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hat_plays_dollsOkay, so my Scaris Heath clothes haven't been selling on eBay for a price that's worth the time I put into them. Fair enough. Sort of. So I says to myself "Well, what if I included some shoes?" Except I didn't want to give up my repainted Gloom Beach Jackson shoes, or go hunting for another pair. Well, I've made leather dollhouse doll shoes before (basic shoes for men and slippers for little girls and occasional boots for pirates and nonsense shoes for witches), which... honestly wouldn't work well for Monster High, the dye on the leather would stain the heck out of them, but once upon a time I bought a few sheets of craft foam thinking I could use them instead of thick leather for dollhouse doll shoe soles. Didn't work out the way I wanted, but what crafter throws something out? Clean it up and put it away, it'll work for another project someday.
So guess what craft foam works for?
Shoes! So that's Manny, Barker, Deuce, Pawla, and InvisiBilly.
Let's go take a closer look.
InvisiBilly has been my pattern tester for a lot of stuff, actually. That's basically the rough draft of Heath's Scaris outfit from top to bottom. Billy's got a great combination of 'hardly any clothes of his own,' 'size I need to draft patterns for,' and 'color scheme that's actually in my stash.'
His semi-sheer tank top was made from scraps left over from a pair of leggings my mother made for my high school's production of Once Upon A Mattress twenty years ago.
The shorts, though, are a quilter's quarter I bought specifically for making Monster High clothes. I really like this on Billy, he may get a blazer out of it. (I'm trying to decide if a whole suit is too much.)
And his sandals are two layers of white craft foam, sheer iridescent ribbon straps, and some basic white polyester satin ribbon to cover up the join. And a lot of hot glue. A LOT. These sandals have hot glue arch supports.
I actually kinda dig the iridescent thing on Billy? If I'd had regular sheer ribbon I'd've gone with that. Arguably the outfit calls for darker shoes, black or blue, but this was the only sheer ribbon I had and I was making them while thinking, "If I mess these up, who cares, it's a test case."
This is the Pawla that came with the bunk bed set-- instead of wearing a nightgown, she's in a romper, and it's close enough to daytime clothes that she really needed shoes. I might have some old Barbie sneakers that'd fit her, or maybe some Riley Kish stuff, but those are put away right now and I'm not digging them out until I'm ready to decide what to keep and what to sell.
Plus, a healthy stash of ribbon meant that I could color-match perfectly to Pawla's outfit! White foam, mint and pale pink ribbons, hot glue. My first attempt at these sandals... did not go well. I learned a little lesson about tying decorative knots before you attach the straps to the insole.
Barker's sandals were an attempt at boyishness. Actually his canonical day clothes (er, sort of his, the Howliday Special kept declaring different kids to be Barker) look a lot like his pajamas, and also his PJs fit him, so I started with those colors.
And I used a 40% off coupon at Michaels to get a bulk pack of colorful craft foam on the cheap. It's Monster High, color is necessary! So, orange craft foam, true-blue ribbon straps, and orange to cover the join. Barker's straps need to be more fitted, I think, but I have enough foam and ribbon to do LOTS of these.
In general the kids' sandals are trickier than the guys' sandals, which makes sense-- they're smaller and fiddlier and there's less room on top of the foot for any kind of straps.
Actually you know what else I got done?
Scaris Flashion Mob Deuce! More Spoonflower fabrics, plus custom sandals because that's what he was wearing at Clawdeen's fashion pack Flashion Mob. (So, really, you could call this Basic Fashion Pack Deuce, since that's what everybody was wearing to the Flashion Mob.)
Closed with snaps again. Someday I'll plonk down the money for hook and loop tape fine enough to be worth sewing on by hand, but today is not that day and tomorrow is not looking good either.
I do feel like the green of the top could've been a little brighter or more yellowy, but I actually really like this green? It pairs well with the snakes, and it's not like it doesn't go well with the rest of his wardrobe. I wish I'd positioned the red scales on the right leg a little more towards the front, but oh well.
The shirt is a sleeveless tee rather than a tank top, and I feel like I could widen the armholes a little but I'm gonna test it as an actual T-shirt first. I made it in Performance Piqué, and I'm strongly considering putting a similar graphic on a shirt for Neighthan. (The ribcage art could've been bigger, actually, to fill up Deuce's chest, but I wanted it to work for Classic Deuce as well as Dance the Fright Away Deuce.)
The pants are in Basic Cotton Ultra, lightweight and easy to sew, and making the print was an exercise in Fun With Gradients. These go with a lot of Deuce's existing wardrobe, too.
The shorts were adapted from the no-inseam shorts pattern I twisted around into an inseam-shorts pattern (as seen on InvisiBilly and Scaris Heath), but refitted and refitted and refitted for the Reboot Boy body. Worth it for these, but Deuce and Dracula are the only Reboot guys I have. These won't even go on an Ever After High boy, although the shirt will. ... It's very very snug, but it'll fit.
