I have just finished a pattern for six pairs of bedroom slippers for eighteen inch (46 cm) dolls. There are patterns for mice, dog, and pig slippers as well as cat, bunny, and bear slippers.

The pattern set also includes a pattern for a nightgown and sleep cap. Here is my Springfield doll wearing the gown, cap, and bunny slippers.

Here is Kitty wearing a gown, cap, and cat slippers.

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If you would like to learn more about the pattern, you can click here. Select eighteen inch doll patterns from the top menu. The nightgown, sleep cap, and slippers pattern is right under the Kitty pattern.

sherralyn my patterns Accessories for American Girl Dolls, Accessories for eighteen inch dolls, eighteen inch doll clothes patterns

I have had several requests for pants patterns to fit Kitty and other 18 inch (46 mm) dolls. I finally took the hint and developed a pattern for pants, shorts, a skirt, a T-shirt, and sneakers. Here are two Kitty dolls and a Springfield doll wearing cloths made from the pattern.

If you are interested in the pattern, please click here or use the pattern button at the top of the page.  You can select the Kitty patterns by clicking on the small Kitty picture at the top of the page or you can just scroll down the page. This pattern is the third Kitty pattern. You can read more about the pattern there and decide if it is one that you would like.

sherralyn my patterns eighteen inch doll clothes patterns

Recently, I had an email from a customer who was concerned about the safety of the doll joints used in constructing a Kitty doll. Her granddaughter is still a toddler and she is concerned about giving her a doll made with the doll joints. The joints seem fairly safe to me, but I don’t think that we should take chances with our children.

Usually, but not always the joints stay safely inside the doll. I had a joint pulled out of a doll by two girls (they were about nine years old) several years ago. We were doing an informal play and the girls were suppose to be fighting over the doll. I had used one of my research and development dolls that hadn’t met my standards for the play. I wasn’t upset about the doll, but the girls were. I had to spend some time reassuring them before we could continue.

The locked joints used for Kitty are quite large although they are made from three smaller pieces. I am not sure that the large locked joints are a chocking hazard, and once they are locked together they must be cut apart to be separated. I have never given an assembled doll joint to a toddler. I might be mistaken about how well the joints are locked.

In this day and age we can’t we sure of the chemical composition of plastic parts. The plastic joints might contain harmful chemicals that should not go in a child’s mouth.

The buttons used to string my small dolls and the tiny shoes that the dolls wear are definite chocking hazards. My small dolls should not be given to any child who still likes to chew on toys.

sherralyn Safety

If you need a Valentine for a friend or a doll,  you can make a “Heart Kitty” for Valentine’s Day using my free cat pattern. Go to Florabunda’s Page and find the Beginning Sewing Projects. Download the Stuffed  Cats Projects. Chose the size pattern that you like and sew and stuff the cat. Instead of using wiggle eyes and a pompom for the nose, use small blue heart buttons for the eyes and a larger red heart button for the nose. Tie a ribbon around her neck and you have a heart cat waiting for Valentine’s Day.

You can visit Florabunda’s page by clicking “Florabunda’s Page” in the box to the left of the blog, clicking the button at the top of the page, or by clicking here.

sherralyn Free Patterns Accessories for eighteen inch dolls, Accessories for small dolls

Today tech support (husband) has uploaded Florabunda’s page to the website. Everything on this page is free. You will find new beginning hand sewing patterns, craft ideas, and my Florabunda stories on the new page. We decided that this was a good spot for the free global pincushion pattern. The free sundress pattern, the free quilt patterns, and the Tools, Tips, and Techniques download are still on the pattern page.

To go to Florabunda’s page, click the button at the top of the page, or “Florabunda’s Page” in the box to the left of this post. Or you can click here.

The new page has required a few changes on the patterns page. All the website pages have a new button at the top. Please check out the changes, especially Florabunda’s page. I hope that you will share Flo’s page with any children that you think will enjoy it. Thank you!

sherralyn Free Children's Stories, hand sewing, learning to sew

Check out the new index at the top of my pattern page. We hope that it will help you navigate to the pattern of your choice.

The index has a link to Florabunda’s page. We hope that it will be up and running in a few weeks, but now the only thing available is a picture of Florabunda hard at work.

sherralyn blog, my patterns

A month or two ago, as I was coming home from a shopping trip to JoAnn’s Fabric and Crafts, I was stopped by a police officer. No, I didn’t get a traffic ticket. I was trying to turn left and go up the hill to get to our house. The policeman told me about an accident. At the bottom of the hill, a crew had been doing maintenance work on our water lines. They had accidentally broken a gas line.

I looked down the road passed the officer, and I could see something coming out of a pipe. Whatever it was that was pouring out, almost flowed like water. However, the street wasn’t getting any wetter, and there was a strong smell of gas in the air. The policeman told me that I could go home, but if the wind changed, I would have to leave again.

When I got home and told my husband about the leak, we decided to leave for a while. We stuffed our two cats into their cat carriers and went out to lunch. The only thing besides the cats that we took with us was my husband’s laptop.

I didn’t really think that our house would  burn down, but I still worried a little that it might. We have insurance, of course, but it would be very traumatic to lose our house and everything in it. I kept thinking about the things in the house that it would be hard or impossible to replace.

One thing that my mind kept going back to was my twenty year old Bernina sewing machine. I have had it a long time, but it is still one of my favorite worldly possessions. My Bernina and I make a great team. I know how it works, and it knows how to sew for me. If anything like this incident happens again, the cats still have top priority, but I think that I will take my Bernina along, too.

sherralyn Sewing Machines sewing tools

Tech support (husband) and I are working on a new page for my website. It is designed to be kid friendly, with beginning hand sewing projects, craft projects, stories, and lots and lots of entertaining “Easter eggs” courtesy of tech support. Everything on the page will be free.

Here is Florabunda with animals made from some of the patterns.

The miniature bears are just the right size for dolls

I made the kitties in honor of Kitty, my newest cloth doll pattern.

The elephant pattern contains three sizes of elephants. The costumes for Florabunda and the elephant are not available. I made them up as I went along.

We hope to have the new page up and running in a month or two.

sherralyn blog, hand sewing, learning to sew Accessories for American Girl Dolls, Accessories for eighteen inch dolls

We have a small tree this year and so I decided that my small doll, Florabunda, would make a great angel for the top of the tree. I made her gown from my “Gown,Smock, and Two Tiered Skirt” pattern. I cut the pattern from white bridal satin and made the skirt extra long. The wings are from two layers of gold lame bonded together with low heat fusible webbing. Her halo is made from a pipe-cleaner wrapped in gold midi braid.

Here is a picture of our little tree with Florabunda perched proudly on the top.

sherralyn Christmas Sewing Adapting a pattern, sewing for small dolls

I have been recovering from a cold in the last few days. While I was ill, I had just enough energy to play around with spool knitting. I used the spool knitter to make a few things for Florabunda. The hat and scarf were made with a four pin knitter. The mittens were made with a six pin knitter and were a little more difficult to make. I hope to have instructions for making Florabunda’s hat and scarf and a few other things with a spool knitter in a month or so.

Here is a photo of Florabunda in her new felt coat and her new knitwear.

sherralyn loom knitting for small dolls knitting for small dolls