18 Inch Doll Donation

I think this was the area that disappointed me the most this year. I started on a high note working on a holiday theme and then life got in the way and my donations were not nearly as good as they should have been. However, instead of beating up on myself I'm going to celebrate what was accomplished. My Mom felt up to sending me knitted donations and those are included here as well. This is the first time in a few years she's been able to send me stuff so I guess you have to take what you can and realize it is more than what would have been accomplished without trying at all.

Thanks to Mom for these,

American Girl Farmer

I love patterns that dig into stash yarn I haven't used in a long time. This pattern was another of my Valentine's presents from my DH. You can purchase the pattern here.

The shirt for this outfit is made using Lustersheen. The last time I actually purchased Lustersheen was during my Barbie clothes making days. The girls I made those outfits for are now respectively in Middle School and High School, so while I've slowly found other uses for it, I haven't been replenishing the supply as it has been reduced. I was quite pleasantly surprised not only to find another use for it, but to have the exact color required by the pattern. That so rarely happens for me.

The only major problem I had with this pattern was one of the issues that made Barbie clothes so painful, sewing the snaps. I had to remove one of the sides of the bottom snap because while working around the thin, almost thread like fiber of the Lustersheen I'd caused it to bunch up the outfit when snapped. All was fixed when I removed and replaced. It did remind me why I prefer working with regular yarn.

The pants were fun and much nicer to work on than the scratchy ones I made a few years ago. They require worsted weight yarn I had on hand so again a great stash busting project, I'll be coming back to for more outfits.

I required a G hook for the Lustersheen, a K for the pants and the hat. I make those notes to remind myself when I come back to the outfit.

The flower button came from the supply sent to me by a swap partner on Crochetville. It used to be a great tradition on Crochetville that sadly has fallen by the wayside. However, I have some great memories and the button supply has been a great bonus this year as I'm working on adding some extras to my projects.

American Girl Nurse

This donation project is dedicated to my Aunt, a most remarkable and generous hearted woman, whom I miss very much.
My Aunt, who passed away a few years ago taught me to crochet and the little basics I understand of knitting. She became a nurse when they still wore the caps and the uniform. This was my attempt to honor her memory. It was fun to realize the memories others have of that period in nursing. I volunteer with a retired nurse and she was giving me hints about the style of uniforms and how they differed by schools as I told her about the outfit I was attempting to make. She was thrilled when she found out the pattern had the cape.

I decided to tackle this project while I was waiting on the yarn to make the Red Cross historical nurse. I attempted Darski's nurse pattern (Ode to Florence and the Ode to Florence Cape) one more time although I still didn't do it justice. I didn't get the dress quite the way I wanted it, but I'm happy with the cape and the nurse's cap. You can find the free pattern here.

I'm waiting on the yarn to make the Red Cross historical nurse. I know the historical outfits are often popular so I thought I'd try making it. At the moment I'm working another doll pattern, Dorothy of Oz, that I got as a Valentine's present. It is a simplified single color pattern rather than the blue checks, but it's cute. I found the shoes on clearance after Christmas and thought it would be fun to try an outfit. I'm thinking of trying the Toto that came in an ami kit rather than the one that came with the doll pattern. We'll see what happens.

American Girl Dress

I saw a free pattern for an American Girl Wrap Sweater Dress here. I love the blend of a variegated top and a solid colored bottom. I downloaded the pattern, but struggled with the skirt. Not terribly surprising, I had another pattern similar to this I've never gotten to work. I always end up with a ballooning skirt instead of the beautiful webbed skirt you can see in the pictures provided by the designer.

I tried the pattern twice during the Super Bowl game and then once on Monday. When I realized it wasn't working for me, I decided it was time to move forward and add a dc skirt instead. I love the color contrasts in this dress. The picture sadly doesn't do them justice. I may try something like this with a few other variegated colors.

I'm working on a dress with an underskirt pattern at the moment. I ordered the yarn I need for the Redheart Redcross Nurse pattern and I'm hoping to get to work on that when it arrives.

American Girl Grey Lady

My husband bought me this pattern as one of my Valentine's gifts two years ago. You can purchase the pattern here.

