Plastic Canvas Dress Up Doll

My nieces love dolls and dressing them up, so for Christmas I am making them a dress-up doll out of plastic canvas using my scrap yarn. I did find this site on making a plastic canvas paper doll, but I didn't want to figure out her pattern. I may try to make the arms next to the body like hers for the next one though.

So I took a piece of graphing paper and considered each square to be four squares -- about the size of the actual plastic canvas. (Perhaps they make smaller graphing paper but that's what I had.) I just started drawing.

Then using the doll I created, I used a light box that I picked up at an auction for a dollar (I would have just used the window on a sunny day if I didn't have one.) and drew clothing patterns for the doll.

Here is my pattern in pdf. FYI - shorten the dress and jeans by a line or two on this pattern so the shoes will fit better.

I cut out the canvas doll and clothes.

Edged them with yarn; then filled them in how I wanted.

I used embroidery floss for the facial features and hand. (Quite fun going at it with no plan, but it doesn't look too odd. Hopefully will do better with the next one!) I tied on yarn for hair.

I sewed on velcro (the rough side) to the back of the items or made a tie with yarn for attaching to the doll. (I think you could probably hot glue them just as well.)

And there is a set of dress up doll and clothes made from plastic canvas and scrap yarn.

If the girl receiving this playset is old enough, it might be a good idea to cut out a few extra clothes and leave them unfinished and then she can "design" her own clothing thereby sneakily giving her some needlepoint practice.