Dolls Eye View: Emmys 2017

It's been awhile since my girls have gone to the Emmys (the awards for prime time broadcasting in the United States). And though we are in the midst of fashion month, many of my divas were quite anxious to strut their stuff on the first red carpet event of the season. Inasmuch as this is a national event, the gowns are less elaborate than those worn at the Academy Awards ceremony. But still, this was the perfect event to display the "Made in America" brand.

Major trends here favor a return to the 1950's beginning with Nicole Kidman's fire engine red, tea length dress. Created by Calvin Klein (special order), it has the  and flare of Marilyn Monroe's pleated frock in "Some Like It Hot." Klein's 2017 version is hung from a bejeweled neckline which is drawn into the waist before releasing a full "New Look" skirt. For our girl, Giselle, I made the necklace out of textured wire and suspended a pendant of thin wire threaded with silver beads in the middle of the bodice panels. For the lower part of the dress, I used a circle skirt pattern. The fullness of the dress is achieved with the help of a petticoat, also cut from a circle of tulle.

This "hour glass" silhouette is also carried out in what brings to mind, old fashion prom dresses. These are simple, strapless bodices over full skirts like the Jason Wu dress worn by Thandie Newton. For my girl, Helen's dress, I used an evening length circle skirt cut from two layers of pink sparkle tulle, another layer of sheer nylon and an underskirt of tulle. The circle skirt pattern allows me to get the fullness I want without all the bulk around the waistline. However, I departed from the original dress at the bodice. The basic corset cut in silk was....well....boring. So, after making this strapless bodice, I covered it with scraps of crushed sparkle tulle. The texture it created was more interesting to my eye.

Quite naturally, this prom look--a take on the ballerina tutu-- suits younger Barbies quite well. Here is Millie Bobby Brown in a Calvin Klein (special order) dress. For my girl Jenny, I stuck more closely to the original dress. The top is a quick and easy tube of stretch jersey. The bottom is a (no-sew) tutu made from tulle slats knotted over a tiny white ribbon, piled over two circular underskirts, on made of silk and the other of tulle which serves as a petticoat. The one thing I did not do was to cut the hemline even. I thought the uneven hem was more interesting to the eye as well as the super long bow of white ribbon at the waistline. After all, red carpets are made for flights of fancy!

There was also a lot of sexy sirens on the red carpet as well.  The girls loved the elegance of the Oscar de la Renta jumpsuit worn by Claire Foy. Because I like to keep things versatile, I made this look for Veronica in two pieces (not including her gloves). It's a simple black crepe pair of slim, stovepipe pants worn under a simple but dramatic top. I used the one piece corset pattern and tacked on a long tube of silk to one side of the bodice. The "jewel trim" at the top was created by braiding a length of string which I brushed on lots of glue then rolled it in silver glitter. To keep the glitter from falling, I slathered on a second coat of glue then rolled everything again, in more more glitter. Allow the whole thing dry and shake everything out of doors. Using string at the base made it easy to hand stitch it to the top of the corset. Then I added a small rhinestone broach (though you could simply make the glittered rope longer and tie in a knot. I added opera length gloves which, for me, finishes off the look.

Leslie Jones is a famed comedian on the hit show, "Saturday Night Live." She is a tall strong woman who, at one time, had difficulty finding someone to dress her. Enter Christian Siriano (the most successful designer to emerge from the reality show, "Project Runway.") Siriano has not only become a serious force in New York fashion, he also specializes in creating beautiful clothes for curvy women. He just designed clothes for Mattel's curvy Barbies! We were simply wowed by how stunning Ms. Jones looked in this sequined dress. And though it's not line for line the same dress, Grace wanted to pay homage to both the comedian and the designer who dressed her.

As simple as....a high waist skirt, a bra and a belt and there you have Claudia's version of the Narciso Rodriguez gown worn by comedian, Kate McKinnon (of Saturday Night Live).

What would a red carpet be without sequins? Sometimes it's fun to take an outfit you don't particularly like and redesign it. Case in point...Anna Chlumsky's "liquid metal" silver sequins gown.. We saw possibilities! Instead of sequins, we used glitter and silver lame. Emanuela's V-neck top is a wrap-around top made from silver tulle that I glittered. Her skirt is an oval shaped skirt (a circle skirt with a train).

Hey everybody, it's fashion month! The girls are on that style train making its first stop in New York!

With the exception of the pictures of the celebrities (Getty images) all other photos and text property of Fashion Doll Stylist. 2017. Please do not reproduce without prior permission. Thank you.

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