In my inbox this past week, I received an email from one of my followers, asking me for advice on doll-sized quilts. The question she asked was, “[If] you were to make a doll blanket or quilt for [a 14 inch] doll, what dimensions would you suggest?”
So today’s blog post is a variation on the advice I gave her over email…
There’s a fantastic book called Little Quilts : All Through the House by authors Alice Berg, Mary Ellen Von Holt, and Sylvia Johnson. It was published by That Patchwork Place, Inc. The ISBN (international standard book number) is 1-56477-033-8.
If you can’t find a used, for-sale version of the book online, try bringing this information (title, author, publisher, and ISBN number) to your public library. They can order it for you, using inter-library loans.
A lot of the quilts in Little Quilts : All Through the House are the PERFECT size for your 14 inch dolls, and the book comes with all the patterns in the back of the book.
I had never made a quilt before in my life, when I bought this book, but I had no problem piecing together the miniature quilt projects offered in the book.
Have a look at my 16 inch vintage Velvet doll standing right next to the “twelve hearts” quilt from the Little Quilts book:
This tiny hearts quilt is made using simple applique methods, but there are more than just applique quilts in the book.
Little Quilts by Alice Berg et al. also offers a pattern for a really neat American flag quilt that’s exactly the right dimensions for a 14 inch doll — and it would be great for other dolls as well:
I first made my American flag quilt as a table “place mat,” but I love to photograph it behind dolls for my website when we get close to our American Independence Day too.
I highly recommend Little Quilts: All Through the House for small quilts. It’s out-of-print now, but you can buy it on eBay and other used-book websites for under $4 sometimes. Always remember to calculate the shipping and handling costs though.
Now there was a little tidbit of information that I forgot to mention to my fan/follower who emailed me this question about doll quilts, so I hope she reads this article! Another piece of advice I have for making doll quilts is this: don’t use any quilt batting at all.
Even the thinnest batting will make the blanket too stiff to “tuck” a doll into bed. So if you skip batting altogether and just use a lightweight cotton or even a flannel backing, that’s enough to give the dolly blanket a more natural look when we put our dollies to bed.
Any out-of-print pattern books I display and talk about here on ChellyWood.com are often also available for sale on eBay. However, if you’ve never purchased anything on eBay before, it’s a good idea to read the article I wrote called, “Tips for Buying Used Doll Clothes Patterns on eBay.” It will save you time, money, and will likely prevent buyer’s remorse.
And by the way, if you use the links I’ve provided to make your eBay purchase, this website will receive a small commission, which helps fund the ChellyWood.com website, so I can continue to provide you with all the free patterns and tutorial videos offered here.
Before I go, I want to remind you that my Creative Spark class, “How to Alter Doll Clothes Patterns” is now live on the Creative Spark platform. You can sign up any time you want!
And don’t panic if it seems like too much to take on right now — sometimes our lives get really busy. I get that. But for any class on Creative Spark, you actually have plenty of time to finish the course after you sign up.
To read more about my free sewing patterns and tutorials, please visit the “Helpful Tips” page.
Disclaimer/Credit/Affiliate Marketing Link:
*ChellyWood.com earns money by linking to JoAnn Fabrics, Amazon, eBay, 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.
Chelly Wood and the ChellyWood.com website are not affiliated with the pattern company or companies mentioned in this blog post, but Chelly finds inspiration in the doll clothes designed by these pattern companies. To purchase patterns from Simplicity, McCall’s, Butterick, Vogue, or other pattern companies shown and discussed in this blog post, please click on the links provided here. These links below the “Disclaimer” section do not help raise money for this free pattern website; they are only offered to give credit to the company that made these patterns.