I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again I’m sure, I love the creativity of the members of my Facebook Sew and Share group and I really appreciate how willing everyone is to share their ideas.

Tina has been a member of this group for a number of years now and comes up with the most amazing creations.  When she posted a photo of these Mary Jane shoes she made using my 3 Way Shoe Pattern I thought they were so cute I asked Tina if she would share how she made them with the group.  It wasn’t long before Tina uploaded these great instructions to the group.  I’ve since realized that not many people go to this file section so with Tina’s permission, I’m now sharing them in this blog post in the hope that more people can see how easy it is and maybe give it a try.

So here goes…..

Use pattern pieces #1, 2 and 3 of the 3 Way Shoe pattern. I used felt for the sole (piece 3) and upcycled netball bloomers for the original shoes. For the following photos I used a heavier t-shirt/knit type material as it was all I had. Not ideal as it was a little too stretchy.  You could also use a medium weight woven fabric such as cotton. I used tracing Vilene to trace out pattern pieces onto so that I could adjust them around the foot.

1. Cut piece #1 to the cutting line for the shoe.  With a ruler, draw a straight line so that it intersects with the top of the arch in the pattern piece as in the photo. (approx. 2cm)

2. Cut along the line drawn so that you end up with two pieces and discard the top piece.

3. Take each of the remaining pieces and flip over so that the point is on the bottom. Join these pieces to pattern piece # 2 (toe piece) with a pin as shown.

4. Once both sides are joined, trace over using Vilene or baking paper so that you have 1 piece without joins. I found that I had to add 1cm on top of the straight edges as shown in photo so that there was enough for a seam allowance.

5. Cut out material using the above piece (instead of separate 1 & 2), and cut out piece #3 (sole with no alterations)

6. Stitch the two short ends together (the back of the top piece of the shoe).  Mark the middle on the toe by folding in half and try it on the doll’s foot with the wrong side facing out so that it can be pinned to fit the top of the foot.  Stitch.

7.  Try it back on the foot to check the fit.  Mine is a little loose as the fabric is a bit too stretchy. I have also marked the top of the shoe where I am going to trim a little of the excess fabric off.

8. After you are happy with the fit, attach this piece to the sole, right sides together. Stitch with a ¼ inch seam.

9. Trim seam allowance close to the stitching (approx. 1/8 inch), clip curves if needed or trim use pinking shears and turn to right side. Push curves out so they give a nice smooth curve on the outside.

10. Fit back on the doll and turn down hem around top of the shoe. Pin the hem where you would like it to be – high or low depending on finished look.

11. Either hand stitch the hem around the top of the shoe (easiest) or sew using a machine.

12. After the hem has been stitched down, try the shoe back on and cut a piece of 6mm elastic to fit across the instep. Pin in place on both sides after you are happy with the placement. Stitch in place.

Thanks so much for sharing this with us Tina, you’ve done a great job describing your process and the Mary Janes are adorable on ‘Alice in Wonderland’.

This process can also be used to make a pair of Mary Jane shoes for the Cabbage Patch doll too, just use the 18 1/2″ Cabbage Patch size 3 Ways Shoe Pattern to make your alterations to.

Do let me know if you use these instructions to make your very own pair of Mary Janes from my 3 Way Shoe pattern, I’d love to see a photo.

Happy sewing

Oh my gosh I’ve been soooo slack!  You guys have been amazing, sewing up a storm and I haven’t posted your wonderful creations in a blog post for months.  So let’s get started.

Narelle has made the most gorgeous wedding dress with lace overlay on the bodice and lace sleeves, then stitched beautiful tiny pearls around the edges of the bodice.  Love it!

‘Hi Rosie, here’s a couple of pics of the bride outfit I have made for my granddaughter’s birthday, for a Journey Girl doll.  Your patterns are very easy to follow and the very clear instructions in your videos are a great help, especially the tips! 

Very happy with the end result! 

