The Art of Making Beautiful Fashion Doll Shoes [Hardcover]

Timothy J. Alberts (Author), M. Dalton King (Author), Pat Henry (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 13, 1999

A one-of-a-kind exquisite book about shoes - and how to make miniature footwear for your favorite dolls - from antique fashions to Gene and Barbie dolls. Designer Timothy Alberts gives step-by-step directions for making high-heeled shoes the proper way and includes patterns. The authors also include an illustrated history of shoes - showing which styles were popular through the ages. A shopping bag and shoe box are fun to make, too. Every doll lover (and shoe lover) will want a copy of this elegant and informative book. Includes four patterns and 67 line drawings.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"At long last, there is a solution for all of you who have been bemoaning the shoes offered by manufacturers. In fact, given the beauty of its presentation and the wealth of information provided, The Art of Making Beautiful Fashion Doll Shoes" may become the definitive book on the subject." -- Fashion Doll Scene, October 1999

"The book is of coffee table quality and stands to be a must-have for any collector who makes his or her own doll costumes and accessories. Tim's shoe creations feature extraordinary details in diminutive scale. Using leather, satin, suedes, and a unique system, Tim is able to make shoes for every size and shape of doll. By learning his system, collectors can make shoes for their own dolls, whether fashion, baby, antique or contemporary". -- Doll Reader, January 2000

About the Author

Timothy J. Alberts is a renown doll creator and designer. He is currently best known for his design work on the Gene doll. He is also a successful costume supervisor for films, such as "Sabrina", "The Devil's Own", the current "Random Hearts", and "What Lies Beneath" starring Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer. He also has several new fashion doll projects which will make the appearance in 2000 and 2001.

M. Dalton King is the business partner of Timothy J. Alberts and the author of such books as "Special Teas" and "Perfect Preserves".

Pat Henry is a fashion stylist in New York, and writer for fashion doll publications such as The Fashion Doll Scene, and Barbie Bazaar. She is also the designer of "Patpaks", miniature props and accessories for fashion dolls. This is her first collaboration on a book, as photographer, illustrator and art director.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Hobby House Press (December 13, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0875885616
• ISBN-13: 978-0875885612
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,221,388 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Superb book with easy to follow instructions, January 28, 2000

By 

Pinkmonkey ([e-mail]) (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Art of Making Beautiful Fashion Doll Shoes (Hardcover)

I make and design clothes for the Madame Alexander doll Cissy and have always been frustrated with the scarcity/lack of selection/high price of shoes that I can buy for this doll. So, when I saw this book advertised in one of the many doll magazines I browse monthly, I knew I had to have it. The instructions are fairly easy to follow though sometimes the photographs showing the various steps are not located on the page facing the written instruction (the sole reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5). The instructions for making a permanent last were very helpful. This book contains patterns for lasts & shoes for Cissy and Gene in particular, but the instructions and methods in this book could be applied to many dolls though I wouldn't recommend it for people wanting to make anything for Barbie. There are also instructions for making molds for heels (if you have a high-heeled doll like Cissy or Gene). Following these instructions, I successfully made my first pair of shoes, and, because I made them myself, I was able to customize them to the outfit I had made. A great book for making shoes for dolls for whom you cannot cheaply and easily buy decent shoes.

45 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Never Judge A Book By It's Cover, June 13, 2000

By 

JRP - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Art of Making Beautiful Fashion Doll Shoes (Hardcover)

This book is pretty on the inside and outside. Lots of colored photos. Plenty of photos of the shoes they have made and who they were made for. But no patterns to go with any of them except two. Very involved detailed process for making the solid shape to build your shoes upon. Brief explanations of various shoes over the centuries is nice, but don't expect to be able to design a shoe from many of the line drawings of shoes. The drawings are crude with no variations for each time period. They are not in color and mention no fabrics or popular colors for the time period. Nice glossary of tools used, shoe parts and techniques. There are 8 sources where you can purchased parts, etc. And last but not least there is a nice full page plug for the new upcoming book. I gave a three because the book is pretty, photos done nicely and process explanations were clear.

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book--More Shoe Photos, Please, January 29, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Art of Making Beautiful Fashion Doll Shoes (Hardcover)

I really loved this book. I have no experience in creating clothing for my 15½" Franklin Mint fashion dolls & the shoes that came with the dolls are a major disappointment. I hope to be able to rectify that soon with my husband's help in creating lasts & molds.

I gave the book 4 stars because, although the creation & design processes are detailed very thoroughly, there is a dearth of good photos of finished shoes. Many of the shoes that are shown tend to be somewhat hidden under the hem of a doll's outfit, the folds of artistically draped fabric, or the lid of a colorful candy box.

As suggestions for a second edition: If I could re-edit this book, I would add more finished shoes, add patterns for other popular fashion dolls (such as Franklin Mint vinyls,) & change the typeface font to something less fussy, with full margin justification.