Which comes first for you? The fabric or the pattern? Do you carefully select the garment you want to sew and then head to the fabric store or search your stash? Or do you finger a favorite fabric and then head to the pattern drawer, your computer files, or the internt to decide what that fabric will become?
Today I’m sharing two outfits that were inspired by this pretty fabric collection.
I do a lot of both. This golden fabric collection is called BEE JOYFUL by Deb Strain for Moda. I bought it in a local quilt shop, but you can still find it on Amazon here: Ad: Bee Joyful Fabric . I matched it with some Riley Blake black gingham accents. Once I made the Boardwalk Boutique outfit, I went back and made a Spring Shine Top to go with the pants to get two fun outfits!
Mix and match fun fabrics to create your own unique 18″ Doll Clothes.
Find the Boardwalk Boutique Pattern in 5 popular doll sizes HERE and the Spring Shine Dress Pattern in 4 sizes HERE. Who says you have to make just one? See more ideas for Blaire and her friends by clicking on the photo links below to visit each post.
Make spring dresses for your dolls with Oh Sew Kat! sewing patterns
Winter is winding down, and the flowers are starting to bud and peek out. Days are getting longer, and the weather is getting warmer… our thoughts turn to cherry blossoms, Easter eggs, baby birds and more. Here’s a few of my favorite Oh Sew Kat! sewing patterns for quick and easy spring dresses. Find the patterns in my ETSY SHOP and download, print and sew today!
Use the Spring Shine Dress Pattern for the Perfect Spring Doll Dresses
The Spring Shine Dress looks great as a top or a dress. With pretty flutter sleeves and a fake placket in front, you can really have fun with the details. Try eyelet lace or add trims for a unique Easter dress or dress for spring. See many more Spring Shine dresses in the Inspiration Gallery.
Find the Spring Shine sewing pattern in four sizes HERE.
Photo Credit to Edith S.
Photo Credit to Michele A.
The Bloomer Buddies Sewing Pattern has so many Options for Spring Outfits
The PDF pattern, Bloomer Buddies, offers lots and lots of mix and match options. You can make dresses, tunics, and tops, and add bloomers that are short, knee length, or long to go with them. Add short, puffy sleeves or leave them off. This classic look is quick and easy to sew in 4 popular doll sizes. See more ideas for Bloomer Buddies HERE. This pattern also makes cute pajamas!!
Boardwalk Boutique- the quick and easy sewing pattern for Spring Doll Clothes
The Boardwalk Boutique is a top selling Oh Sew Kat! pattern available in five doll sizes. It’s so quick and easy with an elastic waistband, elastic halter and ribbon or fabric ties. Make it with or without the ruffles for the perfect spring outfit. Find the directions to make the top into a gorgeous halter dress or maxi here.
Use the Backyard Bibs Pattern for an Easy and Cute Spring Outfit for Dolls
The Backyard Bibs is my favorite pattern, no matter what the season. You’ll find it on my favorites for winter too! No matter the season, this easy overalls pattern can’t be beat. You can make it shorts, pants, slim or full skirted…add long sleeve or short sleeve shirts too. The simple one piece bodice has sewn straps and stitches up very quickly in five doll sizes. See more bibs in the Inspiration Gallery. The Playtime Peasant Top completes the outfit.
Love is in the air! Oh Sew Kat! PDF sewing patterns are the perfect choice to make a heart covered outfit for your favorite 18 inch or 14 inch sized doll. (Patterns are also available for Animators, A Girl for All Time® and 15″ baby dolls. Be inspired by these pretty fashions that are some of Kat’s favorites!! Click HERE to go right to my pattern shop. Download and sew up some love for the doll lover in your life today!
Make your doll a sweet new outfit for Valentine’s Day.
The classic Sugar n Spice Dress: Every holiday I can pull out the white underdress I made one day, and add a pretty, holiday themed apron or pinafore. Easy to sew and fewer clothing pieces to store. 🙂 See more photos HERE. Need the pattern? Grab it bundled with the dress up accessories in three sizes HERE.
Use easy sewing patterns from Oh Sew Kat! to make an 18 inch doll dress for Valentine’s Day.
Party Time Peasant Dress: Quick and easy and fun to play with fabrics. See more photos HERE. Find the pattern in 5 sizes HERE. Add lace to the neckline with this easy TUTORIAL.