Regards, Narelle’

Oh my Gosh, Marlene has been soooo busy creating lots of outfits for her granddaughter’s Cabbage Patch doll that I had a really hard time deciding which ones to include in this blog post.  I just love the variety and I’m sure your granddaughter was thrilled to receive this wonderful collection of doll clothes Marlene.  I especially love the bright and fun nappies/diapers.  Well done.

‘I purchased some patterns off you recently. I really enjoyed making them. I thought you might like to see the finished products made out of scraps. They are for my 3 year old granddaughter in Melbourne. Marlene’

Great to see Peg is enjoying sewing doll clothes and finding my step-by-step videos so helpful.  Your Summer Dress is very pretty Peg and I’m looking forward to seeing what you make next.

‘Here is my first (but definitely not my last) doll dress with your pattern.

Thank you for your great pattern, instructions and Especially your videos for us visual learners. So excited to find your Facebook group as well.

Blessings,

Margaret (Peg)’

Julianne has also been super busy creating an amazing wardrobe for her Our Generation doll, Sarah.

‘Hi Rosie, just love your patterns and easy instructions together with wonderful videos if I’m a bit unsure. I have done a lot of cutting out so far ready to make more but have attached photos of Our Generation doll, Sarah, modelling summer dress, Vintage 50’s dress with sleeves and added net underskirt to the design. The evening gown is also the 50’s dress, the skirt of which is a lightweight curtain from a charity shop also with double layer netting underskirt. Also modelling blouse and overalls. Hope you like them. 

Julianne’

Thanks for letting me know how helpful you have found the videos Julianne.  Sarah looks super impressed with all her beautiful new outfits.  Love the upcycling too.

This last photo shows three beautiful pink princesses that Donna has made using my Wedding Dress pattern.

‘I just finished making these up today, I’m addicted.  Bought 2 more dolls, now these 3 are mine.’

It’s funny how once we start sewing for dolls, we become addicted and accumulating dolls.  You’re not alone Donna.

Thank you all for sending in your wonderful photos and sharing your amazing sewing journey with us.  I have lots more emails and photos to share and am hoping to do another Share and Tell soon.

Until then, stay healthy and happy sewing

Wow, what a year we’ve all had!  It certainly has brought its challenges and I’d like to acknowledge those who were diverted from making doll clothes for a time so that you could sew face masks in an effort to keep family and friends safe.  It’s wonderful to know that because you share a love of sewing, you were able to contribute in such a valuable way.

Some very positive things have also come from this year.  I’ve actually had a number of people join me in learning how to sew in an effort to fill in their many hours during lock down.  Not only have they become competent sewers, they have now become addicted to sewing doll clothes – YAY!!!!

It has also brought to light some very inspiring people such as Yvonne, who brought joy to her neighbourhood with ‘The Adventures of Vacciney’ which was featured in one of my earlier blog posts.  This is a wonderful story and well worth a read.

This year saw the release of my Peasant Skirt pattern for 18 Inch and American Girl dolls and the Peasant Skirt pattern for 18 ½ Inch Cabbage Patch Kids.  These patterns have proved to be super popular and I’m not sure if it’s because it comes with a number of variations, because it’s super quick and easy to make, or because it just looks adorable.

I’ve also added some more blog posts with tips on sewing with stretch fabric, using your serger/overlocker, making tiny straps and working with fat quarters.  If you want to refer back to these blog posts, remember you will find links to these and lots of other helpful blog posts on my Free Resources page.

Our fabulous Facebook group has continued to grow and we now have over 1700 awesome members.  It’s such a lovely place to hang out as everyone is so friendly and encouraging.  And talk about inspiration!  I recently spent a good half hour just scrolling through some of the amazing photos that were posted this year.  Thank you to each and every one of you as you have become my special ‘online family’.

It’s at this time of the year that I also like to remind people how my 18 inch and American Girl Funky Fur pattern can be made into a ‘Santa Suit’.  It looks super cool and is a huge hit with the little ones.  Works just as well for the 18 ½ inch Cabbage Patch Kids Funky Fur pattern too.  If you’d like to know more about this, check out my blog post, ‘How to Make a Doll Clothes Santa Suit’.

