In a square purple frame there's a Barbie modeling a handmade strappy sundress with a felt bodice and cotton skirt. The text reads, "Free sewing pattern!"

Learn to sew with this super simple free PDF sewing pattern for Barbie #LearnToSew #KidCrafts

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. We’re right at the tail-end of March, so it’s time to start thinking about sewing projects for Easter and maybe even summer too. So yesterday I shared one of my favorite summer sundress patterns for Barbie, and today I’m sharing the easiest of my summer sundress patterns for Barbie. … Continue reading Learn to sew with this super simple free PDF sewing pattern for Barbie #LearnToSew #KidCrafts

Through a small window of a photo, we see a doll's upper body only, where she wears a bolero jacket or coat that's trimmed in green rickrack to match the color of the dress she wears. There are white rickrack trim images bordering the photo, and above all of this, the thumbnail asks, "When do you add rickrack trim?"

When to Add Rickrack Trim to a Garment #Fashion #SewingTips

Do you see that green zigzag trim along the edges of my Lottie doll’s bolero jacket? That’s rickrack! Webster’s dictionary describes rickrack trim as “a flat braid woven to form zigzags and used especially as trimming on clothing.”* But how does a person decide that a garment needs rickrack trim, and at what point in the garment’s creation does one attach it to the garment? … Continue reading When to Add Rickrack Trim to a Garment #Fashion #SewingTips

The text reads "Free Sewing Pattern" above the Chelly Wood dot com logo. Barbie's little sister models a handmade outfit including a little purple floral skirt and a hand-embroidered and lined pink felt long-sleeved coat or jacket. This is the thumbnail for a page on the ChellyWood.com website where a person can learn how to make this doll clothes outfit for Mattel Kelly dolls (and similar sized dolls) along with retrieving the free PDF sewing pattern for making the coat and skirt worn by the Mattel Kelly doll. ChellyWood.com is not affiliated with Mattel or its subsidiaries.

Free Sewing Patterns for a Charming Miniature Easter Jacket for Barbie’s Sister Kelly Dolls — includes A4 PDF #EmbroideryArt #EasterSunday

Are you looking for the patterns? Scroll down to the second set of bullets. Easter is a great time to practice embroidery stitches! But if you’re not a fan of embroidery, that’s okay. Today’s “Easter jacket” is easily made without the embroidered details too. And yes, we’ve seen this project before, but this is the first time I’ve posted it for Kelly. So now I’ll … Continue reading Free Sewing Patterns for a Charming Miniature Easter Jacket for Barbie’s Sister Kelly Dolls — includes A4 PDF #EmbroideryArt #EasterSunday

The image shows the Chelly Wood doll (it's really a Spin Master Liv doll that has had its face repainted and its hair dyed white-ish-grey) holding up a Simplicity doll clothes pattern #4883 for sewing a wardrobe to fit vintage Tammy dolls from Ideal Toy Corp. The article associated with this image asks blog followers to leave comments describing the first doll clothes pattern they learned to sew from as a child. Visit ChellyWood.com to join the discussion!

Vintage fabric trim — making the crop top from vintage Simplicity 4883 for Ideal Tammy #DIY #SummerProjects

The garment trim you see above was part of a box of old lace and garment trims that my mother-in-law gave me. I suspect that this little piece of trim had been removed from a garment that was no longer useable because the trim was partially gathered and had little threads hanging from the area I’ve labeled as “fraying gather edge.” It was also yellowing … Continue reading Vintage fabric trim — making the crop top from vintage Simplicity 4883 for Ideal Tammy #DIY #SummerProjects

Within a turquoise blue frame, we see a lazy susan turntable with a gingham cotton coverlet, sitting on a kitchen table with a chair in the background. Inside the lazy susan are two spice bottles and a bottle of extra virgin olive oil. The text reads "free sewing pattern" while an arrow points to the gingham coverlet on the lazy susan turntable.

