Tag: Sewing for Beginners

spool of grey thread
Tutorials: Sewing Basics

Tips and Tricks for Buying Thread

Today’s blog post is brief. I haven’t posted this video here for quite some time, so I thought it might be a good one to revisit. It offers tips and tricks for buying thread. Enjoy! 🧵 Continue reading Tips and Tricks for Buying Thread

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Today's tutorial video explains how selvage is useful to people who sew doll clothes. This image is just a header indicating that this is a sewing tutorial for beginners.
Tips for Beginners, Tutorials: Sewing Basics

Selvage is your friend! (A tip for fabric buying, when sewing doll clothes) @ ChellyWood.com #SewingLove #SewingTutorial

  This week I’m giving you two tutorial videos instead of the usual solo tutorial. The video at the top of this blog post will explain how I sometimes use selvage (that’s “selvedge” if you live in the UK) for my doll clothes projects, and how selvage can truly be “your friend” when buying fabric. If you want a more extensive video about how to … Continue reading Selvage is your friend! (A tip for fabric buying, when sewing doll clothes) @ ChellyWood.com #SewingLove #SewingTutorial

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Please visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns and tutorial videos for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes. This is a text box with a purple and turquoise quilted look to it. The text states, "Sewing tips for beginners: clothing items to avoid." This is the fourth installment in a four part blog article series which reviews the topics, terms, and items to watch out for on a pattern's instructions if you're just starting to learn sewing. Visit ChellyWood.com for free printable sewing patterns and to read the other blog articles in this series for beginners just learning how to sew.
Interviews With Crafters, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Tips for Beginners, Tutorials: Sewing Basics

How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 4: Difficult Garments) #SewEasy #SewingFun

This is the last installment of a four-week journey to discover what makes a pattern difficult for beginners who are just starting out with their very first sewing projects. By “beginners,” I’m referring to adults learning to sew as well as children of all ages who are learning to sew. We’ve been studying a single pattern, Simplicity doll clothes pattern #4654, which is a fun … Continue reading How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 4: Difficult Garments) #SewEasy #SewingFun

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The image shows Mattel's Curvy Barbie modeling a hand-made shirt with cloth-covered tiny buttons. Each button is encompassed by a floss loop, all hand-made by the seamstress who blogs here, at ChellyWood.com.
Interviews With Crafters, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Tips for Beginners, Tutorials: Sewing Basics

How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 3: Know Your Notions) #SewMuchFun #SewingNotions

  For the past two Mondays, we’ve been looking at Simplicity doll clothes pattern #4654, which is a super fun pattern for those of us who have been sewing for a while. However, in the image below, I’ve underlined some key terms that tell us this isn’t the ideal pattern for the absolute beginner. Today I’m going to talk about why certain sewing notions (those … Continue reading How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 3: Know Your Notions) #SewMuchFun #SewingNotions

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Interviews With Crafters, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Tips for Beginners, Tutorials: Sewing Basics

How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 2: Know Your Fabrics) #LearningToSew #Fabrics

  Last week we took a look at this pattern from Simplicity (doll clothes pattern #4654) which is a fantastic pattern for those of us who have been sewing for a while. However, in the image below, I’ve underlined some key terms that tell us this isn’t the ideal pattern for the absolute beginner. I’ve underlined some of the recommended fabrics on the pattern, and … Continue reading How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 2: Know Your Fabrics) #LearningToSew #Fabrics

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Here we see the Chelly Wood doll from the ChellyWood.com website and the ChellyWood1 YouTube channel. She holds up a sewing pattern for 18 inch doll clothes. The pattern's cover image shows Simplicity 18" doll clothes pattern #4654 which includes patterns for making a lined hooded raincoat or coverup, a tank top and skort, a short-sleeved everyday dress, a sunny sleeveless top with capri pants, a T-shirt with cargo pants, and a crop top with skort or shorts. There's also an 18-inch doll pictured on the pattern wearing a denim jumper with overall straps. The doll wears a striped tee shirt under the overall-style jumper. (This is "jumper" in the US sense of the word -- not a "sweater" as we'd say in the US, but more of a dress with the style of overalls). The watermark on this photo reminds us to visit ChellyWood.com for free, printable sewing patterns for making doll clothes to fit dolls of many shapes and all different sizes. This image also has a header that says, "Today's topic of discussion: what makes a pattern difficult for beginners?" And in fact, if you navigate to the link to the article that accompanies this image, doll clothing designer, YouTuber, and writer Chelly Wood discusses all the features that make this particular pattern difficult for a beginner who is just learning to sew. This article is designed to help anyone who teaches sewing classes, is teaching another person how to sew, or people who are, themselves, just learning to sew, what to avoid when purchasing store-bought patterns.
Interviews With Crafters, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Tips for Beginners, Tutorials: Sewing Basics

