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

If you regularly follow my blog posts, you may recall that I attended the IANDS conference in Chicago, back in August. I was so inspired by the people I met at that conference, that I’ve begun the process of designing doll clothes to match the fashionable outfits worn by the people who most inspired me at the Chicago IANDS conference.

Today’s post will feature Lisa, the owner of The Occult Bookstore in Chicago, Illinois. This bookstore hosted book sales for all the near-death experiencers and researchers who had books for sale at the IANDS conference. But best of all, Lisa was a snappy dresser! Lisa’s lovely outfit really, truly inspired me!

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!

When I landed in Chicago and made my way out to Oak Brook, a suburb of Chicago where the IANDS conference was taking place, I found that I had arrived a little early. So I asked if I could volunteer to work in the bookstore…

And I was so glad I did! I got to see the behind-the-scenes activities at book signings, and I met some of the authors of the same books I’ve read and re-read over the years. And as I’ve said, the owner of this bookstore was Lisa from The Occult Bookstore in downtown Chicago.

Now don’t freak out at the word “occult” in the name of her bookstore! Webster’s Dictionary defines the word occult as follows: “not revealed : secret.” Near-death experience memoirs, like the one I’ve written about my own near-death experience would definitely qualify as secret teachings. So keep that in mind, please.

On the day we took the photo below, Lisa wore a classy animal print top with a swirly skirt. I absolutely loved each of the outfits she wore over the course of my five day stay in Chicago, and this one was probably my favorite. Animal print fabric is very much in fashion right now, so if you’re making something for your child or grandchild, a shirt made from animal print is sure to be a hit!

So when I returned from my trip to Chicago, I began designing a similar outfit for Barbie. I searched for a Barbie that did justice to Lisa’s natural beauty and charisma, and although Lisa is more lanky than Curvy, I decided this Curvy Barbie did a fair job of exemplifying Lisa’s gorgeous wavy red (or in Barbie’s case strawberry Blond) hair and Lisa’s natural beauty.

In keeping with my belief in reusing and recycling fabrics, for today’s animal-print top, I bought a woman’s animal print top at a second hand store, to use for the primary fabric in today’s Barbie-sized animal print shirt with three-quarter length sleeves.

My primary fabric was a comfortable polyester, but I made another version of this shirt using creamy colored cotton, as you will see on my flat-footed standard Barbie in the image below. And, of course, I’ll be re-designing what’s left of the human-sized shirt that I harvested my fabric from, so I can wear the original garment that I bought second hand, as well.

As you can see, today’s free pattern fits a traditional Barbie quite well, and I’m happy to say it fits Curvy Barbie just as nicely. Still, you may want to choose a jersey fabric if you’re making it for Curvy Barbie, as some Curvy Barbies (like the Ida B. Wells doll) can have a fuller chest than my Lisa doll who models the animal print version of the shirt in the image above.

When making the animal print shirt for today’s video, my secondary fabric was a grey animal print cotton that came from a cotton fabric quarter. I may have purchased this cotton fabric a long time ago, or it may have been among the many fabrics that other seamstresses have given me over the years.

To make today’s doll clothing, you will likely need one of the following items:

• cotton fabric (both solids and prints) on Etsy
• cotton fat quarters (18 inches by 21 inches of fabric)
• cotton/polyester blend fabrics on Etsy
• jersey fabrics on Etsy
• Gondola Snaps on Etsy (various sizes)
• 1/8 inch elastic on Amazon
• 3/4 inch sew-on Velcro on Amazon
• chopsticks (for inverting doll clothes)
• Dritz fabric pencil
• a lightbox (for tracing darts on your pattern)
• Fiskars Stitchers mini snips (for clipping seams efficiently)
• Gutermann sewing machine thread

This list comes from my “Buyer’s Guide” page, which is easily accessed from the home page.

And if you’re interested in using earth-friendly fabrics, please consider buying your fabric from FabScrap. FabScrap is a fabric recycle and reuse service, where you can buy fabrics that would otherwise go into landfills! Watch my FabScrap unboxing video to see what kinds of fabrics they sent me!

