From Doll Days! Sew an Everyday Wardrobe for 18˝ Dolls
By Erin Hentzel
Class Description:
Create a Vintage Party Dress from Doll Days! This classic style will always be a go-to doll fashion and can be easily embellished to create many different looks. It’s a perfect jumping-off point for teaching new skills to your customers.
This is a wonderful class for confident beginners and up and is appropriate for both adult and children’s classes (ages 10+).
This class is a great way to introduce gathering to beginning students or teach students a new skill, such hemming with lace, create a pleated hem, adding picot lace trim, or using a narrow hem presser foot to hem sleeves and dresses. It’s an ideal way to demonstrate how to use specialty tools and notions to your customers.
Class Length:
This is approximately a 2-hour class.
Class Supply List:
Required text: Doll Days! Sew an Everyday Wardrobe for 18˝ Dolls
Party Dress:
- Dress and sleeves: 1/3 yard of quilting cotton fabric
- Lining: scrap at least 10˝´ 11˝ (can be solid quilting cotton)
- ¼ yard hook-and-loop tape
- Matching thread
In addition:
View A: scraps for collar and sleeve bands
View B: scrap of coordinating fabric for sleeves and ¼ yard elastic (¼˝ wide)
Optional embellishments such as: coordinating fabric for ruffles, contrast hems, rickrack, lace, or picot trim
TIP: Make it even easier for students to take the class by offering project kits for students to purchase. Basic kit should include 1/3 yard of quilting cotton fabric, hook-and-loop tape, scrap (or fat eighth) of lining fabric, and matching thread, plus any embellishments or scraps of fabric for the collar. These kits can also be a great way to use up your scrap bin fabrics.
Classroom Preparation:
Classroom should include a workspace for each student, with a sewing machine and a small cutting/work space.
A common ironing station is also needed.
Class Agenda:
Follow instructions on pp. 43–44 for the Vintage Party Dress.
1. Help students decide what embellishments they want to sew, such as lace along neckline and hem, collars, or ribbon for sash.
2. Use the pattern (pullout page P1) to cut out fabric pieces and skirt and sleeve band pieces.
3. Sew the shoulder seams on the bodice and lining.
4. Sew any neckline embellishments, such as collar or lace.
5. Sew the lining to the bodice, turn right side out, and press.
6. Baste together lining and bodice along raw edges.
7. Sew the sleeves to the bodice.
8. Finish the sleeve hems according to the view student is sewing.
9. Sew the side seams.
10. Gather and sew the skirt to the bodice.
11. Hem and sew the back closure.
12. Sew any additional embellishments.
From Doll Days! Sew an Everyday Wardrobe for 18˝ Dolls
By Erin Hentzel
Class Description:
Create an outfit using the Classic Skirt and Crochet Top patterns from Doll Days! This is a wonderful class for confident beginners and up and is appropriate for both adult and children’s classes (ages 10+).
This class is a great way to introduce gathering to beginning students (using the ruffle hem option) or to teach students a new skill, such hemming with lace or using a narrow hem presser foot. Intermediate students could sew the more challenging View A, Scallop Hem Skirt. The top can be sewn with or without crochet lace, or students may choose to sew the peplum option, which also only takes a fat quarter.
Class Length:
This is approximately a 3-hour class.
Class Supply List:
Required text: Doll Days! Sew an Everyday Wardrobe for 18˝ Dolls
Crochet Lace Top:
- 1 fat quarter of quilting cotton fabric
- ¼ yard hook-and-loop tape
- ½ yard single-fold bias tape
- 1 yard crochet lace
- Matching thread
- Optional embellishments: coordinating fabric for peplum or crochet lace
Classic Skirt:
- 1 fat quarter of quilting cotton fabric
- 1/3 yard hook-and-loop tape
- Matching thread
- Optional embellishments: coordinating fabric for ruffle, lace, ribbons, etc.
TIP: Make it even easier for students to take the class by offering project kits for students to purchase. Basic kit should include 2 fat quarters, hook-and-loop tape, single-fold bias binding tape, and matching thread. These kits can also be a great way to use up your scrap bin fabrics.
Classroom Preparation:
Classroom should include a workspace for each student, with a sewing machine and a small cutting/work space.
A common ironing station is also needed.
Class Agenda:
Help students decide what top embellishments they want to do, such as lace along the neckline and hem or adding a peplum hem.
Crochet Lace Top: follow instructions on pp. 34–35
1. Use the pattern (pullout page P1) to cut out fabric pieces.
2. Sew the shoulder seams and finish the neckline using bias-binding method on p. 16.
3. Sew sleeves to bodice.
4. Sew lace along neckline.
5. Sew side seams.
6. Hem as desired with crochet lace or peplum, and sew the back closure.
Classic Skirt: follow instructions on pp. 252-6
1. Help students decide what design they would like to sew.
2. Use the pattern (pullout page P1) to cut out fabric piece(s) and waistband piece
3. Hem the skirt according to the design choice of student.
4. Sew the waistband to the skirt.
5. Sew the backclosure.
18˝ Doll Sundress
From Doll Days! Sew an Everyday Wardrobe for 18˝ Dolls
By Erin Hentzel
Class Description:
Create a Modern-Vintage Sundress from Doll Days! This sundress pattern can be easily embellished to create many different looks, and it can be used to teach new skills to your customers or sell specialty tools, notions, and kits.
This is a wonderful class for confident beginners and up and is appropriate for both adult and children’s classes (ages 10+).
This class is a great way to introduce gathering to beginning students or to teach students a new skill, such sewing with ric rack trim, hemming with lace, creating a pleated skirt, or using a narrow hem presser foot for hemming.
Class Length:
This is approximately a 2-hour class.
Class Supply List:
Required text: Doll Days! Sew an Everyday Wardrobe for 18˝ Dolls
Modern-Vintage Sundress:
- Dress and straps: ¼ yard of fabric
- Waistband: long, narrow scrap of complimentary fabric
- Lining: scrap of lightweight fabric, such as muslin or batiste (quilting cotton will also work)
- Hook-and-loop tape (½˝ wide): ¼ yard
- View A collar: scrap of fabric and ¼˝ buttons (2)
- View Brickrack (½˝ wide): 1 ¼ yards
- Optional embellishments such as: coordinating fabric for ruffles, contrast hems, rickrack, lace, or picot trim
TIP: Make it even easier for students to take the class by offering project kits for students to purchase. Basic kit should include ¼ yard fabric, 1 fat quarter of coordinating print or solid, hook-and-loop tape, scrap (or a fat eighth) of lining fabric, and matching thread, plus any embellishments for specific dress view. These kits can also be a great way to use up your scrap bin fabrics.
Classroom Preparation:
Classroom should include a workspace for each student, with a sewing machine and a small cutting/work space. A common ironing station is also needed.
Class Agenda:
Follow instructions on pp. 22–23 for Modern-Vintage Sundress.
1. Help students decide what embellishments they want to add, such as rickrack along the neckline and hem or ribbon for a sash.
2. Use the pattern (pullout page P1) to cut out fabric pieces, as well as skirt and waistband pieces.
3. Sew any neckline embellishments, such as collar or rickrack.
4. Sew the straps and baste them to the bodice front.
5. Sew the side seams on the bodice and lining.
6. Sew the lining to the bodice, turn right side out, and press.
7. Sew the straps to bodice back.
8. Baste together lining and bodice along raw edges.
9. Sew the waistband to the bodice.
10. Gather and sew the skirt to the lower edge of the waistband.
11. Hem and sew the back closure.
12. Sew optional embellishments, such as buttons or rickrack hem.
