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Do you HAVE to know how to read a sewing pattern? #SewingForBeginners #QandA

A banner with a purple and blue-grey wavy background, sports a pair of talk bubbles in the center, one hosting a letter Q while the other hosts a letter A. to the left of these central letter talk-bubbles is a box of sewing supplies. To the right is a girl seated on a mat, sewing something small, like dolls' clothes. This is a question and answer banner for a Q and A fan mail session for Chelly Wood dot com.
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.

Two weeks ago I posted the first of a series of questions from one of my followers, Kim. Today’s blog post addresses the third of Kim’s questions, and today I’ll be addressing her question and my answer here, on ChellyWood.com, as the third blog post in a four-part blog post series.

Before I do that, though, I need to make my official “Affiliate Marketing Disclaimer” statement: when you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include Amazon, JoAnn Fabric, Etsy, and the eBay Partner Network. As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. To learn more about how my website uses affiliate marketing, please visit the website’s Privacy Policy page.

The image shows the back of Simplicity Pattern number 4883 for making vintage Ideal Tammy doll clothes and a shoe box doll clothes closet that would also work for Barbie dolls and other, similar sized dolls. The back of the pattern includes notions for making the shoe box closet for doll clothes, including contact paper, a plastic straw, pipe cleaners, and roll elastic or a rubber band.
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.

Kim’s third question was: “Do I need to learn how to read life-sized commercial patterns etc., to learn how to make doll clothing, or can I just get some fabrics together and just start sewing?”

And this is how I answered:

When we read commercial patterns, we learn about concepts like grainlines, notches, darts, seam allowances, gather lines, and cutting on the fold. You can learn all of these concepts from YouTube, but I think you will probably learn them faster when you purchase and sew a commercial pattern.

The photo shows the Simplicity 4883 blouse back pattern from the original vintage pattern laying on a cutting mat with a cut-out garment piece that has clearly used that pattern; however the red check gingham fabric garment piece has thin strips of gingham that have been cut away from the original back closure.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

My patterns are free, and since I don’t charge people for them, I don’t feel obligated to include notches, grainlines, and a packet of written instructions for my patterns. Some of my older patterns on my website don’t even have seam lines because I started my blog as a personal journey, not realizing that people might one day want to download my patterns. (I’m trying to update those older patterns, though, to include the seam lines.)

However, when I began designing commercial doll clothes sewing patterns for a doll company (Lammily), I had to include concepts that you would expect to see in any commercial sewing pattern, like notches (these help you match seams up), grainlines (which tell people which direction the weave of the fabric goes), and written instructions (for people who prefer to read the directions rather than following a video tutorial).

On the grid of a cutting mat, we can see a doll's hat crown and top have both been cut out. The notch on the bottom of the hat's top piece (this notch points south) faces, and seems to almost point at, the notch on the top of the hat's crown piece (this notch points north). A purple arrow points at these two notches which face each other. A pink arrow points at a notch that's on the (east) side of the crown piece, and opposite of this, a yellow arrow points at a notch on the other side (west side) of the crown piece.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

It certainly doesn’t hurt to learn how to make doll clothes from commercial patterns, but honestly, you do not need to learn how to read life-sized commercial sewing patterns in order to design your own doll clothing.

I didn’t start making my own human-sized clothing until I was in high school, and by that time, I’d already learned how to design my own doll clothes patterns long before. At age 14 I designed my own Renaissance gown for Barbie, complete with an Elizabethan ruff and mutton sleeves, even though I’d barely begun to sew my own clothing for myself.

This vintage Simplicity 4883 Tammy doll clothes wardrobe includes a red 3/4 length sleeve coat; a sleeveless sheath dress with a ruffle and matching belt at the waist; a pair of pedal pushers with a sleeveless crop top; a blue A-line wrap-around skirt with suspenders to match and under these, a red check short sleeved shirt; and finally a lovely prom dress with a red spaghetti strap bodice that meets a full white gathered skirt that's got tiny red silk roses sewn onto it here and there. This pattern also features a shoebox that has been converted to make a pretty, girlish closet with fabric lining and rack for hanging doll clothes.
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

Reading the written directions for making doll clothes patterns did help me a lot though. The first doll clothes sewing pattern that I owned was Simplicity 4883 for Ideal Tammy dolls. I did not own a Tammy though. I only owned Barbies, Ken, and one Kenner Dusty doll.