To learn more about FabScrap, this page on their website will tell you what a wonderful resource they offer!

I’d like to take a moment to say thank you to Lisa because not only did I find her clothing inspiring, but she made me feel welcome and even loved in her bookstore at the IANDS conference.

At one point, as we closed the bookstore down on the last day, we held hands in a circle and said a prayer. It was such a touching and heartfelt moment, that it really warmed my heart.

This is a lady who understands what love is.

*Today’s patterns will fit these dolls:

• Liv dolls
• Pedigree Sindy dolls
• Queens of Africa Dolls
• Momoko dolls
• modern and Made-to-Move Barbie dolls
• curvy Barbie dolls
• vintage Barbie dolls
• vintage Francie dolls

Here are your free, printable PDF sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making the outfit shown at the top of this page:

• Free American printable PDF sewing pattern for making a 3/4 length shirt for an 11 inch fashion doll
• Free A4 (international) PDF sewing pattern for an 11 inch fashion doll’s shirt with 3/4 length sleeves
• Tutorial video showing how to make the shirt is at the top of today’s post
• Tutorial video showing how to make the swirly skirt is coming soon

You may also find these tutorial videos helpful:

• 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
• How to pull elastic through a casing
• How to use a needle threader
• How to do a basic straight stitch
• How to choose fabric
• How to tie a knot using a needle and thread
• How to press seams open, using a hot iron
• How to sew rickrack
• How to use selvage 
• How to attach ribbon to doll clothes
• Tips on sewing with lace
• How to add a ruffle to a skirt

For more of my free tutorials, be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel, ChellyWood1.

If you would like to make a donation to this free doll clothes pattern website, please click here. There’s also a “Donate” button in the main menu.

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 a link to my bio page on their site, where you can learn more about me and the classes I teach online.

For any class on the C&T Publishing site, 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 C&T Publishing, using this link.

As always, feel free to share my patterns and tutorials on social media. I only ask that you please let people know about my free doll clothes sewing pattern website, to help spread the word.

To read more about my free sewing patterns and tutorials, please visit the “Helpful Tips” page.

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, 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.

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.

Queens of Africa dolls are products offered by the Slice by Cake company, which holds the trademark for them (™). They were designed by Taofick Okoya. Please visit the Queens of Africa website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys, books, and fashions.

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

Barbie, MTM Barbie, Francie, and Vintage Barbie dolls are products offered by Mattel, which holds the registered trademark for them (™). Please visit the Mattel Toys website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.

Liv dolls were products designed and distributed by the Spin Master company, which still makes dolls and toys today (although the Liv dolls are no longer in production at the time of this blog post). The Spin Master company held the trademark for the Liv Dolls (™). Please visit the Spin Master Toys and Games website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys and games. Please be aware that the Chelly Wood animated doll is a Spin Master Liv doll that has been re-painted and had its wig colored to appear to look like the real doll clothing designer, Chelly Wood. This was done as a creative project by Chelly’s daughters, and the Spin Master Toys and Games company was not involved in the doll’s makeover in any way.

Disney Princess dolls are products offered by the Disney corporation, which holds the trademark for them (™). Please visit the Disney Toys website to learn more about their company and its trademarked toys.

Sindy dolls were originally created by Pedigree Dolls & Toys, but they have been made by other manufacturers including Hasbro, Vivid Imaginations, and New Moon. Currently (at the time of this blog post) a limited number of the newest version of these dolls is being manufactured by Kid Kreations of Staffordshire, England. I haven’t tried my doll clothes on this newer version, but sewists have told me my Tammy doll patterns do fit the vintage Sindy dolls created by Pedigree Dolls & Toys. Please visit one of these toy companies’ websites to learn more about the toys they produce. The Sindy dolls are trademarked and as such, it should be noted that Chelly Wood and ChellyWood.com are not affiliated with either Pedigree or Kid Creations.  However Chelly has enjoyed designing doll clothes that will fit these dolls along with others in a similar size range…