Why don’t my seams match up? 10 tips from doll clothing designer Chelly Wood #SewingTips #DollClothesPatterns

Two Made-to-Move Barbie dolls sand side-by-side. The one in front and slightly to the right wears a burgundy cotton tank top with a maroon and white floral long skirt that has an elastic waist. The doll on the left and slightly behind the other doll is wearing a pink tank top with a maroon and burgundy and pink and white and orange multicolored miniskirt with an elastic waist and a bell-shaped flare to the skirt. Both dolls wear white flats. It may be noted that the dolls are ethnically diverse, which will be noted in greater detail in another image description for this same blog post. The ChellyWood.com logo appears in the lower left corner.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

I’ve done a number of different “sewing tip” blog posts on the ensemble you see in the image above, but what you may not have noticed is that my seams didn’t always match up when I made these garments.

“What?!” you say. “How can that be? You’re the expert!”

When you sew doll clothes, and especially when sewing very small doll clothes, you can expect to see seams that just don’t match up.

That’s right! Expect it.

But why does this happen? Let’s take a look…

In this photo, a piece of burgundy floral fabric has been cut on the fold, so that all edge of the fabric match up evenly.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

The image above shows the fabric of my long floral skirt, shortly after I’ve hemmed it. Everything seems to match up nicely. I carefully measured each end of my hem, and they seem to be aligned with each other.

But then I sewed a casing:

A woman's fingers are shown folding a casing edge.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

You may not have noticed this, but in the first photo of the hems, there was actually about a 2 millimeter difference between the two hems.

It looked perfect, but after sewing the casing (which also had a 2 millimeter difference in spite of my efforts to make them match up), I ended up with about a 4 millimeter difference between the two sides that will be sewn together at the back of the skirt.

A skirt has had its fabric edge hemmed and on the opposite (top) end of the skirt, there's a casing that has been sewn. A purple arrow points at the casing, which has been folded, bringing the two casing edges together evenly. However at the bottom of the fabric, where the two hems have been brought together, there's a gap. A blue arrow points at this gap in the length of one hem compared to the other.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

So now, if I start sewing the back of the skirt together at the casing (purple arrow above), there will be a gap at the hem area (turquoise blue arrow above) of four millimeters. That’s nearly a quarter of an inch!

And when we’re making Barbie clothes, a quarter of an inch is a significant difference!

So what can we do to prevent this problem?

Here we see folded fabric that has been hemmed. There's a small gap between one hem and the other hem, when you bring the two pieces of fabric together. A blue arrow points at the gap.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

There’s really only one solution to the millimeter gaps: sew by hand.

I know you don’t want to hear it, but that’s the truth. Sewing by hand gives you more precise control of your seams. You’ll find that you can adjust the casing a bit to account for the original 2 millimeter difference in the hems, while sewing the casing by hand.

The smaller the garment, the more noticeable the differences in seams will be. Take the shorter skirt, for example:

A doll's skirt has been sewn, with a casing at the top and a hem at the bottom. The casing has an elastic going through it, and there's a seam at the side (which will eventually be the back) of the skirt. This skirt is inside out so we can see the seam at the side. The skirt's fabric is a burgundy color with maroon, pink, white, and orange swirls and dots decorating the fabric.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

Look at where the back of the skirt comes together on the lower left corner of that photo. It’s really noticeable but it’s only a mere 3 or 4 millimeters’ difference, as you’ll see below:

This is a close-up of the corner of the maroon skirt with swirls decorating the fabric. The seam at the side (or back) of the skirt joins the seams for the hem, and this is overlaid over the top of a ruler. We can see that there's a three millimeter gap of fabric where the two hems come together. The seams do not quite match up.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

Okay, so I need to sew my skirts by hand. Got it. But what about shirts?

