How to Sew Doll Scrunchies (18″ Dolls)
Scrunchies are fun to sew–even for dolls! Learn how to make Doll Scrunchies to fit 18″ dolls. This easy sewing project is great for beginners, using up fabric scraps, and of course, learning to sew for your doll. Don’t forget to try making the full-size scrunchies too!
My daughter and I have recently gotten really excited about crafting tiny outfits and accessories for her 18″ dolls. These are dolls like American Girl Doll® (available online) and Our Generation® (sold at Target). It’s been a fun walk down memory lane for me as I got out my old dolls and we got to work.
Did you have an American Girl doll growing up? I remember being obsessed! I received Molly when I was pretty young and her hair unfortunately became quite the disaster. She was well-loved.
My sister and I would read the catalogs from cover to cover and loved the magazine too. We would keep our eyes open at garage sales and thrift stores for books and accessories. Great fun.
The doll in the photo above is an Our Generation princess doll from Target. Her is so nice and fresh, I love it! The downside of the Our Generation dolls though is that their hair is rooted (versus the wig-style) and it really could be thicker. It’s very easy to create bald spots when styling it.
Dolls are fun to play with and create outfits for, but there’s a reason why used dolls always have terrible hair. Creating hairstyles is the best part! Styling doll hairstyles like braids, buns, and ponytails is so fun and of course, it’s even better to make your own hair accessories to play with too.
Let’s get to work making these easy scrunchies. They follow the same basic instructions as my full-size scrunchie tutorial. In fact, why not make some matching sets for your daughter and her dolls? So fun!
Supplies & Fabric
You’ll need some long fabric scraps (I use a 12″x2″ piece of fabric here), 1/8″ wide elastic, a sewing needle and thread, pins, and a safety pin.
If you have it, a sewing machine is nice for sewing the long seam. I also love using my quilting clips instead of pins.
For the fabric, I suggest using woven cotton fabrics. Cotton quilting fabric, shirting, even voile or lawn would be great. You can experiment with trickier fabrics if you are comfortable with that–slippery fabrics like satin do look pretty. Use pinking shears on the cut edges and cut slightly larger to account for fraying.
Weekly Crafting Fun!
Join my list and get a weekly email with relaxing craft ideas, freebies, sewing tutorials, and more!
How to Sew a Doll-Sized Scrunchie
Sewing a doll-sized scrunchie for your 18″ doll is easy and fun to do. You can whip up a whole set in an afternoon. Great for using up fabric scraps too!
Let’s get started.
Sew a Simple Tube
First, cut a strip of fabric 13″x2″. If your doll has very very thick hair, I would suggest making a slightly larger scrunchie (see notes at the end).
With wrong side facing up, fold the short edges of the fabric strip over 1/4″ and press. I just finger press it.
Fold the fabric strip right sides together the long way. Pin, clip, or press to hold in place while you stitch.
Stitch down the seam with a ¼” seam allowance. Don’t forget to reverse your sewing machine at the beginning & end of the seam to secure.
Turn the Tube Right Side Out
Next, we’ll turn the tube right side out. This can be a little tricky, but is a good skill to learn!
Attach a safety pin to the top of the tube and begin to push the top of the tube down into itself. Use the pin to keep pulling the fabric inside the tube. Eventually the pin will be at the end of the tube and it’s a simple matter to turn the rest out.
Turning tubes of fabric can be tricky. To get the process started you kind of need to roll the top of the tube down into the middle, but after that, you can use the safety pin to keep scrunching and moving the fabric down until the entire tube is turned out.
Remove safety pin from tube and pin it onto a 4.5″ piece of 1/8″ wide elastic. If you only have 1/4″ wide elastic on hand, you could sub that in, but I prefer the thinner variety.
Insert pin into tube and begin to pull the elastic through. Don’t forget to hang onto the other end of the elastic so you don’t lose it in the tube. I like using a quilting clip to hold it in place.
Overlap elastic about ½” (you will stitch it together in the next step) and clip or pin to hold in place.
Stitch the ends of the elastic together securely. Remove pin or clip.
How to Seam the Scrunchie Closed
To seam the scrunchie closed, I use a ladder stitch (also called an invisible stitch). Alternatively, simply overlap the ends of the scrunchie and stitch closed as desired. Because the scrunchie is so small it still works best to hand stitch this part.
Note: Be careful to avoid twisting the scrunchie. Double check before you stitch it closed.
If you do want to try the ladder stitch, it is SO worth learning! It’s easy to do and you will use it all the time to close seams neatly, repair garments, or repair stuffed animals. This Youtube tutorial will show you everything you need to know!
Tip: Do not sew through all the layers of fabric. Just sew around the circular opening of the scrunchie placing your stitches in the fold made from pressing the seam allowance on the short edges at the beginning of the tutorial. The tube of the scrunchie is maintained, we are just closing the final seam. You can watch the video tutorial over at my full-size scrunchie post if you want to see this in action.
Larger Scrunchies
To make scrunchies for dolls with a lot of hair, cut the fabric to 14″x2.5″ and use a 5″ piece of elastic. Follow the rest of the instructions as written.
Smaller (pigtail) Scrunchies
As written the tutorial works great for ponytails or pigtails, but if you want smaller scrunchies, here’s what to do. For smaller, “pigtail-sized” scrunchies, I tried 11″x2″ fabric with a 3.5″ piece of elastic and that worked. They were too small for a full ponytail though.
12″x2″ with a 4″ piece of elastic works too. This size might work for either pigtails or ponytails depending on the doll.
Have fun sewing for your doll!
More Sewing Tutorials
- 19 Easy Sewing Projects for Beginners
- DIY Dish Towels (Beginner Sewing Project)
- Mason Jar Sewing Kit Tutorial
- How to Sew a Drawstring Bag with French Seams Tutorial
Weekly Crafting Fun!
Join my list and get a weekly email with relaxing craft ideas, freebies, sewing tutorials, and more!