And finally, I’d like to thank you all for your wonderful support again this year.  Without you, I wouldn’t be here!

Wishing you a fantastic Holiday season and here’s hoping 2021 will be a year full of positivity, friendships and of course lots and lots of doll related sewing.

Merry Christmas

Recently I received the following enquiry from Debra and after answering her questions, I realised there may be other people wondering the same thing so I’m sharing this information here and I’ve added some photos so that you can clearly see what I’m talking about. 

‘I’m enrolled in your Learn to Love Your Serger/Overlocker course, but have a couple questions specific to my machine.
1.  I have a White Super Lock model 534. It does not have a way to lower the cutting blade. Should I just remove the blade altogether?
2. There is no differential feed dial. Is there another way to make this adjustment?
Thanks for any help!’

So let’s start with Question one – The Cutting Blade

Lowering the cutting blade is a quick and easy way to sew around tight concave curves without the fear of cutting into the fabric with your cutting blade.  If your machine doesn’t have the ability to easily lower the cutting blade and it is easy to remove and reinstate your blade, then yes by all means do so. However, using the following techniques, may allow you to sew around curves and corners without having to remove the blades.

If you have a tiny concave curve, make some clips inside the seam allowance around the curve.  This will allow you to pull the fabric straight as you are serging and therefore avoid the butting blade. When making your clips, it is important that you do not make these clips too long as you don’t want to go beyond the stitching line.

If you are wanting to serge around an ‘inside’ corner you simply make a clip at the very corner so that you can pull the fabric out straight as you serger, avoiding the cutting blade. Again, be careful not to make this clip too long as you don’t want to go beyond the stitching line.

Let’s now look at Question two – Serging (Overlocking) Without a Differential Feed Dial

A Differential Feed Dial allows you to adjust the rate that the feed dogs move in relation to the stitches.  It is often used to prevent fabric from being ‘pulled in/gathered’ or ‘stretched’ as you serge and this can happen with certain types of fabric.

If you are wanting to prevent fabric from stretching as you serge and you don’t have a Differential Feed dial, using a water-soluble stabilizer such as ‘Solvi’ will work wonderfully.

I cut the Solvi in thin strips and lay it over the fabric as I stitch.  You then just wash the solvi away when finished.

You can see the amazing difference this makes when working with a very stretchy fabric.

The top piece has been serged without Solvi and the bottom piece was stitched with a thin strip of Solvi placed on top of the fabric as it was serged.

Do let me know if this information has been helpful and if you have any other tips that you use when you don’t have a differential feed dial, I love to hear them.

Or if you’d like to learn lots more tips that will have you using your serger (overlocker) with confidence then my Learn to Love Your Serger online course will be perfect for you.

Happy sewing

The Sew-Along theme in my Facebook group for August was based on my Wedding Dress pattern and I’m so excited to share these photos because they are absolutely gorgeous and the alterations are amazing!!!!  Warning, this is a very long blog post because I had so much trouble narrowing down the photos.

Cynthia had so many entries in the Sew-Along that I lost count – and every single one was so different.

‘This one is made from my wedding dress and veil from 1975. A lot work taking my dress apart, but I truly enjoy the outcome. I guess you can say I adore this pattern. Thank you, Rosie, for creating it. You got me hooked. But I love it.’

How special is this dress!

The second dress has been made into a cocktail dress by adding lace overlay on the bodice and the back of the skirt. The red and black is stunning.

Next, we have these dresses by Debra. In the first photo you can see that she has removed the gathers from the skirt by taking 1 ¾ inches (approx. 4.5cm) from both side seams which has given the dress a slimline look.

For the second dress, Debra added the puff sleeves from my Blouse pattern and made the cuffs much wider to create a ‘Juliet Sleeve’. Using the contrasting fabric on the skirt and the sleeve cuff has given this dress a totally different look.

You’re so clever Debra, I love them both.

These next two dresses are made using my sleeveless version of the Wedding Dress pattern.

Natalie has used a beautiful bright red satin and added an overlay on the skirt. She decided to not add the petticoat to give a simpler look but stunning look.

