The Kirsten Project | Changes for Kirsten

Ch-ch-changes! As we move into colder weather, it’s time for another look from The Kirsten Project - this time with her winter Scandinavian outfit from Changes for Kirsten. If you haven’t had a chance to see my background research on Kirsten’s skirt, sweater and knitted accessories or my original Kirsten Project post you’ll want to check those out. This look was practically plucked from the museum and was such a joy to recreate. Let’s jump in, shall we?

She wore all her flannel petticoats, her warmest skirt, and two pairs of wool socks, but still trembled with cold. - Changes for Kirsten

Kirsten’s winter story is set in 1850s Minnesota, but her old country outfit is distinctively Scandinavian - specifically Norwegian. Why not Swedish? As you know Norway and Sweden are neighbors and although there are regionally specific costumes, there are also a lot of similarities and overlaps between the bunad, or folk dress of the two nations. For example, both countries have bunads with red, green, black and white color schemes (just have a look at the famous artist Carl Larsson and his work “Kersti’s Birthday Party” featuring his daughter and her friends in their regional dress). So while not a Swedish folk costume to a T, Kirsten’s winter outfit absolutely captures a Scandinavian essence.

Political borders aside, my best guess is that pieces of Kirsten’s winter look, like the fana cardigan sweater and the Tecnica après ski boots were popular fashion trends of the 1980s when her character was developed. Maybe someone walked into the office one day wearing them and the design team turned to say now THAT’S what Kirsten’s winter look should be! Who can blame them? I love the high contrast black and white, punched with pops of red and green and think the entire look is one of the most memorable from the entire early Pleasant Company catalog (I’m still pining for a doll’s sized version but keep losing eBay auctions in the final minutes!)

Hat, Scarf + Mittens

Thanks to this project I’m back on a knitting kick again! I knit all of my winter accessories myself and really loved every second of it! The hat is a copy of the doll’s hat and I think it’s very close! I actually made three versions of this hat. On the first I asked for feedback (you guys suggested alternative male and female figures instead of just girls), the second was destroyed with a dying mishap and this is the third! I made it roomy enough to fit my big braids underneath but it still works for everyday wear! Speaking of, a huge plus to making this costume is the modern wearability of the pieces. I foresee myself getting a lot of use out of them!!

My scarf isn’t anything too fancy - just one very long tube of red stockinette knitting. I don’t like purling very much but in the round I can fly with a metal tipped circular needle. I used size 8 with worsted weight yarn and it took two skeins. No pattern! I found some original examples here and here!

These mittens were made using the Selbu pattern from Skeindeer Knits (read more on the history of the selbuvotter here). It’s really well written and fast to knit. Again I used worsted weight yarn and US size 4, 9” circular needles and matching DPNs for the fingertips and thumb. Magic loop just doesn’t work for me and I find the small circulars to be really fast! I’ve since finished four more pair of mittens!

Sweater

My fana style sweater, with it’s selburose stars, checkerboard hem and cuffs and black and white stripes, is what kick started this project for me. I had a little money left over from my first round of backing when I saw this original Pleasant Company cardigan on eBay. The price was too good to let it go and the rest is history. It’s a girl’s XL and thanks to that 80s silhouette, roomy enough to fit me!

Skirt

As I referenced in my research post, Kirsten’s skirt is very similar to the overskirt of the Setesdalbunad. I chose to go with extant examples and historical photographs and do two red stripes instead of one for my version skirt.

The skirt is made from a lovely lightweight wool I bought from Burnley and Trowbridge. I cut a narrow strip for my waistband and then split the remaining yardage in half. I sewed up those side seams and then gauge pleated 10 feet worth of fabric into my waistband. At the hem I appliquéd stripes of red and green wool that I sourced from second hand pencil skirts bought at the thrift store. If you’re looking closely those are burrs decorating my hem… I walked around through the woods for a while to find the perfect spot to take these photos!

Boots

While every other aspect of Kirsten’s costume can firmly be traced to Scandinavian cultural origins, these boots are one piece I couldn’t nail down other than the fact that they are definitely in the artwork for Changes for Kirsten (by the wonderful Renée Graef! Hi Renée!!)

I considered the fur boots worn by the Sami people of Northern Scandinavian, but those have a curled toe. I looked at Native American examples from the US, but I couldn’t find anything that was identical. I looked up mountain men (Kirsten and her family are trappers in this book), but nothing there either. One thing I’m sure of? The boots from the illustrations are Tecnica après ski boots, the very same sold in the catalog, and they were a big trend in the 80s. See the eighties theme happening here?!

