Sew an Easy Sleeveless Doll Shirt (18-inch Doll Clothes)

Making clothes for your child's doll and even teaching your child to sew their own new doll clothes can be very rewarding. 18-inch doll clothes are often quite expensive.

By using 18" free doll clothes patterns and your own fabric, it is possible to create cute and unique doll clothes at a fraction of the cost of buying them for the child's favorite companion.

Learn how to sew a simple sleeveless doll shirt with this video and photo tutorial.  This doll tank top does not require a paper pattern.  Simply cut two rectangles of fabric and a piece of loop tape and you can sew this shirt for an 18" doll quickly and easily.

Watch our video to learn more about making a sleeveless top for 18-inch dolls, or read this post for a photo tutorial with step-by-step instructions.

18-inch doll patterns will fit girl dolls with similar body types, such as 18-inch American Girl, Our Generation, Journey, Playtime by Emmie, My Life As, and New Adventures Styles dolls.

Is it hard to sew doll clothes?

Sewing doll clothes is not that much different from sewing garments for people. One thing to remember when following doll clothes patterns is that fabric is much bulkier on a doll than on a person.

Seams in doll clothes need to be on the small size compared to those for people to solve the problem of bulk.

What kind of fabric is best for doll clothes?

Sewers who regularly make doll clothing have found that lightweight cottons, silks, wools, linens, and even rayons work well for DIY 18" doll clothes.

Light-weight cotton is the easiest to sew, compared to silks or rayons, but it is important to experiment with other fabrics depending on the article of clothing that is being made.

Making flower girl's doll dresses for an 18" doll would look stunning in silk as opposed to a light-weight cotton.

This free tank doll shirt pattern is a fun summer top that looks good in light-weight cotton or even sears-sucker. This makes it a good beginner pattern for making doll clothes.

WHAT YOU NEED to make a doll shirt for an 18" doll without a paper pattern pieces

• Main fabric 4 1/2" X 14"
• Strap fabric 3" X 12"
• Velcro or Loop Tape 1/4"-3/8" X 3 1/4"
• Scissors
• Pins
• Threaded sewing machine
• Iron
• Ironing board

INSTRUCTIONS for making a doll shirt

STEP 1: Fold and iron the sides of the main fabric and strap fabric

This is a really quick project. Begin by taking the larger piece of fabric, the doll shirt.

Fold in the long side 1/4" and iron crisply. Next, fold the long side again another 1/4" and iron.

Do this same thing on the other long side of the shirt fabric.

Place the main fabric of the shirt aside for now and begin to work on the fabric for the straps.

As was done with the shirt's main fabric, take one long side of the strap fabric, fold it under 1/4", and iron it on the ironing board. Fold the same side another 1/4" and iron a crisp fold. Repeat this with the other long side of the strap fabric.

step 2: sew the folded edges of the doll shirt and straps

Take the larger piece of fabric to the sewing machine. With a straight stitch, sew close to the edge or down the middle of one of the folded edges, being sure to backtack at the beginning and the end of stitching. Do the same for the other folded edge.

Do the same thing on the strap fabric. Sew a straight stitch along each folded edge close to the edge or down the middle of each folded side. Remember to backtack at the beginning and end of stitching.

step 3: attach the velcro to the main body of the doll shirt

Taking the large piece of fabric, turn one of the short ends under 1/4" with the right sides together. Press this fold with the iron.

Take the other short end and press the fabric 1/4" with the wrong sides together. Use the iron to make a crisp fold.

Sew one piece of the Velcro onto each of the folded short ends, sewing all of the way around the piece of Velcro.

Sew close to the edges of the Velcro. If either piece of Velcro is too long, cut the extra Velcro off.

step 4: position the straps on the 18" doll shirt

First, put the shirt fabric with the Velcro on the doll, positioning it where it will be when complete.

Take the piece of fabric for the straps and cut it in half so there are two pieces or two straps.

Lay the doll face up on the work surface. Take one of the fabric straps and make a little tuck in one end.

Position this on the inside front of the doll's shirt so it will go over the doll's shoulder when attached to the shirt and pin in place.

While still working on the front of the doll, do the same with the other strap. Make a tuck at the end, place it on the inside of the main fabric in the correct position of the other shoulder, and pin it in place.

Turn the doll over and make sure the straps don't twist. Make a tuck at the end of each strap. Pin it in place on the inside back of the doll shirt so the straps of the doll shirt lay where they should be on the doll's shoulders. Pin in place.

step 5: sew the doll shirt straps 

Carefully remove the shirt from the doll. Do not disrupt the pins holding the straps in place.

Take the doll shirt to the sewing machine and sew across the ends of each strap. Stitch following the previous stitch line when attaching the straps. Backtack at the beginning and end of the straight stitching.

If the ends of doll shirt straps hang too long past the sewing line, cut them, leaving a small seam allowance.

Place the new sleeveless shirt on the doll.  Our 18" doll skirt tutorial would be perfect to pair with this summer shirt!

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial on making an 18" doll shirt. It's so cute and easy, and it only uses fabric scraps. It might become your doll's favorite thing! We have many other free patterns for doll clothes.

Happy Sewing!
 

Other clothes and accessories for 18" dolls

• Socks for 18" Doll
• No-sew 18" Doll Handkerchief Skirt pattern
• 18" Doll Poncho
• Tights for 18" Doll