By now, I suppose, many people are aware of my Outlander obsession. Now I’ve decided not only to make many different outfits for my large BJD dolls – Jamie and Claire – but also to have the same fun with playdolls. So, my Outlander project is getting bigger and bigger!
Here is the first full Outlander outfit for A Girl for All Time doll Lydia. She is one of our three Lydia dolls and belongs to my eldest daughter. I named her Claire Fraser, because she will be the one to play that part (my Lydia stubbornly wants to wear modern outfits, therefore I named her Caitriona – the name of the wonderful actress who plays Claire in Outlander TV series).
So, here is the outfit in the film (designed by Terry Dresbach).
And this is what I made for my Claire. The outfit is supposed to be a simple everyday outfit suitable for wearing in the cold weather of Scottish Highlands in 1740s. The jacket, the stomacher, the skirt and the cowl are all my own patterns. The skirt has slits on both sides for accessing the pockets (which used to be tied under the skirts and which I decided not to make!).
The jacket has pleats at the back.
The outfit is worn on top of a shift, a corset and a bum roll. I decided not to make pockets and a petticoat to reduce bulk.
The inside of the jacket. It closes at the front with hooks.
The corset and the shift are made using a pattern by Thimbles and Acorns, though the shift was modified (it has straight narrow sleeves as was required by the Outlander outfit). The bum roll is my own pattern.
I have also made some stockings that are held up by garters. I didn’t make any drawers / pantaloons as ladies didn’t start wearing them until the 19th century.
And one more photo of the completed outfit.
More photos are in the gallery below:
This is such an incredible outfit!! Well done! ;D
-Lydia
Lydia, thank you so much!!
You have done an amazing job and it suits Lydia /Claire really well.
Thank you so much, Linda!
I think Lydia is a perfect Claire. She might not have Claire’s curls but the colouring is just the same!
Wonderful outfit, looks great on your doll.
Thank you so much, Dee!!
Perfect! Brilliant! Stunning! Fabulous attention to detail!
Thank you very much, Xyra!!
What an amazing talent you have. Just gorgeous work!
Thank you so much, Cindy!!
I am glad you like it. 
I continue to be amazed by your passion – the results are perfection!
Lydia is my favourite.
Thank you so much, Darlene!!
Oh, Lydia is adorable, I don’t seem to be able to stop taking her for various photoshoots – she looks gorgeous on photos! 
Too lovely! Your Outlander obsession is spreading – I started reading the novels and can´t put them down! xox
Thank you, Sandra!!
Oh, so I can add you to my list of those who caught the Outlander obsession from me!! 
I have at least 7 (counting you) on the list already – and those are the ones who actually told me about it!! Which novel are you reading now? I am at 60% of Book 4 (Drums of Autumn) on my Kindle!
Make that 8 because I forced the first book on my husband and now HE can´t put the books down. He´s reading “Voyager” right now, I´ve advanced to “‘An Echo in the Bone”. (Made possible by my brand new baby boy – I spend about 3/4 of the day breastfeading, glued to the arm chair there´s not much to do but read. :-D)
Enjoy your read!
Sandra, wow, the Outlander infection is spreading!!
Yes, I do remember those breastfeeding days when I managed to read tons of books!! Now I barely can find 20 mins a day when I put my youngest one to sleep!
I did not get the bug from you but, you rekindled it.
I read the novels and could not put them down. Your interpretation of Claire’s outfit is spectacular!
Thank you, Joyce!! I am so glad you like it. I really need to finish the wedding dress – I have even made the stomacher embroidery for it already!!
It’s beautiful! Any chance you will reproduce as well game of thrones clothes ?
Thank you, Daniela!!
I must confess, I haven’t seen a single episode of The Game of Thrones!! 
BUT since I got obsessed with Outlander I have got rather interested in it, too (Tobias Menzies is one reason, the fact that Sam Heughan and Diana Gabaldon like it is another). I will have a go at it in the autumn (I have an international relocation coming up in 2.5 weeks, so don’t have time for it right now) and see if I come up with any costume ideas (the thought has occurred to me, too!). It would certainly be interesting. If there are any particular characters you have in mind please point them to me, so I pay closer attention to their costumes!! 
Hehehe actually I’m a huge fan of the books and I’ve started only recently to see the movies. I like the dress description of Cersei and Sansa, you can see on the net how they looks on the actress. Once I’ m done with the books (2 more) I will start outlander. In France you can’t watch it so I will go for the book.
Daniela, are the GoT books easy to read? I’ve heard they are very complicated, lots of characters, etc. I have looked up the characters you mention. Looks like their dresses are basically medieval gowns with some twists. Very nice and interesting to try on a doll scale!! Thanks for the idea! You probably can get Outlander of DVD or bluray? I got mine from the US Amazon (the first 8 episodes and am waiting for the release of the remaining 8 episodes, though, I have watched them online already). The UK Amazon is going to release them, too – should be the same region as France.
I did not find the books so complicate, it is true that there are a lot of characters but each chapter tels the story of just a couple of them so it is easy to follow, I did not take them in kindle version as each book has maps and a list of the members of each house so if I feel lost I can always check. I can’t watch USA DVD’s as the format is not the same so I’m really looking forward to vision the UK release
Yes, I guess, I will need the paper versions, too. I usually read books on Kindle first and those books that I absolutely loved I later buy on paper. But some books are hard to read on Kindle because of the maps and family trees. In Singapore the bluray region is the same as in the US, so it has worked for me! I would like to have a UK version, too. So I am anxiously waiting for it’s release, too!!