I love this pattern. It always makes me think of an old fashioned governess outfit. The texture of the top of the dress is delightful. I think I might actually wear a sweater if it was that soft. I was able to use Bernat and Red Heart yarn I had on hand, so it contributed greatly to my stash busting project.

I used the suggested g hook on the skirt, the h hook actually made the skirt portion of the dress too large. In order to make the upper portion of the dress fit I used an H hook and it fit comfortably getting the dress on and off. It wasn't too loose as the skirt had been when made with the larger hook. Using the H hook I was able to use snaps as suggested since the top had the room. Previously when I made this I had to change to buttons because the top was too tight.

The one addition I made this year was embroidering a design on the purse. It seemed kind of plain and I wanted to add something simple. It is not a talent of mine, but I thought it came out OK.

I have several more outfits to post this week. I'm currently working on a dress with an underskirt. I've never tried anything quiet like this before. It reminds me a little bit of trying to put clothes on an ami working in front and back loops. I'm hoping it all works out and I can post about it next week.

American Girl Tunic and Shorts

A funny thing happened on my way to trying my second set of capris, I ran out of yarn and had to settle for shorts. Since I was making this for a donation I wanted to have different colors for the dolls. I had some Bernat Satin that I wanted to use up and it made gauge for the project. However, it wasn't quite enough to complete the project. So capris became shorts.

For those of you who didn't catch yesterday's post. The pattern is from Shady Lane, Crochet Play Clothes and can be purchased here.

All joking aside this pattern is quite versatile for making a variety of lengths and styles of pants and I plan on using it in the future. I've found a cheap supply of hair bands at the local pharmacy and they are working out well with these patterns. It will make it easier for little hands to get the clothes on and off as well. While you could use regular elastic, the rubber bands don't roll or twist and it does make it easier. I've used the elastic in the past and it works, but I've often had to deal with the twisting.

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 permission.

American Girl Tunic and Capris and Visor

As I mentioned in a previous post I picked up several Shady Lane patterns with some birthday cash. This outfit was my first attempt at the Tunic and Capris set found in Crochet Play Clothes. It can be purchased here. The visor was a free crochet pattern from ABC Knitting found here.

I thought the Capris worked up very well and will be making more of them again. I struggled a bit with the top which is why you will see my second attempt, with a slightly different challenge tomorrow. The visor was a fun project that allowed me to use up some thread I had left over from making the Chevron dress.

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 permission.

American Girl Crochet Hat, Top, Vest, and Skirt

With my birthday cash I picked up a few of Shady Lane's newer 18" doll patterns. This is my attempt at the Crochet Fashion Statement that can be purchased here.

I am in a push to use up yarn before acquiring more in my stash so I went with a red and black theme instead of the pink. In order to make gauge my yarn was worsted instead of sport. Even going with a larger hook I couldn't make gauge with the sports yarn I had on hand. The only place it really seemed to be a problem was it made the shirt a bit bulky to put the vest over.

My hat came out more as a bowler than a top hat, so I'm going to give it another try at a later date, although I thought the bowler was actually a cute look. I haven't tried the sneakers. At the best of times I find shoes a challenge. These looked more than I wanted to attempt. I think I can find a cute pair of high tops to match that will save my patience for other projects.

One note on finishing the vest, do look at the picture as you are folding down the corners to tack them down. I didn't and had to pull out and redo again.

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 permission.

American Girl Valentine's Sweater

I love adding holiday outfits to my doll donations. I'm not sure if the kids love them as much as I do, but since I'm the one doing all the crocheting I like giving myself some projects I enjoy, too.

Valentine's Day has always been a challenge for me as I didn't have anything specific for it. However, when I bought the Tara Cousin's set, it had a heart sweater that was perfect for my project. You can purchase the pattern here.

While this outfit required buttons, I was glad because it had a better fit to it. The heart pattern while charted was easy enough to follow. I changed it to more seasonal colors and I really liked the way it came out. One more holiday outfit finished.

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 permission.

American Girl Back to School Outfit

This was another free crochet pattern found from ABC Knitting here.