So from age 10 up, I always had to alter my patterns, in order to make them fit my Barbie dolls properly.

Reading the written directions helped me understand how to piece the garment sections together, so as I made alterations to those patterns, I kept in mind the ways in which each piece would be fitted to the next.

This is a photo of the instructions for making the wrap skirt with suspenders and front pockets, offered in the Simplicity 4883 doll clothes sewing pattern set for Ideal Tammy or Pedigree Sindy dolls. These instructions show an image of the skirt, in which the suspenders have been fully sewn onto the skirt, but two snaps are used to close the skirt at the back. Instructions read as follows: "Lap right back over left, matching centers. Fasten each edge with a snap at waistline, as shown."
Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

So to answer your question directly, if you wish to design doll clothes patterns that you want to sell to a sewing audience, then you would definitely need to learn how to read and understand the vocabulary used for commercial patterns.

They could be commercial doll clothes sewing patterns though. They wouldn’t necessarily have to be human-sized clothing patterns.

If anyone reading this would like to add to the discussion, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments! Please leave a comment letting us know what you advise for Kim.

This image of a turquoise blue sewing needle pulling purple thread away from a line of cross-stitching is used as a divider between sections of a blog post.

For anyone who is truly ready to expand their dolls’ wardrobes beyond the patterns you’ve already collected in your sewing adventures, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to check out my “How to Alter Doll Clothes Patterns” course and my “Design Your Own Doll Pants Patterns from Scratch” class on the Creative Spark online learning platform. Here’s my bio page on their website, where you can learn more.

This image shows four rows of artist's renderings of doll clothing items. The top row shows four different styles of pants. The second row shows four different styles of shirts. The third row shows four different styles of skirts. The fourth row shows four different styles of dresses, with skirts in long, short, and mid-length styles. The text reads at the top, "Classes in Doll Clothing Design" followed by this paragraph: "Have you ever wished you could create patterns of your own? Click on the links to Chelly's online courses below, to learn more about her paid courses in doll clothing pattern design techniques."

For any class on Creative Spark, you don’t have to follow a schedule. Just sign up when you’re ready.

It’s a one-time fee for the course, and there’s no specific time limit to finish your course. You can just take your time and learn at the pace that suits you. You can check out my Creative Spark courses, using this link.

Disclaimer/Credit/Affiliate Marketing Link:

*Please note: when you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include Amazon, JoAnn Fabric, Etsy, and the eBay Partner Network. As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. To learn more about how my website uses affiliate marketing, please visit the website’s Privacy Policy page.

Chelly Wood and the ChellyWood.com website are not affiliated with any of the doll or toy companies mentioned or shown in this blog post, but Chelly enjoys designing her doll clothes to fit a variety of dolls. To learn more about the doll companies mentioned in today’s post, please visit the doll or toy company’s website.

2 thoughts on “Do you HAVE to know how to read a sewing pattern? #SewingForBeginners #QandA”

  1. I do agree with your answer. Personally, I like making doll clothes only, I have never thought to make anything for me, just a bandana or a bag. I don’t know, maybe I’m just scared that my cloth could fall unstitched. I suppose doll clothes are somehow different from real size ones. Could you imagine making a felt shirt for yourself? 🙂
    Learning how to read patterns is really useful anyway. I love printed patterns, they are so technical! Maybe because I’m an architect. Patterns give us a lot of informations.
    If a person wants to start making patterns and specifically if this person wants to sell them professionally I’d suggest her/him to learn at least the basics. Customers can be cruel. I can remember long discussions about a doll dress if it had to be lined or not. Professionally made patterns must be simply perfect.

    Reply

    1. Yes, in order to continue to be offered contracts for professionally made doll clothes, a designer needs to be able to fulfill the design requirements of the company they’re contracting with. Some companies are less restrictive than others, but there are industry standards too, and a professional designer needs to be familiar with those industry standards.

      Good discussion, Marco. Thank you for your contribution to the discussion!

      Reply

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