Scroll down to the second set of bullets for the free PDF sewing patterns.

Today’s sewing tutorial will show you how to make a strappy sundress or pinafore for your 18 inch dolls like American Girl, Journey Girls, Adora Amazing Girls, and more. There’s a full list of dolls that will fit this pattern in the first set of bullets below.

To make this dress, you’ll need to have cotton fabric, two 5/8 inch (16 mm) buttons, and Dritz size 3/0 snaps. (See this blog post for reasons why I recommend Dritz snaps.)

It’s a good idea to watch the video from start to finish before you begin sewing, because I make a suggestion about buttons and button holes that appears at the start of the video and re-appears at the end of the video.

Truthfully, various 18 inch dolls will each fit this pattern slightly differently, and if you wait until the end of your project to measure the straps and mark them for buttons and button holes, I think you’ll be a lot happier with the end product.

If need be, you can always cut the straps to fit your doll the way you want them to, in the final stages. Just remember that you’ll need a half inch seam allowance at the end of each strap, to allow room for making a finished edge to the straps.

Potentially, you could shorted the straps enough to use overall closures with this dress. In fact, eventually I’d like to re-design this pattern for exactly that purpose. I may even use the bodice section to design a pair of overalls for my 18 inch dolls.

Watch for that free pattern on this website, somewhere down the road…

If your sewing machine doesn’t have a buttonhole maker, you may want to purchase a button hole attachment for your sewing machine. To cut your button holes, you can use a Clover button hole cutter, but I simply use my seam ripper (AKA unpicker) to get that job done the old-fashioned way.

Remember, your purchase using any of the above links will help to support this website and its free printable sewing patterns for doll clothes that fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes! To understand how cookies are used to help this website earn money, please see my “Privacy Policy” page.

Today’s free printable PDF doll clothes sewing patterns will fit the following dolls:

• 18-inch dolls like American Girl dolls
• 18-inch dolls like the Adora Amazing Girls dolls
• 18-inch dolls like the Our Generation Journey Girls
• 18-inch dolls like the “My Life As” Dolls
• 18-inch dolls like City Girls from the New York Doll Collection
• 18-inch dolls like Madame Alexander 45 to 46 cm dolls

And here are the patterns and tutorial videos you’re looking for:

• Free PDF sewing patterns for a dress with straps to fit 18 inch dolls
• Tutorial for making doll dress (shown at the top of this post)
• How to do a whipstitch
• How to sew snaps on fabric
• How to do a backstitch
• How to gather fabric
• How to do a baste stitch

Remember that you can show your appreciation for my free sewing patterns and tutorials by sharing them on Pinterest, Twitter, and other social media platforms. As it says at the end of my tutorial videos, it actually helps me out a lot if you share them!

Disclaimer/Credit/Affiliate Marketing Link:

*ChellyWood.com earns money by linking to Amazon, eBay, Michaels, Etsy, and other online affiliate programs. Links provided above may be affiliate links. For a full list of my affiliate programs, and to understand how cookies are used to help this website earn money, please see my “Privacy Policy” page.

To honor the trademark rights of the doll companies mentioned in this blog post, I am including links to their websites here. Please feel free to visit their website and consider purchasing one or more of the dolls mentioned.

American Girl dolls are products offered by American Girl LLC, which holds the registered trademark for them (™). Please visit their website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.

Adora Amazing Girls are products offered by Charisma Brands, LLC, which holds the registered trademark for them (™). Please visit their website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.

Our Generation Journey Girls are products offered by Geoffrey, LLC (affiliated with Tru Kids Brands and Toys R Us), which holds the registered trademark for them (™). Please visit their website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.

“My Life As” dolls are products offered by Walmart, which (although I couldn’t find it specifically listed in US trademarks) probably holds the registered trademark for them (™). Please visit their website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.

City Girls are products offered by The New York Doll Collection, Inc, which holds the registered trademark for them (™). Please visit their website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.

Madame Alexander 45 to 46 cm dolls were products that were once offered by the Madame Alexander Doll Company, LLC, which holds the registered trademark for them (™). Be advised that at the time of this blog post, they no longer (to my knowledge) offer dolls in that size range; however you can visit their website to learn more about their company and the trademarked toys they are currently offering.