An image shows a cell phone displaying a vintage Mattel Francie doll. The doll is dressed in a brown winter coat with a matching hat and belt. Behind the cell phone, a rainbow with yellow, turquoise blue, and green colors creates cloud-like curves against a purple background. The screen displays the text "Do a Pick," indicating the name of the game, with a subtitle that reads "New coat for back to school," suggesting the game's theme focuses on buying a new coat for the fall school season.

Let’s Do a Pick — Back to School Coats for Francie or Skipper! #BarbieGames #BarbieFun

Today’s “Do a Pick” game features the following: Francie’s brown coat with collar and matching hat, Best Buy #8646 Francie’s long red and white coat with matching purse, Best Buy #3368 Skipper’s red velvet coat with furry collar, Best Buy #8613 What’s the story behind this game? When I was a kid, whenever it was playtime with dolls, we would lay out all our dolls … Continue reading Let’s Do a Pick — Back to School Coats for Francie or Skipper! #BarbieGames #BarbieFun

With a quilted purple and blue frame, a photo of a Made to Move Curvy Barbie with bright pink Anime-style hair stands next to and looks down at vintage 8281 Simplicity Barbie doll clothes pattern, which contains the patterns for making the very same raglan-sleeved shirt or blouse that the Made-to-Move Curvy Barbie is wearing. She also wears a miniskirt that is not pictured on the envelope for Simplicity 8281 vintage Barbie doll clothes patterns. The ChellyWood.com logo appears to the side of the photo.

What are raglan shirts? — Here’s a quick explanation! #Sewing #HandmadeWithLove

In the image at the top of today’s blog post, Ken is modeling a handmade raglan-sleeved T-shirt, but what, exactly, does “raglan” mean? Well, in today’s blog post, we’ll dig deep into the differences between a set-in sleeve and a raglan sleeve, looking at doll clothes sewing patterns for both kinds. If you’re wondering about the history of the word “raglan” (AKA its etymology), I’ll … Continue reading What are raglan shirts? — Here’s a quick explanation! #Sewing #HandmadeWithLove

A Chelly Wood doll (a Spin Master Liv doll that has been OOAK re-dressed, re-painted, and had its hair dyed to look like the real doll clothing designer Chelly Wood stands beside a photo of a McCall's 9061 vintage sewing pattern for baby and toddler dolls. The Chelly Wood doll wears a red check shirt and black trousers with a pair of flats. Her hair is tied in a red check handkerchief and she wears dark cat eye glasses.

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

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

The Chelly Wood doll (AKA Spin Master Liv doll) stands next to the vintage Barbie sewing pattern Advance 2896. This thumbnail image is surrounded by a purple and turquoise blue quilted frame.

How to use 2 small squares of fabric to make a #Barbie shirt! #SewingFun

What can you do with small squares of leftover fabric? You can make a Barbie shirt, of course! And in today’s blog post, I’m going to show you exactly how I took two squares of leftover fabric and turned them into a simple Barbie shirt with a pocket. *Please note: when you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, … Continue reading How to use 2 small squares of fabric to make a #Barbie shirt! #SewingFun

Today's do-a-pick game shows Francie wearing a red head scarf, blue tank top, and bell-bottom jeans. It's "Picnic fashions for Francie" for today's theme for the DoApick game!

Let’s Do a Pick — Taking Francie on a picnic– What to wear? #DoApick #vintageDolls

Today’s “Do a Pick” game features the following: Blue gingham sundress, Best Buy #8644 Jeans and blue tank top, Best Buy #3365 Brown skirt with brown gingham shirt, Best Buy #8647 What’s the story behind this game? When I was a kid, whenever it was playtime with dolls, we would lay out all our dolls and their clothing items. Then we would “do a pick.” … Continue reading Let’s Do a Pick — Taking Francie on a picnic– What to wear? #DoApick #vintageDolls

Free patterns for a Barbie bolero, blouse, and poodle skirt can be found at ChellyWood.com (Chelly Wood dot com). This is a lovely 1950's style sock hop ensemble, designed to fit 11 and 1/2 inch fashion dolls like Barbie.

Free Barbie and Ken 1950s doll clothes sewing patterns @ ChellyWood.com! #FreePatterns #SewingProject

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. As you can see in the image at the top of today’s blog post, Barbie and Ken are now ready to go to their high school sock hop, dressed in 1950’s attire. The poodle skirt project is one that was requested many years ago, and it includes a long-sleeved … Continue reading Free Barbie and Ken 1950s doll clothes sewing patterns @ ChellyWood.com! #FreePatterns #SewingProject

Ken holds Barbie in a warm embrace from behind, as Barbie models a bright blue bolero with puffed sleeves and cuffs. The text reads as follows: "Free bolero pattern" and in the corner of the image, we see the logo for Chelly Wood dot com, a website that offers free printable PDF sewing patterns for dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

How to Make a Barbie Bolero Jacket with Cuffs #Sewing #BarbieStyle (free sewing pattern)

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. I’m wrapping up my 1950’s retro Barbie and Ken set, which includes free patterns and sewing tutorials for making Barbie’s poodle skirt, blouse, petticoat and bolero, along with Ken’s dinner jacket, trousers, and 1950’s style short-sleeved shirt with a collar and pocket. Today’s tutorial video shows you how to … Continue reading How to Make a Barbie Bolero Jacket with Cuffs #Sewing #BarbieStyle (free sewing pattern)

In this purple thumbnail, Barbie has her arms spread out like she's twirling around in her orange poodle skirt and white long-sleeved shirt. The text reads "Free pattern!" next to the Chelly Wood dot com logo.