I fell in love with the colors when I came across this pattern. I try not to complain about free pattern designers. What ever they give is a gift. However, one of my few complaints is when designers of free or paid patterns choose obscure yarns that are hard to find or are no longer available by the time the pattern is published. I understand people have the right to choose the yarn they feel will best match their design needs, but for those of us who then try to find yarn to use it can be a frustrating process. I don't even complain when the yarn is more expensive than I want to pay. At least if it is still available I have some hope of trying to find a substitute I can afford. However, when the yarn is an obscure one, or one no longer available, finding a substitute is much more challenging. The more important the texture and color are to matching the pattern, the more frustrating it is when the yarn is not readily available. No yarn is available forever, however, one would hope that at least at the time of publication, we should be able to locate the yarn used by the designer.

I saw this pattern when it was first published at ABC Knitting and started immediately on a hunt to find the suggested yarn. I couldn't locate it anywhere. For some patterns that isn't an issue. Substitutes are easy enough to locate and the finished product is close enough to the suggested yarn that I'm happy with the result and sometimes at a discounted rate. However, this one was trickier because it required specific colors that were not easy to locate. I eventually found Cascade fingering yarn at Webs. It was the only yarn I found online that matched the suggested weight and came close to the color. I'm not sure based on outcome it was exactly the same texture as the original yarn. Not having the original to see how it measures up, I can't be sure.

I found the skirt and the backpack worked up easily, but I struggled to get a good fit for the cardigan. The colors are perfect for a fall outfit and I was quite pleased with the outfit.

While I love the skirt and the backpack, I'm not sure I'd try the cardigan again. I'll have to find a substitute if I make them again.

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 permission.

American Girl Skirt, Shirt, and Hat.

I decided to use up some sock yarn I had won a while back and had no use for as I don't make socks. I found a free pattern for a crochet skirt at ABC Knitting that required fingering yarn here. I tried the matching top, but found I couldn't get the fit right, so I adapted a favorite dress pattern to make a top. I did use the free hat pattern found here.

I love it when I can add another outfit to my donation pile and use up yarn that is taking up valuable space in my yarn room.

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 permission.

American Girl City Chic

This was another one of Tara Cousin's designs that I bought as a set. You can purchase this one here.

This was another situation where I loved the body of the dress, but the neck was more challenging to get a fit that would fit over the doll's body and still look correct on the shoulders. I loved the idea of creating a dress that required no buttons or other forms of connections, but I still found the neck to be tight.

The Mary Jane shoes were a cute addition to the outfit and the purse was also a nice accessory.

The designer made the original in grey, I wanted a happier color so I went with blue and yellow.

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 permission.

American Girl Ice Princess Elsa Inspired Dress

I've been busy working on my doll donation project and once again fallen behind on posting my projects. Last month I used some of my birthday money to purchase some new doll patterns. I bought a pattern set from Tara Cousins and the first one I finished was the Elsa inspired dress that can be purchased here.

While I like the look of her outfits, I do find the collars a challenge to get them to fit correctly. I've been playing with reworking them to get them to fit as I've worked on the projects. The rest of the outfit was fun to put together and worked up nicely.

I thought it would be fun to have one of the more popular themes included in my donation this year.

Thanks to donations from Crochetville friends from Canada and Florida this is going to be an amazing donation this year. I'm looking forward to contacting the director of the program when school resumes next month.

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 permission.

American Girl Patriotic Dress

My husband is amazing about buying me crochet stuff as long as I tell him what stuff I'm interested in. I came across a pattern set on Amazon Kindle that I had never see sold as a set before. While I'm doing more with my Kindle, I still like paper patterns. I looked on Ravelry where I had seen the patterns offered separately and had them wish listed, but the set wasn't available. Turning to Etsy, I discovered I could get the complete set for $20, which was an amazing savings. By buying the complete set the patterns are almost 50% off. Since I had most of them on my to buy list, it seemed like a great item to put on DH's birthday shopping list. You can find the listing here.

The outfits are adorable. I started on this one because I had wanted to make a holiday outfit for the July 4th holiday for the donation. Since the donation isn't until Christmas being late isn't really an issue and I was in the mood for a Patriotic outfit.

