Tag: Sewing Tips

In this image, we see the top half of the Barbie Advance 9938 doll clothes sewing pattern. View 1 shows a typical just-below-the-knee strappy sun dress in yellow fabric. View 2 shows an Asian-style sheath dress with side buttons that run from the Mandarin collar across the bust, to the underarm. This View 2 dress is in solid blue. There's an arrow pointing to the View 3 dress, which is made with a pink bodice and a white floor length full skirt that's dotted with tiny pink flowers. This is a strapless party gown, and the doll wearing it is a cartoon-ish blond ponytail Barbie with a pink ribbon in her hair. The text which has an arrow pointing to the View 3 dress says "Advance 9938 View 3."
Curvy Barbie, Holiday Crafts, Jem and the Holograms, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tammy Doll Patterns, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Are there any sewing patterns that will fit big bust dolls? #MeMadeMonday #CustomDolls

When you own a doll with a big bust or a curvier figure than the average modern day Barbie, it can be challenging to find sewing patterns to fit her. People reach out to me now and then asking for patterns to fit dolls with curvier figures, from a variety of different doll making companies. So today’s blog post will show you an evening gown … Continue reading Are there any sewing patterns that will fit big bust dolls? #MeMadeMonday #CustomDolls

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The Chelly Wood doll stands next to the Advance 9938 Barbie doll clothes sewing pattern with her cartoonish sewing room behind her.
Fabric, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

What fabrics to avoid when sewing doll clothes #VintageBarbie #thriftedfabric

Today’s project is a vintage Barbie dress with panels across the bodice. I used two different vintage Barbie patterns to make this dress for a good reason: I was trying to use up my tiny bits of leftover purple fabric! I also had some black fabric, which I had bought at a yard sale. This black fabric was some sort of polyester blend, and it … Continue reading What fabrics to avoid when sewing doll clothes #VintageBarbie #thriftedfabric

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Chelly Wood doll stands next to the pattern envelope for vintage Simplicity 9097, a 1970s era wardrobe for Barbie dolls. Among these patterns are the following ensembles: view 1: a wedding dress with empire waist, high collar, and bell sleeves; view 2: a similar evening gown shown in purple; view 3 a mod dress with pleated skirt and sleeveless bodice; view 3 B: the same mod dress shown with a short cape and scarf; view 4: a turtleneck blouse with raglan sleeves and a long skirt; view 5: the same blouse with a pair of trousers and a long, below-the-hip length vest.
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Learning to sew with vintage Simplicity 9097 Barbie patterns #MeMadeMonday #SewRetro

Today’s blog post is a collection of lessons I’ve learned while sewing the Simplicity 9097 doll clothes patterns. As with other blog posts on my Vintage Pattern page, I’ll be adding to this list of lessons as I create different outfits using this pattern. Before I go on, I need to make my required disclaimer statement: As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. … Continue reading Learning to sew with vintage Simplicity 9097 Barbie patterns #MeMadeMonday #SewRetro

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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.
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

How to alter a turtleneck so it’s a regular style of shirt #MeMadeMonday #SewingHack

The numbers for the View 5 and View 6 outfits are covered up by the price tag in the image above, but today’s blog post will explain how I removed the turtleneck collar from these two vintage Barbie shirt patterns, to create a more basic shirt neckline for this easy-to-make shirt. You may want to look back at last week’s post, so you can see … Continue reading How to alter a turtleneck so it’s a regular style of shirt #MeMadeMonday #SewingHack

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The Simplicity 9097 pattern envelope appears on the right. On the left, there’s a close-up of the doll clothes outfits for the View 3 skirt, top, cape and scarf. The blue “ra-ra” skirt is 1960’s style super-short with two pleats in the front. The white top is sleeveless with side darts. The scarf appears to be a white ribbon with red polka dots, tied around the doll’s neck. The blue cape is waist length and has two white buttons at the top of an asymmetrical closure.
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Sewing Ribbon to Fabric: Which ribbon would you pick and why? #SewingLessons #SewVintage

Last week’s Monday blog post was about finding someone else’s unfinished doll clothes project in an envelope for a doll clothes sewing pattern that I bought at a second-hand store. I decided to embrace the unfinished project, which was just a skirt piece for the View 3 dress from the Simplicity 9097 doll clothes pattern that you see pictured above. But there was a problem… … Continue reading Sewing Ribbon to Fabric: Which ribbon would you pick and why? #SewingLessons #SewVintage

Chelly Wood4 Comments
McCall's 6260 vintage Barbie patterns: view A shows a ponytail Barbie wearing a pink gingham dress with lace skirt overlaid and a matching pair of pink gingham panties (shown below the doll on a silver graphic line); View B shows a silver evening gown (strapless) with matching stole and a pink ribbon tied at the waist; View C shows a pink swing coat with very large pockets and lots of buttons; View D shows an orange Kimono style bath robe with white trim and a white belt tied at the waist; View E shows a pair of high-waisted black pants with a little bolero style pink top over the top of them; View F shows a blue bikini with tiny pink polka dots.
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Unfinished Sewing Projects #MeMadeMonday #SewVintage