How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 1) #SewingForDolls #Handmade

I started sewing doll clothes when I was very young, back in the early 1970’s, but I didn’t really learn how to read patterns and pattern instructions until I was about 15 or 16. Reading the instructions on the back of a pattern can seem daunting to a child who is learning to sew, and therefore I don’t advise it for kids under age 12. … Continue reading How to Tell When a Sewing Pattern Is NOT for Beginners (Part 1) #SewingForDolls #Handmade

Chelly Wood2 Comments
Please visit ChellyWood.com for FREE printable sewing patterns to fit dolls of many shapes and sizes. The image shows a Mattel Barbie doll wearing a hand-made felt shirt with lace straps and a lace embellishment at the top of the chest area. The overlay says "easy-sew shirt" and offers the URL ChellyWood.com, where crafters and sewing enthusiasts (or even just people learning how to sew--absolute beginners at sewing) can learn to sew this doll's shirt in a short amount of time. Both the free doll clothes patterns and tutuorial videos are provided (tutorial video on youtube) to help kids or adults learn to sew barbie-sized clothes for dolls.
Barbie Patterns, Disney Princess Dolls, Liv Doll Clothes Patterns, Momoko Doll Patterns, Tutorials: Sewing for Dolls

Sewing #dolls’ clothes with these #free patterns is one of those #CraftsForKids worth doing!

Last week I showed you how to make the super-easy-to-sew skirt that’s shown in today’s DIY tutorial, and I gave you the free skirt pattern too. Today I’m sharing my tutorial for making a super-easy-to-sew Barbie-sized shirt, made from felt and swatches of ruffled lace. Even children and absolute beginners can make this easy-sew doll shirt! Just in case you missed it yesterday, here’s the … Continue reading Sewing #dolls’ clothes with these #free patterns is one of those #CraftsForKids worth doing!

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Image shows a young woman's fingers holding a pink spool of thread. Overlay says, "How to Buy Thread" and offers the URL ChellyWood.com
Interviews With Crafters, Tutorials: Sewing Basics, Yarn and Embroidery

How to Buy Thread When #Sewing for #Dolls @ ChellyWood.com

Last week I gave you a few pointers on how to buy fabric for sewing doll clothes, but did you know some threads are definitely not the best choice for sewing doll clothes also? This video tutorial shows you how to buy your thread with these questions in mind: What fabric will you be using? Are you planning to sew by hand or machine? Are … Continue reading How to Buy Thread When #Sewing for #Dolls @ ChellyWood.com

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Click on the link provided, to find the tutorial video. This image shows orange felt with a black whipstitch pattern across folded fabric. The overlay says, "How to hem a garment by hand, using the whip stitch. The video is found at ChellyWood.com
Tutorials: Sewing Basics

#Embroidery and #Sewing Tips: the Whip #Stitch and MORE! (@ ChellyWood.com)

My regular followers know that beneath each of my YouTube videos, there are links to a number of videos like this “How to Whipstitch” tutorial. These “basic stitchery” tutorials are designed to help you understand terms and concepts within each tutorial, like: How to print my FREE patterns How to sew snaps on fabric How to thread a needle How to sew by hand How to … Continue reading #Embroidery and #Sewing Tips: the Whip #Stitch and MORE! (@ ChellyWood.com)

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Sew Pants for Ken dolls (image of ken doll wearing mustard-colored pants)
Ken Patterns, Tutorials: Sewing for Dolls

#10 in the #CountDown to #NewYear’s: Sew Pants for Ken Dolls @ ChellyWood.com

For the holidays, here on ChellyWood.com, I’m doing a countdown to New Year’s eve. These are my top 15 videos from my YouTube channel! All of my free, printable sewing patterns are found on this page, and this video tutorial can give you a few tips and pointers about how to print my patterns. I use a 1/4-inch seam allowance (that’s standard for fashion dolls). But if you have … Continue reading #10 in the #CountDown to #NewYear’s: Sew Pants for Ken Dolls @ ChellyWood.com

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