Monica Minto's Workshop: Doll comparison observations

I was recently gifted a Little Darling doll named Suzanne, by Dianna Effner. She was painted by doll artist Geri Uribe! I'm really excited to have her! I've had quite a journey up to this point in my collector doll dress business. . .

Thirty years ago my husband was serving an internship in Mississippi. While there I was introduced to english smocking, a common craft in the southern states. I acquired a small pleating machine that makes the little folds in fabric that functions as a base for smocked creations. Over the next few years I made dresses for my two daughters learning heirloom sewing techniques in the process. Fast forward to about 2012 I began making some english smocked clothes for my granddaughters.

Transitioning to smocked clothes for dolls was not too hard just very much smaller. Two years ago I made my first smocked dress for a Hearts 4 Heart doll and also for the American Girl dolls 18" and 14" Wellie Wisher. These were for children to play with. One of my customers wrote a kind note suggesting I consider crafting collector doll clothes using the heirloom sewing i had learned so many years ago. This was my first exposure to the world of "big girl dolls" :)!

Having a model for my dresses is really important to me as I wanted the fit to be everything my customers would desire. After going on a waiting list for my own Little Darling doll by Dianna Effner, I purchased a Mini Maru doll to use in the meantime. She is also designed by Dianna Effner but a less expensive doll and is slightly larger in a few areas. I was given the gift of a Little Darling Dress Form "an exact replica of the Little Darling torso and height from the shoulder to the bottom of the base" handmade torso by LD artist Nelly Valentino.
This was a great help in making sure my dresses would fit the Little Darling collector doll.

This week I received an early Christmas gift of my own Little Darling Doll. Now the guesswork is over in fitting these little dresses! Yeah!

Here's a comparison picture of the Mini Maru - Hannah Grace and the Little Darling doll:

Here I am listing the measurements for these two doll as a further comparison:

Mini Maru Doll Little Darling Doll

Height: 13" 13"

Chest: 7" 6 7/8"

Waist: 6 1/2" 6"

Hips: 7 1/8" 6 7/8"

Length from back

of neck to waist: 2 1/2" 2"

Under arm to wrist: 3 3/4" 2 7/8"

You can see by these comparison measurements the Mini Maru doll is slightly larger around the chest, waist and significantly larger around the hips and the arm length.