You can find the prints in my Spoonflower shop-- Deuce is the Snake Charmer in my collections.
And the sandals! I got a little ambitious, and if I were less concerned with trying to be on-model and mimicking the look of a flip-flop without having anywhere to put a toe post, I'd've added a second strap. These were done with two layers of black craft foam, black ribbon to hide the join, and a ribbon strap... covered with glued-on fabric snipped from a quilter's quarter. (Deuce's test shorts were made from this same fabric.) I may do more like this for guys' sandals, it looks a lot more... guy-ish than the shiny satin ribbon.
I do have enough fabric left (both Spoonflower prints and the quilter's quarter) to make this outfit over one more time. Trouble is, if I make it to sell, I think I'd have to offer it as a commission, done in the size the buyer needs-- Classic or Reboot.
Okay I do have one more pair of shoes.
Brown craft foam and a brown-and-black narrow woven ribbon-- I think it's 4mm instead of the usual 3mm. I like how it turned out, with the four straps going up Manny's foot-- I could actually make flip-flops for Manny, he's got enough of a space between his toes, but I really wanted the slide.
And now I have a pattern I can use to make sandals for Hexiciah Steam, too. Seriously, these ones came out really well. (Manny did get a pair of shorts, too, but they're not that interesting and I still need to make him a shirt pattern.)
I also have patterns to test for Fangelica and Lux-and-Pharrah, too, but they have less desperate need for shoes than Pawla and Barker, or guys with one or two outfits to their name. Believe it or not, I got started on this idea before My Froggy Stuff posted her Adidas Sandal "quick craft" video. (Although I wouldn't call any project where you have to cut out 24 identical layers of cardstock to make your shoe soles a "quick craft." Dang, Froggy. Dang.) I did a pair for my Ken-bodied Clawd, but... I got a little ambitious with the straps and the balance turned out weird, so no photos there.
I'll probably share the pattern once I get all six sizes (Beefy Guy, Fashion Boyfriend, High School Boy (fits Classic, Reboot, and EAH), Wolf Cub, Mummy Kids, and Vampire Girl) successfully tested at least once. I keep thinking I should maybe sell patterns and instructions? But there's not enough pattern to these to justify that, the variation (and most of the learning experience) comes in on the 'now play with your ribbon' step.
Randomly, I have new lights for my photo setup! Well, they're the same lamps, but instead of Reveal bulbs I have LED Daylight bulbs. I have to use the Fluorescent #3 setting on my camera instead of Incandescent, but it's July, it's the part of the day where the sun beats down on my office, my backdrop blocks off my fan and my lights aren't making me hot. Man that is HUGE for lights I've pretty much got my head between for taking pictures.
Like what I do and want to help me feed my cats, but don't need anything I have for sale on eBay? You can always support me on Patreon or throw some change in my tip jar.
So guess what craft foam works for?
Shoes! So that's Manny, Barker, Deuce, Pawla, and InvisiBilly.
Let's go take a closer look.
InvisiBilly has been my pattern tester for a lot of stuff, actually. That's basically the rough draft of Heath's Scaris outfit from top to bottom. Billy's got a great combination of 'hardly any clothes of his own,' 'size I need to draft patterns for,' and 'color scheme that's actually in my stash.'
His semi-sheer tank top was made from scraps left over from a pair of leggings my mother made for my high school's production of Once Upon A Mattress twenty years ago.
The shorts, though, are a quilter's quarter I bought specifically for making Monster High clothes. I really like this on Billy, he may get a blazer out of it. (I'm trying to decide if a whole suit is too much.)
And his sandals are two layers of white craft foam, sheer iridescent ribbon straps, and some basic white polyester satin ribbon to cover up the join. And a lot of hot glue. A LOT. These sandals have hot glue arch supports.
I actually kinda dig the iridescent thing on Billy? If I'd had regular sheer ribbon I'd've gone with that. Arguably the outfit calls for darker shoes, black or blue, but this was the only sheer ribbon I had and I was making them while thinking, "If I mess these up, who cares, it's a test case."
This is the Pawla that came with the bunk bed set-- instead of wearing a nightgown, she's in a romper, and it's close enough to daytime clothes that she really needed shoes. I might have some old Barbie sneakers that'd fit her, or maybe some Riley Kish stuff, but those are put away right now and I'm not digging them out until I'm ready to decide what to keep and what to sell.
Plus, a healthy stash of ribbon meant that I could color-match perfectly to Pawla's outfit! White foam, mint and pale pink ribbons, hot glue. My first attempt at these sandals... did not go well. I learned a little lesson about tying decorative knots before you attach the straps to the insole.
Barker's sandals were an attempt at boyishness. Actually his canonical day clothes (er, sort of his, the Howliday Special kept declaring different kids to be Barker) look a lot like his pajamas, and also his PJs fit him, so I started with those colors.
