Winter fun for American Girl Doll - overview

Click onto picture to go to the free tutorial

Dog / cat bed for American Girl doll

Dimensions 7 1/2" x  5 1/2" x  1 1/4"

What you need

• Fabric (I used flannel) and matching thread
• quilters batting 
• Sewing machine

How to make it

Download pattern here

This pattern is copyrighted by me, ReadCreations.
Please use for home use only !!!
Make sure you have page scaling set to none !

1. From fabric cut 2 pieces of the oval (floor) and 2 pieces of the sides

2. From quilters batting cut 1 oval piece and 1 side piece (if the batting is very thin, double it)

3. Take the two oval fabric pieces and the oval batting and layer it with the batting in between
    (right sides of fabric should face outside).

4. Zigzag all around

5. Take the two fabric sides and face them right sides together. Sew along the top with a
    1/4" seam (sew the side where the dip is)

6. Make small cuts along the dip (make sure you don't cut the thread)

7. Turn to right side and insert side batting

8. Zigzag along the bottom but leave the last 2" on either side

9. On your oval mark your middle front and back

10. Align dip on side with front middle on oval and pin all around

11. Sew with 1/4" seam allowance, start 2" from end and stop 2" from other end

12. Open side and sew seams  on sides together (make sure it fits around the rest of the oval)

13. Finish sewing side to bottom

14. Turn inside out and you are done !!!

You could add a pillow by cutting 2 more oval pattern parts and stuffing them with batting.

Crocheting a rippled Afghan for American Girl Doll

Dimensions approx 17" x 20"

What you need

• 2 balls of medium weight (4, needle size US8 / I-9) yarn (each in a different color)
  (I used Red Heart Super Saver)
• 1 crochet needle appropriate for the yarn, for me it was I-9

How to crochet the Afghan

I found this awesome tutorial on YouTube on how to make the Afghan. The video is always talking about going in 3s (3 stitches at the bottom, 3 stitches in the middle and 3 stitches on top). This is too big for the American Girl doll and therefor I went with 2s (2 stitches on top, 2 in the middle and 2 on the bottom) and that gave me the perfect size.
Go and watch the video first, then we will go into detail on how to adjust it for your doll.

One set (going from the top down and then back up) will involve 12 stitches (6 up and 6 down), since in the top we will have 2 stitches in one hole (on each side) which means your starting chain will have sets of 10 (in the video he was talking of sets of 14).

You should make a sample with 3 sets (starting chain of 3x10 + 2 = 32) which created 8 1/2" for my medium weight yarn
This is what one set looks like (steps 8 - 13):

1. Which meant I started my Afghan with a starting chain of 62 (6x10 + 2)
2. Go in the 3rd loop (as explained in the video) and do your double crochet, with that you have your two stitches on the top.
3. Crochet 2 double crochet stitches
4. Crochet the 2 single crochet stitches and the pull through (as explained in the video) - your first valley is done

5. Crochet the 2 single crochet stitches and the pull through
6. Crochet 2 double crochet stitches
7. Crochet 2 double crochet stitches in the same hole - Now your first set is done

8.  Crochet 2 double crochet stitches in the same hole
9.  Crochet 2 double crochet stitches
10. Crochet the 2 single crochet stitches and the pull through

11. Crochet the 2 single crochet stitches and the pull through
12. Crochet 2 double crochet stitches
13. Crochet 2 double crochet stitches in the same hole - Now your next set is done

14. Repeat Steps 8-13 four more times and you should be at the end
15. Chain 3 then turn work over and repeat step 2-15

I changed color every 2 rows but this is up to you
I had 19 stripes (double rows) to get 20"

In short

• start with a starting chain of 62
• go in 2s
• change color every other row to form a strip
• crochet 19 strips

Crib for American Girl doll's baby sister

Overall dimensions approx  11"d x 7"w x 9"h

This crib fits Target's Circo Mini dolls. They are the perfect size to be AG doll's baby brothers and sisters and come with all kinds of accessories (car carrier, stroller, clothes, ...) and are very reasonably priced.

What you need

• card board (I used chip board, but you could also use thick cereal box or similar)
• 10 wooden craft sticks (4 1/2"x 3/8") got a pack of 150 at Walmart
• 4 wooden jumbo craft sticks (5.9" x 0.7") got a pack of 75 at Walmart
• 22 wooden skinny sticks (5 3/4" x 1/4") got a pack of 75 at Walmart
• 1/2" foam for mattress (6" x 10 1/2")
• fabric to cover mattress (6 1/2" x 21 1/2") and thread
• Elmer's glue
• hot glue gun
• heavy books for weighting down
• scissors
• shears to cut the wooden sticks with

How  to make the crib

1.  Cut the following pieces
        6x  7" x  9" (for head and foot board, 3 each)   called parts Ax
        3x  6"x 10 1/2" (bottom)  called parts Bx
        4x  1/2" x 10 1/2"  (top railings)  called parts Cx
        4x   1" x 10 1/2" (bottom railings)  called parts Dx