Irene has used a soft pink satin and an overlay of white sheer with silver dots of both the bodice and the skirt. The petticoat gives more fullness to the skirt. So pretty in pink.

Monica also had lots of entries in the Sew-Along and has swapped out the veil for some amazing fascinators, hats and headbands. By varying the fabric, the length of the dress, making it with sleeves or without sleeves and adding lace to some, she has created five very different and beautiful dresses. Monica has also resized the pattern to fit all the different dolls. Awesome job Monica!

These two bridesmaids are soooo pretty.

Jill has used a tiny floral print in soft tones. She has shortened the sleeves on her dress and added lace to the hem of the sleeves and the skirt. Jill reduced the wedding dress pattern to 96% to fit her Journey Girl doll.

Rina has opted for the sleeveless version and added a lace overlay on the bodice, although it is difficult to see in this photo. Then a simple pink ribbon bow to highlight the centre of the flowers is the perfect finishing touch.

Beautiful job Jill and Rina!

Making a ‘trial dress’ is a great idea when making a pattern for the first time and I have to say, Pat, this dress (the one on the left) has turned out perfectly.

‘This is my first try with the wedding dress pattern with a fabric I did not care much for. Now that it is made into this beautiful pattern, I think it worked out very well, and I like it.’

Pat then decided she would like to swap the circle skirt for a pleated skirt and wow, this has completely changed the dress! This looks very smart and was a very clever idea Pat.

The following dresses have been made by Tina who used to sew lots of fancy dance costumes.

For the first dress she used some left over dance fabric and then added shiny crystals to the centre of each flower and I have to say, this is one STUNNING dress! The centre photo is the wedding dress pattern with lace overlay on the bodice, sleeves and skirt – a beautiful bride! Then every bride needs a bridesmaid, so Tina made the sleeveless version in a pretty peach colour, shortened the skirt and added lace overlay on the bodice only.

Three VERY different dresses made from the same pattern. Amazing!

Originally Susan was going to make the dress as per the pattern with black lace overlay on the bodice and sleeves too, but when she was about the stitch up the side seam of the bodice, she placed it on her doll with the skirt and decided it was a little too heavy and old fashioned to be the prom dress she was hoping for. Her solution was to alter the bodice and use the lace for little cap sleeves and I have to say WOW! This has transformed this dress into a stunning Prom dress!

And finally, we have this gorgeous black satin evening gown by Wendy. She simply used the sleeveless option and added some tulle across the shoulders at the back, across the front and secured with a button in front. Such a clever idea to add some extra glam!

As you can see there were some truly amazing creations in the August Sew-Along and they were all made from my Wedding Dress pattern. I’m so proud of all the creative ladies in my Facebook group and I hope they have inspired you to get creative and mix up your patterns with different fabrics and slight modifications.

If you would like to try my Wedding Dress pattern you can find the 18” American Girl size here and the 18 ½” Cabbage Patch size pattern is here.

Happy sewing

One of the best things about sewing doll clothes is that you can make some really cute clothes with a tiny bit of fabric.  The problem arises when we are wanting a long piece to use for a skirt or the skirt of a dress and unfortunately a fat quarter or that perfect piece of fabric you have is just not long enough without joining two pieces together.

The most common thing people do in this situation is to join the fabric in the centre.  The problem is that this means we have a join at the centre front of the dress or skirt and depending on the print on the fabric, it can look quite unsightly.

‘Sew’ how do we avoid this?

Easy!  We simply make two seams instead of one and this way we end up with two side seams. Someone looking from the front, would not know you have joined your fabric.  Let me show you how it’s done.  I’ll be using my Pinafore Dress Skirt pattern.

1. If your skirt pattern piece tells you to place it on the fold, lay it on a single layer of fabric and add ½ ” (12mm) to one end.  This gives you ¼” (6mm) seam allowance for each side seam.  Cut and place to the side.  If you pattern piece is the complete length of your skirt piece, fold it in half and then add your seam allowance as above.