Лидия-Клэр чудесно смотрится в новом наряде! Он одновременно стильный, практичный (с поправкой на эпоху, конечно))) и уютный. Особенно к себе располагает его вязаная деталь))
Оля, поздравляю тебя с днем рождения и желаю всего-всего самого хорошего! Но в первую очередь здоровья тебе и твоим близким и неутомительного переезда
Лара, спасибо огромное – и за поздравление, и за комплименты! Сейчас у меня голова идет кругом, почти нет времени ни на Интернет, ни на блог, ни на обработку фотографий (правда, много снимаю сейчас – при каждом выезде беру куклу, на память фотографирую Сингапур). Через 2 недели эта кутерьма закончится, и я смогу, наконец, заняться фотографиями!
Wonderful work. The detailing is fabulous. I’m glad to know I am not the only one to think of making a Claire outfit for a doll. Will you do one from Dragonfly in Amber?
Hi Carolyn, Thank you so much!!
Are you also making Claire’s outfit? I’d love to see it! Yes, I will make something from Dragonfly in Amber when Season 2 is out. I am sure the costumes will be stunning there!! But first I would like to make a few more outfits from Season 1!
Olga, Claire’s outfit is amazing. And the doll, too. Your addictions are really infectious, I have to say 🙂 After seeing your Matilda on DollPlanet , I just couldn’t stop thinking of those very special dolls till I bought one, too. And I’m very much afraid that I’ll also have to buy a Lydia soon. After you posted the Outlander costumes pics on DP, I think, I got that bug, too 🙂 At least, I’ve been listening to the audiobook with great interest. So, thank you very much for the pleasures of seeing your fabulous historical projects, owning a beautiful doll and for the info about exciting book series
Ekaterina, thank you so much!! I am so glad you’ve got Matilda!! She was my first and is still my favourite among these girls. They are addictive, aren’t they! I hope you get your Lydia soon!! And I am really happy I hooked you on Outlander!! You should watch the TV series!!
(If you are on Facebook, we have a lovely A Girl for All Time group, come and join us!) 
Any chance that your patterns will be available to
purchase ? Your work is wonderful !
Thank you very much, Sharon! I am planning to get into making patterns, especially for A Girl for All Time dolls, but I need time to learn the technical aspects of producing PDF patterns. Once I have mastered it, I hope to be able to offer patterns for sale. Thank you for your interest.
Hello!
May I ask where you got the skirt fabric from? It’s perfect!
Hi Mareike, thank you! I got the fabric on Spoonflower.com. It is printed on demand. You can do the search on the website for “ancient plaid”.
Оля, уж на что я была покорена и восхищена Джейми, но, признаться, Клэр-Лидия затмила даже его. Смотрю на нее и, как будто, она сошла с экрана в одном из моих самых любимых нарядов из сериала! Наряд настолько похож, что не кажется, будто у тебя был доступ к тканям и выкройкам костюмера Аутлендера! Невероятно круто и красиво! Мне кажется, даже характер Лидии на этих фото такой, как у Клэр.
А в старые времена эти контрастные вставки спереди на жакете были именно вставками? Или это иногда могли быть целые корсажи/корсеты/блузки?
Оленька, спасибо огромное!
Я была невероятно удивлена, что именно эта Клэр произвела просто фурор в Интернете. На Твиттере ее занесла в фавориты сама Терри, создательница костюмов в фильме, и было множество перетвитов: https://twitter.com/OlgaSwishSwirl/status/608222089728815104 . На Фейсбуке она получила более 200 лайков и 2,5 тысячи просмотров и сотни две комментариев. Я была просто в шоке! Ни один из моих нарядов не вызывал такой реакции до этого!! Так что теперь я буду делать наряды и для этой Клэр.
Большинство вставок были именно вставными – они либо прицеплялись к корсету булавками, а уже к нему пристегивался жакет, либо жакет спереди зашнуровывался и вставка просто вставлялась спереди сверху (ты видела, наверное, в самом фильме). Платья с вшитыми вставками тоже были. В фильме достаточно только вспомнить свадебное платье и зеленое платье в клеточку в одной из первых серий.
Оль, а я совсем не удивлена
На Клэр-Лидию смотришь и прямо видишь Клэр киношную. Хотя в чем секрет непонятно, ведь прическа другая, лицо не похоже, но подбор тканей, качество исполнения наряда, и во многом твое мастерство фотографа с великолепным выставлением поз куколки, сделали свое дело. Получилась самая настоящая-пренастоящая Клэр 
Поздравляю тебя с признанием Терри! Это очень дорогого стоит! Так круто! Я очень рада за тебя
Спасибо за объяснения по вставкам 🙂
Оленька, спасибо большое!
Вот в том и дело, что портретного-то сходства нет, я на него и не нацеливалась. Целью было просто сшить наряд. Я такой же шью на бждшную Клэр. Ярда коричневой ткани как раз хватило на две юбки. Надеюсь, вторая Клэр будет ничуть не хуже (а сходства будет даже больше). Вообщем, такое количество комплиментов сделали свое дело – теперь мне хочется с удвоенной энергией творить по Аутлендеру и дальше!! 
It is gorgeous! Any chance you will resize the patterns for Gotz dolls?
Thank you, Daniela. I am not planning to make patterns for Gotz dolls, at least, not at the moment. I don’t believe there is much demand for them and I am too busy as it is. I might resize some of the contemporary dresses to fit Gotz dolls but I don’t think I will ever resize the complicated historical ones – for one thing, Gotz dolls don’t have the right figure. Which patterns do you have in mind?