An Edwardian Summer - Issue 7

Final Design of the Week for Bbeauty Dolls

At the end of Week 2, it was only appropriate that we leave you with a showstopper. Although it isn't the end of the series (As Michelle from Lemon Bay Doll Co will be revealing her fashions next week), it is the end of the fashion outfits from Bbeauty Dolls on this series so we always like to go out with a bang!

In the last Issue #6, we showed how you can simplify the Pollyanna pattern down but still make it elegant with simple ribbon embroidery and beads.  This time around, we decided for over the top.

The cover outfit is made from a two-tone taffeta that is blue woven with gold and therefore comes out in a light aqua.  I thought it very fitting that our final this week would be in our company colors of aqua and white.

We used the dainty lace as an accent throughout the design to not overpower the heavily jeweled belt.  This time we made the collar, and as the collar is a separate piece, you can decide whether to have your doll wear it or not wear it as both options present different looks.

The beaded belt here is the showstopper with rows of patterns integrating rhinestone centers, seed beads, oblong pearl beads, sequins, and bugle beads.  Even though the fabric is woven with blue and gold, the overall color tone of it reads like a blue grey, so I felt silver was the more appropriate accent for this dress.

Kirsten Loops Wig Release

We set out on a mission several years ago to create the best replacement wigs for the original American Girl/Pleasant Company dolls.  The goal was to keep our childhood dolls looking their best, but also to give new life to ones that had been "over played with" and could be restored.  Making replacements nearly 40 years later and trying to find color matches and fiber matches was not easy, but unexpectedly Kirsten became my nemesis.  No matter how hard I worked with the factories, we could not get those loop braids to be thin enough without compromising other factors and the braids always were too thick for this styling.  It seemed like such a simple thing, but after many many tries, I had to shelve it and try again later.

When we released Gretyl, which initially came out in black as a Wednesday nod to her hairstyle from the Netflix series, I thought this would be so lovely on Kirsten in a blonde and it's very Scandanavian looking.  We worked with the factories again on that styling and because both braids had to wrap on top of the head, it almost forced the factories to get those braids thinner.  Gretyl has made beautiful custom Kirstens by fans, and almost instantly I knew we were 3/4 of the way there.  I contacted the design manager and said, ok let's do Gretyl but instead of going over the head, take the same braids and do loops.  

When the final sample came, I was so excited because finally I had a Kirsten Loops wig to release, I had to picture it on something special.  

The Kirsten Loops wig will be released in Swedish Blonde which is the same color tone as Gretyl came out in.  This color tone is a nod to tinsel Kirsten's that were very light and also a reference to the light blondes Sweden is famous for.  In later years the Kirsten color got darker and more golden, but we decided to be more true to the earlier Kirsten coloring.

The Kirsten Loops wig will be coming in stock by Christmas 2025 and is available for pre-order now on our website.  More views of this wig are available on our website to see side, back, loops, etc. We are encouraging those who want one to order early, because we want to produce enough for all - and we aren't quite sure how many that is as we just re-stocked the Kirsten Classic.  Pre-orders will help us keep track and produce enough, so we are starting things early to give ample time for us to adjust our quantities as it's being produced.