Here we see two shirt patterns that have been pinned to white fabric and cut out, following the patterns. A pink arrow points to the bodice front; a whtie arrow points to the bodice back. The pattern says "blouse front view" on the piece with the dart, but the "blouse back view" actually reads backwards, as if the sewist has flipped the pattern over backwards before cutting it out. A woman's index and middle fingers point to the sleeves of both the front and back blouse pattern pieces.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

The pink arrow points at a dart in this Simplicity 5731 shirt, but you’ll notice that where the white arrow points, the back will not have a dart.

Darts are especially tricky. I recommend that you mark them with a fabric pencil and again, sew them by hand, to avoid making mistakes that will create seam discrepancies.

When you bring the shirt front and the shirt back together, you need the underarm area to match exactly, and that won’t happen if your darts are off by one or to millimeters on each side of the dart. If you’re finding your seams are way off-kilter at the underarm, it could be due to darts that were sewn without following the pattern’s suggested seam lines.

A third reason why you might have seams that don’t match is this: you may have cut the fabric incorrectly.

In this image, we see the cut lines for the two sleeves in close up. It appears that some of the pattern's black line outlines have been cut from the pattern. Also, the black lines themselves are not cut straight.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

The image above shows the sleeves from the Simplicity 5731 doll shirt patterns. The shirt sleeve from the back portion of the shirt will be sewn to the shirt sleeve from the front of the shirt. But will they fit when you place them together?

Not exactly. And here’s why:

In this photo, the sleeve edges have been brought together (front and back piece sleeve edges), and a pink arrow points at the corner of the front sleeve, which is missing its black line, and which has been cut very close to the pattern. A white arrow points at the back sleeve, which also is missing its edge line, and which has been cut a bit wider than the pattern.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

The pink arrow shows that the black line of the pattern has actually been cut away from the pattern. If you follow this non-line pattern edge, your sleeve will come up short by 2 millimeters at the seam that goes from the cuff to the underarm.

The white arrow in the image above shows that one sleeve has actually been cut with a longer cuff than the other. So once again, your sleeve seams will be off by about 2 millimeters, which as we saw in the first set of pictures, can add up when you’re dressing a small doll like Barbie.

So how can we make sure our doll clothes have been cut properly?

The image shows the Chelly Wood doll (a spin master Liv doll that has been repainted to look like the real doll clothing designer, Chelly Wood) holding up a photo of a woman at her sewing machine. The woman has purple fabric laid out flat on a sewing table, and she is arching one of her arms to cut the fabric while leaving the fabric flat on the sewing table.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

My aunts were instrumental in teaching me how to sew, and one of the things they insisted on, was this rule of thumb: always cut your garment pieces with the fabric laying flat on a table.

Now look at the photo I’m holding in the image above. See how that woman’s arm is so awkwardly positioned as she cuts her fabric while keeping the fabric flat?

Yeah.

When you’re sewing doll clothes, that ancient rule needs to go bye-bye!

Any time you’re sewing for very small dolls, like Barbie or smaller, cut the fabric while HOLDING it to prevent errors along the edges of the patterns.

I even cut swatches of fabric (about the size of a fat quarter) before I start pinning my patterns onto the fabric. That way I’ll find it easier to lift up the fabric and cut out the pieces, just like I would cut paper dolls.

Now I’m going to go back to one of the earlier photos. Take a look a the image below. Try to read the directions on the pattern pieces:

Here we see two shirt patterns that have been pinned to white fabric and cut out, following the patterns. A pink arrow points to the bodice front; a whtie arrow points to the bodice back. The pattern says "blouse front view" on the piece with the dart, but the "blouse back view" actually reads backwards, as if the sewist has flipped the pattern over backwards before cutting it out. A woman's index and middle fingers point to the sleeves of both the front and back blouse pattern pieces.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

Notice “Blouse Back View 2”? It’s inside-out and backwards! Believe it or not, as long as you can read and follow the directions, this isn’t usually a problem with doll clothes patterns… BUT it can be.

