Sewing for Dolls: Some Last Minute Halloween Costumes

This post contains affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

I cut it really close for this next craft project, but at least they are finished.  Just in time for Halloween.

Doll sized Halloween costumes.

I got my 1/6 scale ball jointed dolls all ready for Halloween.  Or should I say they got themselves ready?  Check out the doll blog to see, also to learn how to make some of these costumes for your own dolls at home. 

For this one (Yuna), it’s a super easy ghost costume.  Just need to cut some sheer gauzy fabric and slip it on.

My sister thought I should do it like on the Charlie Brown Halloween special, maybe next year.

This little boy is just wearing the cat eared headband I made previously.  Check out my doll headband video tutorial to make one, it works for dolls of all sizes.

For the next costume, you can see here how the doll (Sakura) “made it herself”.

It started as a simple robe, that could work for a wizard.  Don’t forget to check out my doll blog to see how to make it.

But, flip it around and throw on a hat, and it’s a classic witch costume.

The next costume (for Momoko) started as a doll swimsuit with a tutu, instant ballerina.

The tutu is made from a long piece of tulle folded in half with some elastic. 

But, take one of these butterflies from Dollartree and glue on a clip…

…Then clip it on my doll’s clothes for wings…

…And now it’s a fairy costume.

All the dolls dressed and ready for trick or treating, but one more thing.

These little buckets.  I was lucky enough to find them at Goodwill, but they actually sell them at Party City.

You can find the pumpkin buckets here and the Cauldrons here.

They are just the right size for my dolls, and add just the right touch to my doll sized Halloween.

Here’s the updated list:

• Costume
• Case
• Doll and Kitty
• Little Halloween
• 3 Skirts
• Accessories
• Socks
• Overalls
• Ornaments
• More Cases

Two down, eight more to go.  Happy Halloween everybody.

Give it a try:

• Singer Sewing Kit Beginner's
• 9" x 12" Basic Felt by Creatology
• ArtMinds® Fashion Mini Glue Gun
• Floral Garden Sheer Butterflies and Flowers
• Pumpkin Trick or Treat Candy Pails 12ct
• Black Candy Cauldrons 12ct

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Quick and Easy Dollar Store Tea Set Makeover

This post may contain affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

Finally, the last project on my list.  A pretty tea set.

I wanted another cute little porcelain tea set for my dolls and stuff.  You used to be able to find them at most dollar stores.  Sadly that’s not the case anymore. 

So, I did the next best thing.

I got a plastic set instead (see the doll blog for their reaction).  You can find this tea set at Dollar Tree as well as most dollar stores.

It’s the right size and is sort of cute, but the colors are kind of tacky.  The easiest way to fix the color issue was to paint it.

So let’s paint some plastic!

I gathered up some supplies I had on hand and got to work.  I used acrylic paints, paint brushes, a paper plate for the paint, and glossy Mod Podge. 

The Mod Podge protects the work and makes the pieces shiny and pretty.

I also used these, nail emery boards.  You could also use fine sand paper, but I used these because it’s what I had around.

So first, I lightly sanded the surface of all my pieces.  This helps the paint stick on better, or so I’ve been told.

Then I applied 2 coats of white paint to all the pieces, allowing them to dry between coats.  I painted one side of each piece at a time.

I was going to paint the pieces a different color after the white paint dried, but I decided they looked pretty that way and went with it.

I then added some pale pink paint to bring out some of the details.

And finally, I applied two coats of the glossy Mod Podge (allowing to dry between coats) to seal and finish them.

The tea set looks so much nicer now.  The gloss makes the pieces look very porcelain-like, but since they are plastic I don’t have to worry about dropping them.

I could have painted little designs on the cups like flowers and such if I wanted to, but maybe I will save that for another set.

I really like how cute the tea pot came out.  There were little roses around the heart that I didn’t even notice until I started painting it.

The plates look really pretty too, the hearts are so sweet.

I added a touch of pink to the spoons to tie them into the set, also because painting them white made them look too much like “disposable” plastic spoons.  Maybe next time I’ll try using a silver or gold paint.

Over all, I think the tea set looks great and it would be fun to paint more of them in the future.

Here’s the updated list:

• 3 piece outfit
• Holder
• First aid cases
• Umbrella
• Tea set
• Tote

Six down and out.

