Workshop with Shasha: Creating swimwear for curvy Barbie

For a while now I've been teasing a sewing project that I've been working on with Shasha from Atelier Ni Shasha. Well, that project is finally completely finished, and I'm so excited to share the final result with you. I have been showing separate pieces here and there, so it's not like a huge secret, but now I finally can show the full outfit. It took me a bit longer than expected to finish this, but since it's June already, I think that it's perfect timing. 

For some context, back in September 2021 Shasha organized a giveaway to celebrate her 10th shop anniversary. The prize was a coaching session in which you could sew an outfit for a doll of your choice. The design was up to us, but we had to more or less describe what we wanted in order to enter the giveaway. And, as you might have guessed, I was one of the people who won. 

I was hesitant to enter, because I had 0 sewing experience. So I was concerned I wouldn't be able to come up with something simple enough for me, and wouldn't be able to make the most of the course. But I finally came up with the idea of sewing a bikini set with a cover up, as I thought it would be very easy to do, being the bikini so small. I chose to do this for a curvy Barbie doll, as Mattel doesn't seem willing to come up with specific clothes for them and I didn't think I could come up with a bikini pattern on my own. 

We started back in late January/ early February. Because, at this time, there was a lot going on with the pandemic, I decided to go with whatever I had at home, so I picked some old clothes I had around to start with the bikini. The time difference between Spain and the Philippines is around 7 hours, so we decided to meet at 9 a.m in Spain, which would be 4 p.m in the Philippines. So, for I don't know how many weeks, we've been meeting some Fridays in the mornings to do some sewing and chat about random stuff. 

We started off with the bottom part of the bikini, which was one of the easiest things to do. I have already shared this part back in February, on the Sewing progress post. Despite my initial thoughts, this was quite easy to sew, and I actually ended up making two, but the second one wasn't in the right fabric. Here are some photos of the process. 

The second piece that we made was the bikini top. Shasha mentioned that this piece is quite hard for a beginner, and could be considered intermediate level. It was indeed trickier than the bottoms, specially when it came to sewing the band that connects the triangles. 

I actually ended up sewing two tops, because on the first one the band was too small and wouldn't fit the doll properly, so I had to start over. I will eventually sew a hook and eye on the first one, to use it on my original body dolls. On the second one, I made the mistake of sewing the triangles outside the band, so I had to redo the band again. So yeah, this was one of the reasons why it has taken me so long to finish it. 

First top, too small for a curvy doll

For the cover-up, I had nothing at home I could use, so I ended up buying a cheap sheer scarf at a local store. I actually wanted something with a print on it, but couldn't find anything that suited me, so I picked this one because I liked the color. 

The pattern for the cover-up is quite simple, but the fabric I chose was a nightmare to work with. I know woven fabric tends to fray, but this felt almost like burlap. The color is stunning, but the fabric itself was a poor choice. 

Once everything was finished, I got so excited planning for a summer themed photoshoot. I used the vertical garden I have, because it gives such a fresh look, and the wooden floor. In this first pic, Shea is showing how she looks in the bikini. 

My pieces are far from perfect, and they do have some flaws. The band of the bikini top is too long, but luckily you can't see it, since it's on the back. The cover-up is probably the piece with more flaws, as the fabric gave me lots of trouble. I do have plans to re-do the bikini at some point, but in another color (would love to find a hot pink or a yellow). I have another curvy doll that might want to go to the pool too. 

The idea behind the cover-up is that it would be a versatile piece that you could use as a beach cover-up, or as a light summer jacket if you combine it with jeans. I already have something similar from Mattel, and it's one of my favorite pieces. I do have plans to recreate it in different colors, but also try using different types of fabric, to see how it goes. It's also one of those "one size fits all" pieces you can use with dolls of all sizes. You've already seen Chloe wear this in some of my latest photos, but here she is modeling it with a swimsuit (from Mattel). 

Despite my garments not being perfect, I'm really happy with them. I feel like I've learned quite a bit from it, and I've got to practice a lot. Before we started the course, I had only sewn 1 tank top (see it here) and a handful of doll-size pillows. Now, as of today, I have sewn 2 bikini tops, 2 bikini bottoms, the cover-up and a teal tank top I sew in between lessons, to get some practice. My goal for 2022 was to sew 5 garments in total, so that goal has been more than accomplished. 

As far as I know, Shasha will have the pattern for the bikini available on her Etsy store soon. There's also a written tutorial on her blog, in case you would like to check it out.  I believe she also has plans to share a pattern for the cover-up but, for what she has told me, it actually does take a lot of time to put a pattern on sale. 

(Update August 2022: she has the bikini pattern now on sale here.)

Overall, I'm really happy with the results and the experience. I am so grateful to Shasha for sharing her time and knowledge with me. She had a lot of patience with me, because I don't know Jack. She also took the time to come up with the patterns herself and share them with me, which I know it takes time. I don't think I would have been able to design these pieces without her help. Please, follow her on every platform you can, such as her blog, Instagram and YouTube channel. 

I hope you enjoyed reading about this whole experience. I feel like I'm forgetting to mention something important, but if I do remember it eventually, I would add a note at the end of the post. I'm not 100% sure what I will post next. I mentioned I wanted to work on some furniture, but I got an eczema on my hand that is finally going away, however I want to wait a bit longer before I use paint. In the meantime, I think I'm going to practice a bit with my sewing machine and try to make a sofa cover or some doll-size bedding. Whatever I do, I will share the progress here. 

I hope you're all doing well, and I'll see you very soon!

Monster Crafts