Fashion Trends for Dolls & their Friends; PDF Sewing Patterns for 14-18 inch Doll Clothes
Step it Up Series: Simple, Hawaiian MuuMuu for Nanea with the Sunshine Dress Pattern – Dress Pattern Hack!
You can create a beautiful Hawaiian dress for your Nanea (Na-nay-uh) BeForever® American Girl ® doll or one of her friends from almost any dress pattern you own. Use this quick tutorial to take the Oh Sew Kat! Sunshine Dress to a gorgeous Hawaiian Muumuu. This is the 4th dress tutorial in a series of four. I’ve made a muumuu dress from four different Oh Sew Kat! PDF sewing patterns for 18 inch dolls. Find the other tutorials with lots of photos here, here, and here, using the Bloomer Buddies pattern, the Sugar n Spice pattern, and the Playtime Peasant Top Pattern.
Make a Hawaiian muu muu dress for your 18 inch doll.
And now for Part Four of four easy MuuMuu dress pattern hacks for you to make – the 4th 18 inch doll muu muu dress is the Sunshine Dress.
If you look closely, you will find the fabric is what really makes your doll’s dress look Hawaiian. Your Nanea or her friends will be thrilled with this modern take on a simple Hawaiian Muumuu dress. I chose a bright, orange floral print. Be sure the flowers are not too large for your doll, but with dresses like this, honestly, almost anything can work.
Use this easy tutorial to make a Hawaiian inspired dress for your doll with the Sunshine Dress sewing pattern.
Step 1. Choose your sunshine dress pattern view (Princess seam, solid front, or straight seamed front) and cut out all of the front, back and lining pieces as directed by the pattern. No sleeves are needed.
Step 2. Cut a strip of fabric to add to the hem of the dress as the ruffle. I used 2 1/4 x 33 for a shorter, more modern look. Traditional muumuus probably have a longer ruffle (3 x 33 inches). Finish the bottom hem of the ruffle, by pressing up 1/4 inch and stitching in place.
Step 3. Complete the Sunshine Dress according to the pattern instructions making it sleeveless, as seen in this tutorial here. Add the ruffle to the bottom edge and top stitch. Do not finish the back edges yet.
Step 4. Choose your trim to add to the neckline and hem. I used a cute, gathered ribbon trim I had on hand. Add your trim around the neckline and hemline, leaving a bit hanging over the back edge. You can stitch in in place by machine or by hand. Finish the back edge as directed by the pattern , catching trim ends. If you don’t have trim you like, you can also make your own with fabric or ribbon. Create a fabric tube, or choose a wide ribbon and gather it down the center to create a ruffle.
Nanea and Harper are ready to dance the hula at a luau!
**This tutorial, or pattern hack, assumes you have a basic knowledge of sewing, and is designed to show you how to make a few changes to the Oh Sew Kat! Sunshine Dress pattern to create a new look. Please see the actual pattern for pattern pieces and more specific, step by step instructions. See many more ways to make the Sunshine Dress in the Inspiration Gallery.
See more 3 more tutorials to make Hawaiian inspired fashions from Oh Sew Kat! PDF sewing patterns HERE, HERE, and HERE.
Oh Sew Kat! 