Sew in Style: Make Your Own Doll Clothes

By Erin Hentzel

Projects for young stitchers to dress up their dolls: “Covers so many sewing basics—how to use a pattern, sewing seams, pressing, sewing curves and corners.” —Gen Q Magazine

Get your amateur designer or stylist sewing with this how-to manual for kids who want to create one-of-a-kind looks for their 18” dolls.

Twenty-two trendy clothing and accessory projects—from yoga pants to skinny jeans to a messenger bag—encourage kids to mix and match to design their own unique outfits. Lessons on sewing basics, step-by-step photos, links to full-size patterns, and projects for all skill levels ensure that budding designers will have no trouble creating the looks they always wanted for their favorite 18" companions.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Apr 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781607057963

Erin Hentzel

Erin Hentzel first fell in love with sewing as a child, when she began making stuffed animals and doll clothes. Today, she runs sewing pattern company Avery Lane and teaches sewing classes near her home in Willamette Valley, Oregon. averylanesewing.com

Book preview

What’s in This Chapter?

Your Sewing Basket ( page 8 )

A Little about Fabrics ( page 12 )

Using a Pattern ( page 14 )

Sewing by Hand ( page 17 )

Sewing by Machine ( page 20 )

Sewing Seams ( page 22 )

Pressing Seam Allowances ( page 26 )

Finger-Pressing ( page 26 )

Making a Double-Folded Hem ( page 27 )

Sewing a Casing for an Elastic Waistband or Drawstring ( page 28 )

Sewing and Trimming Corners ( page 30 )

Sewing and Clipping Curves ( page 32 )

Sewing Hook-and-Loop Tape ( page 33 )

Glossary (page 34)

Your Sewing Basket

You’ll need some supplies and common sewing tools. A shoe box, plastic container, or basket can be a great place to keep all your sewing supplies. Your sewing basket can be anything you want it to be.

Here is a list of things you’ll want to keep in your sewing basket and that you will need to sew the projects in this book.

A

Hand sewing needles. I use embroidery needles for hand sewing. They have sharp points and big eyes for easy threading.

B

A place to store your sewing needles. A piece of felt, felt needle book, or wooden needle box all work great.

C

Needle threader. This handy gadget helps you thread your needle quickly when hand sewing.

D

Fabric scissors. A good pair of sharp scissors will save you time and frustration when cutting your patterns out of fabric.

tip

Keep your fabric scissors sharp. Only cut fabric, thread, and ribbon with them.

E

Spools of thread. All-purpose thread is best for the projects in this book. Choose thread that matches your fabric.

F

Straight pins. Use straight pins for pinning patterns to the fabric and for pinning fabric together before you sew a seam.

G

Pincushion. A pincushion is a place to put your pins. It is easier to grab a pin from a pincushion than from a flat surface when you’re sewing.

H

Measuring tape. Since it’s flexible, it’s perfect for measuring things that are round or curved, like your doll’s waist.

I

 Sewing gauge. A sewing gauge helps you mark stitching lines and pressing folds. You can use the blue slider to set it to your desired seam allowance or to the length you need to fold.

J

Ruler. Use a ruler for drawing the cutting lines on some of the book’s projects.

K

Fabric marker or tailor’s chalk. This is useful for drawing cutting lines directly onto fabric and for transferring pattern markings onto your fabric.

tip

On the sewing gauge, an inch is divided into 8 equal parts, so the second line equals ¼˝.

L

Thimble. When hand sewing, place the thimble on your middle finger to protect it from getting poked when pushing the needle through your fabric.

M

Seam ripper. This tool helps you pick out stitches when you make a mistake. And we all make mistakes.

N

Safety pins. Use safety pins when inserting elastic or drawstrings into casings.

In addition to your sewing basket, keep an iron and ironing board handy. If you don’t have these available, no worries! You can still make all the projects without them.

More Helpful Tools

As you sew more and more, you may want to gradually collect additional sewing tools to help you with your sewing projects. These tools are designed to make sewing easier but are not absolutely necessary.

O

A ¼˝ presser foot. This makes sewing a ¼˝ seam allowance much easier. Using a ¼˝ presser foot means that if you sew with the edge of your presser foot lined up with the edge of your fabric, you will be sewing a ¼˝ seam allowance.

P

Pinking shears. The zigzag blades are designed for fabric. Pinking shears are the easiest way to finish seam allowances.

Q

Small, sharp scissors. These are great for cutting threads and clipping curves.

R

Dritz Ezy-Hem. This is good for folding and pressing hems and casings.

S

A corner-turning tool. This helps you poke out corners after turning a project right side out. Some have a flat edge for finger-pressing.

A Little about Fabrics

Woven Fabrics

Woven fabrics don’t have much stretch when you tug on them. When project instructions call for woven fabrics, look for fabrics such as quilting cotton, calico cotton, chambray, lightweight denim, flannel, poplin, or corduroy.

Knit Fabrics

Knit fabrics are stretchy. T-shirts are made from knit fabrics. When project instructions call for knit fabrics, look for fabrics such as cotton Lycra, jersey knit, and cotton interlock. Because knit fabrics don’t unravel, there is no need to finish the seam allowances of knits.

Selvage

Fabric has a width and a length. The selvage edge is the length. It