Collections or something like that, and put together a full outfit (shoes usually included) from what they have to offer. I really love the coordination part of it, and being able to put on a whole new outfit when it gets to me is super fun. (And then I can mix and match pieces and stuff later.)

 

I lurk etsy and company sites. I'd love to start sewing my own doll clothes but I'm also highly aware that I'm not that motivated.

Generally instead of buying pieces at a time I have a tendency to buy full outfits/sets because it's easier. I can then mix and match pieces later if I want.

That being said, I had a specific clothing style in mind recently and knew I wouldn't be able to find it in a set so I broke trend and bought a bunch of items individually and from multiple etsy shops because no one shop had everything I was looking for. I probably won't do that again though, because man did I take a hit from shipping fees.

 

I tend to buy clothing piecemeal. If it's on sale, or I really like the design, or it's in a bag of Barbie clothes at the local Thrift shop, I'll get it and then try to coordinate after. Annix absolutely should have outfits, but he's so adorable I dress him however I think will look good for the season, fashion bedamned.
Pike is coming as a fullset so I will probably not change that too much. And my other incoming doll will be sharing clothes with Annix until I have an outfit I like for him.

 

Each of my dolls gravitates toward particular colours or combination of colours so, while they can (and occasionally do) share clothes within the size groupings, they tend to have their own clothes for the most part.

I intend for them each to have seasonal outfits, but they'll need more than one per season as they wiill need play/every-day clothes, "Sunday Best", and possibly party clothes... probably they'll end up with every day Summer and Winter clothes with layers that can be added or taken off to make them suitable for Spring and Autumn, and the same for Sunday Best and Party clothes, but they'll still need specific-activity clothes too, like bathing costumes, nightwear, Hannah's bicycling suit, Edith's dress for dance class etc... and outdoor clothing such as coats and hats for them all.

Most of my dolls are from period settings so buying clothes isn't as big an option as making them, which is a slow proces as I don't have much tme or mental energy for the sewing process these days. My SD gang are mostly a large, extended family of Victorian/Edwardian children, and they tend to get new clothes according to what fabrics catch my eye and what colours those fabrics are, rather than to a specific plan. As a result some of them have more clothes than others. Also, the boys are somewhat "poor-relations" when it comes to home-made clothing as I prefer making girls clothes tover boys clothes so don't get inspired to get around to making for the boys as often as I do for the girls.

What I really need is a plan. I need to list each dolls outfits they have and what they still need, then make a plan to work through the list of stuff each of them still needs (starting by evening out what each of them has so they are all on an equal footing , then moving on to make the bits that are still lacking form each of their wardrobes), but I keep getting sidetracked by inspiration (Look! Tiny check gingham in lots of colours! The SD girls need a gingham dresses with a high yoke, each in their own signature colour of gingham! One completed - teal gingham - dress and nine others cut out and in a bag, part sewn added to the Unfinished Projects Pile...)

Teddy

 

I've been actively enjoying this hobby for 11 years now, so I've amassed quite a collection during that time...yet somehow they always seem to be in need of more clothes. Each of my dolls has a very specific style (there are a few exceptions such as the Harajuku trio, the genie twins, the ghostly spirits, or the fairy sisters who share styles with one another, but the vast majority are extremely individualized.) And each of my dolls needs a minimum of 4 outfits each to keep me happy, so thank goodness I sew! I still purchase the occasional special outfit online if I fall in love with something, but I create the vast majority of their outfits myself. And I have a little trick to spur on my motivation and creativity...I enter sewing projects here in the workshop threads. That way I can create and share my work with others here on DoA which makes it more fun. Whatever the theme, I'm sure to have a doll who fits that style. For instance, this month it's Bohemian.

 

I can't really sew, so I will either buy several individual pieces at a time, or buy a full set as long as it fits the style I have in mind for a particular doll. I like being able to mix and match things, too. I won't go over a certain dollar amount for clothing, though. I am not made of money.

 

Every doll has to have their own personal wardrobe, and I have "requirements" for them. Each doll must own at the very least:
-1 pair of underwear (plus a bra for girls)
-2 pairs of shoes
-3 bottoms*
-5 tops*
-1 wig
-1 set of eyes
-2 accessories or props

*If the doll wears dresses instead of top and bottom, they must have 5 dresses.

Some very basic things can be shared, like plain jeans, white t-shirt, black tank top, etc, but they still have to meet these requirements on their own. Sometimes I buy, sometimes I make things. When the doll first gets home, I like for their wig and eyes to already be here, and at least one full outfit. The rest can be acquired over time, but that's the bare minimum I need to feel a doll is complete.

Some of the dolls have permanent bedroom dioramas, and their stuff stays in their rooms, but for those who don't, they each have their own shoebox size storage box in a chest of drawers that holds everything. Some items, like suits, formal dresses, winter coats and such get hung up in the closet in the doll room.