 |
| The poinsettia dress one of my Barbies now wears |
My
special guest today is Sylvia Bittner. I’m a Pinterest junkie, and when I discovered
Sylvia’s Pinterest page and the extraordinary Barbie dresses she makes, I fell in love. I then
stalked her to find out more and begged her to sell my favorite. She is a
gracious and gifted lady, and I am excited to introduce you to her.
Sylvia,
when I discovered your handkerchief Barbie dresses on Pinterest, I was in awe.
I have a whole curio of Barbies in my office and a tote full in my storage room.
I adore vintage hankies—have loved them since I was a girl, when my grandmother
used to buy new ones for me. I have several that were my grandma’s and my aunt’s,
and I add to my collection often. Seeing how you’ve blended two of my passions
sent me over the moon! I’m now your biggest fan-girl.
Cheryl:
Did you play with Barbie as a girl? How many Barbies do you own now? Do you
have favorites?
Sylvia:
I actually didn’t own a “Barbie” doll as a child. Between my sisters and I, we
had Midge, Skipper, Ken, and Julia (from the TV show), and a few assorted
no-name dolls. However, in the past year, I’ve made up for that. Don’t tell my
husband, but I now own 71 Barbies (and counting). I started with the Barbie
Basics dolls, which are the lowest priced line of Barbie collectible dolls. I
love their faces because they don’t look like your typical wide-eyed Barbie and
they have the model muse body type, which is more long and lean than your
typical Barbie.
Unfortunately,
I was a little late to the game and most of the Barbie Basics dolls were
already sold out when I started collecting. So I resorted to eBay, Amazon, and
treks to Target, Toys R Us, and Walmart stores around the country to find some
of the discontinued models at reasonable prices. Since then, I’ve branched out
to some reproductions of the original 1960’s era Barbies that I’ve found online
and in antique stores, some more recent collectible Barbies, and now, the
Silkstone Barbies. Silkstone Barbies are made of heavy composite material that
feels like porcelain but is more durable. I think the Silkstone Barbies have
only been around since 2000. (Visit www.barbiecollector.com to view all of the
wonderful collectible Barbies!)
Cheryl:
I can not allow myself to do a search for Barbie on ebay. But I’m a vendor in
my local Brass Armadillo, so I can’t help but see a few vintage dolls. How did
you get started making the dresses?
Sylvia:
Last spring I was trolling JoAnn Fabrics (as I love to do) and came across the
book, Hankie Couture, by Marsha Greenberg. Marsha has been making Barbie
dresses for years from vintage hankies and this book was chock full of charming
little dresses. It was love at first sight. I started flipping through the book
and the next thing I knew I was at the check-out line with it. Then I directed
my husband to nearest antique store and started stocking up on vintage hankies
so I could make my own Barbie dresses.
Cheryl:
I love that story. I would be terrified to cut the hankie. About how long does
one of your creations take to make? Can you describe the process?
Sylvia:
It is terrifying at first, and I’ve had to throw out a couple hankie dresses
that were just beyond salvageable. But the good news is, hankies are pretty
cheap, so I just pick myself up and start on another one.
Most
times, I start with a hankie I just love. I drape it around a Barbie doll every
which way trying to figure out how to make the best use of the fabric at hand.
Once I have a picture in my head, I pull out my patterns, pin them to the
fabric and just start cutting. I try to use the edge of the hankie as the hem
for the dress whenever possible. Many hankies have beautiful rolled or cut work
edges, so this shows them off to the best advantage and saves me from sewing a
teeny tiny hem. Because many of the hankies are thin or sheer, I line every
dress in cotton fabric. I use the selvage edge of the lining fabric as the hem
of the skirt lining – a tip I picked up from Marsha’s book.
I have
a full-time day job, so I sew in the evenings while I watch a movie or TV. Each
dress is sewn entirely by hand. I have a sewing machine (or three), but I much
prefer hand sewing with my cat on my lap. So depending on how engrossing the TV
show is and how intricate the pattern may be, an outfit can take a couple days
or up to a week.
Cheryl:
The photographs of your dressed dolls, with scenery and props, are as stunning
as the dresses. Are you the photographer? Do you have a special camera/
lens/use special lighting?
Sylvia:
I take all the photos of my dolls myself with my 35mm camera (sorry, I don’t
remember the brand off the top of my head). I’ve always been a photography buff
and love to take pictures when we go on vacation. But outdoor pictures have
been my specialty. So taking shots indoors was a little challenging for me at
first. I tried using a flash, then using a clip-on light, but both created
harsh shadows and I ended up with a yellowish cast on the photos. Then for
Christmas this past year, my husband bought me some photography lights on
stands (you know, the ones with the white screens in front of the light). I had
no idea what a difference those lights would make in my photos! The colors are
much truer and the harsh shadows are all but eliminated.
Now I
have a bookcase in my front room set up as a mini photography studio. I make
back drops from foam core board, scrapbook paper, and miniature woodwork, or
just tape up a long sheet of white paper. I’m an avid antiques buff, so on
weekends I troll antique shops and the dollar store looking for little items to
use in my dioramas. I’ve made lamps from old perfume atomizers with a shade
from a dollar store air freshener. I’ve collected old Barbie furniture and
painted it. I’ve found little flower arrangements at a craft show. I just
always keep my eyes peeled for something tiny that I could make into something realistic
looking for Barbie.
Cheryl:
Something else that fascinates me are miniature items, like doll furniture. I
want to come to your house. Do you have a passion for any other vintage linens
or items?
Sylvia:
I’m a huge vintage linens fan. I’ve been collecting antique lace for the past
20 years or so and I’ve used it on pillows, clothing, home décor, and more. For
a while in the 90’s, I was making cloth dolls from vintage linen toweling and
cross stitching their faces. And I have a small collection of vintage buttons
that I’ve used in a variety of crafts. I’ve even used vintage tablecloths to
make cute little jackets. Oh, and did I mention my vintage pattern collection?
I think you get the picture…
Cheryl: I’m swooning here. Do you do any other crafts or
sewing projects?
Sylvia:
My paternal grandmother taught me to knit, my maternal grandmother taught me to
paint, and my mother taught me to sew. So the question is really, what haven’t
I done? But sewing is my favorite past time. I’ve made dolls, teddy bears,
Christmas stockings, pillows, cross stitch samplers, clothing for me (when I
was slimmer), Halloween costumes … you name it, and I’ve probably done it at
one time or another. The challenge for me is finding the time. I have a
full-time job, so all of my crafting is done in the evenings or on weekends
when I’m not antiquing.
Cheryl:
I’m amazed by the patience and talent it takes to do any one of those things. Where
can we see more of these dresses and how can we buy them?
When I
first stalked Sylvia online, I had to ask what OOAK meant. It’s One Of A Kind.
Duh. But I had no idea.
I am
the gleeful owner of two of Sylvia’s beautiful creations, and I can admire them
by swiveling in my desk chair and ogling my curio, which I do often.
So, what
about you? Did you play with Barbie as a girl? Are you in awe of these dresses
and Sylvia’s talent?