I found my boots on eBay and then made some alterations so they more closely resembled the cover art. I painted one of the yellow leather ties red (with leather paint) and stitched on vintage green Scandinavian ribbon under the cuff. This is one bit of my costumes I wanted to save for the final reveal because I was SO PSYCHED when I figured out the brand and then found a pair in my size. They’ll be great snow boots for winter!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this edition of The Kirsten Project! The more I research Scandinavian culture the more I want to visit and incorporate the designs into my own life. You better believe I have a St. Lucia Day breakfast planned in my home too! I’m so inspired by everything I learned during this project.

Thank you to everyone who has financially backed my costume work or cheered me on from the sidelines. It’s pretty amazing to work on something, put it out into social media ,and have nothing but positivity surrounding it. There’s something really joyful about sharing a childhood nostalgia with others. We all seem to remember how it felt to find the Pleasant Company catalog in the mail, turn the pages of the books and in cases like mine, dress up like my doll for so many happy days of my girlhood. So much of who I am was formed in those days - , a pioneer/homesteading spirit, a make do and mend attitude, a love for historical costumes and embracing anything and everything “old fashioned”.

The Kirsten Project | Setesdalbunad

It’s time for another round of research for my next installment of The Kirsten Project: Winter Edition. I’ve always loved Kirsten’s winter look from afar and never had it for myself or my doll, but out of all of her outfits, I think this one has the most pieces that could transition to everyday modern wear, which helped me chose to take it on next.

In the Pleasant Company catalog, this winter ensemble is described as Scandinavian, but with just a little digging we find that it’s very Norwegian! It was only recently that I discovered I have Norweigan ancestry, thanks to the DNA test I took last year. I’m still combing through each family line to discover which distant grandparent gave me Scandinavian blood, but it makes me glad to know I have some!

Today I’ll be focusing on what I believe was the inspiration for Kirsten’s skirt and blouse - the bunad, or folk dress, from the region of Setesdal.

As you can see in these images, the top black skirt is decorated at the hem with two red stripes and one green - very similar to Kirsten. While she only has one red stripe on her skirt, I’ve opted to take my inspiration from the Setesdalbunad, one of the oldest types of bunad in Norway. Each region has a bunad specific to their area, and some research I’ve seen says there are over 200 variations!

In reviewing the Setesdalbunad, I’ve learned that the black overskirt would always be worn with a black trimmed white petticoat underneath. I’m compromising by wearing my white quilted petticoat, which does not show because I’d like to combine both historical examples and the cover artwork.

The stakk, or skirt, is made from wool gathered into a decorative waistband and attached to shoulder straps, most likely to support the weight of the thick skirt. I’m wearing a corset for my project, which does a lot to support the heaviness of of my gathered skirt.

Almost all of these images are from the Digitalt Museum - the most amazing resource for a foreigner like me! There’s a lot of back and forth with Google translate, but I’ve found everything I need for my interpretation of Kirsten’s winter skirt!!

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The Kirsten Project | 1854

After months of planning and research, designing and sewing, I am so excited to finally share my finished costume for The Kirsten Project! The goal of this project was to take one of my childhood passions - the pioneer life of my favorite character, Kirsten Larson - and interpret her through a historical lens. I’ve done a deep dive into every aspect of her costume - from her hair and bonnet to her traditional Swedish apron to the printed fabric of her dress and incorporated that research into this look. I’ll link back throughout this post to the background information pertaining to each category or you can click here to read it all now.

Let’s step back in time to 1854!

Underpinnings

Although not visible in these images, I’m wearing historical undergarments including drawers and chemise (both pictured at right), a corset and a quilted petticoat. The first layer is a pair of open drawers that tie at the waist made out of white cotton. The center front and back seams are left open so using the out house is less of an ordeal (Because of the way the corset falls over the waist and hips, lowering and raising a base layer would have meant removing all of the day’s layers for each visit to the privy.) Busy women didn’t have time for that! Drawers were worn primarily for warmth on the legs and sometimes modesty and are roomy in their cut so nothing feels like it’s out in the open! They have decorative tucks at the hem along with scalloped eyelet trim, just like Kirsten’s.

