15 Inch Baby Doll Sundress with Hat

This is another favorite outfit to make for the 15 inch soft doll Mary Maxim baby doll that I donate. The Hooks and Knives Blogspot has disappeared from the web, but I was able to locate the pattern for the time being here.

This was originally designed for a Fisher Price 14 1/2 Inch Mommy and Me doll, but I found it adapted easily enough. I changed to a K hook and joined the back after the first row to avoid having to use buttons or velcro. It works fine.

I like this pattern because it works up quickly, with adjustments requires little sewing, and it is easy for a child to take on and off without assistance.

Mary Maxim's Car Blanket

I originally made this as a Christmas gift, but I decided that due to circumstances it is going to be a birthday gift instead.

This was made using a Mary Maxim kit found here. My major disappointment with this kit was it came with Red Heart sport yarn instead of Mary Maxim yarn. I realize it made the kit price cheaper, but I'd rather have paid more and gotten a less scratchy yarn.

The pattern worked up quickly and it is a cute blanket for a little one. I did choose to change the pattern of the cars. I wanted more variety, so I didn't follow the pattern which suggested mostly VW bug type cars. I liked the different cars on the road. I plan to make more of these in the future.

15 Inch Baby Doll Dress and Hat

This dress was adapted from a free pattern for a 14 Inch baby doll found here. Thanks Recycle Cindy for providing the free pattern.

This is one of my favorite patterns for the 15-inch soft bodied Mary Maxim dolls. It works up quickly and because I can pull it up over the doll, I can actually close the opening in the back and it doesn't require buttons or any closings. I avoid those when possible. The skirt has a very pretty pattern, giving the outfit a very pretty look. I found using a heavier weight yarn helped adapt the dress to fit the larger 15" doll.

I was also pleased to be able to make this a stash-busting project. I had some pretty cranberry colored red yarn left and being in the holiday spirit, it seemed a great color to work on this dress. I've managed to finish up a couple more outfits for the 15" doll so I should have those posted soon. It is nice to get a jump on this project, as I know the time creeps up all too soon and I want the bags to be full to bursting when that happens.

Baby Jenna Hat, Pants, Booties, and Sweater

This is my first outfit of the 2015 donation year for the Melissa & Doug Jenna - 12" Baby Doll that will got to Aztec Wishes.

I find this doll the most challenging to get the patterns to fit. While there are lots of retired patterns out there for 12" baby dolls, they seem to have slightly different dimensions. I started out working with TD Creations Erin pattern 7106. That is the best booties pattern I've found and will be coming back to that one later. The pants were a little short between the crotch and the waist, but otherwise fitted well. I had to improvise the shirt using another pattern.

The hat was actually the test hat I made using the mini slouchy hat pattern found here. When made to directions I got a 12" doll hat not an 18" doll hat. It worked for me since I often trade out items if they fit another doll.

I think it is a good start to getting her some clothes for next year's donation. I found to my shame she had far fewer items than the other dolls as I packed up this year. So, I'm going to have to work harder to find items that work.

American Girl Christmas Celebration

I was gifted some Hobby Lobby Christmas yarn a while back and have been slowly using it up. As I finished packing up the 2014 doll donations, I came across the yarn again and thought it would be fun to make a holiday dress for the one of the 2015 dolls. I started with the sweater pattern from the out of print Springfield Collection Sweater Trio FCM494. I originally considered making a sweater and pants outfit. The yarn however, was not working for a sweater and seemed to be working itself into a dress, so I went with it. I finished off the dress and added a skirt to the sweater to make it a complete outfit.

The hat was another experiment. I had found a free mini slouchy hat pattern while researching the link for the Panda Hat I posted about previously. I decided to try it out and it became a part of this outfit. You can find the pattern here. One note about the hat, I had to use a much larger hook to get the hat to fit. I don't suggest anyone trust my gauge, but I do try to let people know when I've had to change something to make it work. Depending on how tight/loose you crochet, it might not be an issue for you.

Bunny Cradle Purse

This is the last of the 2014 toy donations I have to post. I worked on this project over the Spring and Summer of 2014 and then it got put aside. As I was getting ready to send off the donations it seemed like a good project to finish off and add to the pile.

The pattern is Sandy Powers Bunny Cradle Purse and Play Set and can be purchased here. I think it would make an adorable Easter basket gift for someone who is planning on the next round of holiday presents.

The pattern does have more items you can make for clothing, I just ran out of time. This is a nice set for someone looking for an animal cradle purse set that has lots of accessories.

The one problem I had with this set and I've had it with several draw string type patterns I've tried is getting it to draw up smoothly. I'm going to have to research this more because I suspect based on multiple patterns I've tried the problem lies with something I'm not doing correctly.

Peppermint Snowman

I don't often take time to make decorations for our house at Christmas, but I couldn't resist trying out this part of the Large Peppermint People Pattern found in Mary Maxim's e-patterns here. My husband loves this guy so it was worth taking the time. For those of you familiar with ami's this is not an ami style pattern. Each piece is worked flat and sewn together. The arms and feet are the only parts worked in the round.

I didn't have time to make the gingerbread man this year, but I hope to get him on my list for next year's project. While it says "large" I didn't find them to be that large. While not tree ornaments, mine was a good size that didn't take up much space in the living room. Then again, I didn't check the gauge either.

18 Inch Doll Panda Hat

This was the last doll item to make it into the donation bag. I finished it months ago, but just never could get around to getting a picture taken. With the pressure to get the bag packed I finally got it done.

This is a free pattern found here. It works up quickly and it provides different styles if you want to make some different hats for the dolls.

I'd like to experiment and get a few done for next year's donation.

18 Inch Doll Tunisian Crochet Doll Bag

Back in November, I took a Tunisian Crochet class at Fiber Fest New England. I finally decided I would do the practice project, which was a coin purse. I had no need of the purse, but the stitch practice seemed like a worthy goal. When I finished it, the size seemed perfect for my 18-inch doll project, so I added it to the bag of clothes to be donated. It works well with a few of the outfits and it made me feel good that my practice project will get some use.

Aztec Wishes Donation Delivered

I was so excited knowing my DH was dropping off my doll donations to the school this morning. The business students at the local Tech High School run a toy donation program every year and I donate mostly dressed dolls. A few years I add some extras but for the most part dressing dolls has been my contribution.

This year I started the project right after the donations left the house after Thanksgiving in November of 2013. There was an early deadline last year and I got to work on the holiday outfits finishing most of them before Christmas. It was a wise choice because once I stopped in the spring I had family commitments that kept me from getting back to the doll project. However, because I was so busy in the cold winter months, my donation didn't suffer because I couldn't get back to it in the summer.

This year I donated two 18" dolls, a 15" baby doll, a 12" baby doll, a 5" baby doll, and a bunny cradle purse. It was so much fun seeing the projects grow. I still have a couple of projects to post that I finished and never got posted.

My Mom had an injury that kept her from knitting much of the year. When she got back to it, her focus was on finishing her family projects. She hopes to be back to knitting for the donation next year. I would like to thank friends from Crochetville who sent me items during the year for the project and answered my wishes for new patterns to try. The children greatly appreciate the items for their dolls.