DIY Easy American Girl Ball Gown

My daughter, Natalie loves to sew with me, and she loves having clothes made for her American Girl Doll. I try to tell her not every little girl gets a new outfit each week, but it does not seem to sink in. So, almost every day she is asking to make something for Caroline and something for her to match. Last time I was at Goodwill I saw two matching skirts and jumped on it. 

 I pinned the skirt on Natalie wrong side out and then just cut straight down. 

Because the fabric was so fine, I decided to do a french seam. Here's a tutorial on how to do a french seam. Again the hem was already done and everything!

 

Once I started to measure, Natalie loved the ball gown look on Caroline, so they aren't an exact match, but that was easier for me because then I didn't need to hem this one either.

 

I cut it 12 inches wide, and sewed the side seam. I used a french seam again, so you would want to try it on the doll if you don't because it would be about 5/8th's smaller with just a regular stitch. 

 I sewed the front straps on first. I sewed the unfinished edge of the ribbon to the dress, and then folded the ribbon up and sewed along the edges of the ribbon to reinforce and keep the shape of the ribbon. I did the same thing on the back, but decided to do a criss-cross design. It is tight to get on. If your daughter needs to get it on more easily, you could attach with Velcro.

Matching Outfits!! ~Julia

{Repurpose} Warm-Up Pants into an American Girl Outfit

I LOVE to repurpose old stuff.  So, when we got a hand-me-down warm-up pants with a hole in the knee. After I cut the pants and made them shorts, I put the leftover fabric to the side. With doll clothes on my mind, I decided it was time to convert these scraps to an American Girl Outfit.  

These pants should be 7" wide.

 The crotch is 5 1/2" long. Remember this is working with an existing hem. I do not cut any higher than the 5 1/2". It's not time yet because you will attach them soon.

 Put the to legs of the pants together and pin them together.  Then sew in a U-Shape around the front to the crotch and then around to the back.  If that seems too hard, start at the front and sew to the crotch. Stop. Sew from the back to the crotch. Then trim the excess fabric from the seam. Do not cut the waist line. 

 Measure elastic.

 

You can sew the elastic right onto the material, or just sew the elastic together. Then turn the edge of the outfit under and sew. Be careful not to sew on your elastic.

 

I had to clip the seams around the curve of the pant to make sure there wasn't any pucker around the seam. Here's a Youtube video on clipping curves if it is new to you.

 

Now it's time for the top. I used the same pattern as the top for the Free Ballerina Outfit. I made it a little longer and did not cut leg holes like I would have for the leotard.

Happy Sewing!!

~Julia

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Free American Girl Ballerina Pattern

I am loving this series on American Girl Doll Clothes! I am having fun taking scraps from other projects in my past and putting them together. The golden satin is from a dress I made in high school. Sarah suggested I add the ribbon to the ballet slippers.  I was so excited the way it all came together. Of course with a change of fabric, you could transform this into regular doll clothes and skip the ballet part. The instructions are very straight forward. I hope that you really enjoy making this for your little one.

The free pattern for this outfit can be found here: American Girl Ballerina Outfit

The free shoe pattern is in the pattern for the American Girl PJ's.

The instructions are very straight forward.  I have included pictures for the darts on the leotard and the interfacing that I added to the shoes because I used satin.

Darts are needed for the opening to fit the contour of the bottom.

What the dart looks like pinned.

A finished, sewn dart.

Now for the Shoes

Cut the interfacing a little smaller the the material your are pressing with the bumps down, so nothing gets on your iron or ironing board.

If you want ribbon, sew it in with the first seam.

Happy Sewing!! ~Julia

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American Girl Doll PJ's Pattern

Sew your own PJ's for your daughter's American Girl Doll. Find the pattern for this outfit here: American Girl Doll Pajamas Pattern Check back next week for a tutorial using the slippers and shoe pattern included in this link. The instructions for this pattern can be found here: PJ's Instruction This is the picture tutorial for the PJ Top and Bottom. The little girls in your life will love this outfit. Don't forget to check out Caroline's Ballerina Outfit.

So the pattern could all fit on one page, 

the instructions call for adding extra to the pattern.

I would be happy to help with any questions you may have!
Julia

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