DIY Doll Bunk Beds

For Christmas 2014 I got my husband to build our daughter bunk beds for her American girl dolls. Of course, it was finished just before Christmas, and I was sneaking down to the basement for a few minutes at a time to paint them red, her favorite color. I was so surprised that I was able to pull it off! (I also had a gigantic trapping basket in the tub hidden behind the shower curtain that day! I am pretty sure I inherited a gene for last-minute-homemade-gift-making.)

To build the beds, I found free plans from Ana White (available HERE). My husband did find a small error in the directions and it is important to note that these beds are not made to withstand children climbing on them. Not that ours would do that...

The other part to this gift was that I took her fabric shopping to choose fabric for the bedding. It was a painful experience. I did a post on the sampler quilts HERE. They took forever.

It fits the dolls nicely and it coordinates really well with their bedroom. (You can see the collage wall and free printables HERE).

Of course, with five girls in this house, you can bet that one doll bed is not enough! I will be posting about that one soon!

Link Parties where I sometimes hang out…

Sew Can Do, Motivate Me Monday, Inspiration Monday, Take a Look Tuesday, Naptime Creations, The Gathering Spot, Carolyn’s Homework, Your Whims Wednesday, ,Create It Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Wildly Original, Thriving on Thursday, Grace at Home, The 36th Party, Freedom Fridays, Simple and Sweet Fridays, Craft Frenzy Friday, and Threading Your Way

Scrappy Squares Doll Quilt

The other day, since I had a few minutes before an appointment, I pulled up Netflix to finish an episode of Fixer Upper and sat down to hand stitch the binding on this doll quilt. Spring sports are upon us, so with the rushing around all of the time, it was awesome to just sit down and relax for a little bit. AND I got another finish done from my Finish-A-Long goals (see HERE). Double win!

I don't know why I procrastinated for so long!

Anyway, I love this little scrappy patchwork quilt. I look at it and see bits and pieces of old projects I have made. From old quilts and my sister's apron...

...to my son's first bedroom curtains when he was only 2. Now he is 16. *sigh*

This was also my first attempt at free motion quilting. It isn't perfect, but it was good practice. I love how it got a great texture when I washed it!

Oh, and not sure if I ever showed this before, but my daughter and I made flannel nightgowns for her and her doll. (They often ask for PJs for their dolls.) This gives a size perspective. The quilt is only 24 inches.

I am really plugging away at these finishes, but I found even more unfinished projects in the process! I am trying to focus on one thing at a time so that I don't get overwhelmed. With practices and games 5 days a week, craft projects should be the last thing stressing me out! It does feel like a weight is lifted each time I finish a project, though. There are several more I completed that will be on the blog next week, so please come back to see them!

Red and Aqua Sampler Doll Quilts

I give up. I am tired of waiting for the doll bed to be fixed. I am tired of waiting for decent lighting. I give up.

Even though it was overcast and raining today, I took some plain pictures inside of those doll quilts that I finished almost a month ago so that I could post them here. I am too much of a perfectionist sometimes!

I got the over-achieving idea to make sampler quilts for these. I started out with 8" blocks before I realized they would be too big. Then, I changed to 6" blocks, but with the sashing they are still a little too big. Oh well.

The red and aqua color scheme matches the backing fabric, also used for sheets, that my daughter chose. It matches the red bunk bed and their bedroom very well, too.

Here are some of the best blocks I made. 6" finished blocks are pretty difficult to make. I don't plan on making such small blocks again for a very long time!

I also put the wrong binding colors on the quilts. I wanted to balance out the reds and aquas and totally messed that up. But I didn't feel like taking it all off to fix it. Are you noticing a progressively non-perfectionist attitude with these quilts? They took about a year to make so I just wanted them DONE!

The names of the sampler blocks from left to right- Churn Dash, Jacob's Ladder, Pinwheel, Sawtooth Star, Contrary Wife, Shoo Fly, Clay's Choice, Friendship Star, Carrie Nation, Fox and Geese, Anvil, and Welcome. Some of them probably have more than one name, though.

These quilts were part of my Finish-A-Long first quarter goals! Hooray! I don't think the last project is going to happen, but 2 out of 3 isn't bad!

I also enjoyed trying out free motion quilting and I plan on doing more project with that in the future. Maybe one day the bed will get fixed and I can show you the matching sheets and pillows, too. :)

Link Parties where I sometimes hang out...