2. Now, fold this pattern piece in half. Double your piece of fabric if it is big enough (or do this step twice), lay the pattern on top and add ¼” (6mm) seam allowance to one end.  This will give you what you need for the side seam.

3. Sew the short pieces to both ends of the longer piece.

4. Ta da! You now have a piece long enough for your skirt without a centre front seam.

Hope you find this tip helpful and you can now use all those cute fat quarters to make some pretty little dresses for your dolls.

Happy sewing

Rosie

Happy sewing

Wow, can you believe that it’s been three months since I did a Share and Tell blog?  There’s just so much going on in my Facebook Sew and Share group  that I sometimes forget that not everyone has Facebook and that I really do need to share your wonderful creations on my blog too.  ‘Sew’ here are some of the wonderful photos that have been sent in over the last couple of months.

The first photo is from Jill, who makes these cute little Yoda Stuffy toys and made his coat using my Witches costume  as the basic pattern and making alterations.  I’m thinking that Yoda looks pretty happy wearing it Jill.  Great job!

‘Hi Rosie – I had another attempt at making a coat for my baby Yoda stuffy. I thought you would be pleased to know that the witches costume formed the basis for a much more successful Yoda coat – Cheers, Jill.’

The next cute little models are Baby Born and the 38cm Miniland dolls who are wearing PJ’s made from my Winter Pyjamas pattern with some slight modifications.

Jemma is the owner of Dingleberry Designs and sells these cute Pyjamas, along with lots of other cute goodies.

How sweet is this little ‘rainbow dress’?  I totally love the idea of blending all the colours of the rainbow together to make this cheerful dress. And oh my gosh, this bride is simply stunning and the lace skirt is gorgeous!

‘I have made quite a few things from your patterns for my Granddaughter’s Our Generation doll and she has loved them.  Her little brother, who has just turned four, wanted a doll too (fear of missing out) so I bought him one for his birthday and he wanted a rainbow dress for his doll. 

I have attached a photo to show the rainbow dress I made from the Summer Dress pattern and the Bride’s dress I made from the Wedding Dress pattern but I couldn’t use the circle skirt as it didn’t work with the lace.  I just gathered the skirt.’

This little cutie looks like a handmade ‘Cabbage Patch type’ doll and Frances has made one of the options from my Drop Waist Dress 5 Ways pattern  for her.

She looks adorable Frances, thanks for sending me the photo.

Susan has done a fantastic job of creating this amazing kimono.

‘This kimono for my 18″ Cabbage Patch doll was made from your Summer Dressing Gown pattern by adding 1.25 – 1.5″ bands to the arm openings and hem of the basic garment, then creating an obi-like wrap-a-round belt.’

Deborah has been enjoying making my Handkerchief Top and Capri Pants patterns and I can see why, they’ve turned out beautifully!

‘Hi Rosie, I’ve made two of your handkerchief top patterns so far and love it!

Thank you for such a great pattern,

Deborah’

I just love receiving emails and photos of your beautiful creations so thank you and please continue to send them in.  Hearing about your sewing journey is often the highlight of my day and I know sharing these stories and photos helps to inspire others which is a wonderful thing in these trying times.

Stay well and safe and until next time, happy sewing

Not to blow my own horn, but I often receive wonderful emails from customers who are either thrilled that they have finally learnt how to sew, excited to have rediscovered their love of sewing through making doll clothes, or just so happy that they don’t have to try and understand complicated instructions and diagrams because they can just follow along with my videos. BUT I’ve never received an email quite like this one……

Yvonne has given me permission to share this inspirational email.  Enjoy!

‘Thank you Rosie for helping me create these outfits for Vacciney…I still have a few more ideas to bring to life!!’

All I can say is WOW! What a wonderful idea Yvonne. You have found a fun way to spend the long period of isolation and brought so much joy to so many.  THANK YOU!

Does turning tiny tubes frustrate you?  Then you’ll love this method.  One of the new ladies in my Facebook Sew and Share group recently purchased my How to Make Doll Clothes Video course and was posting photos of each of her finished bonus patterns.  She was so excited to be sewing and gaining confidence with each outfit but she had to admit she found turning the strap for the Halter Top tricky as she only had a tiny safety pin.  So I suggested she try the following method next time as it’s much easier than turning tubes after stitching the seam.

