Clothes Make the Doll

Dear Liza,

I had fun yesterday, making an old doll pretty again. Cousin Kestrel got her from a shop, and she needed some love.

First, I washed her up. Years of living in toy boxes had given her some grime. A soapy wash cloth and Q-tip helped a lot! While she was drying, I headed downstairs to the fabric box. I chose a few pretty prints, but a bright stripe seemed the best bet for a simple summery dress.

I made a pattern out of newspaper, starting big and snipping down, making sure it was symmetrical and had a nice quarter inch seam allowance. Then I laid out the fabric and cut. I was happy with the shape.

Before I sewed the front and back together, I turned and stitched the neckline, armholes, and at the last minute, remembered the slit in the back so the dress could come off over the doll’s head. Then I sewed front to back, and put the dress on.

It was baggy, but a simple fabric belt took care of that. Getting the belt on made her look almost perfect!

But there is no fixing her hair, so I made a nice elasticized head wrap to focus on her pretty face, letting her one earring give her a whimsical charm.