Blaire’s dress (below) and Grace’s dress (above) were both made with the same pattern. This pattern is available in 5 sizes! See more ideas for the Party Time Peasant Dress HERE and HERE.
Wellie Wishers and Glitters Girls dolls love new dresses for Valentine’s Day too.
Try this fun version of the School Bell Blouse Dress! I used THIS pattern hack to make this pretty dress for Blaire. See more photos of Blaire HERE.
Valentine’s Day Gifts for Girls: Make a sweet dress for her favorite 18 inch doll
Kelly looks so lovely in her Sugar n Spice pinafore with bright tights and a Jumping Jack turtleneck shirt. Don’t be afraid to mix and match your sewing patterns! See more photos of this lace and glitter dress HERE.
Because sometimes Valentine’s Day falls in the summer months where you live…Sonali has a Doodlebug fabric Boardwalk Boutique to let her show off her lovebugs. (And also because sometimes girls that play with dolls don’t care how cold it is outside, am I right?) This pattern is super quick to sew and a favorite with little girls everywhere! Did you see this pattern used to make an elf, Santa, and gingerbread trio? Or as a gorgeous MAXI DRESS?This pattern really does work all year long!
Ruffles and ruffles- ruffles are perfect to show your dolly love! This Playtime Peasant Top and Twirl Skirt is the perfect showcase for your favorite mix and match Valentine fabrics.. No closures- and quick and easy- your doll can wear this outfit by dinner time! This pattern is available in 5 popular doll sizes HERE.
And finally, Kailey is rocking the casual look with her Backyard Bibs skirt variation and a Playtime Peasant Top underneath. This pattern works wonderfully throughout the year and is so quick and easy to sew! Find more Bibs ideas in THIS POST and THIS ONE.
Sweet and special Valentine’s Day gifs for girls: Make a special outfit for her doll with easy Oh Sew Kat! PDF patterns.
So many choices!! What will your doll be dressed in this Valentine’s Day? Tag OhSewKat online to share the love with me! Happy Sewing!!!
Use easy sewing patterns from Oh Sew Kat! to make your doll a Halloween outfit.
It’s time for pumpkins and candy corn and trick or treat parties! Your dolls can join in the fun with a cute outfit or dress made with fun Halloween themed fabrics. Whether you like spooky eyeballs, cute ghosts, scary spiders, or arched back cats, your local fabric stores are full of fun fabric surprises to sew to get your in the Halloween mood.
Make your 18 inch doll a Halloween dress with the School Dance Sewing Pattern
With three ways to change up the dress front, the School Dance Dress gives your fabric room to shine. Add a bow or belt. With long sleeves and a nice A-line skirt, your doll will be ready for whatever treats come her way. Available in 3 doll sizes here….see more School Dance Dress ideas HERE. Don’t forget to check for multi size bundles to save a few dollars when your purchase more than one size pattern.
Make a Party Time Peasant Dress with fun Halloween print fabric.
The Party Time Peasant Dress is a quick and easy project. With easy elastic for the neckline and a full gathered skirt it’s a perfect pattern to showcase some fun Halloween prints, like these from Doodlebug Designs. Find the pattern in 5 doll sizes HERE.
Make a Boardwalk Boutique top into a Pumpkin Jumper
For a quick project, you can’t beat the super popular Boardwalk Boutique. Available sized for 5 different dolls, use the long length cutting line and add a ruffle for a cute, quick, halter top jumper. Kelly is wearing it here with a black turtleneck made with the Jumping Jack pattern. Find both patterns on Etsy. See THIS POST to use the Boardwalk Boutique for a fun elf, santa or gingerbread outfit!
Make a cute School Bell Blouse in Halloween fabric for Wellie Wishers and Glitter Girls.
Michele made these adorable Halloween tops for her 14.5 inch girls when she helped me test the School Bell Blouse pattern. See more ideas for this pattern HERE. It’s available in 3 doll sizes. The black skirts are made with the very easy Sixth Grade Skirt pattern to complete the look.
Let your dolls play along with the season in cute outfits you make with fun, Halloween themed cotton fabric. You can’t go wrong with any of the patterns you choose. Share your work on my facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/ohsewkat. Happy sewing!!!
Make 50s style Fashions and Outfits for your 18 inch Doll.
