Forever 18 Inches Pattern Hack: Gingerbread Dress

Make a fun Holiday outfit using the Forever 18 Inches Lollipop Garden Dress! With just a few specific fabric and trim choices you can transform your 18" American Girl doll into a  Gingerbread Girl!

Giveaway Update:  Congratulations Sherelyn!  You are the winner of the gingerbread dress!  Thanks to everyone who entered!  We loved reading about all of those yummy cookies!

Follow along as Karen from Forever 18 Inches shows us how to use her Lollipop Garden Dress pattern to create a festive holiday outfit!

(Click on the image or the link above to find the pattern on Pixie Faire.)

Let's get started...

Materials Needed: 

- 2/3 yd. of brown medium-weight fabric with a tight weave and some drape

- ¼ yd. of 45" wide lightweight fabric for lining

- A piece of 1-3/8" x 4-1/4" piece of bias-cut red-and-white striped fabric

- Four ¼" white buttons

- Three medium-sized snaps OR two pieces of thin ¼” wide Hook-and-Loop tape,

 about 3 ½” long

- Matching thread

- 1 package of mini white rick rack

- One 12" long piece of 3/8" elastic

- Small, very sharp scissors to trim seam allowances

- Optional:  Fray Check to prevent the rick rack from raveling

- 3 to 5 decorative buttons, ranging from 7/16" to ½"

To begin: 

1. Follow the directions to make the Skirt for the Dress.
2. Follow Steps 1-15  in the directions to make the Top.
3. Cut a 1-3/8" x 4-1/4" piece of red-striped fabric on the bias.

4. Fold the striped fabric piece in half , RIGHT sides together, matching the short ends together. Stitch a ¼" seam on the short ends.

5. Turn the sewn tube RIGHT side out.

6. Fold the tube in half, WRONG sides together. Hand-sew a line of gathering stitches ¼" from the circular top of the unfinished edges.

7.  Pull the gathering stitches tight to form a circular shape, and tie them off.  Tack the gathered center edges together.

8. Experiment with buttons to find a combination that's pleasing. I used three ½" green buttons, and two 7/16" red buttons.

9. Sew the fabric circle and buttons onto the Top.

10.  Complete Steps 17-18 to finish the top.  Congratulations!  Your Gingerbread Dress is finished!

Giveaway Time!

Let the holiday fun begin!  We will be giving this fun holiday dress away to one lucky winner.  

Gingerbread cookies are so much fun to decorate during the holidays!  To enter the contest, leave a comment below finishing this sentence...

"My favorite Christmas cookie is....."

We'll pick a winner on Monday, December 4th, and get in touch via email.  Thanks for entering and good luck!

For Pixie Faire,

Karen & The PF Team