2. Take 3 part Ax and glue on top of each other weigh down with heavy books while glue dries.
    This will become part A1 (head board)

3. Take the other 3 part Ax and glue on top of each other, weigh down with heavy books while glue
    dries.
    This will become part A2 (foot board)

4. Take all 3 part Bx and glue on top of each other, weigh down with heavy books while glue dries.
    This will become part B (bottom)

5. Take 1 part Cx and 1 part Dx and mark on each the following
         1/4" from the end
         starting from 1/4" mark measure 1" increments all across  (at each 1" mark, mark 1/8"
         before and after, this is where each slat will go)

6. On part Cx glue 2 craft sticks end to end (you will need to cut the rounded corners off) flush with
    the top.
    Cut craft sticks to required length. Weigh down with heavy books and let glue dry.
    This will become part C.
    Repeat for another part Cx.

7. On part Dx glue 2 jumbo craft sticks end to end (you will need to cut the rounded corners off)
    flush with the bottom. Cut jumbo craft sticks to required length. Weigh down with heavy books
    and let glue dry.
    This will become part D   
    Repeat for another part Dx.

8. Take 1 part C and 1 part D and lay them parallel about 6 3/4" apart
    (make sure you are square !!!)

9. Glue skinny sticks on each mark on C and D to merge them.
    Make sure you butt your skinny sticks up to the craft sticks on part C and the jumbo sticks on
    part D

10. You can either fill the sections between the skinny sticks on part C and D with stick pieces cut
      to length or fill with glue (that is what I did which is not so good since glue shrinks, I wouldn't
      do it again with glue. I had to fill the gaps with hot glue as you can see in step 18)

11. Cover with additional part Cx and Dx respectively (glue, then weigh down with heavy books
      until glue is dry). One side is done and will be called part CD.

12. Repeat steps 7 - 11 for other side. Now you have all required parts and we can assemble.

13. On parts A1 and A2 draw a pencil line horizontally 1 3/4" from bottom. Glue a craft stick
      (rounded ends cut off) bordering the line and above. Let glue dry.

14. On both parts CD glue 2 craft sticks (rounded ends cut off) flush with bottom. Let glue dry.

15. With hot glue gun glue part CD to part A1 in a 90° angle. Make sure the craft sticks are on the
      same level. This is where the floor will go.

16. With hot glue gun glue part B (floor) to part CD (side) and part A1 (header). Make sure the floor
      is sitting right on top of the support craft sticks.

17. With hot glue gun glue part CD (other side) onto floor and part A1 (header). Make sure the craft
      sticks are on the same level and the floor is sitting right on top of the support craft sticks.


18. With hot glue gun glue part A2 (footer) to both CDs (sides). Make sure the craft sticks are on
      the same level and the floor is sitting right on top of the support craft sticks.

19. Prime and paint and you are done !!!

How to make the mattress

 

1. Cut fabric to cover mattress (6 1/2" x 21 1/2")

2. Fold fabric to get 6 1/2" x 10 3/4"

3. Sew around fabric with a 1/4" seam allowance and sew one of the short sides and the open long
    side shut. Also sew part of the remaining short side shut, but leave enough gap to be able to
    turn the fabric and get the foam inside.

4. For each corner put seam on seam and sew a 1/2" corner off

5. Turn inside out and put foam inside

6. Hand sew the opening shut and your mattress is done !!!


You could also add a bumper if you wanted to.

Skis and poles for American Girl doll

What you need

• card board big enough to cut 6x strips 18"x1 1/2"(cereal box)
• paper and adhesive laminate or paint, depending on how you want to decorate
• Elmer's glue
• clamps and heavy books
• duck tape in your choice of color for binding and pole handles
• 2 thick wooden skewers or dowels (about 12" long and 3/16" diameter)

How to make the skis

1. From card board cut 6 strips 18" long by 1 1/2" wide

2. Take one strip and round one end in a half circle and transfer to a second strip and cut second
    strip (this will be the basic form of your ski)

3. Glue one of the cut strips on top of two uncut strips (leave the curved tip and about 1" from it
    unglued).
    Weigh down with heavy books. Let glue dry.
    Repeat for other ski

4. Put glue between all layers and bend tip upwards, clamp in the upward position and let glue dry.
    Repeat with other ski.

5. Cut other layers of cardboard to match curved tip

6. Either paint and seal or print a design on paper (merging two papers together to get 18") and
    laminate with self adhesive laminate. (I designed and printed it on the computer, remember you
    need top and bottom)

 

7. If you painted and sealed your skis, you are done. Otherwise continue with this step
    Glue paper on top and bottom of your skis and weigh with heavy books and let dry. 

8. Cut paper along card board edge

Your ski base is done !!!

