Isn’t this the sweetest holiday outfit? It’s perfect for your 1970s characters like Julie and Ivy. You can make this classic outfit for your doll with easy to sew pdf patterns by Oh Sew Kat!
Use the Playtime Peasant Top to make a simple, long sleeved white top. The simple skirt is made from the Sugar n Spice and Everything Nice pattern bundle. Use the overskirt, and simply make it longer, adding lace to the hem. Read more here.
Dress your 18 inch American Girl Doll, Julie Albright (and her best friend, Ivy Ling) in all things 1970s with easy to sew PDF sewing patterns for Doll Clothes from Oh Sew Kat!
The fashions of the 70s featured lots of wild prints and earthy colors. Take a look at my Julie pinterest board HERE. Choosing fabrics with geometrics and florals in bright colors will give any dress or pattern you make a totally groovy vibe!
The School Dance Dress features a contrast front panel and long, wide sleeves. Add a chain across the front as you sew your front panels together for even more grooviness! You can also shorten the dress to be more in line with the era. Find the School Dance Sewing Pattern HERE.
The Jumping Jack 3 in1 jumper pattern from Oh Sew Kat! was inspired by a pattern from 1974. Turtlenecks and knee socks paired with shorts for fun times, button on a reversible apron style jumper and it looks like a cute dress!! This outfit made me think about the days we spent playing outside- and then it was time to get dressed to go out to dinner. Quick change! Click HERE to find the Jumping Jack PDF Sewing Pattern.
Maybe it’s just nostalgia (I was 7 years old in 1974, so just a bit younger than Julie was at 10) but so many of the outfits speak to me. My sister and I wore long maxi dresses to church and I even played on an all boys basketball team (Well, I was on the team and in a uniform- I’m not sure I would call what I did “playing basketball”) that when I saw THIS image on Pinterest, I knew it would make a perfect holiday outfit for Julie. The Playtime Peasant Top is a staple for every fashion era, and I simply took the overskirt from the Sugar n Spice and Everything Nice bundle, and made it floor length with a bit of lace at the hem. See more details on this outfit HERE. The Sugar n Spice bundle pattern can be found HERE, and the Playtime Peasant Top pattern is HERE. Find both patterns in the Holiday Bundle HERE.
I wore both pajamas and nightgowns as a child of the 1970’s. This floor length version of the Playtime Peasant Top (find the tutorial HERE) would have been perfect for Christmas morning. Find the pattern HERE.
My mother sewed a lot of my clothes when I was a child, both in the 70s and the 80s. A lot of the fabrics she used were the exact same fabric, but in different colors. I tried to reproduce one such red and white top here for Julie. The Bloomer Buddies pattern is simple to sew, and I added some matching patch pockets to give it that 70s vibe. See THIS POST to read more and use THIS TUTORIAL to add a cute headscarf to complete the look. I remember lots of mushrooms on my clothing as a child. 😉
It’s fun to take a basic pattern from Oh Sew Kat! and give it your own personal or historical flair. See my full list of pattern hacks and simple doll tutorials HERE, and visit the Julie Historical Fashion Gallery page HERE.
Do you like to dress your dolls for Halloween? Making miniature costumes is super fun and you never have to worry about dressing them for the weather!! Here are a few costumes made with the Sugar N Spice and Everything Nice pattern.
Find the Sugar n Spice and Everything Nice PDF Sewing Pattern Bundle in 3 sizes HERE. The Sugar n Spice pattern includes only the dress and pinafore. The Dress up accessories are found in the Everything Nice Bundle. 🙂
Visit the Oh Sew Kat! 70s Inspiration Gallery for ideas and links to sew the Oh Sew Kat! patterns with a fun, 70’s flair. Your Julie Albright™ doll with love mix and match fashions that you made yourself!
Click on each photo to go right to the Post!
Visit the Oh Sew Kat! 60s Inspiration Gallery for ideas and links to sew the Oh Sew Kat! patterns with a fun, 60’s flair. Your Melody Ellison™ doll with love mix and match fashions that you made yourself!
