Next time you get ready to throw away something you have outgrown or send it to the thrift store, take a closer look at how you might be able to up-cycle it into some new clothes for your dolls. Most clothing items have at least one or two nice finished hems and in many cases the hem is tall enough for you to feed a piece of elastic or ribbon through to make a waistband. I made two new items for our dolls in about 10 minutes and now we can continue to enjoy two of Natalie’s favorite dresses even though she has outgrown them.
Isn’t this top for McKenna just adorable? It started as a dress Natalie wore in Kindergarten. I love the colors and the stripe is fun, too. This dress actually had two hems in the bottom of it – the striped material was hemmed and the dark pink was hemmed too. At first I ran my elastic through the pocket that the pink material made but I didn’t like the finished look. Then I ran the elastic through the smaller hem pocket and couldn’t be happier with McKenna’s new top. It looks great paired with white capris and is definitely a way of giving an old dress a new life!
To make a top like this – remember every piece will be a bit different – start with a dress or top that is no longer in use.
- Step 1 – Hold the material up against your doll to determine how long you want it and where to cut.
- Step 2 – Cut across the material and up each side to make sure there is an opening to your hem pocket on each side.
- Step 3 – Attach a safety pin to a piece of elastic so you can thread it trough the hem pocket easily. If you are using elastic, measure around the part of your doll where the elastic will be and make sure you cut it just a bit smaller so the elastic has to work to stay up. If you are using a piece of ribbon, make sure you cut it long enough that you can tie it into a bow when you are done.
- Step 4 – Thread the elastic or ribbon through the hem pocket and attach to the other side when done.
- Step 5 - Adjust the gathers and place on your doll!
You can easily use the same method to make a no-sew doll skirt! For Sonali’s skirt, I used ribbon instead of elastic and tied it in the back.
Really there are no rules with this activity – except to check with your parents before you start cutting ANYTHING! You can use old leggings, t-shirts, dresses, skirts – just about anything – just use your imagination.
There is no printable today, but no worries, more are on the way!
Firstie!super cute i will have to ask my mom to help me make these,
firste! or something around that!
This is so cute! I am probably going to do this!
fourthie!
I’m going to make the top.
What do you mean by “Firstie”?
cute!
Whoa that’s cool
It is something many of our readers like to say to show they were the first one to comment on a post.
Neato!! I need more tops. Thanks Char!
so cute so making!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Another way to make a no-sew skirt is to find a pair of jogging pants that you’ve torn at the knee or outgrown and cut the leg a couple of inches from the bottom. When you turn it around, the elastic at the ankle is the waistband, and the skirt flares out naturally where you cut it!
cute I will try this!
Cool! I really need to do this summer
Cool!
I did that when I made that outfit for Kiera in January when I was trapped in my house
17thie! LOL!
18thie
This is really neat..I dont usually out grow my clothes anymore now that I am older and stopped growing but I am sure I have stuff in the closet that I will not wear anymore! Thanks for the fun idea!
I loved McKenna’s outfit in the Lemonade Stand post, and I was so glad when I saw that you made a how-to on how to make it!
21stie! This is cute!
I made a similar thing a long time ago exept i used it as a cape
love this deffinetly going to do this