In this quilt-framed thumbnail image, a lineup of four Skipper-sized dolls stand next to the Chelly Wood doll (which is a Spin Master Liv doll that has been altered to look like the real doll clothing designer, Chelly Wood), and Chelly is holding up vintage Skipper Simplicity pattern 5861. Over the top of this photo, we see the text that reads, "Who can wear Skipper patterns?"

Which dolls can wear Skipper patterns? #Sewing #SewVintage

Note: As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Last week one of my followers, Lisa, contacted me with some questions about sewing for Skipper. We had a lively exchange over email about how Skipper has changed over the years, and I answered a few of her questions about who can wear various Skipper doll clothes sewing patterns. Today’s blog post will share with … Continue reading Which dolls can wear Skipper patterns? #Sewing #SewVintage

Learning to sew with Simplicity 8281 doll clothes patterns #VintageDolls #DollClothesPatterns

I can’t look at Simplicity 8281 without getting a happy feeling in my heart of hearts. I have so many memories associated with this wonderful doll clothes pattern! It dates back to 1977, but I don’t think I owned the pattern until closer to 1979. I would have been about 12 years old then, and I remember making the yellow sundress a lot of different … Continue reading Learning to sew with Simplicity 8281 doll clothes patterns #VintageDolls #DollClothesPatterns

In this thumbnail image, the text reads "mix-N-match" with two photos below the text. The photo on the left shows a standard Mattel Barbie wearing a handmade strappy summer bodice with a handmade wrap skirt that comes to just above the knee. She also wears little red plastic ankle boots. The photo on the right shows Simplicity 8281 vintage Barbie, Cher, and Farrah Fawcett doll clothes sewing patterns. Arrows connect the bodice to one outfit for the top and another outfit for the bottom. The arrow pointing at the summer top bodice points to the View 3 and view 2 outfit, while the arrow from the wrap skirt points at the wrap skirt in view 5 of Simplicity 8281 vintage Barbie doll clothes sewing patterns.

The Best Mix and Match Doll Clothes Patterns for Christmas Gift Giving #HolidayGiftIdeas #ChristmasGifts

Note: As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. When you make a set of doll clothes, it’s always nice if the child who receives them has the option to mix and match tops with skirts, pants, and jackets. I’m a member of the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution), and this year our chapter of the DAR will be giving gifts to a … Continue reading The Best Mix and Match Doll Clothes Patterns for Christmas Gift Giving #HolidayGiftIdeas #ChristmasGifts

The Chelly Wood doll (a Spin Master Liv doll with her face repainted and her hair dyed grey to look more like the real Chelly Wood) stands beside the original pattern for Simplicity 5861, a set of Skipper doll clothes including a blue coat. Beside this photo, we see a picture of the doll coat that Chelly made for Skipper, and it's blue, exactly like the one in the artwork on the front of the pattern, but Chelly's has a pinwheel printed lining. The text reads, "doll coat"

Does a doll’s coat need a lining, and if so, how do I choose the lining fabric?

Simplicity 5861 is an amazing ensemble of sewing patterns for Skipper, including two coats: a bolero and a winter coat. When I found this pattern on eBay last summer, I’d been searching for a high-quality version of it for years, so I snatched this up as soon as I saw that it was an uncut pattern — and let me tell you, this adorable pattern … Continue reading Does a doll’s coat need a lining, and if so, how do I choose the lining fabric?

A vintage Skipper doll models a red bolero jacket over a black and white gingham dress. She stands beside Simplicity vintage Skipper pattern number 5861 for sewing doll clothes. There's a quilted blue and purple frame surrounding the whole image.

Is there an easy way to sew sleeves? Yes! And it begins with your choice of patterns…

Over the summer, I purchased Simplicity 5861, a vintage pattern for the earliest version of Skipper dolls. This pattern offers pattern pieces for a coat and three different shirt styles, plus a bolero. These garments’ sleeves were remarkably easy to make! You might wonder why that is. Well take a look at the skipper T-shirt that I designed, displayed on a more modern skipper below: … Continue reading Is there an easy way to sew sleeves? Yes! And it begins with your choice of patterns…

This is a framed thumbnail with the following text written inside a bodice pattern outline: "Vintage Patterns with lessons for beginners" and a small yellow arrow points to text that states, "available after 30 October 2023".

Lessons from Vintage Doll Clothes Patterns (Gallery)

NOTE: These are not free doll clothes patterns! If you would like to download any of the hundreds of free, printable sewing patterns that I offer on this website, please view this video to learn how to find free patterns to fit the doll you’re sewing for. With that said, please click on the doll clothes patterns you would like to learn lessons from or … Continue reading Lessons from Vintage Doll Clothes Patterns (Gallery)

Surrounded by a quilted frame, we see the ChellyWood.com logo and images of dolls modeling doll clothes from the 1970's. This image comes from Simplicity doll clothes pattern 7737, dated with a copyright of 1976.

