Isn’t that a lovely picture? This week I’ll be posting a pattern that was designed, more or less, for 8″ dolls like the Breyer® and World of Love dolls, but which I soon discovered will also fit my Project MC2® doll, regular-sized Monster High® dolls (not the big ones obviously), and Ever After High® dolls, along with a few others.

Check out the photos below, and you’ll see that this cute little 19th century dress fits quite a number of small-bodied dolls! I’m also in the process of creating patterns and tutorials for making the drawstring purse, white riding hood, and a bonnet. But the bonnet only fits dolls with small heads like the Breyer® and World of Love dolls.

Here are a few pictures to savor for today:

Now, you can see that on the Ever After High doll, the dress doesn’t quite touch the ground. If you can add about an inch (a little less than two cm) to the skirt and petticoat, you should be fine. I must warn you that the bodice is a bit loose on this doll, but it manages to cover all necessary parts.

I’ve been hesitant to create patterns specifically for the Ever After High and Monster High dolls because their body images are so contorted and irregular. I don’t like the body-image message that sends to little girls. Their minds are so vulnerable!

However, I’ve recently decided to cast a Monster High doll as the apothecary who sells Romeo the poison he uses for his suicide in my doll version of Romeo and Juliet. Therefore, I decided it was time to accept these dolls as a part of my collection, with the understanding that I would only cast them as desperate or villainous characters in my stop-motion films.

I don’t know if you can see her feet, but just like the Ever After High®, the dress is a little too short for the Monster High® doll as well. But like I said before, this is easily fixed with a simple alteration.

I also found the dress fits this little doll that I found in a strange doll-lover’s store in Twin Falls, Idaho. If anyone knows who this little doll is, please let me know. I’m not sure how to label this image because I don’t know what company made this doll: 

It’s strange that she doesn’t have a face, but I think she actually came that way. Maybe the buyer is supposed to paint a face on her? She also wears a wig that’s attached with Velcro®, which took me by surprise. She is made of hard plastic, and her arms do not bend at the wrist, but they do extend outward for making snow angels in this lovely snowy diorama.

Below you’ll find my adorable Project MC2® doll, Breyden, who also fits into this dress, although once again, it’s not long enough to fit her properly. But I do like the overall fit of the garment on her torso:

Last but not least is my little red-headed World of Love doll from Hasbro. This line of dolls was retired long ago, and I own all of the dolls except their male doll. They’re very similar in proportion to the Breyer® brand of dolls, but they’re not as articulated. I designed this “pioneer winter ensemble” specifically to fit my World of Love dolls, as they’ve been sitting naked for far too long!

So yes, I designed this ensemble for my World of Love dolls, but the big surprise was how universally this dress seemed to fit everybody! Come on back for a visit this week (and probably next week too) to grab up the pattern for these and to see my videos showing how to make the bonnet, the purse, the dress, and the little cape.

Most of my designs use a 1/4 inch seam (standard for fashion doll sewing projects), but for smaller doll clothes projects like this one, I recommend using a 1/8 inch seam, if you can pull that off. This ensemble isn’t for brand-new sewists, but if you’re looking for easier projects, please read the information below…

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If you’re searching for a specific pattern, have a look at the Gallery Page. That’s the easiest way to search through all of my patterns to find what you want. Each image on the Gallery Page takes you to links for patterns and tutorials that are designed to help you make the outfit pictured there.

Need help printing my patterns? This link will take you to a tutorial showing you how to download my free, printable patterns. It’s important to enlarge my patterns to fit a full-sized piece of American computer paper (8.5 x 11 inches or 216 x 279 mm) without margins, before printing.

If you’re wondering why I make patterns and videos without charging a fee, please visit the “Chelly’s Books” page, and that should explain my general motivations. It’s always friendly and kind to show your appreciation for my free patterns and tutorials by liking them on Facebook, pinning them on Pinterest, and/or tweeting about them (yes, you have my permission). You’re also welcome to add any of my YouTube channel’s videos to your playlists. Please visit those links for easy access to my patterns, tutorials, and blog posts.

In case you haven’t heard, I have designed commercial patterns for Lammily LLC. They have some new dolls in their line, including a new male doll, so you might want to visit the Lammily website to see what they’ve got going on.

I also have a series of tutorials for the beginning sewists on my YouTube channel. It includes video tutorials showing you how to do a basic straight stitch when sewing by hand, how to gather fabric, how to use the whipstitch to hem a garment, how to sew on snaps, and even how to design your own doll clothes patterns, just like I do!