Click on each photo to go right to the Post!
You can make iconic looking doll clothes for 1953 American Girl® character, Maryellen Larkin with Oh Sew Kat! PDF patterns and hacks. Print the patterns on your home computer- find the full selection in the OhSewKat Etsy shop. Use these easy hacks (same pattern with slight changes) to make your doll a sweet wardrobe inspired by the Fabulous Fifties! Find more ideas for Maryellen in the Oh Sew Kat! 50s Gallery HERE.
The Sunshine Dress is a simple, A Line dress (with short sleeves) that is timeless through the decades. Use THIS tutorial to make a sleeveless shift dress and then add an overskirt, made with the Sugar n Spice and Everything Nice pattern for the “skirt over dress” look that was popular in the 50s and 60s. The overskirt can be worn with the opening in the back (above) or in front (below). Try different fabrics with the same patterns.
Your doll can also wear the floral Sunshine shift dress all by itself for even more play value.
Find these and many other sewing patterns HERE. See more ideas for Maryellen’s fashions HERE, HERE, and HERE.
Girls and dolls alike will fall in love with pretty, Easter fashions that you sew yourself with the easy to follow PDF sewing patterns from Oh Sew Kat! Find a full selection of patterns for dolls that are 18 inches, 16 inches, 15 inches, and 14.5-15 inches in the OH SEW Kat Etsy shop and download and sew today!
Click on the photos to go right to the post. Click on the description’s pattern name, to go to the Inspiration Gallery for each pattern. Find all the patterns in the OhSewKat Etsy shop for instant download.
Luciana is wearing the Easy Up! Jumper with a Playtime Peasant Time Top. Read more HERE.
Luciana’s Easter Egg Skirt was made from the FREE pattern: The Four Season Skirt. Get your copy in 3 sizes HERE.
Joss has an Everything Nice overskirt over a polka dot Sugar n Spice Dress. Perfect!! See more!
Emily’s dress is a cute hack of the Sugar n Spice pattern. See how I made it HERE.
Camille loves her bunny version of the Backyard Bibs pattern. Her pink top is the Playtime Peasant Top pattern. Find more info HERE.
Joss’ outfit isn’t a dress, but the bunnies are perfect on this Picnic Play set. See more info on it HERE.
Kelly’s bunny dress is a hack of the Sugar n Spice dress pattern. Read all about it HERE.
Dress up your solid Sugar n Spice Dresses with festive overskirts. Read about it HERE and HERE.
Riley’s Playtime Peasant Top has cute bunnies to match the pink gingham Backyard Bibs. Find more info HERE.
Visit the Oh Sew Kat! 50s Inspiration Gallery for ideas and links to sew the Oh Sew Kat! patterns with a fun, 50s flair. Your Maryellen Larkin™ doll with love fabulous fifties fashions that you made yourself!
Click on each photo to go right to the Post!
The Sugar n Spice and Everything Nice patterns are mostly sold as one pattern or bundle. The 18 inch size was only created as one version, but both the 16 inch Animator and 14 inch Welliewisher™ sizes can be purchased as the Sugar n Spice dress pattern, the Everything Nice accessories pattern, or as the Sugar n Spice Everything Nice pattern bundle. Find them all in my Etsy Shop.
To make the black suspender skirt, an iconic look for Miss Eloise, I used the overskirt pattern, found in the Everything Nice accessories pattern. You might want to make it more full than the pattern calls for, but this basic, open back gathered skirt has a nice waistband. My fabric was 29 inches long, so that is what I used. I also took off 1 inch from the hem. Instead of a regular gathered skirt (which will still look very cute!) I pleated my fabric every 3/8th inch or so (I did not measure) and it fit perfectly to my waistband. If you choose to do this, I recommend cutting your skirt piece longer than you need and trimming to fit just in case.
