My Birthday Princess & Clothes for 18 Inch Dolls

This past week we celebrated (minus daddy who was dealing with a major catastrophe at work but with Nana) the 4th birthday of my princess Ali!  What a little bundle of sweetness she is (with a whole bunch of attitude thrown in!).  Ali is my snuggler.  She LOVES to snuggle and cannot get enough.  If she is upset, snuggle with her and her baby, read her a book and she relaxes immediately.  She loves music and dance and is absorbed with watching herself in the mirror!  It is hilarious to watch her watch herself sing and dance!  She is the least adventurous of the bunch preferring to stay close to mom and dad.  She is a momma's girl, that is for sure!  She has learned lately the art of crossing her arms when upset and pouting a big pout.  Though it is very cute, it is certainly not appropriate.  She wants so much to be a big girl but is still a little girl at heart.  She loves to be a helper and will often accompany me (at least for a little while) to do just about anything - baking, weeding, laundry, etc.  She is my fashionista, being particularily opionated about her clothes, my clothes and the clothes of her dolls.  I will often hear her say she likes my shirt but doesn't like my pants or some such thing.  At the core of her heart, she wants to know that she is beautiful.  She is sensitive girl who is learning how to respond to a "no" with something other than crying, a sure sign she is learning to handle her emotions.  I see a lot of myself in her so, with that in mind, I try to assure her that, yes, she is beautiful, yes, I do love her, and, yes, I love to spend time with her.  She has asked numerous times when she will be a mom and I can see her thriving at just that someday far off in the future - taking on the awesome responsibility of being a wife and a mother.  I look forward to seeing her continue to grow in confidence and the assurance that she truly is a princess, daughter of a King.  Happy Birthday, my sweet Ali, I sure do love you!

When I asked what she wanted for her birthday, she said a baby.  Now, you must realize this girl has many babies.  With 3 girls in the house, the last thing we really need is another baby doll - we have plenty!  So, I thought maybe some clothes for Kara, her 18 inch doll she received at Christmas, would be a good idea.  So, I got sewing!  Oh, what a lot of fun that was.  I stayed up way too late way too many nights but I am thrilled with the results.  With the numerous patterns I have accumulated (some free, some bought) I can tell I will be sewing again soon.  Especially since older sister RJ is exceedingly jealous of the new clothes Kara received.  Her girl Candy needs some, too!  I told her to wait for Christmas!  Without any further ado, here is what I made, using only fabric and notions I already had (except for a couple of zippers I found at the thrift store)!

This is Ali's favorite dress for Kara!  It is called the Katie dress and the free pattern can be found here. 

Ali does not like this dress at all!  Remember, she is opionated when it comes to fashion!  I am trying not to be offended!   The pattern is found here.



Another really cute dress!   I love the polka dots!  Free pattern is from here.



This is my favorite outfit so far on Kara!  Ali is learning to like it!  I think the fabric is perfect for this style of tunic, especially with the slight shimmer it has.  I love the ruffles and the turned up cuffs.  It can be made shorter or without the ruffles so I will have to try that eventually.  Also, the jeans have front and back pockets!  So stinkin' cute!!  Tunic pattern is here and jeans pattern is here.

Lest you think all I did was sew clothes, I also crocheted Ali a hat and a headband, both of which she loves.  With that girl, you just never know!  Whatever the case, I had a blast making all those clothes and I look forward to the next 3 complete outfits I get to make for Christmas!  As for now, I am heading to bed!

Linking up to these parties: