Learn to make a cute princess tulle dress for your Barbie doll with this free pattern and tutorial. This is a beginner-friendly sewing project that can be done in approximately 10 minutes.
My youngest daughter loves to play dress up games with her dolls. She’s always so excited when I make new doll clothes!
These tulle Barbie doll dresses are easy to sew. You’ll need no special tools, skills, or a lot of patience to complete this project.
All you need is a small strip of jersey fabric, some scraps of soft tulle, and thread, and that’s about it. I happen to have lots of tulle scraps from when I had a small business making and selling handmade tulle skirts.
I’m always happy when I get my bits and pieces put to good use!
Related: Barbie faux button placket skirt tutorial / DIY Barbie peasant top for beginners
10-minute Barbie dress pattern
All the dresses I made for this tutorial are unlined – the reason behind this is I really wanted to use this “10-minute Barbie dress” title. 🙂 Many beginners think that these tiny dresses are a hassle to sew, but that’s not the case here.
In fact, there’s no reason to fear sewing this cute Barbie dress, and I would like to encourage as many as possible to try making it. Seriously, you can sew this fancy doll dress in 10 minutes!
Anyway, you can easily add a lining to the skirt, but that would add another 5 minutes to the whole project. Not that bad, right?
Related: Free 12-inch doll dress pattern
To make this Barbie tulle dress, you need jersey scraps for the bodice and two strips of tulle, each measuring 25-40 inches (depends on how fluffy you want the skirt to be) by 6 inches, to make a midi tulle skirt. Of course, you can make the tulle skirt shorter or maybe longer.
Sewing supplies – Barbie dress free pattern
- free PDF pattern for the doll bodice (1/4″ seam allowance included)
- fabric – jersey, soft tulle
- sewing machine
- needle
- matching thread
- fabric scissors
Are you ready? Let’s sew this easy Barbie dress!
How to make a Barbie dress – basic bodice pattern
For the bodice just use any stretchy fabrics you have on hand, or some old t-shirts or leggings you no longer wear.
First, print and cut your bodice pattern piece. Fold your jersey fabric and trace around the outline with straps on the fold (I used a heat erasable fabric marking pen).
Then, sew the underarm and the side seams. Trim down the seam allowances to 1/8”, then clip a bit into your seam allowance in the underarm area.
Cut the bottom edges (sleeves & waist) and the neck hole.
To make these casual chic tulle dresses, I opted for a scoop neck. I think it matches the tulle skirt much better than a V-neck or a scoop neck.
Likewise, in my opinion the long and 3/4 sleeves are more appropriate for a tulle skirt than a sleeveless bodice. Nevertheless, I’m by no means a fashion expert, so you can adjust your bodice as you please.
Turn the bodice right side out. To this purpose, I used that purple thang – a great tool for turning over the fabric. However, you could do without it – simply use a small safety pin instead to turn the sleeves.
After this, cut the back of the bodice down the middle.
How to make a Barbie dress – gathered tulle skirt
For the tulle skirt you need two strips of soft tulle fabric, each measuring 25-40 inches by 6 inches.
Quick note - If you only have netting, don’t give up! Decrease the width of the tulle pieces and cut yours at 12-15″, then line the skirt with matching cotton/satin - whatever you have on hand.
Now, change the stitch length to the longest possible and run a basting stitch for each of the two tulle layers.
I’d recommend using a matching thread for this step, so you won’t have to worry later about the gathering stitches showing on the outside.
Then, gather the tulle layers until they match the bodice bottom edge – for me, this measurement is 4”.
Now sew together the tulle layers. Next, pin the gathered tulle skirt to the bodice right side and sew.
The Barbie dress is almost finished! Finally, all we have to do now is attach the Velcro back closure.
Should you not have narrow Velcro strips, no problem. Cut your regular Velcro down to the middle and get thin Velcro strips in no time, ready to use on your doll dress.
One more thing – I always change my needle before sewing Velcro strips to fabric, because I don’t want to waste my good jersey needles. I used a regular needle, old but still functional.
This back closure makes it easy to put the dress on and off, even for younger children.
I added Velcro closure only to the bodice. There’s no need to sew or do anything to the skirt –the tulle attracts static electricity so the tulle strips tend to cling together, providing full coverage in the back.
My 3-year-old daughter approves of these cute Barbie tulle dresses.
Did you find this tutorial helpful? I’d like to hear what you think of it! Should you give this Barbie tulle dress pattern a try, I would LOVE to see pictures!
Let’s keep in touch! You can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Hello,
At my daughters’ request, I thought of sewing dresses for their Barbies and discovered your model! Thank you, very detailed and simple model. Best regards!
I’m so glad you like the tutorial, Meryem! Simple and quick projects are the best (at least for my current season of life)!
I can not find the free Barbie bodice pattern for the 10 minute dress. Can you please direct me to the location of the PDF file.
Thank you,
Nena
I am also having a problem downloading the pattern for the 10-Minute Barbie dress.
Any help you can give would be appreciated.
Hi Marcia,
So sorry for the inconvenience! Can you please try again? I think it was a bug, we fixed it today, so now it should work. Thank you so much for your patience!
I cannot download the pattern
Hi,
Thank you for reaching out and I’m sorry it didn’t work as expected. I think the email might have gotten into the spam folder, so it’s worth checking there. You should receive the free pattern immediately after confirming your subscription to the newsletter. I hope this helps!
What a great pattern! The bodice was too small on my classic 60’s Barbie, only meeting in the back at the waist, so she has a deep V back that closes with a snap at the waist. Either my printer is not printing properly to full scale, or the pattern was not meant for Barbie of that era. The tulle I used was too transparent, so I made an underskirt out of a 10” circle of jersey. All in all, it still looks cute!
Nagyon jó kis ruha, de sajnos egy szót nem értek ebből a leírásból. 😥
Azért köszönöm, jó kis inspiráció
Hi violet
I am a grandmother and have sewed many Barbie dresses over the years. I have used many different types of tulle or netting. They all seem to work ,tulle by the yard or on rolls from Wal-Mart or Hobby Lobby. You just have to adjust your gathers to achieve desired effect. Tulle on the rolls makes many festive seasonal outfits. Lol Halloween Barbie outfits witches,fairies,and princesses OH MY!!
How do you keep the neck from unraveling? My jersey material unraveled when dressing the doll.
Hi Colleen,
Yes, that can happen with some jersey fabrics.
1. You can sew a straight line (or a narrow zigzag stitch) 1/8″ away from the edge around the neck hole. That would be the easiest method, and while it won’t completely eliminate the unraveling, it will certainly stop it from going any further. Remember to backstitch, and beware – if you start sewing too close to the edge of the fabric, the feed dogs will start „eating” your dress.
2. Or you can fold the raw edge of the neckline inward, then stitch. (a single fold hem)
3. If you find these methods too difficult, try finishing the neckline by hand – you’ll be done in minutes!
I hope that helps!
Use some “fabric fray”. It’s works wonders. It’s in any sewing section.
I guess I got confused with the soft tulle apparently the stuff u buy a Walmart is more of a netting material and will not sit right for this dress I’m sad I will try again another time thanks for the dress idea
Hi Monica,
So, the netting is stiffer but that doesn’t mean you have to give up. I would simply decrease the width of the tulle piece. I used 25-40″, you cut yours at 12-15″ maybe… and line the skirt with cotton/satin, whatever you have on hand. I’m confident you’ll still make a beautiful Barbie dress. Good luck!
Gracias por compartir esta idea. Siempre me ha gustado la ropa de las Barbies.
I am looking forward to trying to make this dress for Barbie. I bought my own doll to do this for my granddaughter. I love to surprise her with parent approved treats.
Great to hear that, Kesha! <3 My youngest daughter is the same - my eldest, not so much. Not so long ago, I was intimidated too by the idea of sewing tiny doll clothes, and it was such a nice surprise to discover it can be really easy. I hope you will have fun making these Barbie dresses!
Thank you for this tutorial. My daughter LOVES anything barbie and will play with her dolls for hours. She is always having me make things for them but clothes frustrate me for sure. I am going to try this and I know she will love it! Thank you
How long was the Tillie?
Hi Sandy,
The tulle fabric piece is 6 inches tall, as mentioned above. The width depends on how fluffy you want your skirt to be – I’d say somewhere between 25-40 inches.
Szia Ibolya!
Ez mekkora babára való ezekkel a méretekkel?
Én ezeket a méreteket pont fordítva értelmezem egy Barbi babára való ruhánál.
6 hüvelyk a szélesség (illetve 12 mert félbe hajtva veszem a tüllt ) és a 25-40 hüvelyk a ruha (szoknya rész) hossza.