How to make a washable lazy susan cover — easy cleaning! #LazySusan #Condiments

Please scroll down to the bullets for the free printable PDF sewing pattern and links to any additional relevant tutorial videos. I needed a lazy susan for my kitchen because my condiments and spices were being kept in a messy pileup on the counter. So I bought a lovely wicker and wooden lazy susan from Blubird Haven Giftshop on Etsy. I planned to keep olive … Continue reading How to make a washable lazy susan cover — easy cleaning! #LazySusan #Condiments

On a purple thumbnail, an African American Chelsea doll models a handmade Easter outfit. Beside her, the words "free sewing pattern!" accompany the Chelly Wood dot com logo.

Make Chelsea and Barbie matching Easter outfits with today’s free sewing patterns @ ChellyWood.com #Easter #CraftProjects

Scroll down to the second set of bullets to download the free printable PDF sewing pattern. Easter is just a hop, skip, and a jump away, so if you’re going to make some doll clothes for a child, this little felt top and matching Easter-egg-print skirt for a tiny Chelsea doll is just what you need, since it only takes about an hour to make … Continue reading Make Chelsea and Barbie matching Easter outfits with today’s free sewing patterns @ ChellyWood.com #Easter #CraftProjects

Within this turquoise blue frame, a 1980's Barbie models a pink handmade summer top and separate Easter-egg print miniskirt with lace trim. The text reads, "Free sewing patterns!" The Chelly Wood dot com logo appears beneath the text.

Sew an Easter outfit for Barbie with today’s free doll clothes sewing patterns @ ChellyWood.com! #Crafts #Barbie

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. On March 13th, I gave you a new sleeveless summer top pattern for Barbie, but at the time, I didn’t have anything new designed to go with the sleeveless top. Then, on March 27th, I gave you a quick, easy-to-sew pattern and free tutorial video for making a lace-trimmed … Continue reading Sew an Easter outfit for Barbie with today’s free doll clothes sewing patterns @ ChellyWood.com! #Crafts #Barbie

A vintage Ideal Tammy doll stands next to the envelope for the Simplicity 4883 doll clothes pattern for Tammy. The doll wears the exact same dress pictured on the cover art from the Simplicity 4883 pattern: a ball gown with a red satin bodice and straps, a white cotton circle skirt (floor length) that's covered with tulle and dotted with tiny red satin roses. The text says "View 2 Prom Dress" under "Simplicity 4883." The chellywood.com logo appears in the image as well.

Where to buy miniature satin roses, now that JoAnn’s is closed #JoAnn #Miniatures

  Some of you may recall seeing a fun little stop-motion video short that I did, in which my “Chelly doll” is wearing a lovely gown with a red satin bodice, tulle skirting, and miniature satin roses. That short was a video I created for a contest at the school where I work. That doll dress was actually designed to fit Ideal Tammy dolls (not … Continue reading Where to buy miniature satin roses, now that JoAnn’s is closed #JoAnn #Miniatures

On a purple background with tiny white polka dots, we see a Barbie from the waist down, her hands on her hips. She wears a teeny-tiny miniskirt made of pink cotton fabric that has an Easter egg print in pastel colors decorating the pink cotton of the skirt. The hem of the skirt sports a little soft pink zigzag of lace trim. The text reads, "Free sewing pattern!" and beneath this is the logo for Chelly Wood dot com.

Make an Easter-themed miniskirt for a Barbie doll with today’s free pattern @ ChellyWood.com! #EasterCrafts #BarbieFun

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. On March 13th, I gave you a new sleeveless summer top pattern for Barbie, but at the time, I didn’t have anything new designed to go with the sleeveless top. I decided to remake an older tutorial for a lace-trimmed miniskirt, which I thought would look very nice with … Continue reading Make an Easter-themed miniskirt for a Barbie doll with today’s free pattern @ ChellyWood.com! #EasterCrafts #BarbieFun

The words "free pattern" are angled across a turquoise blue linen background, above the ChellyWood.com logo, and beside these is a Made to Move Barbie who carries a pretty white cotton purse with a yellow strap. The white cotton of the purse is decorated with a tiny fruits pattern. Her dress is made of the same white cotton "fruity" fabric, and the dress has cotton straps made of the same material. The skirt of the sundress is short. She wears yellow plastic sandals.