Learning to sew with Simplicity 7737 doll clothes patterns #VintageDolls #DollClothesPatterns

Every time I look at the pictures on the cover of my Simplicity 7737 doll clothes pattern envelope, I remember the little sewing room my mother and I shared, when I was in junior high and high school. I made every single outfit offered on this pattern by the time I was 16, and those pants suits — the ones that are designed like a … Continue reading Learning to sew with Simplicity 7737 doll clothes patterns #VintageDolls #DollClothesPatterns

The image shows a vintage McCalls Craft Pattern number 2686 which offers Barbie sized doll clothes including coats and jackets, prom dresses, and business as well as casual wear.

Learning to sew with McCall’s 2686 doll clothes patterns #WinterCoats #DollClothesPatterns

The pattern we’re learning about today is McCall’s 2686 doll clothes patterns for fashion dolls. It has three different styles of coats that will fit Barbie and other fashion dolls, which is what makes this McCall’s Barbie-sized patterns stand out among the others. View A offers a long fur coat; view B shows how to make a shorter winter coat, which would work well with … Continue reading Learning to sew with McCall’s 2686 doll clothes patterns #WinterCoats #DollClothesPatterns

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.

Learning to sew with Butterick 6664 Marie Osmond Personality Doll Wardrobe doll clothes patterns #MarieOsmond #DollClothesPatterns

As you can see, the Marie Osmond Personality Doll Wardrobe 6664 from Butterick offers some really neat pattern options, but what you don’t see on the outside of the envelope is that these patterns actually come in two different sizes. The back of the pattern envelope says that there are 30 pieces inside, but some fit an 11 to 12 and 1/2 inch fashion doll, … Continue reading Learning to sew with Butterick 6664 Marie Osmond Personality Doll Wardrobe doll clothes patterns #MarieOsmond #DollClothesPatterns

In this thumbnail image, the Chelly Wood doll (really a Spin Master Liv doll that has been repainted and had its wig hair color altered to look like the real doll clothing designer, Chelly Wood) stands beside and points at the Simplicity 7601 doll clothes (Barbie sized doll clothes) pattern envelope. The words over the envelope say "simplicity 7601" and the Chelly Wood dot com logo appears to the left of the photo. The entire image is framed by a purple and turquoise blue quilt.

Learning to sew with Simplicity 7601 Barbie doll clothes pattern with coats and hats #VintageBarbie #DollClothesPatterns

It’s the start of October, which is winter coat season in Idaho, where I live, so I thought I’d write a blog post about Simplicity Barbie doll clothes pattern 7601 because it offers a very nice coat and hat pattern, along with a purse. I’ve written several blog posts on this particular pattern, often with a focus on “how to cut out doll clothes patterns,” … Continue reading Learning to sew with Simplicity 7601 Barbie doll clothes pattern with coats and hats #VintageBarbie #DollClothesPatterns

This image is a quilt-like square with the Chelly Wood logo turned on its side. Beside the logo, we see a photo of Simplicity doll clothes pattern 8466 from the late 1960's or early 1970's. The dolls on the cover of this pattern are dressed in various fashions including one long dress pattern that uses an empire waist.

Learning to sew with Simplicity 8466 vintage Barbie doll clothes pattern #VintageBarbie #DollClothesPatterns

I had so so much fun sewing the red satin dress in this Simplicity 8466 doll clothes pattern! I’ll never forget that feeling of satisfaction, when it turned out perfectly! Just have a look: It looks pretty similar, doesn’t it? Wow. I couldn’t have been more pleased… I’ve created blog posts that describe how I made this satin dress, and over the years, I’ve talked … Continue reading Learning to sew with Simplicity 8466 vintage Barbie doll clothes pattern #VintageBarbie #DollClothesPatterns

Within a quilted frame, we see a stitched-style title that says "Doll Clothes Collars" and three different images of dolls wearing doll clothes with collars. On the far left is a baby doll in a plaid suit with his little white shirt having a pressed collar; in the middle is an 18 inch doll wearing a dress with a jacket that has a pretty pink collar, and on the right is a Ken doll wearing a Hawaiian shirt with a collar. In the lower left is the ChellyWood.com logo.

5 Tips for Making Doll Clothes Collars

For the most faithful Chelly Wood website readers out there, this is a re-posting of a blog post from about a year ago. The topic is still relevant of course, and I welcome everyone’s comments and suggestions in the discussion area at the bottom of the post! Nobody wants their doll’s collar to stick up all willie-nillie, right? Of course not! So here, all in … Continue reading 5 Tips for Making Doll Clothes Collars