Over the drawers is a chemise, which looks kind of like a nightgown. Also made of white cotton, It extends to the knee and has some decorative pin tucks at the hem. All women, regardless of social class, would have worn base layers to protect more valuable corsets and outer layers from the sweat and oils of their skin. Like modern undies, most women would have multiple sets to rotate while they may have worn the same dress day in and out. White cotton (or linen) was also able to take a literal beating in the boiling wash water without worry of fading color or making a print dull.

Next is a corset, cut out of lightweight but strong coutil or French Twill. I used the Laughing Moon 100 pattern for all of these pieces and they came together quickly and easily! I always start with my base layers of my costumes first as they can change your measurements by pulling in your waist, lifting your bust and generally smoothing everything out. There’s a huge misconception that wearing a corset is a painful ordeal - it’s not! For me it feels much more comfortable than a bra and gives the support of a back brace. All that said, I don’t do extreme tight lacing - just enough so that my laces are even in back, which only takes in an inch or two.

The last foundation garment is a quilted petticoat which is actually from my 18th century kit. Some things can transverse centuries, others cannot (like stays or corsets!) This petticoat does the job (there are even written mentions of quilted petticoats in the Kirsten series) but if I were to revisit the early Victorian era I’d do a corded petticoat. Caged crinolines and hoop skirts that many associate with the middle of the 19th century begin to appear at the tail end of the 1850s, but primarily in the upper echelons of society before extending to other classes.

If you’d like to see any of these underpinnings in action, you can view them here.

Dress

After completing the base layers of my look, I normally move to the dress next. However for this costume, I had more to do than just test fit the pattern and cut my material - I actually designed the fabric and had it printed to resemble Kirsten’s dress!

Using my doll as my inspiration, I looked at historical prints from the 1850s until I found something that reminded me of the small red flowers. You’ll see a key difference is the color palette of the background - most come in shades of ecru and brown - but there are some examples of blue from the era. Check out my research post to see what I mean! From my inspiration pieces, I sketched out the floral motif, scanned it in, digitalized it and then added the small red and pale gold cross into the design.

Once I had a repeat I was happy with, I used my color map from Spoonflower to pick colors that were close to the original dress. A week later, with the printed fabric swatches in front of me I saw that the colors were close, but the scale was WAY too large. My goal was to have the same number of repeating floral motifs across the upper chest for my dress as the doll’s dress (there are six!) so I went back to my laptop and made three more smaller scales of the print along with switching up a color or two. I am so glad I took the extra time to do a few test rounds! Another update I made after my first round of swatches was to add a dotted background in a shade of blue slight darker than the ground. I wanted to get the Kirsten look, but almost all of the 1850s prints I found were very busy with not a lot of plain ground showing through. It took quite a bit longer for these swatches to arrive but when they did I had the perfect sample and I knew I was ready to make the larger investment in six yards of fabric.

Speaking of investing, let me take a moment to thank to the many people who chipped in to support this project to get early access via instagram. Because of your contributions I was able to go the extra distance with the dress fabric to really capture Kirsten’s spirit. Those funds also went towards supporting many other small and female owned businesses in the form of buying indie patterns, trims and accessories! And it wasn’t just the dollars and cents, it was the encouragement and enthusiasm of my patrons that I’m really grateful for! Thanks for validating this idea and rallying behind it!

Now back to the dress! I used Fig Leaf Patterns 201 based on an extant dress in the Sumter County Historical Museum collection, dating between 1956-1962. I loved making this dress, especially the pleating throughout! Like Kirsten’s dress there is a high round neckline, dropped shoulders with piping at the sleeve head, full sleeves and a fitted cuff, a slightly raised waistline, full skirt and contrast hem facing.

I also did something new to me for the hemline - Instead of just turning the bottom of the skirt up to be level with the ground, I folded back the top waistline edge of the skirt before I did my running stitches for the cartridge pleats. To determine how deep to fold it, I found the the shortest part of my bodice and measured the difference at center front (a little over two inches long). This told me the back of my skirt would be turned just a half inch, while the front would be much deeper. This wasn’t as complicated as it sounds and allowed me to have an even row of the print all the way around the hem. I love how well it all turned out!

One final note on my colors! The blue of my print was beautiful, but a little more vibrant than I wanted. I did a few dips in a tea bath to get the shade to come down a little and the end result was exactly right. And if you’re wondering, I was able to use my swatch yardage for my piping as well as my pocket bag. I’m even considering ordering a little more to make Bea a tiny version of Kirsten’s new country dress!