While my gauge is still off, I still adapted the pattern to use worsted weight. When I matched gauge the dress was a bit tight and the designer uses a tie in the back to close the gap. (Her pictures show the dress being a little tight) I chose to make it a little looser using worsted weight (4) and used a button to close the back. It just looked a little more finished.

I've started on the Elsa inspired dress and plan to work my way through the pattern book.

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 permission.

American Girl Ballet Dress

I'm finally getting around to posting the ballet dress I mentioned in the baby doll post last week. You can find the free pattern for an 18" doll ballet dress here. The pattern really is a easy pattern and requires no buttons, snaps or ties which makes it easy to assemble and easy for a child to put on and take off the doll.

The original pattern has ribbons for the ballet shoes. I opted not to go that route. However, the directions are there for those who want a fancier outfit. I can say this will likely be on my list of repeats for next year. I like the quick and easy ones.


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 permission.

American Girl Day at the Beach

This outfit was a clear sign my crocheting is not quite where it was last year. I compared the photo I made of last year's bathing suit with this one and last year's clearly was a better fit. However, the only way to get better is to keep working through it.

I do love this set which can be purchased here. The accessories were fine, but the suit despite increasing hook size still seemed tight. I will try another one later as I have more than one doll. I also may try acrylic yarn as I've been struggling more with cotton recently.

I love the idea that it comes as a complete play set. The extra items always make for a more fun project to donate. The ducky ring always makes me smile when its completed.



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 permission.

American Girl Witch

I tried to include holiday outfits with my doll donations and after years of adapting two patterns to make a Halloween witch costume I was pleased to discover Red Heart had produced a free 18" doll pattern for a witch costume found here.

I had to adjust the hook, but I was able to match gauge and I liked the way the pattern worked up. A huge thank you to Red Heart and Michelle Wilcox. You have made my annual holiday outfit creation much easier. I am always grateful to the free pattern designers who stretch my donation budget just that much farther.

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 permission.

American Girl Dressed in Blue

I started out to make Donna Collinsworth's 3 Blue's Pattern that can be purchased here. However, a funny thing happened on my way to making the outfit and I decided instead of frogging it, I'd repurpose the outfit and see if I could make something of what I had. I intended to go back and remake it as written, but this was the last outfit I made before Spring hit and I got away from crocheting for a bit. I still hope to revisit the original, but I still think this makes a nice outfit for my donation.

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 permission.

American Girl Sock Yarn Dress and Shawl

Several years ago while at a LYS store the owner was very confused when I told her I was looking for fingering yarn. She became some what less friendly when I told her I was making doll's clothes. Finally, she told me she knew nothing about fingering yarn, but was convinced sock yarn was what I needed.

Well sock yarn was not what I needed and online I eventually discovered Knit Picks for an affordable alternative for my lighter weight yarn needs. However, that sock yarn has been taking up space for years. As someone who is supposed to be working on bringing down my yarn stash it seemed like a message when I found a free pattern for a 18 inch doll shawl that called for sock yarn.

You can find the Granny Shawl free pattern here. The rest of the outfit was an experiment. I wanted to finish off the yarn, so I decided on a skirt, but there was still more yarn. I tried a tube top, but they didn't match up right together as separates. However, sewed together they made a cute dress. I still had more sock yarn. Then I decided on a hat and the yarn was depleted.

18 Inch Doll Cape, Skirt, and Sweater

One of the example pictures for this pattern shows the cape made in pink camo yarn. I picked up some worsted camo to make a scrubbie and it seemed like a great idea to try out the cape pattern in the camo. I had just enough left over to make the skirt. I would like to have made the skirt a bit longer but the store only had one skein of pink camo and with the Blizzard of 2015 raging it seemed like a good idea to finish the project while I was motivated and move on to something new. It is all to easy to have unfinished projects that never seem to linger on with hopes that I'll get back to them.

The skirt is adapted from Maggie's Crochet Crochet Pattern Abby, Allie & Annie PA972-R pants pattern. The cape pattern can be purchased here. I made the sweater using an out of print Springfield Collection Sweater Trio from Fibre Craft FCM494.