Most of the Dress Up Bunch dolls are human, but a few of them are critters with tails. And those tails need wagging room! Here’s how to add an opening to any pants or skirt pattern for the Dress Up Bunch dolls.
Cut out all the pieces as normal.
When you come to the part of the pattern where you sew the center back seam, jump in with these steps. . .
Measure down the center back seam 2 inches and mark with a pin.
Measure down 1 3/4 inches from that pin and mark with another pin.
Sew from the top to the first pin with a normal stitch length. Sew the space between the pins with a longer stitch length – the longest you can set on your machine. Switch back to the regular stitch length and sew the rest of the seam.
Make sure you backstitch (with the normal stitch length) a bit at the top and bottom of the section of long stitches. You’re going to cut those big stitches and this will keep the rest of the regular stitches from unraveling.
Press the seam allowance open.
Sew a tiny little rectangle around the section of long stitches to reinforce that opening.
(You’ll want to use matching thread, of course.)
Use a seam ripper to cut the large stitches inside that reinforced rectangle.
And voila! You have an opening for the tail! Continue with the rest of the pattern instructions.
This works for pants and shorts (as shown above) or with a skirt.
If you’re making Pip the Cat, Squeak the Mouse, or Spot the Dog this is a method you can use to adapt any of the clothing patterns to fit their tails. Have fun with it!
Happy stitching!
Best,
Wendi