Once you attach the skirt to the waistband, try it on your doll and mark or pin the strap placement. Pin the straps in place inside the skirt (front and back, being careful not to let them twist). On the front, sew a few stitches to secure the straps right in the center of the waistband. On the back, consider hiding your stitches in the hook and loop tape area or the topstitching. Sew the buttons to the front of the waistband where the straps meet the skirt, covering the stitches that attached the straps. For this outfit, I used 9.5 inches of black Fold over elastic for my straps. If using fabric, cut two pieces, 11 x 1.25 inches, folding in each long edge to the center and stitching in place.
I chose a Playtime Peasant Top for my Eloise costume because all the photos of her seem to have a baggy, almost untucked look to the front of her shirt. Even though it doesn’t have a collar, it still created the look I was after. You could easily add a collar to the bodice of the Sugar n Spice dress and make it into a blouse. You could also use the school blouse pattern from the Pleasant Company Molly’s Pretty Clothes patterns. You can find those at a site called AG Playthings. White knee socks and black mary jane style shoes can be found at American Girl®. See this POST for more doll shoe sources.
Add a bright read headband with this easy TUTORIAL and she’s ready for tea at the Plaza! Find Eloise stories on Ad: Amazon. See more pattern hacks and ideas for the Sugar n Spice dress HERE and HERE.
I often get asked where I buy the cute shoes my dolls wear with my outfits. As you can see, my dolls have not always had the fanciest footwear.
Be sure to check out my favorite way to organize my doll shoes in THIS POST.
That works for some of the summer outfits… and sometimes I just crop out their feet 🙂 but at the same time, a well dressed doll deserves some perfect shoes to complete the perfect outfit. If you are looking for doll shoes, and don’t want to make your own, I’m sharing where I buy most of my shoes to help your doll shoe shopping needs! (Kendall’s outfit is made with the HalterAlls sewing pattern.)
My favorite place to buy shoes is directly from American Girl®. They offer trendy styles (although pricey, especially if you have to buy the outfit to get them), but they are well made, fit perfectly and come in all sorts of styles and colors. My daughter is now 18 years old. We got her Bitty Baby when she was 1, and her Mia GOTY doll when she was 6. That is a LOT of years of buying doll clothes and shoes from American Girl, so you just have to watch the styles and try and purchase what you like when you see them. (Riley’s boots- above- which I use ALL the time, are the meet shoes that came with my Saige GOTY doll.) Patterns used: Backyard Bibs, Playtime Peasant Top Pattern bundle.
Emily’s shoes above are from Nicki’s collection also from American Girl®. Nicki was the GOTY in 2004. Emily’s outfit is made with the Picnic Play top and the Everything Nice Skirt worn backwards.
Every so often, I place a large order from American Fashion World. Their prices are very low, and the quality and fit are not as high as American Girl®, but they are perfect for playtime and for photographs and offers lots and lots of styles and colors, to include boys’ styles, along with other things like tees, hats, belts, and much more. You no longer have to have a wholesale account with them- find them on Amazon. Affiliate link: https://amzn.to/378OrPr. This three pack of tennis shoes is just $9.99. Or find these cute “sherpa” look boots in lots of colors here. (Maryellen’s outfit: Jumping Jack sewing pattern.). Both wellies in the photo below are wearing AFW shoes and the Picnic Play sewing pattern was used for their outfits.
Don’t forget some of the more popular online shopping sites to look for cute and inexpensive doll shoes. Etsy and Ebay also offer some options. You can find a whole range of styles by searching by doll size (Animators’, 14.5 inch dolls for example.). I’ve found lots of really cute shoes on Etsy. Plus there are tons of patterns out there if you want to make your own!
So those are places I shop the most often for my doll shoes. Do you have any shops you would add to this list? Leave a comment below and let us know!
I also had recommendations from readers about Sophia’s and also Monique’s. I think if you poke around the net, you will find lots of places to buy some cute doll shoes to match your adorable handmade outfits!
Don’t forget to check out my idea for organizing doll shoes in my POST here.
Oh Sew Kat! 