Sew Can Do, Monday Funday, Motivate Me Monday, Inspiration Monday, Show & Tell, Naptime Creations, The Gathering Spot,  Take a Look Tuesday, Carolyn's Homework, The Winthrop Chronicles, Handmade Tuesdays,Tutorial Tuesdays, Your Whims Wednesday, Wow Us Wednesdays,  Weekly Homemaking Party,Create It Thursday, Treasure Hunt Thursday, Thursday Favorite Things, Wildly Original, Thriving on Thursday, Grace at Home, The 36th Party, Freedom Fridays, Feathered Nest Friday, Simple and Sweet Fridays, Craft Frenzy Friday, Think Pink Sunday, and Threading Your Way

WIP Wednesday ~ Doll Quilts

I have a lot of sewing projects going on right now.

A few weeks ago, I did my first ever free motion quilting! Now, don't laugh...

For a first time I don't think it is too bad. I still need to add the binding to this scrappy doll quilt. 

After my practice round, I quilted two more doll quilts that I am making for my daughter. These sampler blocks took for. ev. er. so I didn't want to mess the quilts up. I definitely got better at FMQ as I went. I still need to finish these bindings, too!

I am also working on a free pattern for an 18" doll version of the ruffle apron I shared last week. I just need to find the pattern and scan it... I misplaced it. That happens a lot around here.

Finally, a friend of mine had a special request and I just finished it last night. I need to take better finished pictures, but here is a peek of the work in progress...

 Any guesses as to what it is? And, more importantly, what it is made of?

Linking up at SillyMamaQuilts.

Sneak Peek of Doll Dresses and Some Valentine Stuff

I have been doing a lot of craft projects for the kids/with the kids lately on these cold, snowy days. I made a few new things for their dolls a few weeks ago and ended up designing some new patterns. This one is a reversible doll dress.

It was surprisingly easy and I hope to release a pattern to go with it soon. It only requires two fat quarters of fabric and some bias tape.

I just haven't found two coordinating fat quarters that I really like to make another one and take pictures. Doll clothes are a little trickier because you can't use large prints.

We have had oodles of delays and an early dismissal this week. Yesterday I decided to bribe the girls to clean up with the promise of a craft project. I bought a heart paper punch when I couldn't take it anymore and ran away to the craft store one day this week. We raided my scrapbook cardstock and they got to punch hearts out. Then, I took the pile and ran them through the sewing machine to make a garland.

I just made a longer stitch and was sure to tie the ends together when I was done. These are fun and didn't take too much effort. That is my kind of project when there is a school delay.

There are some other things that aren't finished or are top secret, but I can show you this one, last Valentine project...

It is my daughter's Valentine box and it is made from an old Cheerios box and some brown packaging paper. I think he turned out pretty cute!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Doll Sewing

I think I just about have my toddler put to sleep here. But, I am just going to hold her for awhile to make sure. It sure is hard to get her to take regular naps with all of her sisters home for the summer.  Eventually she just crashes. About 5 second before I started typing I felt her head go limp against my arm. She is pretty snuggly right now. :)

Anyway, when I was on a blogging break, I did a lot of doll sewing. The girls had so many projects waiting for me to do and as soon as I closed the shop I was expected to jump on it!

This outfit was a prototype for THIS dress and the leggings were made from a thrifted T shirt. (Hannah had a pair of leggings made with the rest of the shirt and these were the scraps.)

This dress was made from two different shirts using the Salina Dress pattern and I even attempted a flat felled seam in the front. I was pretty proud of how crisp that turned out! I also changed it to a slight high-low hem to use the original shirt.

My 9yo, Isabelle, finally got her new apron- I will have to show you that sometime- and I made a matching apron for her doll!

My niece got an apron and oven mitts for her doll, too. I used THIS pattern.

Isabelle made herself a nightgown last year with this flannel she chose. The doll dress was half finished on my sewing table for a long time and I just gave up and finished it for her. Procrastination might be an inherited trait. ;) It is just a peasant dress with a ruffle on the bottom.

She really does like to help me sew. She helped quite a bit with this assortment of doll clothes for charity. The Oliver & S Popover dress was an easy one! I extend the top up an inch or so and just use bias tape instead of adding a yoke. I like to sew in a bit of lace in the front. Isabelle likes to sew the side seams.

I also made some Twirly Lace dresses. That really is an easy pattern!

My 2yo niece got a doll diaper bag set for her birthday. The wipes are just squares of flannel in a tissue cozy. Isabelle sewed that, too.

Now, the big project I am working on right now- well, one of them- is bedding for my 7yo's doll bunk bed. It was her Christmas gift, and part of that included choosing the fabric for the bedding. Worst fabric shopping trip ever. Honestly, that is saying a lot with my girls' track record lately. I made the sheets and pillowcases, but now I am working on quilts. I couldn't just go with simple. It will take awhile.

Well, noisy sisters ended that nap! Ugh. I was done with the post, so at least it was good timing.

I think that catches us up on the doll sewing things around here. I love seeing what other people make, so I hope this may be inspiring to others. Maybe it will give you some ideas for sewing with kids. Even noisy big sisters.