How can I tell if McCalls 9061 vintage patterns will fit my AG dolls? I have 2 methods! #SewingTips #SewingHacks

McCall's 9061 Doll Clothes Sewing Pattern DescriptionThe McCall's 9061 sewing pattern envelope features a range of doll clothes designed for "baby and toddler dolls" with sizes from 14 inches to 18 inches tall. The pattern is clearly labeled with an arrow pointing to the size information and a pink underline highlighting the "baby and toddler dolls' wardrobe" description. Image Details Cover Image: The envelope cover displays several outfits for dolls: View A: A side-buttoned pinafore made from felt or vinyl, versatile enough to be worn alone or over dress C. View B: A yoked sleeveless dress with a center front pleat, perfect for casual occasions. View C: A dress with a white collar and six front pleats, featuring long sleeves elasticized at the wrist to form ruffles. View D: A hooded robe with edges finished by bias tape, ideal for cozy wear. View E: A nightgown adorned with eyelet and trimmed in beaded ribbon. View F: A bright green felt coat paired with a matching winter hat for colder days. View G: A yoked sleeveless party dress with a gathered skirt, complemented by a matching ruffled bonnet. Additional Details: The envelope also includes an image of panties displayed on a ribbon laundry line, adding a whimsical touch to the ensemble options. Pattern Availability The pattern is available for small dolls (sizes 12 to 16 inches), medium dolls (sizes 14 to 18 inches), and large dolls (sizes 17 to 20 inches). It lists several popular dolls, such as Betsy Wetsy, Giggles, and Tiny Tears, which can be dressed using these patterns. — 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 look at a vintage pattern, do you sometimes wonder whether or not it will fit your modern dolls? Nobody wants to waste time making, for example, the nightgown in View E above, if they’re not sure it will fit. Right?

In today’s blog post, I’m going to show you a couple of tricks I use to test a pattern before I start sewing it, just to see whether or not it will fit the doll I have in mind.

Before I go on, I need to make my required disclaimer statement: As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. To learn more about how affiliate marketing works on my website, please go to the Privacy Policy page. Thank you!

A collage of two photos has a graphic of a sewing tape measure in-between them. In the top photo, a woman's hand points to the seam allowance on a vintage McCall's 9061 doll's nightgown pattern, highlighting a measurement of 4.7 centimeters from the seam edge to the "cut on fold" area. The bottom photo shows the woman's hand measuring an 18-inch American Girl doll from sleeve edge to sleeve edge across the collarbone, with a measurement of approximately 10.5 centimeters, in exactly the same part of the doll’s body where the nightgown would lie across the doll’s chest. — 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 pattern you see above is, in fact, the View E nightgown pattern, from my McCall’s 9061 doll clothes sewing pattern from 1967. In the top image, I’m using my tape measure to take a measurement on the pattern for the nightgown’s front piece.

Then, in the bottom image, I’m comparing that measurement to the distance across the doll’s upper chest, to see if the pattern will fit.

There are three things to be aware of when you do this: 1.) the pattern is meant to be cut on the fold, so although my measurement of the nightgown’s front came out to be 4.7 cm, I would have to double that to 9.4 cm before comparing it to Kaya‘s chest; 2.) I can’t include the seam allowance in my measurement because it won’t be visible when I put the garment on the doll; 3.) and most importantly, I need to measure other areas of the doll’s body as well, not just the chest measurement, in order to determine whether or not the pattern will work.

The image shows a soft doll laying on a cutting mat. Beside her is a pen and pencil, a pair of handmade doll shorts, and a pair of handmade doll pants. A woman's right hand points to a pants pattern which is laying on top of a shorts pattern, as if she is somehow comparing the two paper doll clothes patterns: the shorts pattern and the pants pattern. Beside the woman's right hand is a ruler with imperial and metric measurements. The words to the left of this image say, "Chelly's Class: How to Alter Doll Clothes Patterns" and beneath the photo is the following URL: https://creativespark.ctpub.com/ — Click on the image above to learn more about my class.

In my “How to Alter Doll Clothes Patterns” class on the C&T Pub website, I go into detail about how a person should measure a doll when making alterations. But for today’s blog post, I’m not going to go into details on that.

To find out more about my online courses, you can just scroll down past the border that shows cross stitches and an embroidery needle.

So let’s move on to the second method that I use to “test” a vintage pattern on a modern doll…

A woman's hand holds a nightgown pattern taken from McCall's 9061's View E nightgown project against the body of an American Girl Kaya doll, but the pattern, when laid against the doll's chest appears to be just a hair shorter than it should, in order to fit the doll properly. — 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.

In the image above, I’m laying the pattern against the doll’s body to see if it will fit, just as it is, or if it perhaps needs alterations.

And I don’t know if you can tell, but in order for me to use the nightgown pattern from McCall’s 9061, I’ll definitely need to alter that pattern. Both the measurement method and the hold-the-pattern-against-the-body method show that this pattern is slightly too small for this doll.

Now let’s look again at what’s written on the McCall’s 9061 pattern envelope:

Earlier, at the start of this blog post, I had included an arrow that points to the words “Size Medium” and “fourteen to eighteen inches” on the side of the pattern envelope. And I had underlined in pink the words “Baby and Toddler Dolls’ Wardrobe.”

First, an American Girl doll, like my 18 inch Kaya, is not a baby or toddler doll. She’s more of a little girl doll. So I should be aware that these patterns are going to be designed for a doll with a chunkier body than Kaya‘s, more than likely.

Second, if you look next to the head of the View A doll pictured in the upper left corner of the McCall’s 9061 envelope (horizontally, that’s the upper right corner), the other size options are listed there; the pattern is available for small dolls (sizes 12 to 16 inches), medium dolls (sizes 14 to 18 inches), and large dolls (sizes 17 to 20 inches).

The large pattern option would probably be a better choice for Kaya, if I really want to use this vintage 1967 set of designs. However, luckily, I’m good at making alterations, so that’s what I plan to do!

Do any of you already use these methods to check whether or not your pattern will fit? If so, please leave a comment. If you use variations on my methods, please let us know what your variation is!

Most of the commercial patterns I display and talk about here on ChellyWood.com are also available for sale on eBay. However, if you’ve never purchased a pattern 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.

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For anyone who would like to expand their dolls’ wardrobes, you should really check out my “How to Alter Doll Clothes Patterns” course and my “Design Your Own Doll Pants Patterns from Scratch” classes on the C&T Publishing website. Here’s my bio page on their site, where you can learn more.

For any class on the C&T Publishing website, 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. So go check out my paid courses on the C&T Pub site, using this link.

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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.