How to make bindings for your skis

Follow the steps for binding in my snowboard blog

How to make the poles

1. Take 2 skewers and paint them in a matching color and let dry

2. Cut a 3 1/2" piece of duct tape (color of your binding) and cut in half length wise

3. Take one of the halves and fold over 1/3 then fold over the other side.
    Repeat for the other piece of duct tape

4. Cut a 5" piece of duct tape and cut it to a width of 1 1/4"

5. Wrap this 5" piece of duct tape around to top part of the skewer until about 2" are left

6. Take one of the pieces from step 3 and bend it into a circle (seam inside) and tape with a scrap
    piece of duct tape to keep it in shape

7. Go through the circle with the leftover 2" on your skewer. Your loop should be towards the
    non-sticky side, continue wrapping the duct tape around the top part of the skewer and going
    through the loop until all of the duct tape is gone. You have now finished the handle.

8. Repeat steps 4 - 7 for other skewer handle

9. Take a piece of card board ( 1" x 2" ) and cover from both sides with duct tape.

10. Draw 2 circles with a radius of 3/8" and cut out

11. Poke skewer tip through the center of the circle. Glue in place


You are done !!!

Snowboard for American Girl Doll

Overall dimensions: size 13" x 4" 

What you need

• big cereal box ( I used a big Cheerios box) at least 13" tall
• Elmer's glue and hot glue gun
• 2 pages of white paper (Legal size)
• Duct tape, color of your choice (for the binding)
  
• roll of clear adhesive laminate, optional (you can also use any spray/brush on sealer to seal it)
• clamps, heavy books
• Exacto knife or scissors

How to make the snowboard

1. Download pattern here
          Remember to set scaling to none !
          Please use this only for your personal use.
   Cut the pattern twice and tape together along the marked line.
2. Cut your cereal box open along the glued line
3. Cut 1x the snowboard pattern out of the cereal box and cut 2x rectangles slightly larger (especially longer) than the snowboard pattern (when we bend the the ends up we will need slightly more cardboard)
4. Glue the snowboard pattern onto one of the rectangles but don't glue the ends yet (stop with the glue about 2 1/2" from either end)
5. Glue the last rectangle to the rectangle with the pattern and again no glue at the ends just like in step 4
6. Weigh down with heavy books and let glue dry
7. We will do the front first. Put glue between all the layers in the front then bend the last 1 1/2" upwards, clamp and support the clamps and let glue dry
   
   
    
    
8.  Now put glue between all layers on the back end and bend the last 1" just slightly upwards, clamp and support the clamps and let glue dry.
9. After removing the clamps, cut along the pattern. It should look like this
   
   
10. You can either paint it with your favorite design or print a design on the computer, I designed mine on the computer and printed it on Legal paper (the long paper)
    
    
    
    
11. To make it easier for glueing and to make it shiny and waterproof I put a strip of adhesive laminate on my print where the snowboard will be (see in picture in step 10)
12. If you are not using paper design skip the rest
    Spread glue on the underside of the snowboard with a brush
    
      
    
    
13. Center bottom design and weigh down with heavy books, use the clamps to hold paper to ends and let glue dry
14. Take scissors or Exacto knife and cut carefully around board
15. Now spread glue on the top side of the snowboard and center top design. Weigh down with heavy books, clamp ends to hold paper and let glue dry
16. Take scissors or Exacto knife and cut carefully around board
    
    
     

How to make the bindings

1.  Take the boots your American Girl doll is going to wear with the snowboards and trace the outline of the boots on the cereal box
   
   
   
2. Cut about 1/8" bigger than the marking
   
   
   
   
3.  Take the duct tape and put both soles on it
   
   
   
   
4. Cut around liberally and cut flaps every 1/4" or so
   
   
5. Fold all flaps in
   
   
6. Cut 4 strips 2 3/4" x 3/4" from cereal box and round them (I pulled them over a table edge a couple of times) and cut a couple of small scrap pieces of duct tape
   
   
7. Put glue between the two strips and form them around the heel (cut of the sliver that is too long on the inside strip) and tape in place with the scrap duct tape. Let glue dry.
   
   
   
   
   
8. After glue has dried, take the heel piece off and center in a piece of duct tape and cut flaps on top (those will be folded in) and cut the corners off as in the picture below
   
   
9. Fold side flaps in then fold top flaps down
   
   
10. Cut flaps and tape the inside, but make sure you only tape the cardboard part, not the flaps
    
    
11. Put heal on sole and fold flaps down (the heel part should be on the outside of the sole so the sole can give it some support)
    
    
12. Cut a 6" piece of duct tape and fold in thirds
    
    
    
    
    
13. Put the shoe in the binding and tape with a scrap piece the toe strap in place
    
    
    
    
14. Repeat steps 4 - 14 for second binding
    
    
15. Position bindings on snowboard and glue (best with a hot glue gun) bindings in place
    
    
    
    

You are done !!!