Sewing for American Girl Boy Dolls

Last Christmas, as my granddaughters and their friends were playing with their dollies, I heard them tell their brother over and over that he couldn't play with them because he didn't have a doll. To say the least, I was annoyed. After clearing it with his parents, I bought my grandson an American Girl boy doll. He had actually been wanting one for awhile, and honestly, it looks just like him. He named him Michael. So far, I have only found one outfit to buy from American Girl that would work for their boy dolls, and it was intended for the girl dolls. As it happens, it was an airline pilot outfit, and since his grandad was an airline pilot, you know he had to have it. I just can't imagine what they are thinking. If a young man has a doll that looks just like him, naturally he will want to dress him for various occasions. I just had to make Michael an all-occasion wardrobe.

It was fun seeing the photo of him opening his present.

Naturally, no young man (or doll) can exist for long without a good pair of jeans. Pixie Faire is the best source I've found for doll clothes for the American Girl boy doll.

These jeans are pretty authentic, with "designer" back pockets that actually work.

A pair of chinos is a wardrobe workhorse, and these (from a piece of khaki Kona cotton) should do fine.

Another must-have is a pair of dress slacks. These black slacks will be great for those more formal occasions.

No wardrobe can be without a white shirt.

A choice of shirts is always nice.

And a robe is a necessity, particularly if it matches one the young man himself already owns.

And a fleece hoodie is a good item to have on those colder days.

He seemed pretty happy with his birthday gift. As you can see, the bathrobe was a particular favorite.

Sewing for American Girl

About the time I figured out Barbie clothes, my other granddaughter received an American Girl doll for her birthday. Her name is Mary Ellen. Once she saw the wardrobe I made for Barbie, she asked me to make some clothes for her AG doll. I had some patterns I bought for my own daughter's AG doll (and never made,) so I agreed.

I started with a dress from the commercial pattern. It was very big on the AG doll. I have since found some patterns online that fit AG dolls much better. Unfortunately, I didn't remember to take pictures of many of the doll clothes I made. Here's the first dress, altered to fit Mary Ellen.

As you can see, we now have an assortment of dolls, so this spring I made an assortment of fleece hoodies from the scraps from the mermaid tails I made for the grands for Christmas. (I also used the fleece scraps for the dolly sleeping bags I made for the dollies for Christmas.)

I each of the grands a nightgown or pajamas and a matching nightgown or pjs for their doll this spring as well.

And in the spirit of 1970s chic, I made some polyester double knit dresses for the dolls from some fabric a friend gave me. And most recently, I made all the dollies a swimsuit for their (pretend) days at the beach or pool, although I forgot to take pictures. Well dressed dolls are important.