Christmas is one of my favorite times of year â a season of creativity, generosity, and reflection. This year I wanted to continue to celebrate in a way thatâs meaningful, fun, and deeply connected to what we love most:Â design, sewing, and growing together as makers.

So today, Iâm excited to announce the 15th annual 12 Days of Christmas Celebration, inspired by the 15th anniversary of the Design Academy-12 Principles of Design.
For the next 12 days, weâll be sharing:
âď¸ One Design Academy Principle per day
đĄ A practical Design Tip you can use immediately
đŹ A daily blog comment prompt for you to earn entries in our giveaway
đ A $100 Pixie Faire Gift Card giveaway â announced on January 6th
Each day we'll jump back to this blog post to highlight one of the twelve design principles and invite you to join the conversation by leaving a comment. Every comment is an entry to win the $100 gift card. The more you participate, the more entries you earn!
And thereâs more....
These 12 principles are also the foundation of something very special coming in 2026âŚ

Twelve principles. Twelve months. One unforgettable year of growth.
In 2026, Cinnamon Miles is opening the vault and teaching the Design Academy like never beforeâfifteen years after she first published the landmark series that inspired thousands of sewists worldwide. This is a complete, modernized re-imagining, blending Liberty Janeâs iconic design principles with Sewing With Cinnamonâs techniques, challenges, and creative opportunities.
We're bringing the Design Academy into Sewing With Cinnamon in 2026 using the core principles to guide our 2026 topics and this year, thereâs even more:
Historical fashion deep dives with guest instructor Shari Fuller. Designer spotlight showcases. Sew Powerful Purse crossover projects. And a brand-new challenge every month.
If you loved the original Design Academy, you havenât seen anything yet!
Read all the detail of the 2026 overview HERE. Existing SWC members are already in! If you're not a member yet, we invite you to join us, it all starts on January 6, 2026.
The 12 Days of Christmas is your preview of whatâs coming â and a great way to jump back into thinking like a designer and getting the most out of your Pixie Faire pattern collection.
Letâs celebrate creativity, learning, and sewing together this Christmas season.
Merry Christmas,
Cinnamon & Team Pixie Faire
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đ Winner announced 1/6/26!
Today (12/25) we kick things off with Principle #1: Proportion, and your first entry for the $100 Pixie Faire Gift Card.
đĄDesign Tip - Proportion: Scale is invisible when it's right and noticeable when it's wrong!
đ To enter: Leave a comment under this blog post. Comment Prompt:
Whatâs your best tip for determining scale in relation to the doll you're sewing for?
Today (12/26) we kick things off with Principle #2: Focal Point, and your second entry for the $100 Pixie Faire Gift Card.
đĄDesign Tip - Focal Point: Choose ONE star of the show. Whether itâs a bold fabric, a special embellishment, a unique neckline, or a pop of contrast â one clear focal point will always outperform several competing ones.
đ To enter: Leave a comment under this blog post. Comment Prompt: Whatâs your favorite way to create a focal point â color, embellishment, trim, or fabric choice?
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Today (12/27) we kick things off with Principle #3: Rhythm & Repetition, and your third entry for the $100 Pixie Faire Gift Card.
đĄDesign Tip - Rhythm & Repetition: Repeat a shape or color at least three times.
Two feels accidental. Three feels deliberate. Four or more creates strong visual rhythm.
đ To enter: Leave a comment under this blog post. Comment Prompt: âWhat do you enjoy repeating most in your sewing â shapes, colors, stitching, or patterns?â
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(Check back each day for the next comment prompt for additional entries!)
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The hard part is to remember that your doll, generally, is a child, and the adult is how scale measures. An 18" doll is about 1/4 scale, but as a child, it would probably have a 24" adult, which is 1/3. While fabric shopping, I cut 3Ă5 and 4Ă6 cards into 3Ă3 and 4Ă4 to make a quick measurement.
Scale is a fun thing for me. Most of my sewing is done with scraps of fabric from various garments that I have made over the years. When I have a fabric with a rather large design, or even large design, considering the size of the doll, I tend to blend it with solids so as to reduce the impact, or I cover it with a lace to distract. Yes, sometimes it works well and other times it fails but it is fun to try and my great granddaughter loves them and does not consider scale an issue.
Measure â measure again â then cut. This will avoid unnecessary headaches and will help in the making of a well fitted article of clothing.
Choose a print no larger than the dollâs hand.
People always compliment me on my doll clothes. I like to visit quilt shops for my fabric because they carry smaller prints, the correct size for doll clothes and also the durability for lots of play.
I hesitate to use any florals and stick to solids, small stripes and small checks
Measure twice and write it down, cut once.
Always use a very small print, small dots, and tiny stripes when sewing for dolls so the doll is not overwhelmed by out of proportion patterns.
Always be sure to measure the waist and chest of each doll you sew for, and keep it nearby when cutting out !
Measure the dolls body not just height
I donât have a lot of experience with designing my own so I like the tips of choosing the right fabric weight and print size.
If I absolutely love a fabric with a design that is larger than I usually choose for doll clothes I select a pattern with minimal pieces and fewer details.
I think in terms of 1:12, 1:6, etc, and then choose prints and designs that complement the scale I am working towards.
Use small printed fabrics
Keep scale of prints on material small for doll clothes.
Remember fabric weight as well as print size. To drape right, we usually need thinner fabrics than we would use sewing for ourselves.
Fabrics donât always scale down well for doll clothes. Like regular corduroy is going to be too bulky for most doll clothes but pinwhale can work just fine. Usually the lesser weight of fabrics will work better for small sizes.
Love to sew 14" and 18". Pick fabrics that work for both.
Thanks Barb it also reminded me when making long sleeve to measure that they will fit over the spread of the dollâs fingersâŚsome are wider than others making it hard to get the top/dress on the doll.
I believe I read on your site to use the eyes of the doll. The flower or whatever should be no larger than their eyes.
Take a look at the clothes in your closet. Usually the prints have much smaller scale than we think.
Use the appropriate scale of print on fabric.
When printing an online pattern, be sure to select âactual sizeâ when printing or it may be the wrong size.
Merry Christmas!
Sometimes a design that is too large can be placed so just a portion shows and adds a dash of flair! For example, I did an embroidery flower for a bodice. It was too big. So I placed it where a portion of the embroidery design went off the bodice. It looked great!
Use tiny prints to keep things to scale.
Remember that the 18" dollâs head is sometimes larger in proportion than on a human. And also the dollâs limbs donât bend like humans. Keep this in mind when making a pullover top or dress. Iâve made a doll turtle neck top that was nearly impossible to get on!
The rule of thirds and balance
Love this!
Janet Fenton
December 25, 2025
Time to start new