Big Boys Again!

 

Just in case you've forgotten, here are my big boys.  Most of my dudes can wear standard Ken clothes, and these two can wear some of that, but they usually end up in my homemade stuff.  Here Maui is wearing one of my Ugly Work Shirts and Hagrid is in Sock Sweatpants.

After my previous post about dressing these boys, I got some requests for patterns or tutorials.  There is a previous post, from way a long time ago, but I do have materials to work with.  So here we go!

I bought these cute Halloween socks but they are not stretchy enough.  I don't have particularly big calves, but I suffer from edema.  (And can't take them water pills because my sodium bottoms out.)

I got this for Christmas and done wore it so much it's falling apart.  It may be too thin to even make an Ugly Work Shirt, but we'll give it a try for demonstration purposes. I use T-shirts and socks because the fabric is stretchy and does not fray much, if at all.

First we stick them in sleeping bag style and measure where the ankles are.  Hagrid needs to pull his up over the belly, so his line is under the stripes and Maui's is over the stripes.  Note that and see if you can catch my error.

Cut up to the groin, leaving the top of the sock to be the waistband. Hagrid's stopped at the pumpkins, Maui's at the stars.  Usually, I just go with Hagrid's measurements so the boys can share.  Turn them inside out and stitch the seams closed to create legs!  Easy, if not particularly attractive.

Did you see my mistake?  I cut both pair above the stripes, leaving Hagrid with highwaters!

For the work shirts, I like to have some kind of design.  Usually I use part of whatever the human size shirt has, but this one was incoherent in doll size.  Most of the shirt ends up as cleaning rags.  This time I saved the sleeves to make the Ugly Work Shirt.

I just trace around the pattern and sew up the sides, making sure to leave the arm holes open.  Since I do all this by hand, my seam allowance wavers.  

Hagrid in pink!  Maui's seams ripped when I was trying to put the shirt on over them big shoulders.  Not sure if it was a seam allowance problem or a worn fabric problem.  

Maybe I should just stick to the relatively square cut.  They look and fit much better.

Hmmm.  I wonder if my sock scraps could be turned into ugly work shirts?

After sacrificing the purple sloth scraps to that attempt, I noticed a possibility.  Removing the heel and toe leaves me with two tubes, one of which is too small for a shirt. Can we make shoulders/sleeves out of the shorter tubes? 

 

Not sure how I feel about these shirts, but I'll let my big boys wear them to the dollhouse Halloween party.  The pants are, as usual, good to go.

Anyway... that's how I make Sock Sweatpants and Ugly Work Shirts.