Give it a try:

• Plastic Toy Tea Sets, 14 pc.
• Craft Smart® Acrylic Paint, 2 oz.
• Mod Podge® Gloss
• Craft Smart® All Purpose Brush Set
• Sassy+Chic Printed Emery Boards, 2-ct. Packs

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Sewing for Dolls: Pink Sweater Set with Navy Skirt

This post may contain affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

After way, way too much time away, I finely have gotten around to posting my next project.  More doll clothes!

One of my ball jointed dolls has been long overdue for a new outfit.  I had visions of pink and navy blue in my head, so I made this cute and classic set.  There’s a pink “sweater set”, a navy blue half circle skirt, and a tiny bow pin.  I wanted to add a cute beret, but my fabric choices weren’t cutting it.

Here’s the new doll outfit worn by it’s cute owner.  (By the way, the headband she is wearing is made from this tutorial.)

The sweater set was made from a pair of pink knee socks (like these).  I just made another sock sweater and whipped up a knit top to go underneath.

The top is sleeveless because this is Arizona and Summer temperatures last into “Fall”. :(

The easiest piece to make was the bow pin.  Just make a tiny bow with ribbon (here’s a video for it), then flip it over…

…And sew on a tiny gold safety pin.  Easy doll sized pin done!

The skirt is another doll sized half circle skirt, just made smaller for this 1/6 scale doll instead.  I used more of the poplin fabric leftover from other projects (a dress, a costume, a bag, and still counting).

If you’re interested in making this outfit for your own yosd sized ball jointed dolls or similar sized dolls, I whipped up a tutorial for the whole outfit with patterns for the skirt and top, instructions and other links.  You can find it here on my doll blog.

Here’s the updated list:

• 3 piece outfit
• Holder
• First aid cases
• Umbrella
• Tea set
• Tote

Five down, just one more to go.  So close!

Give it a try:

• Girls' Knee-High Socks 2pk - Cat & Jack™ Pink
• Singer Sewing Kit Beginner's

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Crafting for Dolls: Straw Hats to Half Bonnets

This post may contain affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

Later than planned, but here is the last project on my craft list.  Finally.

Some time ago, I found a package of small bonnet style straw hats at Bookman’s.  They were only 50 cents!

I bought them thinking I could make pretty bonnets for my ball jointed dolls, until I tried them on them.  They were too small, even for my smallest dolls!

What do you do with too small doll straw hats?

You make half bonnets.

Years ago, I came across a tutorial for taking a child size straw hat and turning it into a half bonnet.  Surprisingly I still remembered it, so I thought “why not try that for a doll?”

So I made three ball jointed doll sized half bonnets.  They came out so cute!

They are trimmed on the outside with flowers and bows with ribbons for tying.

On the inside, I added ruffled lace to frame the doll’s face.  And it’s a great way to use up lace scraps.

See, doesn’t it look so pretty on Yuna?

Not that they don’t also look lovely on Hikaru here, I mostly intended to make the bonnets for her anyway.

If you are interested in making some of these half bonnets for your dolls, I whipped up a quick tutorial on my doll blog.

Here’s the updated list:

• Dress makeover
• Doll undies
• Cameo and Hearts
• Blouse makeover
• Phone case
• Outfit
• Mother’s Day
• Costume fix
• Jammies
• Bonnet

Ten down and out.  Finally finished this list! 

So now to start up on the next one.  I will have it posted by Sunday.  Look forward to it!

Give it a try:

• Straw Hat - Round Top - Natural - 8 inches
• 6" Round Top Straw Hat | Hobby Lobby | 28771
• Wrights Double Fold Bias Tape- 1/4'' x 4yds | Jo-Ann
• Victoria Lynn™ Ribbon Roses Bunch, Red

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Sewing for Dolls: Faux Button Down Tank and Half Circle Skirt for Bjds

This post may contain affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

I said this post was going to be “a little” late, then it ended up being super late.  I finished the project then got distracted by a few things, but that’s for another post.

Anyway, I got another ball jointed doll several months ago from a Black Friday sale, and I hadn’t gotten around to actually making some clothes for her, until now.

Using a few scraps of fabric and such, I whipped up this cute outfit.  A white button down tank top, a floral skirt, a hair clip and a pearl necklace with bracelet.  It’s perfect for a nice Spring/Summer day.

The skirt is a half circle skirt made based on this tutorial for a little girl’s skirt.  I used scraps of fabric leftover from this dress I made years ago.

The tank top is made from a cut up t-shirt, t-shirts are the best for doll clothes and other fun crafts!

