No Sew Halloween Sweater

I love all the crazy socks you can find this time of year. I bought this pair without any idea why, but then it dawned on me: dolly sweater!



First I made a shirt by cutting off the ankle part of the sock, right across from the top of the heel. Since this is a two way stretch fabric (like t-shirts) it doesn't ravel, so you don't have to worry about hemming the bottom. Yay!

I cut two small slits for the armholes, one at each side of the sock. I made them small and then tried it on. You can always cut more if necessary. Mine were just right!



Here's a view from the back:



Now, what to do with the rest of the sock? Hmmmmm... How about a skirt! I cut off the foot part of the sock below the heel and the cut off the toe. I left a little bit of the black for a nice trim. I needed a way to keep the skirt on, which does require a tiny bit of sewing, but it's easy. I just took a piece of elastic thread an sewed around the top:



I tried the skirt on my doll before I tied a knot on the inside and cut the thread.



Now you have a complete outfit. Time to look for more socks!



Have a happy time DIY-ing!

A Dolly Daybed for Blythe

The Blythe dolls were bugging me to create a home just for them and we decided to start with a daybed. It's a very practical item to have in a doll's room. All you need to create this daybed is strong cardboard, about a half yard of fabric, a glue gun, and basic tools like scissors or a rotary cutter, as well as trims and thread to decorate the bed.




I asked Lacey to lay down on a piece of cardboard so I could measure her and decided to cut my first piece 8" by 14". This allows the seat to be 4&3/4" deep and the back to be 3&1/4" high. I marked a line at this spot:




And then folded the cardboard along the line, using a metal ruler to help create a nice, straight line.




I also cut two pieces of cardboard measuring 6" by 4&3/4" to form the sides and then lay them all down on a piece of fun fabric.




Now it's time to get out the glue gun! Cut a piece of fabric that is about an inch and a half lager than the main bed piece and cut two pieces that are long enough to wrap the sides. We want to glue the fabric to the front, of the bed or the side that will show. First I run a line of glue along the fold between the seat and back so the fabric will stick there. Then I glue the fabric to the whole piece of cardboard and wrap it around the back like a present, gluing down the flaps.










I wrap the sides with fabric and glue it, too. I wrap the fabric all the way around so the inside and outside are covered.




Now it's time to attach the sides to the bed. This isn't hard, just make sure to keep everything at right angles. I put the glue along the edge of the bed and then press it together, one side at a time.



I like to add a bit more support to the bottom so a cut another piece of cardboard to fit across and glued it into place. This is optional.






The girls are happy so far:




But,we need to do some decorating and make a matress and pillows so the bed is more like this:




That's it for the bed making! Does everyone know how to make a cushion and pillows? We can blog about that later. Feel free to let us know if there are other things you would like to make and HAPPY DOLLY DIY-ing!