Accessories

I’m a strong believer that the accessories make the look when it comes to any historic ensemble. I’ve posted my research on Kirsten’s bonnet and hairstyle, apron and pocket. Now let me tell you a little more about how I made them!

Bonnet

For my bonnet, I kept the red and white check like Kirsten’s in mind, but veered towards a different plaid than the doll or the book illustrations. The kind of check I ultimately used was a common weave during the 19th century - see how similar it is to the example I posted in my research?

My plaid came from a second hand men’s button down that I picked up for a couple dollars. I made my own simple pattern, working from a poster board brim that I mocked up. I also chose to make a corded bonnet, using stitched channels filled with cotton cording to give the bonnet brim more stability. Sewing them in place made me so dizzy!! I love the way my final bonnet so closely mirrors the extant versions, but the style in general feels a little matronly to me, which is why I opted not to wear it in all of my photos.

Hair

As I mentioned in my research post, one of the elements of Kirsten’s character that doesn’t vibe very will with historical research are her thick blunt bangs. The look of the time was a center part with hair covering the ears. You can read more about where the inspiration for Kirsten’s looped braids probably came from here, but for my style I wanted to capture something historically accurate. My long braids are plaited right beneath my ears and then each side is tucked up under the base of the opposite side. I feel like I’ve achieved how an adult Kirsten may have styled her blond locks!

Amber Necklace

I wasn’t able to get any historical research to back up the amber necklace Kirsten wears throughout her series, but it’s my best guess that each girl/doll had a heart shaped accessory so this was the best fit for Kirsten. I bought my small amber pendant on eBay and wore it from a narrow silk ribbon. To get the perfect shade of brown, I dyed 1/8” white silk ribbon using black walnuts from my own front yard! It’s my experience that the flesh of the green walnuts oxidizes to make the best dye but I used some dried husks too! I dyed the ribbon by submersing it along with the walnuts in boiling water for about 2 hours.

Loose Pocket

This is one portion of my project that brings together the doll’s accessory with a lot of research and a little creativity. Loose pockets, or kjolsäk, vary in shape but many of them are rounded, some look like 18th century pockets and a few others are square. Almost all extant pockets have red elements (usually on a black ground) but my assumption is that Kirsten’s pocket palette is strongly influenced by her American red, white and blue color scheme.

I thought about the many ways I could approach this piece - Should I make it more similar to an extant pocket? Should I copy Kirsten’s spoon bag identically? In the end, I scaled up my doll’s pocket to get the perfect proportions, but made my embroidery a little more intricate and special. You can imagine that the doll’s pocket was mass produced and thus rather simple. In place of the little stars on her pocket I did Scandinavian inspired embroidery instead. I also did the date with a little more of a flourish similar to what I saw on existing examples. Around the appliquéd red heart I added embroidered scallops. I kept Kirsten’s simple initials, which was very common on the historical examples I found in my research.

Inside the pocket is a small wooden spoon (in some of the photos) and a hankie. Pleasant Company/American girl says pioneers had limited cutlery and took it with them when visiting (probably true) but I didn’t find any of my own research saying as much. Some sources mentioned carrying money or candy in the bag or even bread for extra long church services.

I also folded up a hankie that I embroidered to look similar to Kirsten’s, which we learn in book two is an example of her own sewing work. Mine was a quick project I took on while I was waiting for other materials to arrive in the mail and was also done using scraps of both fabric and leftover embroidery floss from the pocket.

Apron

Kirsten’s red and white striped apron, or förkläde, was one piece I thought would be pretty straight forward, but ended up being a topic I researched in depth! This is one element of Kirsten’s look that is very Swedish with loads of examples in existing museum pieces, Swedish art and photography. Check out my research post if you want to learn more!

Knowing that this piece was homespun, woven and passed through generations, I didn’t want my apron to be made of a print or lightweight fabric weave - I wanted it to feel thicker and have more substance. I spent hours on Etsy looking through pages and pages until I finally found this vintage Swedish textile, which looks very similar to the cover of Meet Kirsten! It was the perfect size to gauge pleat and sew into a simple 1” wide twill ribbon waistband. I added a simple chunky running stitch alongside each red stripe to enhance it and also sewed additional running stitches on the waistband.

Socks

After spending so much time on all of the above accessories, I knew I couldn’t go the easy route with some school spirit striped socks from the craft store, so I commissioned these from the Pointed Needle via Etsy. Once I saw Ralyne’s work, I asked her for a bid and we agreed on a price plus the cost of materials. Even though I knit, I knew I’d rather have someone who specialized in socks to make these. They turned out amazingly and look so similar to the doll’s socks! I did give them a light tea bath to give the gold even more age and the end result looks great!