Have you ever discovered someone else’s unfinished craft project or sewing project in an unexpected place? And if so, were you tempted to finish the project they started? Today’s blog post is about one such unfinished sewing project! I bought the envelope you see in the image above, and when I got home and opened it up… there was a UFO inside! (An unfinished object.) … Continue reading Unfinished Sewing Projects #MeMadeMonday #SewVintage

Chelly Wood5 Comments
ON a swatch of wool fabric, we see patterns for a jacket front, a jacket back, a hat top, and a hat crown. All of these are Barbie doll sewing patterns from Simplicity 7601 hat and coat set. Because the swatch of fabric is quite small, we see that the coat front has been aligned with the nap arrow facing East and west, while the coat back has its arrow facing north and south. The hat top arrow faces east-west while the hat crown's nap arrow faces north and south. The fabric is a burgundy color with black chevron-shaped print.
Crafts and Hobbies, Interviews With Crafters, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Tips for Beginners, Tutorials: Crafts, Tutorials: Sewing Basics

How to cut out a Barbie doll clothes sewing pattern Part 3 (What do the arrows mean?) #Sewcialists #Sewing

Since Monday, I’ve been revisiting some older blog posts that teach some basics for cutting out a commercial sewing pattern. Today’s blog post is part of that series. I do have good news, though… My computer is back up and running after being in the fixit shop for most of the month of March. What does this mean? It means I have a LOT of … Continue reading How to cut out a Barbie doll clothes sewing pattern Part 3 (What do the arrows mean?) #Sewcialists #Sewing

Chelly Wood3 Comments
McCall's 6260 vintage Barbie patterns: view A shows a ponytail Barbie wearing a pink gingham dress with lace skirt overlaid and a matching pair of pink gingham panties (shown below the doll on a silver graphic line); View B shows a silver evening gown (strapless) with matching stole and a pink ribbon tied at the waist; View C shows a pink swing coat with very large pockets and lots of buttons; View D shows an orange Kimono style bath robe with white trim and a white belt tied at the waist; View E shows a pair of high-waisted black pants with a little bolero style pink top over the top of them; View F shows a blue bikini with tiny pink polka dots.
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Learning to sew with vintage McCall’s 6260 Barbie patterns #MeMadeMonday #SewRetro

Today’s blog post is a collection of lessons I’ve learned while sewing McCall’s 6260 doll clothes patterns. As with other blog posts on my Vintage Pattern page, I’ll be adding to this list of lessons as I create different outfits using this pattern. Before I go on, I need to make my required disclaimer statement: As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. To … Continue reading Learning to sew with vintage McCall’s 6260 Barbie patterns #MeMadeMonday #SewRetro

Chelly WoodLeave a comment
A quilted frame surrounds an image of Vogue Craft 9985 (featuring the Victorian bridal dress for a Barbie and a tuxedo for Ken) beside the Chelly Wood doll who points to the pattern. This pattern is for a wedding dress and tux for Barbie and Ken, in a Victorian era style. It's Vogue Craft 9985 from the late 1800's to early 1900s in history, although the pattern is copyrighted 1998.
Ken Patterns, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Vogue Craft 9985 doll clothes sewing pattern for Barbie and Ken #MeMadeMonday #Sewing

Sometimes people who visit my website for the first time think I’m offering these copyrighted patterns for free. That’s not the case, of course. My website does offer free sewing patterns for Barbie, Ken, and similar-sized dolls, and if you need help finding those patterns, this link should help. However today’s blog post is all about the lessons I’ve personally learned from my Vogue Craft … Continue reading Vogue Craft 9985 doll clothes sewing pattern for Barbie and Ken #MeMadeMonday #Sewing

Chelly Wood5 Comments
The thumbnail, framed by a turquoise blue and purple quilt, shows the front of the envelope for Simplicity 5861, a vintage doll clothes pattern for Skipper, from 1964. The text in this thumbnail reads, "Vintage Skipper Simplicity 5861" and under this, we see the Chelly Wood dot com logo.
History and Research, Holiday Crafts, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Skipper Patterns, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie, Vintage Skipper

Sewing a blouse for modern Skipper using a vintage Skipper doll’s patterns! #MeMadeMonday #BlackHistory

If you’ve been following my Monday blog posts, then you’ll know that my modern Skipper doll, shown above, is supposed to look like one of Mary McLeod Bethune‘s students in a vintage black-and-white photo from the early 1900’s. To learn more about Mary McLeod Bethune‘s profoundly important work in the fields of education and civil rights, please click here. Before I go on, I need … Continue reading Sewing a blouse for modern Skipper using a vintage Skipper doll’s patterns! #MeMadeMonday #BlackHistory

