The first Licca Doll Project I’m sharing with you is this adorable Doll Wardrobe Pattern. I’ll be making my new Licca Doll lots of cute outfits so she’ll need somewhere to keep them all tidy! It was fun to make, and functional when finished. The Doll Wardrobe is a size which would be great for most fashion dolls, so if you’re into Sindy, Barbie or any other similar size doll you should make one too!
I’ll be making and reviewing other Licca Doll patterns this year – so make sure you follow me on Facebook or Instagram to stay up to date!
Claire x
Doll Wardrobe Fabric
The Doll Wardrobe Pattern is from the Licca Dolls Miniature Dresses Volume 2. There is a similar pattern in Volume 1 as well. As Licca Dolls are Japanese, I chose some Japanese fabrics which I had in my fabric stash (I was intending to make cushion covers with the fabric but never mind!). You’ll find a lovely selection of Japanese fabrics at Clothkits if you want to give your wardrobe a similar look. The pattern requires 110 cm x 50 cm each of a main fabric and a lining fabric. As I was using up fabric, the inside of my Doll Wardrobe is quite colourful!
Doll Wardrobe Construction
I’ve called this section ‘construction’ because it is a craft project rather than involving any sewing. The pattern calls for 16 milk cartons. If you only use 1 or 2 cartons of juice a week then it would take a long time to get 16 cartons. I know that once I’ve decided to make something I have to get started – so I raided the cupboards and used cereal boxes instead and other thin cardboard boxes that were to hand. It worked fine. The instructions have clear illustrations with the dimensions needed for each part of the wardrobe. If you are using cardboard rather than cartons, look ahead at the illustrations for each step – because you can save yourself time by not cutting in certain places.
The majority of the wardrobe is made by covering the cardboard pieces in fabric and gluing the fabric down. I tried using fabric glue but it gets a bit sticky and messy. I used a hot glue gun instead which worked better. I also used a wooden skewer (cut to size) instead of a straw for the clothes rail.
My favourite part of this Project was making the coat hangers. They are made by bending wire into shape and look like perfect replicas of real coat hangers. There is a full size template in the book, so they are fairly easy to make. A pair of pliers will help you to bend wire evenly.
Wardrobe Accessories – Shopping bags and shoeboxes
The Book also has patterns for paper shopping bags and shoeboxes. I used normal A4 card for the shoeboxes as it’s thinner than cereal boxes and if you use pretty colours, they don’t need covering. The bags are made out of paper and you can use a thin cord or thin ribbon for the handles. They look great arranged on the shelves or for shopping photoshoots with your dolls. The patterns would be easy to upscale for larger dolls.
The verdict?
Skill level: Intermediate – patience required as lots of parts to put together
Overall – great for keeping doll clothes and shoes neat and tidy and in one place!
Happy making! Let me know how you get on making this pattern in the comments below.
Claire x
