Digital Pattern Kōwhai - Classic Cloth Doll 15" Sewing Pattern
Meet Kōwhai, a truly magical doll, looking to share adventures with a special child.
Kōwhai is a natural cloth doll who stands approximately 15" tall, with moveable limbs. Kowhai's hair is a simple ponytail at the back of the head.
Classic Cloth Dolls are named after our beloved native New Zealand trees, all of which grow in the surrounds of the T+T studio.
Clothing is sold separately.
There is also a bundle of all 5 Classic Cloth Dolls here for the best value.
You will receive a clear, detailed tutorial including step-by-step photos. No previous dollmaking, crochet or embroidery experience required!
Skill Level: Classic Cloth Dolls are suitable for someone who has used a sewing machine before and can accurately sew around tight corners. Embroidery experience is not required and is fully explained.
Classic Cloth Dolls are not a whip-it-up-in-an-evening project, rather there are lots of elements which can be done in a spare fifteen minutes here and there - so they do come together nicely.
Make old things new again! Twig & Tale patterns pair wonderfully with upcycled fabrics. Classic Cloth Dolls and their clothing uses very little fabric so look to gorgeous vintage garments and trims and precious fabric scraps for inspiration.
Supplies
50-75g ball for hair
We used patons mohair shade 7560 (Acrylic yarn will go fuzzy so is not recommended)
Choose a color similar to hair for attaching hair to head
Choose a color similar to the skin for attaching limbs to body
I like to use clean, carded wool, but you could use other forms of stuffing
You can choose whichever colors you have on hand, however, we used:
Iris-DMC 938
Lid & Lashes-DMC 301 or DMC 844
Eye highlight -DMC White
Nose-DMC 225
Lips-DMC 223
Eyebrows - choose a similar
color to hair
24” of 44” wide fabric (60cm of 115cm wide fabric) and a spool of co-ordinating thread. This will be enough for two dolls but you will need this amount in order to make one. You can use any skin coloured broadcloth, calico, linen or other tightly woven plain cotton material for the body
- Water erasable marker
- Doll needles - approx 3 ½ inch (9 cm) and 7 inch (18 cm)
- Small scraps of fusible interfacing to strengthen where the limbs are jointed.
- Cardboard or board measuring approx
- 17 x 11 ½ inches (45 x 30 cm). This is used for wrapping yarn around to make hair - it needs to be quite firm so it won’t bend
- Optional: Haemostats - for turning little things out and placing little bits of stuffing.
- Optional: 4 plastic safety joints, depending on the jointing method you choose to use.
Printing Info
This is a print-at-home PDF pattern and includes two printing options:
- US Letter/A4 - tiled and designed to print on your home printer
- Projector - specially-formatted and optimized for home projector use. Read more about using our projector files here
All pattern printing formats include “layers”, allowing you to print only the size(s) you need, or all of the sizes.
FAQ
Q: What is the difference between the 5 Classic Cloth Dolls?
A: The 5 dolls have identical bodies, however across the collection you will learn differing methods of creating hair and practice stitching different facial features. There is a value bundle of all 5 dolls available here
Q: Do you offer clothing patterns for the dolls?
A: Yes! Clothing is sold separately. We have designed a selection of clothes patterns specifically sized to fit the 15" Classic Cloth Dolls. The clothing patterns are sold separately here. There is a clothing bundle too - to help ease the decision-making!
Q: What clothing is Kōwhai wearing in the photos?
A: The Crossover Dress, Reversible Wrap Top, Simple Skirt, and Slip-on Shoes which are available here.
Q: Can I sell items made from the Classic Cloth Doll patterns?
A: These dolls patterns are for personal use only. Please do not sell items made from this pattern, or from a modified version of this pattern.
View pattern FAQ
BONUS RESOURCES
CARE + SAFETY
Items made from Classic Cloth Dolls + their clothes sewing patterns are not suitable for children under the age of three.
These dolls are special and are not meant to be played with by unsupervised babies or small children who might swallow the small pieces of their wardrobes, or chew off an ear or limb.
The limbs may be attached with string which if came loose could pose a choking hazard.
The outfits for these dolls may also contain small parts such as shoes which could pose a choking hazard.
Adult supervision is always recommended and you should routinely check the items you have made for loose threads or signs of damage that could cause harm.
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Customer Reviews
These dolls are fun to make. Which is good since my children have all made requests for their own dolls.
This pattern was easy to follow, fiddly to sew, and the doll is utterly adorable when finished. I love this doll. I loved tbe process. My 5 year old daughter cannot wait to get her hands on Manuka for a cuddle for her birthday. This pattern will certainly be used again!
my nieces and goddaughter loved them <3
Lovely heirloom doll.
This pattern is super easy to follow the directions and to make. The dolls look amazing and the kids loved her!
Hello Wendy - what a beautiful Kowhai doll!
Your modification for a fringe in the front and little braids is so lovely - shows just how versatile the pattern can be with an added dash of imagination.
Her dress is sweet - is it a vintage piece, or did you modify the Crossover Dress for her? I'd love to hear more!
Thank you so much for taking a moment of your day to come and provide such a kind review. All the best! xx
I purchased this pattern to make gifts for my kids and their cousins. They have slightly aged out of dolls, but I figured it would still be a fun keepsake to have a look a like doll with some clothes made out of their over-worn favorites. So excited to get started!
I am not happy with this pattern. I ordered (at least that’s what I thought) 5 different dolls with the clothes on the pictures. What I got was one pattern for the body. And some hairdo and eyes. So No, I was not happy for that price. So I wouldn’t have bought it if I had realized that before.
Hello Reinhilde!
We appreciate you sharing your thoughts about your doll purchase.
We’ve built the entire collection, and it’s presentation, with intention of endless value and limitless creativity in mind. The dolls have the same body to allow for the clothing collection to be used from doll-to-doll, for a mix-and-match collection to open up all sorts of possibilities at play time. This practice is much the same across many retail dolls as well. If the dolls were shaped and sized differently, they would each require their own clothing collection, which becomes much more limiting, and expensive!
However, we acknowledge that this part of the different dolls is the same across the board – so, we built the doll bundle intentionally to be the cost of one full doll, plus a $5 USD “add-on” for each additional doll’s added value in face and hair features. As such, it comes out to little more than buying two of the dolls, and like getting three free! Each method of hair + eye application has been developed through 10+ years of doll-making experience - so we wanted to be able to share those tips with the people who want and need them in a way that empowers them to create the doll that brings their own vision to life perfectly.
As far as the clothing, it is sold separately based on feedback from our creative community about the former versions of the dolls, when sewists were discontent to only have the option of the clothes that came bundled with their specific doll. They wanted more creative possibilities – and we agree! Being able to choose the clothing styles that suit your vision opens up many more options, and so the clothing is available separately to choose at will (including a starter bundle of 10 of them for extra value). We made clear notes in the listings to indicate that the clothing is sold separately; they are simply dressed in the photos to show off some of the creative potential, which our community loves to see.
Thank you for allowing us the chance to share more about this heartfelt collection, which has been many years in the making. If there are any questions we can answer we are happy to do so, and we hope that your doll bundle purchase helps you to create many dolls for you and your loved ones.
The T+T team
This doll is just adorable. I love those little cheeks and belly!
This is 'nearly' my first forray into doll making. The instructions are so well written & easy to follow. I would expect nothing less from T & T! When my niece wanted a doll who looks like her I immediately knew where to go for a pattern to make it easy for me to deliver on her request.
I loved creating Briar, she is gorgeous.
Her pattern is clearly written and photographed.
Thank you for a beautiful doll and well written pattern
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