Barbie™ World - Tips for Quilters Making Apparel -

Hi there! I’m Shereece Nicole of Sew Hooked on Treasures and it’s my pleasure to be a guest blogger on the Riley Blake Designs blog!

Barbie was my first BFF. Naturally I was crazy excited when I saw the new Barbie World line from Riley Blake Designs. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it! But the big question was, “What am I going to make with it?”

One day I was in my coat closet and realized I had only worn my quilt coat 3 times over the past winter. I use winter loosely as I live in Georgia. So I decided I needed a quilty apparel piece that I can wear more often during the year. Then I remembered a sweet lady I met at QuiltCon 2023 wearing a linen and patchwork hoodie and I set off to find a pattern.

For my fabrics, in addition the Barbie World prints, I used Riley Blakes’ Linen. It light, airy and ever so comfortable. It’s not only great for clothing, but it works amazingly in quilts adding a wonderful texture.

I used a pattern from Simplicity (S9759) because it was supposed to be “easy-to-sew.” For the most part (for a non-apparel sewer), it was very straight forward. However, I came across a few things that might assist other non-apparel sewers with making quilty clothes.

Cutting

It’s helpful to use your rotary cutter versus apparel scissors. We’re more used to rotaries and you can keep the fabric flat on the cutting table instead of having to lift it, which could cause shifting.

Also, either use lots of pins to keep the pattern on your fabric or trace the pattern onto your fabric. This is another way to minimize shifting of the pattern. If you trace, don’t forget to include any marking your supposed to transfer from pattern fabric.

I had some fraying issues on the patchwork pieces I cut out. In the future, I’d recommend cutting them out when you’re ready to sew them.

Choosing Patchwork Pattern

Depending on what you’re creating, be mindful of how big the garment piece is relative to the quilt piece sizes. If your garment piece is smaller, you’ll want to use a pattern that has smaller pieces.

I wanted to use quilt tops for the good and front pocket of my hoodie. My Stay Focused pillow-sized quilt afforded small enough pieces for those sections. Unexpectedly, I was able to use some of the leftovers for the sleeve cuffs. Bonus!

Click here to see matching throw pattern.

Seam Allowance

As quilters, we’re used to a ¼” seam. This does not apply to apparel! You’re mostly going to use ⅝” seams. Occasionally you may come across ½”. Be sure to read the pattern carefully.

Finishing

We’re used to adding backing when we make quilts. You’ll want to make sure the pattern has a lining or you add a lining for those garment pieces. For example, the front pocket of my hoodie is a quilt top, but the pattern didn’t account for that. So I cut an identical piece of Confetti Cotton, sewed right sides together leaving an opening at the bottom, then turned it right side out. Then I could proceed to sew it to the front and not have to worry about strings or fraying.

There are some many clothing patterns you can use to make quilty clothes! You just need the right clothing pattern and quilt pattern. If you’re a newbie, make sure the apparel pattern is categorized as “quick” or “easy.” Don’t forget to read the General Instructions. Plus, YouTube is extremely helpful in learning some of the nuances.