In this photo, a Ken doll wears a pair of black Converse style sneakers, while African American Lammily doll wears a pair of powder blue Converse style sneakers. The Ken doll appears to be standing with his feet together, quite still, while the Lammily doll appears to be leaning in with one foot cocked in the air while the other foot lifts up on tiptoes. Although we don't see the dolls' faces (we can only see them from the knees down), the photo gives the impression that Lammily has leaned in for a kiss! The watermark reminds us to go to Chelly Wood dot com for the free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making these doll Converse tennis shoes or trainers.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

When you’re making my shoe patterns, for example, it’s important to make the left shoe fit the left foot and the right shoe fit the right foot. If you flip the patterns inside-out before cutting, you’ll end up cutting out two left feet!

Here we see a free printable sewing pattern image, with all the pattern pieces for making a Victorian boot (right foot) and a Victorian boot (left foot), to fit 14 inch to 15 inch dolls. Many of the pattern pieces have been marked with the Chellywood.com logo and the Creative Commons Attribution mark. This pattern has four pink flowers, indicating that the difficulty level is somewhat advanced.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

See the L’s and the R’s on my pattern pieces for my Wellie Wisher-sized Victorian (or Edwardian) boots? Those L’s indicate “left foot” and the R’s indicate “right foot” so….

Yes, it can make your seams not match up if you turn a pattern inside-out, when pinning it to the fabric. If the garment piece is cut on the fold, though, this isn’t usually a problem.

If you want to make the boots shown here, please click on the link that's provided in the caption. The image shows a Wellie Wisher doll modeling a pair of Victorian boots with Edwardian-style "spats" and tiny black buttons that appear to button them up. She's lifting the skirt of her gingham dress slightly, so the very bottom of her lace-edged bloomers are showing above the boots. The watermark reminds us that this image comes from ChellyWood.com, where you can find "free doll clothes patterns and tutorials."
Click on this link for free patterns for making Victorian (or Edwardian) doll boots out of felt: (available after 15 April 2021) https://wp.me/p1LmCj-HND

So let’s review. To avoid problems in which your seams don’t match up:

  1. Sew small doll clothes by hand (the smaller the doll, the more important this is)
  2. Mark darts with a fabric pencil
  3. ALWAYS sew darts by hand!
  4. Carefully cut out your patterns to include the black line running along the outside of each pattern piece
  5. Follow the pattern edge exactly (just along the outside edge of the black line)
  6. Cut out patterns on small swatches of fabric
  7. Hold the pattern in hand instead of cutting on a flat surface (like cutting out paper dolls)
  8. Be wary of pinning patterns with the wrong side up

One last piece of advice…

These are doll clothes.

Dolls are playthings.

Your handmade doll clothes will be played with. In the mud. In the back yard. In the swimming pool. In the bathtub. In that messy bedroom, where kids love to play and be creative.

Does it really even matter if your seams don’t match? Perfection isn’t necessary when you’re making a toy!

If you don’t want to sew by hand, that’s okay. Having fun while sewing is FAR more important!

The image shows a 1:6 scale sewing room, complete with a sewing desk, sewing machine, ironing board with miniature ironing board cover, dress form, cabinetry, and a little window. A doll sits at the sewing machine. She appears to be sewing a floral bodice. The watermark says: "Chelly Wood dot com ... Free doll clothes patterns."
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

Therefore, I have two more tips for you before I go:

  • 9. Quit worrying about whether or not your seams match!
  • 10. Have FUN
The Chelly Wood doll is shown from the shoulders up, and she has one eye open and one eye closed. The word "Wink" appears in bright blue letters with an exclamation point. The doll has a slight smile. It should be noted that the Chelly Wood doll is actually a Spin Master Liv doll that has been re-painted and given a white-haired or grey-haired wig to look like the real life doll clothing designer, Chelly Wood.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

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 SimplicityMcCall’sButterickVogue, 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.

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