On the 4th of July, I decided to take a break from sewing fleece car seat ponchos and do a little sewing for fun. I already had a project in mind. I wanted to make a swimsuit and beach bag for my granddaughter’s 18″ My Life doll. Aaliyah is six years old, and she loves playing with My Life dolls! I enjoy watching her change their clothes and create scenarios for them while she’s playing. I knew that she didn’t have any swimwear for her dolls, so the project choice was an easy one.
This is Aaliyah with one of her dolls that looks a lot like her. The doll is modeling her new swimsuit and swimming goggles. Aaliyah is modeling her pink cast that she’s been wearing for the past three weeks.
Project Inspiration
My inspiration for the fabric selection for this project came from a kitchen towel that I found on clearance at Walmart. When I saw the towel, it reminded me of a beach towel. It was a little larger than most doll beach towels, but I knew Aaliyah wouldn’t mind.
I chose a yellow floral swimsuit fabric for the main part of the swimsuit. I used a black and white polka dot fold over elastic for the edges of the swimsuit. The polka dots in the elastic mimic the black and white pattern on the towel.
For the beach bag, I chose yellow with a black and white trim again. But this time, I added a coral color print for the pocket to coordinate with the coral letters on the towel. I chose blue jelly bracelets for the beach bag handles.
Swimsuit Details
Everyone’s favorite part of the swimsuit is the bum ruffles! This detail on this particular pattern is just adorable! The pattern is from Lee & Pearl. It’s their Retro Ruffled Swimsuit Pattern.
I chose a black and white check swimsuit fabric for the bottom ruffle with a solid yellow for the top ruffle. These particular fabrics were available from Lee & Pearl, too, and I’ve had them in my stash for a few years.
This project reminded me how much I enjoy making doll clothes. I love the process of choosing a pattern and fabrics with no complicated fitting issues to work around.
It’s pretty awesome to hear Aaliyah tell me how amazing I am, too!
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