Gossamer Gowns

As I noted in an early post entitled "Sewing for Skipper," one of the most important things I gained from playing with dolls as a child was sewing skills.  I therefore tend to look askance at "no sew" crafting projects.  Relying on the glue gun not only inhibits the development of manual dexterity, it also inhibits the development of another essential life skill -- patience.  Still I was intrigued when I first heard of Printable Doll Clothes.

Elizabeth, the creator of these enchanting designs has released four volumes of dresses with beautiful colors and textures that you can print, cut out, and then tape together, molding the pieces to fit different sized dolls.  There are numerous helpful videos on her site that give clear instructions for assembling the outfits:

I was impressed enough to purchase a multi-pack with the first three volumes from the Printable Doll Clothes Etsy Store.  Since she was just releasing volume four, Elizabeth generously sent it to me shortly after my purchase.

Christmas morning I finally got around to playing with some of the designs only I decided to print the templates onto card stock and then trace the pattern pieces onto tissue paper.  

I thought the tissue paper would drape better than copy paper and I also didn't want to deplete my expensive color ink cartridges :-)!

On New Year's Eve my ladies queened it over everyone else in their gossamer gowns.

When I get more time I will experiment with printing Elizabeth's designs onto fabric and then assembling them on my sewing machine.

For now however, my conclusion is that for children who are not old enough to handle pins, needles, and sharp scissors, playing with Printable Doll Clothes is a more engaging challenge than coloring and cutting out clothes for two-dimensional paper dolls.

Better still it just might get them interested in learning how to sew.

Best Wishes for 2015!

A bientôt!