Maryellen Larkin and her family are glad WWII is over and everyone is hopeful about the future in 1954. She loves pretending to be a 50s movie star and playing the jukebox at the diner with family and friends. Use Oh Sew Kat! patterns to stitch up 50s style outfits for your Maryellen doll and her friends.
Ad: Want to learn more about Maryellen’s adventures? Find Maryellen’s stories by Valerie Tripp HERE and at the American Girl stores.
Use Oh Sew Kat! patterns to sew 50s outfits for your Maryellen Larkin Doll.
Do you want to make Maryellen a new outfit? Try these twists on patterns from Oh Sew Kat! Find all of these patterns in my Etsy Shop: www.etsy.com/shop/ohsewkat.
When it comes to fashion in miniature- your dolls love to have basic wardrobe pieces that can be used with multiple outfits just like we do! Check out this classic black turtleneck- it’s the perfect accent to so many different outfits! The turtleneck pattern is included with the Jumping Jack reversible jumper (this pattern also includes a cute pair of shorts too~ Find it in 2 doll sizes HERE.)
Make your Doll a classic, black turtleneck with the Jumping Jack sewing pattern.
The Jumping Jack knit turtleneck shirt is looking great under all sorts of items. Here Maryellen and Riley are both wearing it with an Easy Up! Jumper. The jumper pattern is quick and easy, and you can find it bundled with the shirt pattern HERE.
Find the Jumping Jack Turtleneck Shirt Pattern HERE. It’s also available sized for 14.5 inch dolls.
Mix and Match with a black Turtleneck for your favorite doll outfits.
Blaire is looking casual with a Four Season Skirt. Stitch up a few turtlenecks in some basic colors (red, black, navy, white) and your dolls will be ready for class!
Kelly is ready for Halloween in two great outfits! Above, the pumpkin jumper (see more photos HERE) was made using the Boardwalk Boutique pattern, and below, the Jumping Jack turtleneck looks great with the Sugar n Spice dress pinafore and a pair of leggings.
Make your 18 inch doll clothes with easy sewing patterns from Oh Sew Kat!
The Jumping Jack pattern is the perfect shirt on its own, or under a cute, Backyard Bibs. Blaire is ready for the pumpkin patch! Find the 18 inch doll pattern HERE.
And it’s not too early to start to plan ahead! The winter holidays are right around the corner. The snowmen on Samatha’s Backyard Bibs are cute and whimsical. The black shirt shows off the fun, bias trim stripes as well!
Oh Sew Kat! currently only offers one pajamas/nightshirt pattern. The April Moon pattern is offered in two sizes and was designed by April, a young girl in Minnesota. Read more about it HERE. But lots of other OSK patterns can be used to make adorable pajamas or nightgowns for your dolls.
Make pajamas for Dolls with the April Moon PJ Sewing Pattern
Make doll pajamas with the Bloomer Buddies sewing pattern
The Bloomer Buddies pattern can be used to make pajamas and nightgowns in a variety of lengths, with or without sleeves. Find the pattern HERE.
Photo Credit: Koala-T Designs.
These pretty pink PJ’s were made using the pattern as directed in cozy flannel.
Blaire’s cozy checked pajamas were also made with the Bloomer Buddies pattern with just a few tweaks to make the legs and sleeves longer. See the full POST HERE.
Make your doll pajamas with the Playtime Peasant Top and Boardwalk Boutique Capris
Just using flannel fabric can make a regular top and pants outfit look more like pajamas. Add a pretty bow. Find the patterns in my ETSY SHOP in multiple sizes.
Find the details for these pretty heart pajamas HERE.
The Sugar n Spice Dress sewing pattern makes a lovely CLARA inspired nightgown.
Find the tutorial for this Clara/Nutcracker inspired nightgown HERE.
Sewing for BeForever character Julie Albright? Her stories are set in 1974 and she has some groovy fashions! Give your Julie a personalized 70s themed wardrobe with these twists on PDF sewing patterns from Oh Sew Kat! Find all of these patterns in my Etsy Shop.
Make a 1970’s themed outfit for your 18 inch American Girl doll.
What other Oh Sew Kat! patterns might work for Julie outfits? Visit the Julie page of the Historical Fashions gallery for more ideas. See more sewing ideas for the BeForever characters like Melody and Maryellen too! Comment below with your ideas!
Visit & follow my 1970s doll fashion PINTEREST Board for more ideas. Pin these images to save them for later!
