Tools and Materials
Gingham cotton fabric, B&J Fabrics
Sewing machine and sewing supplies
Chopstick
Polyester stuffing
Needle
Embroidery floss
Yarn scraps
Baby Doll Template
Boy Doll Template
Dad Doll Template
Girl Doll Template
Mom Doll Template
Gingham Doll Family How-To
- Print desired doll template, and cut out.
- Fold fabric in half with right sides facing; press, and trace template onto fabric. Cut out for 2 layers.
- Allowing a 1/4-inch seam allowance, sew almost all the way around the body. (Leave a 1-inch opening on the torso.)
- Turn doll right side out, using a chopstick for corners.
- Stuff with filling. (Use chopstick as needed to push stuffing into arms and legs.) Handstitch the side opening.
- Embroider facial features: A few back stitches create eyes and a mouth.
- Make the hair. For ponytails and braids, cut 20 to 30 strands of yarn about 12 inches long. Drape sideways over head of doll, and sew at center (or slightly off center) to create a part. To leave hair long, stitch onto doll across the back of the head. For ponytails, clasp sides, and secure with a piece of yarn; stitch onto the head at that point. For pigtails, braid the ponytails, and secure ends with another piece of yarn. For short hair, embroider all over the head using small back stitches.
http://maidenjane.blogspot.com/2011/10/as-i-reflect-on-my-sewing-career-i.html
You can see mine on my blog. I laid the hair on the head and then stitched along the "part". I backstitched, went through the yarn, and repeated until I felt it was secure. I braided the hair and trimmed it. I then stitched anywhere else I felt it needed to be secured.
I too had a problem with the hair. This is how I fixed it. wrap a book about 40 times being careful not to overlap the yarn. Tape 1 inch down from the top on both sides of the book. Cut off on the bottom. Put tissue paper on top and bottom. Sew across with a machine 3 times pretty close together. Take off tissue paper and sew on doll. 40X works well for mom. 30X works well for girl. Hope this helps!
I would love to better understand how to sew the hair down. Pictures? Explanation?
Help! I can't get the templates to down load it says the files are corrupt. Does any know how I can get these cute little patterns??
To make a dress for the doll take the body pattern inlarge by an 1" cut off the arms and legs and head basic pattern for the dress.
The templates are great and I agree about clothing patterns and facial features - at least photos of all of your dolls. Out of three shown, two are the same. Purl Soho has great fabrics.
Adorable craft. What a nice, simple throwback to long ago. Thank you! Would LOVE to have a simple outline of basic clothes, dress, trousers, shirt. It is the dressing and undressing of dolls and paperdolls that little girls love. Please!
I am looking forward to making these for a very sweet little girl. Only wish you had clothes patterns for them. I could see her dressing her little family and having so much fun!
This is a cute, quick project, but I would like to suggest that you offer templates for the facial embroidery. The rest is easy, but the face is going to 'make or break' the whole project. Thanks anyway.
These are very cute! Thanks for the project. You might want to check out your supplier suggestions in the future. The fabric source you list has only silk gingham available online.