Sharon Sews

As promised when I posted the tutorial for the 18" doll skirt , here are the instructions to sew this same skirt Barbie(r) size! This 11-1/2" fashion doll skirt is so easy to sew, a great way to use scraps and perfect for a beginning seamstress. You could even stitch the seams by hand if no machine is available.  Materials needed: Six 4" x 2-1/2" fabric pieces.  One 10" x 2" fabric piece. One 4" piece of 1/8" elastic. Coordinating thread.  Let's get started   Step 1:   Cut your fabric: Six 4" x 2-1/2" rectangles and one 10" x 2" rectangle.  My sample used three coordinating polka dot prints for the panel and a contrast color for the bottom band.   Step 2: Using a 1/4" seam allowance, with wrong sides facing stitch the six rectangles together along the 5-1/2" side; leave one end unsewn.  Press the seams open or towards the darker fabric.   Step 3: ...

Barbie Doll Clothing sewing using Simplicity 8281, c. 1977 and Simplicity 7073, c. 2002 Traditions. Holidays are ripe with them and in my family that means handmade clothes for Barbie dolls.  A little background. I began sewing those tiny little outfits in my teens and had a successful little business by the time I was 14.  My younger sisters were recipients of my handmade creations. When my daughter came along I had one more little girl to give my handmade doll clothing to.  Soon there were nieces, who also received gifts of handmade doll clothing. The part-time business continued to thrive and the gift tradition continued. And then everyone grew up.  And the Barbie dolls were packed away.  Until this year. I now have a three-year-old great niece (I know, right? I'm much too young for that!) and discovered this past week that she likes playing with Barbie dolls!   So you know what that means!  I get to sew doll clothing again!  ...

I love aprons - even itty bitty Barbie(tm) ones.  Since I'm partial to half aprons myself, I figured Barbie could use a new one. So I whipped one up. I'll show you how so you can whip one up too.   Let's get started.  Download the half-circle apron pattern here .  Please NOTE: This is pattern drawn by hand Cut one apron body and one rectangle 20" x 1-1/2" for the waistband/ties. Pin the lace trim on the right side of the apron matching the bottom edge.  Stitch using a 1/4" seam allowance.  The lace trim after it's stitched to the apron. Turn the bottom edge towards the wrong side of the apron. Lightly press. On the right side stitch close to the edge which will hold the hem in place. Fold the back edge toward the wrong side by 1/4".  Finger press.  Fold another 1/4" toward the wrong side. Press. Stitch side hem in place. Staystitch the waist curve by stitching 1/4" from the edge. Carefully clip to the stitchi...

 **** If you're looking for the Barbie Chef Hat instructions, you'll find them on this post ***** Sewing itty-bitty doll clothes continues with part 2 - construction.   You can read part 1 here . Now that you’ve got the itty bitty patterns cut out - or traced - it's time to start sewing. A bit of practice tempered with patience and you’ll be producing runway worthy fashions for Barbie - other that itty bitty doll - in no time. Here are some tips that have helped me when sewing these little garments. Ditch the serger.   Sergers are great time-savers, but not for Barbie clothes. I've successfully serged clothing for American Girl dolls, but not smaller than that.  (And if you have, please leave tips for us in the comments!) I think they're not the right tool. Not only is it difficult to serge such a small seam, the extra thread created by the serger would result in too much bulk.    Don’t remove pattern pieces.   Keep the pattern pieces pinned ...

I've been sewing up a storm!  Just nothing I can share with you yet. One thing I am working on is some Barbie® doll clothes.  So, how about some tips for sewing itty-bitty doll clothes? Having sewn for Barbie® for years and years and years the first piece of advice I'll pass on is to not be afraid. They may be tiny but they really aren't as difficult as they look. I've got a lot to share so this is a three-part post.  Today is all about patterns and fabric. First of all, sewing for Barbie® - or any small fashion doll - is actually pretty fun.   You get to create high-quality, one-of-a-kind fashions while saving money.  Nice! Like many folks, when I first started sewing doll clothes I began by using commercial sewing patterns specifically designed for 11-1/2” fashion dolls.   After awhile I began making my own patterns for miniature versions of the current fashions. All of the major pattern companies— Butterick , McCall’s, Simplicity...