Don’t you love making special doll clothes for the girls in your life with the easy PDF sewing patterns from Oh Sew Kat! The easy to follow photo instructions are designed to help even the novice sewist have a successful time. In many of my more recent patterns, I’ve started to include some ideas and simple instructions for variations on the patterns. You can “Step them Up” or “Step them Down” to your heart’s content. Read below to see five of my favorite (and most popular to date!) pattern hacks. Click on the photo to go right to the tutorial of Kat’s favorite pattern hacks.
Find all these patterns, plus many more in 5 popular doll sizes in my Etsy Shop or other places Oh Sew Kat! patterns are sold.
Take a new twist on Oh Sew Kat! PDF sewing patterns with these favorite pattern hacks.
Tee shirt Dress tutorial: Make a cute, tee shirt dress from the Simple, Sweet Tee Shirt pattern. Works for any size doll. Find the pattern in 4 popular doll sizes here.
Pumpkin jumper: The classic Boardwalk Boutique pattern doesn’t have to be put away when the weather gets cooler. Use it as a base to make cute holiday themed outfits as well as summer play clothes. A little orange fabric and an iron on pumpkin face took this simple halter top to a cute jumper for fall. Layer it over a Playtime Peasant Top or a Jumping Jack Turtleneck!
Easy to sew Pattern Hacks for 18 inch and other sized doll clothes.
Find all these patterns, plus many more in 5 popular doll sizes in my Etsy Shop or other places Oh Sew Kat! patterns are sold. See more pattern hacks and tutorials HERE.
You only need the FRONT pattern piece. This pattern hack is super easy if you just use felt, but you can certainly use other fabric and fun materials like fringe, cotton balls, jingle bells, htv, vinyl, embroidery, scraps, felt etc. I used felt for my samples because I wanted a “no fuss” project, which is also very inexpensive and available at every craft store.
You only need to print the front pattern piece. On your paper pattern piece, measure over 1/2 inch from the center fold and draw a new fold line. Cut off the extra 1/2 inch and use this as your new center fold line. Cut off all of the seam allowances, top, sides, and bottom. (Especially if using felt, which does not fray.) . Draw a line across the top from where the front meets the strap, to your new fold line. This “fills” in to make a top that goes straight across. If you like the look of the squared off front, just realize you will have to trim those edges in step 5.
For the length, measure up 1/4th to 1/2 inch up from the “Cut here for ruffle” dashed line and draw a new line. Use this as your new hem line.
Cut out the front pattern piece on the fold of your fabric. Do not cut into the square neckline, leave that filled in so it’s straight across the top.
Using a heat and bond product, or a careful edge stitch, add a 1/2 inch wide, black ribbon across the middle to form the belt. Trim even with the apron sides. Add lace or a white band across the bottom, turning in each side’s raw edge by 1/4th inch. If you want to add a Santa beard, or a pointed elf collar, cut them from felt, and bond or sew them to your apron.
Enclose the top, raw edge in a 5 inch piece of bias tape and stitch. Do the same for each straight side edge, turning the raw end of the bias tape under at the hemline. Trim to be even with the edge of the apron. (You could also use ribbon or even fold over elastic.)
Cut 2 straps (also of bias tape) 30 inches long. Mark the center of each strap and place it at the middle of the armhole. Place your apron in between the bias tape and pin in place, working your way out to the edges, attach the bias tape and when you sew, continue the seam from one end to the other so the strap is sewn together and the apron is sandwiched in between.
Try it on your doll and trim the straps to the length you prefer with a diagonal cut. If you used bias tape, you will not need to turn in the raw edges.
Using ribbon, a buckle, or glitter heat transfer vinyl, cut a one inch belt buckle and attach it to the apron. Add buttons, bells, pom poms etc (glue or sew on) if desired.
SNAP or Hook and Loop Tape VARIATION IDEA: Cut your ties to 18 inches each. After you finish the apron, try it on your doll and add velcro or snaps at the neck and waist, trimming off the long ties for a more fitted, easier to put on apron.
Make a holiday apron for your 18 inch doll.
It’s the perfect way for your doll to keep her special holiday dress clean!
Would you rather a full outfit for your doll? Find the Elf, Santa, and Gingerbread outfits from this same pattern HERE. Find my 5 Favorite Holiday pattern hacks HERE.
Shop for the Boardwalk Boutique pattern in 4 sizes HERE.