Chelly WoodLeave a comment
The thumbnail, framed by a turquoise blue and purple quilt, shows the front of the envelope for Simplicity 5861, a vintage doll clothes pattern for Skipper, from 1964. The text in this thumbnail reads, "Vintage Skipper Simplicity 5861" and under this, we see the Chelly Wood dot com logo.
History and Research, Holiday Crafts, Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Stacie Patterns, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Skipper

Altering a shirt from Simplicity 5861 to make Mary McLeod Bethune’s students’ blouses #BlackHistoryMonth #SewWithMe

This month, as part of my celebration of Black History Month, I’ve been delving into the clothing worn by Mary McLeod Bethune and her students, in the photo at the top of today’s blog post. You can learn more about Mary McLeod Bethune by clicking on the links I’ve provided whenever her name appears in this post. Today’s blog post will discuss how I made … Continue reading Altering a shirt from Simplicity 5861 to make Mary McLeod Bethune’s students’ blouses #BlackHistoryMonth #SewWithMe

Chelly WoodLeave a comment
The Chelly Wood doll stands beside the Simplicity 4510 vintage Barbie pattern envelope. The Chelly Wood doll looks like she's holding up the envelope. The Chelly Wood doll wears a red and white gingham shirt with matching hair scarf, and a pair of black pants with black flats. The image has a quilted frame.
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Making a Skirt Like Mary McLeod Bethune’s with Simplicity 4510 #MeMadeMonday #BlackHistory

Last Monday we learned that Mary McLeod Bethune was “a pioneering American educator and civil rights leader” (Library of Congress) associated with African American leadership in education, women’s suffrage, and the founding of the United Negro College Fund. An impressive resume, if ever there was one. If you’d like to learn more about Mary McLeod Bethune, please go back to read last Monday’s blog post … Continue reading Making a Skirt Like Mary McLeod Bethune’s with Simplicity 4510 #MeMadeMonday #BlackHistory

Chelly WoodLeave a comment
McCall's 6260 vintage Barbie patterns: view A shows a ponytail Barbie wearing a pink gingham dress with lace skirt overlaid and a matching pair of pink gingham panties (shown below the doll on a silver graphic line); View B shows a silver evening gown (strapless) with matching stole and a pink ribbon tied at the waist; View C shows a pink swing coat with very large pockets and lots of buttons; View D shows an orange Kimono style bath robe with white trim and a white belt tied at the waist; View E shows a pair of high-waisted black pants with a little bolero style pink top over the top of them; View F shows a blue bikini with tiny pink polka dots.
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

Did you store a swatch of lace with your Barbie clothes when you were a kid? #VintageBarbie #Memories

Isn’t this an adorable pattern? See the View A dress? Notice the layer of eyelet lace that serves as a top skirt? That’s going to be my focus. Do you think the designer was trying to create an apron with that eyelet? Or do you think it’s just there to make the dress look lacy and feminine? Before I go on, I need to make … Continue reading Did you store a swatch of lace with your Barbie clothes when you were a kid? #VintageBarbie #Memories

Chelly WoodLeave a comment
Four vintage Barbie doll clothes patterns appear next to the Chelly Wood doll, under the heading "panties," and with each of the pattern envelopes, a neon pink arrow points at the location of the underpants pattern as it appears on the envelope. The patterns shown here are McCall's 6260, McCall's 6420, Simplicity 9054, and McCall's 3429 (which is shown from the back of the pattern envelope -- pointing to the location of the underpants pattern there).
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

What’s the best fabric for making doll panties? #MeMadeMonday #SewVintage

If you’ve been following my series on doll undergarments, here on ChellyWood.com, you’ll recognize number four above. It’s a pair of panties I sewed using a vintage doll clothes patterns. But what about the other ones? What’s their story? Well, please take note of the types of fabrics each pair of panties is made from because that will be the focus of today’s blog post! … Continue reading What’s the best fabric for making doll panties? #MeMadeMonday #SewVintage

Chelly WoodLeave a comment
Simplicity 9054, showing the envelope front, which displays swimwear, hippie clothes, and 1960s and early 1970s fashions for both Ken and Barbie
Old Patterns from Chelly's Collection, Sewing and Fashion History, Tips for Beginners, Vintage Barbie

What’s the best underpants pattern for dolls? #PatternReview #SewWithMe

Today I’ll be exploring how elastic changes the fit of a pair of fashion doll underpants, when sewing the View 4 bikini bottoms from Simplicity 9054. As you can see in the image above, the View 4 patterns offer a bikini swimsuit option, which of course, can become a bra and underpants, if you’re creative with your fabric choices and the execution of that fabric … Continue reading What’s the best underpants pattern for dolls? #PatternReview #SewWithMe

Chelly Wood2 Comments