It opens on the back with Velcro, it only looks like it buttons in front.  Those “buttons” are actually flat back pearls glued in place with Aleene’s Jewel-it.

Both the top and and skirt look so pretty on my doll (her name is Misako and she is a 1/4 scale doll).

And like most of the clothes I’ve been making for my bjds, I made patterns and a tutorial for these pieces here on my doll blog.  Check it out if you have dolls about this size, or if you just want to know how I made the fake button front on that tank top.

Now for the accessories.  I whipped up this hair clip in less than 10 minutes.  It’s just a scrap of pretty lace that I gathered to size and glued on to a barrette.  Then I added some pearls.

The barrette is a little larger than 1/2 an inch (about 1 cm.), I bought it as SAS.  There are about the right sized to make large-ish hair clips for dolls.

It does looks nice in my doll’s hair.  Makes me want to make tons more of them, but that will be for another day.

Throw in the pearl necklace and bracelet (which were just made by stringing faux pearls on elastic) and the outfit is complete and adorable.

Here’s the updated list:

• Dress makeover
• Doll undies
• Cameo and Hearts
• Blouse makeover
• Phone case
• Outfit
• Mother’s Day
• Costume fix
• Jammies
• Bonnet

Eight down, just two more to go.  The next one will be up in a couple of days.  Look forward to it!

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Sewing for Dolls: Socks and Lingerie? Plus Tutorial Links

My latest craft project is doll clothes, so why did it take so long to post?  You will see shortly.

First I made several pairs of tights and socks, several more pairs to be exact.  I made some before out of old tights (see From Socks to Doll Sweaters), but I’ve gotten more ball jointed dolls since then.  Meaning more itty bitty feet to cover.

No complaints though, doll socks and stuff are fun to make and so cute.  Look at these adorable thigh high socks I made for my newest doll (her name is Misako).

And I made this pair of crew length socks for my only boy ball jointed doll (the last thing I made for him was these cute t-shirts).

And finally I made two pairs of tights, a pair for my newer doll and a smaller pair for this one (her name is Momoko).  I used a cute lacey pair of tights that had dots all over them.  I found them at 99 Cents Only Store.

The best part is that this time I managed to make some printable patterns for all theses socks and tights.  They are sized for msd (1/4 scale) and yosd (1/6 scale) ball jointed dolls, and are included with this tutorial posted on my doll blog.

Now for the more interesting part of this project. 

Doll Lingerie

As expensive as ball jointed dolls can be, sometimes they don’t even come with underwear.  So you either have to buy them separately or make them yourself. 

Naturally I went with making them.  And if I’m going to sew doll sized undies, then I’m going to make them cute!

I made these two sets from t-shirt scraps, lace, ribbon and a bit of elastic.  They were actually pretty easy to put together.

To make these underwear sets, I first did a bit of “research” mostly to figure out how to make a doll sized bra.  I found several cute doll tutorials (mostly videos), including these:

• How to Make a Monster High Doll Bra – This video does as it says, it shows how to make an itty bitty bra for a Monster High doll with lace and ribbon and such.
• How to Make a Miniature Doll Bra for Monster High Dolls – Same as above, are you noticing a pattern?
• How to Make doll panties - Victoria's Secret inspired Doll Lingerie – The matching underpants for the above tutorial, also more Monster High.
• How to: Cute Doll Underwear - DIY Bralette & Lace Underwear for BJD / Barbie – This is underwear set made from stretchy lace.  Depending on the lace you use, you could make this for almost any sized doll.

This one was the first set made.  I use thin lace for the band and the straps of the bra and used the same lace on the matching underpants.  It’s simple and cute.

For the second undie set, I used thin ribbon for the bra straps instead of lace.  Then I made little bows for the front of the bra and underpants.  For the other set I threaded the elastic through the waist, but with this one I stitched decorative elastic on to the fabric.

Because they were so cute and fun to make, I made a tutorial for MSD (1/4 Scale) ball jointed doll sized underwear and bras on my doll blog, feel free to check it out if you or someone you know has dolls around this size (or if you just want to laugh at my doll’s crazy antics).

Here’s the updated list:

• Dress makeover
• Doll undies
• Cameo and Hearts
• Blouse makeover
• Phone case
• Outfit
• Mother’s Day
• Costume fix
• Jammies
• Bonnet

Four down, six more to go.  I should have the next project up in about a week, but first there may be a little surprise.  Look forward to it!

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