1. Cut your strap piece. The one I will be demonstrating with is 1 ¼” (3cm) wide and the finished strap will be approx. 3/8” (1cm) wide.

2. Fold and press one long edge in ¼” (6mm).

3. Fold the other long edge in ¼” (6mm).

4. Fold the strap in half length-wise and press.

5. Using a straight stitch sew along the open side of the strap approximately 1/8” (2mm) in from the edge.

6. Finished Strap.

If you give this a try, please let me know how you go and if you found it easier than turning tubes to make straps.

Happy sewing

I just love the creativity of the members of my Facebook Sew and Share group and I really appreciate how willing everyone is to share their ideas.

Monica is a very active member of this group and she posted her version of my 3 Way Shoe Pattern with ‘real’ soles, not fabric soles.  I thought they were so cool I asked Monica if I could share her idea in a blog.

Monica resized these boots to 90% of the original size so that they would fit her doll but regardless of what size you are making them, the steps will be the same.  I haven’t made these myself yet so will use Monica’s photos and directions that she sent me.

So here goes…..

1. Cut out pattern pieces #1, #2 and #4 (if making boot with top trim) and make as per the original instructions until the end of step 7. Monica has used the top part of a sock for the top trim on this pair of boots – another clever idea.

2. Print out the Sole i.e. piece #3 about 10% smaller as you don’t need a seam allowance. Monica has reduced hers to 80% as she is wanting her finished shoe to be 90% of the original size.

3. You can place the doll’s foot on the sole to check for sizing – it should have at least 5mm all the way around the foot.

4. Cut away any excess. Here you can see how much Monica has cut away.

You will also notice that she has marked this sole with an ‘L’ for left. There is no need to distinguish left and right as many soles for doll shoes are made the same shape and designed to fit either foot.

5. Before cutting the sole, it is a good idea to place this pattern piece inside the upper part of the shoe just to check that it is going to fit.

Monica is showing this step using a different shoe as she didn’t take a photo of the original shoe. She is using a paper clip to help hold the sole in place as she checks the fit.

6. To make the inner sole, cut 2 pieces of thick cardboard or cork. If using thin cardboard cut 4 pieces and glue two soles together as you need a stiff sole to prevent them from bending when folding over the fabric.

7. Cut little V’s out of the seam allowance of the upper part of the boot making sure to not cut past ¼” (6mm).  Pinking shears work a treat here and it also stops the fabric from fraying.

8. Place a mark at the centre front and centre back of the sole and centre front and centre back of the upper part of the boot.

9. Place the sole inside the shoe matching the centre front and centre back marks. Fold the seam allowance over the cardboard/cork and glue in place. A hot glue gun is perfect for this as it dries really quickly.  Normal craft glue is not recommended for this as it is difficult to hold all parts of the seam allowance down while it dries.  As Monica told me, ‘that project ended up in the garbage, as there was glue all over and it didn’t want to stay where I wanted it.’

10. To make the outer sole cut two pieces of foam or cork. You can use whatever thickness you prefer, in this example Monica used a thin gym mat that she found at a $2 store. Glue these to the bottom of the boot.

11. If you wish to hide the edges of the glued soles, use a trim and glue around the shoe starting at the centre back or if you have marked and cut the soles with a left and right, start at the inside arch. Monica used the top part of a fringe trim but some other suggestions for the trim are thin strips of foam, flat shoe laces or grosgrain ribbon. The thickness of this trim will depend on how thick the sole is and the look you wish to achieve.

This method should also work just as well if making the shoes and Monica suggests using a fabric that is easy to fold over, otherwise it will be very hard to glue down.

Thanks so much Monica for sharing this awesome idea.

If you give this a try, please send me a photo and let me know how you go.

And if you have an awesome hack that you’ve used on one of my patterns and you would like me to share in a blog, please send me an email with details and photos.

Happy sewing