Bunny Bear Patterns A Reader Suggestion and Designer Spotlight

One of our readers let me know about an Etsy Pattern Shop she felt I should share with all of you and I could not agree more! If you don't know Bunny Bear Patterns from Etsy you may know them as Bunnybear.com. When one of our readers approached me about sharing these patterns on my site I reached out to Nann who is the pattern designer and she kindly shared a bit about her shop and design background with me to share with you!

KMOT: How did you come to be a pattern designer for 18 inch dolls?

"I actually don't remember learning to sew. My grandmother and mother taught me at a very early age. I made my own clothes, prom dresses, and quilts and curtains. I sewed for my cabbage patch kids in the 80's and really wanted an AG doll in 90's. My family lived below the poverty level and a doll of that price was something that I knew to not even ask for. Almost a decade later my fiancée bought me Samantha as a surprise. I began designing and sewing for her immediately. I spent a few years designing and selling ooak historical outfits and switched to selling just the patterns for these designs when my first child was born."

KMOT: What is your inspiration for each pattern?
"I scrupulously study actual garments in person at museums, online in historical collections, or actual rare patterns that are similar to a design I want to produce. It is extremely important to get the cut and structure of a piece as close to the original era as possible. I do this for anything I design, historical or contemporary. Then I move on to fabric choices, closures etc. The inspiration is usually a generalized iconic look of the era. Sometimes I sketch my interpretation of it and sometimes I gather a group of images and make a mood board for it."

KMOT: How many and which dolls do you have in your collection?

I currently have 17 AG dolls in my studio. I'm actually a collector. Samamtha and Nellie, Molly and Emily, Julie (#4 stands in for Ivy), Kit and Ruthie (my favorite era) Josefina, Marisol and several modern AG's. 26 stands in as my Addy.

KMOT: What is your favorite thing to make for your dolls?

My favorite thing to make for my dolls is clothing. I have also fabbled in fimo food and knitting (I'm terrible at knitting).

KMOT: What is the easiest pattern you would recommend for our readers from your shop?

 I get a lot of pleasure and satisfaction when customers send me images of their finished BunnyBear garments. Many years ago a mom sent me an image of her daughters opening items on Christmas day that she had sewn for them from my patterns. I'll treasure their joyous faces forever. 
Thank you for joining us today Nann! To learn more about her patterns please visit her website at:
 www.bunnybear.com or visit her Etsy shop by clicking here. 

As with all our posts we would love to hear from you so please leave us a comment here or email us at karenmowen@gmail.com