Boots

I really lucked out by finding these secondhand but seemingly unworn boots on Poshmark! I initially wanted to dye some boots I bought years ago until I realized they had a three inch heel and wouldn’t enhance the costume. They look so similar to an antique pair displayed at Spring Mill too! I called this style ‘granny boots’ as a girl and wore a black pair similar to these with everything in my closet. History repeats itself, people! This pair fit perfectly and were a really reasonable $30, including shipping!

You can probably see it written all over my face - I am so thrilled with how this entire project unfolded. I never thought I could do such a historical and cultural deep dive into the outfit of my favorite childhood character. This was a dream project in every way. The Kirsten Project ticked off so many boxes for me - research, planning, history, design, sewing and creativity. I’m so happy I did this!!

And now, as I look through all of these photos and write all of these words, it occurs to me that almost every single part of this plan just felt right. From designing the fabric to finding the perfect boots online everything came together as if it were meant to be.

When we shot the first half of these photos at Spring Mill State Park, we had the Pioneer Village to ourselves until the costumed volunteers showed up and graciously offered us props and cheerful hellos (you really never know how people will react when you’re in costume!) For the second part of the shoot we wanted a prairie field setting with long grasses and wild flowers and a sunny day for back lighting. Because of schedules, we had a tight window to shoot (never mind the grass being mowed down for fall any day now). We could have the location but we couldn’t control the light. It was pretty overcast when we headed out, but as Adam started testing camera settings, the skies cleared to blue and the sun came shining down. I could not believe our luck!!

Thanks to my husband Adam for all of the love and encouragement on my costume projects, which mean a messier house, more cooking for him, straight pins covering the floors in every room and a general mess of our dining room table for a couple of months. He took all of these incredible photos and captured my vision for this project so perfectly, and I am so grateful for all of it and more.

And with that, the Kirsten Project is complete! I hope you’ve enjoyed this series and I look forward to my next big project, whatever that may be.

Introducing | The Kirsten Project

My pleasant company edition of meet kirsten (1986, when it was just her, samantha and molly!) from childhood plus original outfit.

Over the course of the past year I’ve returned to one of my childhood passions with historic costumes. It was only after going to my first Jane Austen Festival did I remember how I spent so much of my early years wearing pioneer dresses, bonnets, aprons and petticoats. Anything historic was my jam, but especially the world of old fashioned clothes. I wore braids and lace up black boots to elementary school! I have memories of running through an apple orchard in my full kit and loving it so dearly.

A huge part of my introduction to history was through the American Girl Dolls, specifically Kirsten, who lived in the Midwest in 1854. You can read my whole story of how much this doll meant to me here as a background to the new project I am dying to tell you about today.

I’m calling it The Kirsten Project and it will be a multi-month exercise in creating a historically accurate mid 19th century costume from the inside out. The first book in the series, Meet Kirsten, will serve as my inspiration. I’m even going as far as designing fabric based on her dress and scaling it to the perfect adult size for me. Because Kirsten was an immigrant farmer’s daughter living in the Midwest, her ensemble won’t the same as fashion plates from Paris, but I’ll do my best to guess what that kind of woman would have worn and still embrace the spirit of the artwork from the Kirsten series. My plan for this project is to research and plan every layer - from chemises and petticoats, to a corset, hand knit socks, period footwear all the way to her signature spoon pocket and gingham bonnet. I’ll share photos and videos of my progress, just like I’ve done with past projects.

Speaking of sharing… the other half of the experiment is a little crowd funding proposal. I’m wondering if you’d be willing to chip in whatever you can to watch the project unfold? I have a private instagram account I’ve set up exclusively for contributors. You can support the project with a one time donation and in any amount through my PayPal. Drop me a DM and I’ll approve your follow request! All of these funds will go towards the hefty expense of making a historical costume (buying patterns from independent designers, creating my own original fabric designs and having them printed, buying from mom and pop fabric stores, supporting women owned shoe companies, knitters, and more) and will make me feel supported as an artist (thank you thank you thank you!) Think of this like a one-on-one guided museum tour through an incredibly specific part of costume history.

If you can wait until the very end, look for the full project to land here. Otherwise, watch me in real time by supporting this project!

I can’t wait to create my own historically accurate adult version inspired by kirsten.