Chelly’s favorite hobby is sewing for dolls, but sometimes she makes other stuff too. Keep watching for more tutorials and patterns for her other crafty projects.
When I was at the IANDS conference in Chicago, one of the ladies there asked me if I could show her what my website looks like. I watched her fiddle around on her phone, confused, trying to get from the Home Page to the American Girls doll clothes pattern page. It was kind of a disaster. So I thought, “Oh man, I’ve got to make … Continue reading Help me re-organize things on ChellyWood.com — I need some advice! #Goals
Last week I talked in a Monday blog post about how the underpants pattern in the McCall’s 2970 doll clothes pattern fits Topper Dawn and a whole slew of other tiny fashion dolls in the 6 inch tall size range. But there are two other dolls that can fit into this tiny little doll underpants pattern, and I’m going to share this revelation with you … Continue reading Besides Dawn and Pippa, what other dolls will fit in McCall’s 2970? #MeMadeMonday #TinyToys
In 2025, those of us who live in the US lost our beloved JoAnn Fabrics stores, and in the little farm town where I live, that was really my only source for buying fabrics in person. So I got creative! I started to design my own fabrics with Spoonflower. Yes, they are more expensive, but Spoonflower is committed to an eco-friendly manufacturing process. And… If … Continue reading Let’s talk fabric! #Fabric #Spoonflower
Scroll down to the third set of bullets for the free PDF sewing patterns. Some families enjoy a game of hiding their Elf on the Shelf, and one of the best places to hide him is in plain sight. Why not make him a tree-topper? In December of 2023, I published my Barbie Angel patterns, which includes a long dress, angel wings, and a robe. … Continue reading ‘Tis the Season for Elf on the Shelf! Let’s make him an angel outfit… #ChristmasAngel #ElfOnTheShelf
This little fashion doll sewing pattern which was produced by McCall in 1971 offers six different outfits for little tiny six inch dolls, like the Topper Dawn dolls. In fact, it seems to fit a number of very small fashion dolls. I’ve listed them in the purple textbox for you. But there’s more to this pattern than meets the eye… Before I go on, I … Continue reading What are the smallest underpants you’ve ever made? #MeMadeMonday #TinyThings
Please scroll down to the second set of bullets for the free printable PDF sewing pattern and links to any additional relevant tutorial videos. Today’s tutorial video shows you how to make a Christmas stocking for your 1:6 scale dollhouse or diorama. Yes, I’ve posted this tutorial and this stocking pattern before, but two years ago I remastered the tutorial video to include a voice-over … Continue reading Make miniature Christmas stockings with today’s free sewing pattern #HolidayCrafts #ChristmasCrafts
Today’s “Do a Pick” game features the following: “Sweet Dreams” #973 “Nighty-Negligee” #965 Two Piece Pajamas Fashion Pak 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.” That’s where you take turns picking which doll or dolls you’ll play with … Continue reading Let’s Do a Pick — Barbie Pajamas for Christmas #DoApick #vintageToys
Okay everybody, I’m going to make today’s blog post short and to-the-point. I’ve designed another fabric! What do you think? I painted apple blossoms, peach blossoms, and chrysanthemums in gouache, using a realistic approach. And then for the smaller flowers, I’ve tried to make them look more child-like because this fabric is called “Grandma’s Flower Garden 1975,” as if my grandma and I painted it … Continue reading If you want to show your support… please #Vote!
If you’re already familiar with Advance 9939, you may say to yourself, “Wait, that’s a Barbie pattern, not a Jem and the Holograms pattern.” Well the underpants pattern from Advance 9939 doesn’t fit Jem, but the bloomers pattern does! Go back to read about the sewing vocabulary definition for bloomers, which I posted on October 22nd, and you will begin to understand that one person’s … Continue reading Tips and Tricks for Making Doll Underwear for Jem and the Holograms! #Jem #80sToys
If you’ve been making 18 inch doll clothes or baby doll clothes for your child or grandchild for Christmas, today’s blog post is a reminder that I have not one, but two handmade quilts for sale in my Etsy store, which would be great as part of your doll clothes Christmas gift bundle! My mother-in-law, Anita, makes these doll quilts, and as you can see, … Continue reading Doll quilts for sale! #Christmas2025 #GiftIdeas
DEFINITION: This is my own definition. Of course you can google this term to find other definitions as well. As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. You can learn more about my affiliate marketing program on the Privacy Policy page. An elasticized boatneck is also sometimes called a “elastic boatneck” or a “relaxed boatneck.” Often this type of neckline can be worn below … Continue reading Glossary of Sewing Terms with Pictures: What does boatneck mean? #SewingChat #SewingVocabulary
As my regular followers know, there’s now a whole library of vintage and modern doll clothes sewing patterns on my website, and with each of these patterns, I offer my take on what I’ve learned from the patterns, what alterations may work best for these patterns, and my overall review of the pattern, as I sew with it. If you haven’t found my gallery of … Continue reading Learning to Sew With Simplicity 1242 (AKA Simplicity 6208) Vintage Barbie Doll Clothes Sewing Patterns #CollectivelyCreate #HomeSewing
Today’s blog post will be brief for me, but I’d really like everyone who reads this to PLEASE add to the comments section. So this is more about what you have to say than what I do, okay? I’m designing a new course for C&T Publishing, and I need to know these things as I build my class: What doll or dolls do you sew … Continue reading I’m making a new class, and I’d like your input!
DEFINITIONS: A woman’s undergarment worn during the Victorian era, designed like trousers but having gathers below the knee, often worn to allow freedom of movement when riding a bicycle Discretionary short pants worn under a cheerleader’s skirt Underpants (esp. those with ruffles, often for young girls) This is my own definition. Of course you can google this term to find other definitions as well. As … Continue reading Glossary of Sewing Terms with Pictures: Bloomers… What are they? #Couture #HistoricalSewing
I recently added Simplicity 1242 to my vintage doll clothes pattern collection. When I looked it up on eBay, I discovered this exact same pattern used to be called Simplicity 6208. What’s up with that? I mean yeah, it’s a super cute pattern, whisking me back to bygone days with its charm, but why did Simplicity mix things up? Why bother changing it from Simplicity … Continue reading Why do the same sewing patterns sometimes have different numbers? #VintageSewing #RetroToys