Sew a “fruity” summer sundress for Barbie with a beach bag or purse! #Barbie #Fashion

For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. This week I’m revisiting a couple of my favorite summer outfits for Barbie because we’ve come to the last week of March. So it’s time to start planning Barbie’s summer wardrobe! This “fruity” sundress is especially easy to make if you use a ribbon for the strap like the … Continue reading Sew a “fruity” summer sundress for Barbie with a beach bag or purse! #Barbie #Fashion

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.

What are the easiest Barbie doll summer clothes patterns for sewing? #Summer #Sewing

As we come to the end of March, it’s time to start sewing our summer projects. So today’s blog post answers the question, “What are the easiest Barbie doll summer clothes patterns for sewing?” Today’s post will be about the vintage patterns that I own, but if you’re looking for more modern summer clothes patterns for your Barbie dolls, I plan to do a couple … Continue reading What are the easiest Barbie doll summer clothes patterns for sewing? #Summer #Sewing

On a white table, we see all kinds of tools one would find in a sewing room: thread, scissors, a tape measure, and doll clothes patterns. Beside these and in the lower left corner is a blue alarm clock. The implication is that there's not enough time in the day for all the sewing projects!

How to make more time for sewing projects — three quick tips! #SewingTips #SewingProjects

As many of my regular followers know, I’m a full-time school librarian in my “day job,” and that’s a busy job to have! So every now and then, people ask me, “How do you find time for your sewing projects?” Today’s blog post will show you three quick tips for getting lots of little crafty sewing projects done while maintaining a full-time job (and whatever … Continue reading How to make more time for sewing projects — three quick tips! #SewingTips #SewingProjects

A Topper Dawn doll models a handmade floral Easter or springtime dress that's sleeveless. She stands next to the text which reads, "Free pattern!" and below this is the Chelly Wood dot com logo.

Let’s sew a pretty Easter dress for Topper Dawn and Pippa dolls #Miniatures #Easter

Scroll down to the second set of bullets to download the free printable PDF sewing pattern.* Today happens to be the first day of spring, so what better day to offer a new pattern for a lovely springtime or Easter dress? The pattern I’m giving you today makes a lovely sleeveless dress for 6 to 6.5 inch fashion dolls like Topper Dawn, Palitoy Pippa, Breyer … Continue reading Let’s sew a pretty Easter dress for Topper Dawn and Pippa dolls #Miniatures #Easter

Inside a purple frame, talk bubbles express Q for Questions and A for Answers. The text reads, "Sewing tips for beginners." This is a thumbnail for a Q and A blog post for beginners who are learning to sew and want to "pick the brain" of an experienced doll clothing designer, Chelly Wood.

A couple of tips for getting the elastic to go through a casing #SewingTips #Elastic

You may remember that I extended an invitation to submit questions a couple of weeks back. Well today’s blog post answers one of those questions regarding the pulling of elastic through a casing. Before we dive into this topic, I need to make my required disclaimer statement: As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. To learn more about how affiliate marketing works on … Continue reading A couple of tips for getting the elastic to go through a casing #SewingTips #Elastic

The Chelly Wood doll stands next to the Advance 9938 Barbie doll clothes sewing pattern with her cartoonish sewing room behind her.

Learning to Sew with Advance 9938 Doll Clothes Sewing Patterns from 1961 #SewVintage #Barbie

Don’t you just love the artwork on these old Barbie patterns? I could stare at this envelope all day, dreaming of the wonderful outfits I could make with it! I’ve written a few articles about the outfits offered in Advance 9938, and if you click on the links I’ve provided below, you can read all about the lessons I’ve learned by sewing these patterns. I … Continue reading Learning to Sew with Advance 9938 Doll Clothes Sewing Patterns from 1961 #SewVintage #Barbie