Baby Doll Sundress with Shell Trim

I was reading a post a Crochetville about stretching yarn and hoping it would last for to finish a project. I ran into that making doll blankets this year.

However, this specific yarn seems to be endless. I thought I'd easily finish it off making the two sundresses but there is quite a bit more left in this skein and while searching for yarn for another project what should I find but another skein of this yarn that needs to be finished off this year. It is going to be a very purple donation.

That being said it is fun to try to change things just a little with these patterns to keep them interesting since they do get repeated so many times.

This is an out of print free pattern still available through use of the Wayback machine here.

The dress is a simple pattern which it is why I love it so much. It works up quickly and has adapted well to the changes in doll sizes over the years. That being said this year I've found myself looking to add to it just a little to challenge myself.

This time I added a shell border with some baby yarn that also has proven remarkably hard to finish off. It is a small skein and I was sure it would be done by now as it has trimmed a few items but it has proven remarkably stubborn.

For the hat I changed to dc after the 2sc in each row. This gave the hat a different look. Then I also did a shell border on the hat. As I said not huge changes but something to keep it interesting.

16 Inch Baby Doll Sundress with Hat

Just about every year I start the baby doll donation clothes with this outfit because it is quick and easy and thus starts the year with a bit of confidence.

In order to accomadate additional guests Christmas Eve this year I had to clean out the yarn in my living room. This meant making room for it in my already over crowded spare room. In doing that cleaning I became more determined to attack the orphan yarn problem. Every year I start with the intention of using up yarn in my stash, but this experience made the need more clear. I just have lots of yarn that needs to be targeted with a specific project. There are some colors and yarns I use and buy again constantly for various projects. However, there are these other yarns that get bought for a project and then abandoned when the project is finished and I have more yarn than I needed or the colors didn't work...

I started by making doll blankets. When I came across this yarn left over from an afghan project back in 2011 I decided it was time to attach it to a specific project. I was working on another doll blanket at the time so starting another doll blanket seemed like a bad choice. In looking at my patterns I decided a baby doll dress could work. I had a ball of white yarn I've been trying to finish off and that became my trim.

This is an out of print pattern available only through the use of the Wayback machine here.

The trim on the dress and the hat are not part of the pattern. The dress is a simple sc chain 3 sc trim. I did a reverse sc on the hat for a trim.

I still have more of this skein to use up so I'm thinking of making a second dress for the other donation doll using a different trim.

15 Inch Doll Soft Bodied Mary Maxim Baby Doll Sundress

I decided to try adding the soft bodied 15 inch Mary Maxim dolls to my donation this year. They seem to be a little larger in the upper body than most of the patterns I've looked at that fit the hard bodied Mary Maxim dolls much better. I'm going to adapt because I think the soft dolls are a bit nicer for the children who will be playing with them after Christmas next year. While I've found that most of the 18 Inch dolls are close in size, the baby doll sizes really do range from one doll to the next. While I always try on the outfits as I'm working, I find with the baby dolls, it's even more important, because there isn't often a common understanding of size when one reads a pattern for a baby doll as there is when you read one for an 18 inch doll. The sizes even among the 12 or 15 inch sizes are pretty wide.

I am always so grateful for those who are generous and donate their patterns for free. I found this baby doll pattern on Hooks and Knives Blogspot here. It was designed for the smaller Fisher Price Little Mommy Doll, but I increased my hook size to a K and it fit. The blog used to have a picture of the doll and the outfit, but it looks like it was removed. Edited the blog has been taken down but I changed the link to allow you to see the pattern for a time.

Other than changing the hook size to make the pattern fit, I also decided I didn't want to sew the back up and since it was going to be a slip on, I crocheted the dress in the round from the first row and have no problems getting it on and off the doll. I tried the suggested H hook for the first row and it didn't fit the hard bodied 15 inch doll so I'm thinking I will still need to play with the hook size to get it to fit the hard bodied 15 inch doll.

This dress works up really quickly and it is a cute outfit. I added a scalloped border to the bottom, but even without it is a nice outfit which adapts easily to the many sizes of baby dolls on the market.

Barbie and American Girl Doll Free Patterns are listed on my blog at these locations:

Barbie Crochet and Sewing Page

Barbie Knitting Page

Ken Page

Kelly/Skipper Page

American Girl Doll Crochet and Sewing

American Girl Doll Knitting

Doll Blankets and Pillow Patterns

Baby Doll Patterns:

Baby Doll and Cabbage Patch

Additional Doll Patterns also Available on the Holiday Blogs:

Christmas

Valentines

Easter

Graduation

Patriotic

Halloween Page

Thanksgiving

Pictures may not be used without written permission.