And I used a 40% off coupon at Michaels to get a bulk pack of colorful craft foam on the cheap. It's Monster High, color is necessary! So, orange craft foam, true-blue ribbon straps, and orange to cover the join. Barker's straps need to be more fitted, I think, but I have enough foam and ribbon to do LOTS of these.
In general the kids' sandals are trickier than the guys' sandals, which makes sense-- they're smaller and fiddlier and there's less room on top of the foot for any kind of straps.
Actually you know what else I got done?
Scaris Flashion Mob Deuce! More Spoonflower fabrics, plus custom sandals because that's what he was wearing at Clawdeen's fashion pack Flashion Mob. (So, really, you could call this Basic Fashion Pack Deuce, since that's what everybody was wearing to the Flashion Mob.)
Closed with snaps again. Someday I'll plonk down the money for hook and loop tape fine enough to be worth sewing on by hand, but today is not that day and tomorrow is not looking good either.
I do feel like the green of the top could've been a little brighter or more yellowy, but I actually really like this green? It pairs well with the snakes, and it's not like it doesn't go well with the rest of his wardrobe. I wish I'd positioned the red scales on the right leg a little more towards the front, but oh well.
The shirt is a sleeveless tee rather than a tank top, and I feel like I could widen the armholes a little but I'm gonna test it as an actual T-shirt first. I made it in Performance Piqué, and I'm strongly considering putting a similar graphic on a shirt for Neighthan. (The ribcage art could've been bigger, actually, to fill up Deuce's chest, but I wanted it to work for Classic Deuce as well as Dance the Fright Away Deuce.)
The pants are in Basic Cotton Ultra, lightweight and easy to sew, and making the print was an exercise in Fun With Gradients. These go with a lot of Deuce's existing wardrobe, too.
The shorts were adapted from the no-inseam shorts pattern I twisted around into an inseam-shorts pattern (as seen on InvisiBilly and Scaris Heath), but refitted and refitted and refitted for the Reboot Boy body. Worth it for these, but Deuce and Dracula are the only Reboot guys I have. These won't even go on an Ever After High boy, although the shirt will. ... It's very very snug, but it'll fit.
You can find the prints in my Spoonflower shop-- Deuce is the Snake Charmer in my collections.
And the sandals! I got a little ambitious, and if I were less concerned with trying to be on-model and mimicking the look of a flip-flop without having anywhere to put a toe post, I'd've added a second strap. These were done with two layers of black craft foam, black ribbon to hide the join, and a ribbon strap... covered with glued-on fabric snipped from a quilter's quarter. (Deuce's test shorts were made from this same fabric.) I may do more like this for guys' sandals, it looks a lot more... guy-ish than the shiny satin ribbon.
I do have enough fabric left (both Spoonflower prints and the quilter's quarter) to make this outfit over one more time. Trouble is, if I make it to sell, I think I'd have to offer it as a commission, done in the size the buyer needs-- Classic or Reboot.
Okay I do have one more pair of shoes.
Brown craft foam and a brown-and-black narrow woven ribbon-- I think it's 4mm instead of the usual 3mm. I like how it turned out, with the four straps going up Manny's foot-- I could actually make flip-flops for Manny, he's got enough of a space between his toes, but I really wanted the slide.
And now I have a pattern I can use to make sandals for Hexiciah Steam, too. Seriously, these ones came out really well. (Manny did get a pair of shorts, too, but they're not that interesting and I still need to make him a shirt pattern.)
I also have patterns to test for Fangelica and Lux-and-Pharrah, too, but they have less desperate need for shoes than Pawla and Barker, or guys with one or two outfits to their name. Believe it or not, I got started on this idea before My Froggy Stuff posted her Adidas Sandal "quick craft" video. (Although I wouldn't call any project where you have to cut out 24 identical layers of cardstock to make your shoe soles a "quick craft." Dang, Froggy. Dang.) I did a pair for my Ken-bodied Clawd, but... I got a little ambitious with the straps and the balance turned out weird, so no photos there.
I'll probably share the pattern once I get all six sizes (Beefy Guy, Fashion Boyfriend, High School Boy (fits Classic, Reboot, and EAH), Wolf Cub, Mummy Kids, and Vampire Girl) successfully tested at least once. I keep thinking I should maybe sell patterns and instructions? But there's not enough pattern to these to justify that, the variation (and most of the learning experience) comes in on the 'now play with your ribbon' step.
Randomly, I have new lights for my photo setup! Well, they're the same lamps, but instead of Reveal bulbs I have LED Daylight bulbs. I have to use the Fluorescent #3 setting on my camera instead of Incandescent, but it's July, it's the part of the day where the sun beats down on my office, my backdrop blocks off my fan and my lights aren't making me hot. Man that is HUGE for lights I've pretty much got my head between for taking pictures.
Like what I do and want to help me feed my cats, but don't need anything I have for sale on eBay? You can always support me on Patreon or throw some change in my tip jar.
