Doll Mini-Wardrobe and a Play Sling

A few weeks ago, I got a phone call from a friend's not-quite-four-year-old (I think?), asking if I would make her doll a dress.  Obviously a request like that must be taken very, very seriously.  The dress turned into two outfits for her baby and one for her older sister's.


I found a bunch of patterns here and got to work.  I made her sister's doll a reversible cross-back dress and bloomers.

Back View

Then I went for a poofy party dress!  This one has a hook & loop closure in the back.

I think my favorite, though, is this casual outfit, a knit peasant top and jeans!  Hee hee.  I used some pants that E. had outgrown so the hems and side seams would look authentic.

I've never sewn doll clothes before -- although I did once knit several pieces for my older niece's American Girl dolls -- and I really had fun putting them together.

As I was working on the doll wardrobe, another friend asked me if I would make a play sling for her daughter as a gift for when her new sibling was born.  Surprisingly, I didn't have any long enough pieces of girly fabric, so I was forced to go to the fabric store.  It was rough.  ;)  I got enough extra to make a dress for E. as well, so you'll be seeing this print again, hopefully soon.

I make doll slings almost exactly the way Jan Andrea shows here.  I used to sell them on Hyena Cart in my one-child days of leisure and even emailed Jan to see when she had put her instructions up, since they're nearly identical.  I'm a big fan of her site and wondered if I had read them, forgotten about it and then subconsciously made mine the same way!  Turns out I made my first one right before she posted her tutorial.  Nothing new under the sun, right?