Sew a long-sleeved shirt for Barbie with today’s free patterns & tutorial video #SewingTutorial #Barbie

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. This project has been on my list of requests for quite some time. It’s a long-sleeved shirt for fashion dolls like Barbie. And yes, my doll clothes sewing patterns are free, just as today’s article title states. I have a list of all the dolls that will fit this … Continue reading Sew a long-sleeved shirt for Barbie with today’s free patterns & tutorial video #SewingTutorial #Barbie

A vintage 1968 blond Bubble Cut Barbie stands inside a thumbnail, surrounded by tape measures. Beside her is an icon of a dress form for a sewing room, and on the dress form it says, "Tape Measure Tuesday." Below this the text reads, "with doll clothing designer Chelly Wood."

Tape Measure Tuesday: Let’s measure a vintage Bubble Cut Barbie from 1968! #VintageToys #TapeMeasureTuesday

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. Today’s … Continue reading Tape Measure Tuesday: Let’s measure a vintage Bubble Cut Barbie from 1968! #VintageToys #TapeMeasureTuesday

In this purple thumbnail, Barbie has her arms spread out like she's twirling around in her orange poodle skirt and white long-sleeved shirt. The text reads "Free pattern!" next to the Chelly Wood dot com logo.

Barbie poodle skirt free patterns and tutorials (fits most 11 inch fashion dolls) #1950s #RetroSewing

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. As the title clearly states, today’s fashion doll clothes tutorial shows you how to use my free printable PDF sewing pattern to make a circle skirt with a sewn-on poodle patch (AKA a “poodle skirt”), like women commonly wore in the 1950’s to sock hops and school dances. Today’s … Continue reading Barbie poodle skirt free patterns and tutorials (fits most 11 inch fashion dolls) #1950s #RetroSewing

A square thumbnail includes images of a handmade doll's purse, text that states "doll's purse with pocket" and a little DIY labeled sewing graphic. This thumbnail image accompanies a how-to blog post with tutorial video showing how to make a doll's purse (fits fashion dolls like Barbie and Pedigree Sindy).

How to make a purse for fashion dolls #DIY #FashionDolls

  Looking for the measurements for making your fashion-doll-sized purse? You’ve come to the right place! Today’s tutorial video shows how to make a sweet little purse for fashion dolls, and it even has a tiny pocket that you can put your doll’s accessories in! So if you scroll down to the second set of bullets, I’ve listed the measurements for each piece of this … Continue reading How to make a purse for fashion dolls #DIY #FashionDolls

A purple and blue quilted frame encompasses the edges of a photo of Butterick's 6664 doll clothes sewing pattern which is standing upright next to a Black Barbie who models one of the dresses shown on the pattern's packaging. This dress is a long 1980's style of caftan. It should be noted that a photograph of celebrity Marie Osmond appears on the envelope of the Butterick 6664 doll clothes pattern. The Chelly Wood dot com logo is also shown at the side of the frame.

Doll clothes sewing patterns with errors… UGH! #VintageSewing #EpicFail!

When I think of doll clothes sewing patterns that are just flat WRONG, I always think of the shirt pattern from View 3 of Advance 2896. The pink shirt on the left (above) was made using the Advance 2896 shirt pattern exactly as the directions indicate on the pattern instructions. The brown floral version on  the right (above) was made with my own alterations to … Continue reading Doll clothes sewing patterns with errors… UGH! #VintageSewing #EpicFail!

The Chelly Wood doll (AKA Spin Master Liv doll) stands next to the vintage Barbie sewing pattern Advance 2896. This thumbnail image is surrounded by a purple and turquoise blue quilted frame.

Progress with Judy Littlechap’s Wardrobe — Which dress should I design with Advance 2896’s bodice? #Sewingchat #VintageSewing

My official date of retirement from my day job as a school librarian is almost one month away, and I’m buzzing with excitement! I would put a lot more time into these blog posts (and other doll related projects), if I wasn’t exhausted after work every single day. So I think you’ll understand when I say, even though I purchased my Judy Littlechap doll in … Continue reading Progress with Judy Littlechap’s Wardrobe — Which dress should I design with Advance 2896’s bodice? #Sewingchat #VintageSewing

With close-up images from pattern envelopes belonging to Advance 9938 and Advance 2895, we can really see that the tulip dress looks a lot like the view one dress from Advance 9938 after adding the skirt from Advance 2895.

Can I mix the bodice and skirt patterns from two different pattern envelopes? YES! Here’s how… #Sewing #Barbie

Have a look at the View 1 dress on pattern envelope Advance 9938. I really wanted to make that cute little Barbie dress, but unfortunately, it didn’t come with this used pattern that I bought on eBay. However, as we saw at Christmas time, this Advance 9938 did have the view 3 bodice, which is similar. Furthermore, I had the lovely gathered skirt from view … Continue reading Can I mix the bodice and skirt patterns from two different pattern envelopes? YES! Here’s how… #Sewing #Barbie

On a purple square background with tiny white polka dots, we see the words "free patterns" accompanied by a photo of a classic vintage Barbie modeling a wedding dress with puff sleeves. The watermark says "Chelly Wood," the name of a website where you can print free PDF sewing patterns for dolls of many shapes and all different sizes.

Barbie Wedding Dress DIY with Free Patterns @ ChellyWood.com #JuneWedding #FreeBarbiePatterns

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. It’s only April, but now’s the time to start sewing projects for June! And everybody knows that June is a month for weddings… So although today’s pattern is one I’ve had on this website for a long time, I thought the tutorial video needed a re-boot, so you’ll find … Continue reading Barbie Wedding Dress DIY with Free Patterns @ ChellyWood.com #JuneWedding #FreeBarbiePatterns