Free Barbie Doll Christmas Dress & Santa Hat Knitting Pattern for Circular Needle / DPNs

Fluffy Neck

With 4mm circular/DPNs & white fluffy yarn, cast on 26 stitches.
R1 & 2: knit all stitches.

Cap Sleeves

Switch to main red yarn & 3.25mm circular/DPNs.
R3: k4, m1, k5, m1, k8, m1, k5, m1, k4 [30 st]
R4 and all even rounds from now on unless stated: knit all stitches (no increases or decreases)

R5: k5, m1, k4, m1, k2, m1, k8, m1, k2, m1, k4, m1, k5 [36 st]

Armholes

R7: k5. Cast off the next 6 stitches. Start by knitting stitches 7 & 8 and pass stitch 7 over 8 to cast it off.
Knit 13 more stitches, so that you have 6 stitches, the cast off gap and 14 more stitches.
Now cast off the next 6 stitches. Again, start by knitting the next 2 stitches, and passing the 1st over the 2nd.
Finally knit the last 4 stitches.
So you have 5 stitches, a cast off gap, 14 stitches, a cast off gap & 5 stitches [24 st]

R8: k5, cast on 2 stitches using the backwards loop method with your thumb (video), k14, cast on another 2 stitches, k5 [28 st]

Rest of Top

Front increases for bust:
R9: k9, m1, k10, m1, k9 [30 st]
R11: k9, m1, k12, m1, k9 [32 st]

Back & side decreases for waist:
R13: k2, k2tog, k2, k2tog, k16, k2tog, k2, k2tog, k2 [28 stitches]
R15: k2, k2tog, k1, k2tog, k14, k2tog, k1, k2tog, k2 [24 stitches]

Belt

Switch to black for next 2 rounds to knit the belt:
R17: knit all stitches in black

R18: you can make the stripe colour change look neater at the back by knitting the 1st stitch differently as follows, but just knit another round if you prefer.
Put your right needle into the right leg of the stitch below the 1st stitch (in red) from right to left and lift it on to the left needle. Then knit this red “stitch” together with the 1st black stitch. Knit the rest of the round as usual.

Switch back to red for rest of pattern:
R19: knit all stitches in red
R20: as per R18, for a neater stripe at the centre back, lift the right leg of the stitch below the 1st stitch (black) on to the left needle and knit it together with the 1st red stitch. Knit the rest of the round as usual.

Skirt

• There are 5 sets of increases to knit a full skirt just above knee length including the fluffy trim.
• For a shorter skirt, stop knitting when the skirt is 1cm shorter than you want, and skip to the fluffy trim instructions.
• For a longer skirt, knit more rounds after R44 until the skirt is 1cm shorter than your desired length.

R21: (k2, m1) x 12 times [36 st]
R22-24: knit 3 rounds

R25: (k3, m1) x 12 times [48 st]
R26-28: knit 3 rounds

R29: (k4, m1) x 12 times [60 st]
R30-32: knit 3 rounds

R33: (k5, m1) x 12 times [72 st]
R34-38: knit 5 rounds

R39: (k5, m1) x 12 times [84 st]
R40-44: knit 5 rounds

Fluffy Trim

Switch to 4mm circular/DPNs & white fluffy yarn.
R45 & 46: knit all stitches.

Cast off loosely.

Add the Belt Buckle

Find the centre of the belt at the front of the dress and using gold yarn or thread, embroider a rectangle for the buckle as follows:

1. Make a horizontal line 2 knit stitches wide along the bottom of the belt.
2. Make a short vertical line up to the top of belt.
3. Matching the horizontal line across the bottom, make a line 2 knit stitches wide across the top of the belt.
4. Make a short vertical line on the other side of the belt to complete the rectangle.
5. I like to repeat steps 1-4, adding a 2nd layer of gold stitches so the buckle stands out.
6. Cut your thread and weave in both ends on the inside of the dress.

Reinforce Armholes (optional)

The underside of the armholes is a bit delicate and sharp doll fingers can get caught there.

You can make the armholes more robust by threading your tapestry needle with a length of yarn and adding a few vertical stitches over the bottom side of the armhole (overstitching).

I’ve shown this overstitching in a contrast pink colour on a white dress below so you can see the stitches made. When you use matching yarn (right) you won’t see it at all:

Blocking

You may need to block your dress to stop the fluffy trim from curling up, and this also helps smooth out the skirt increases and give the dress a softer finish. It’s a little extra work, but it is Christmas after all! 🙂

• Step 1: Soak it in a bowl of cool water for 20 minutes (or just give it a good rinse if you’re in a rush!)
• Step 2: Gently squeeze out the excess water (pressing it inside a towel helps)
• Step 3: Lay the dress out on a baking rack or similar and when you’re happy with the shape, leave it to dry

Barbie Doll Santa Hat Knitting Pattern

The hat is knit from the bottom up. I’ve included 2 pattern sizes – a fitted hat and another larger hat, handy for dolls with big hair or if you prefer a more oversized look.

With 4mm circular/DPNs & white fluffy yarn, cast on 20 stitches for a fitted hat and 24 stitches for an oversized hat.
R1: knit all stitches.

Switch to red yarn & 3.25mm circular/DPNs.
R2-14: knit 13 rounds.

R15: k1, k2tog, knit to last 4 stitches, ssk, k1 (decrease by 2 stitches)
R16: knit all stitches

Repeat the last 2 rounds until you have 8 stitches left, ending after an even row. That’s 5 more times for a fitted hat or 7 more times for an oversized hat.

R27 fitted, R31 oversized: k2tog x 4 times [4 st]

Fluffy Bobble

Switch to white fluffy yarn and 4mm circular/DPNs:
You can also knit the bobble back & forth in rows with 2 needles if you prefer because so few stitches can be fiddly in the round!

Bobble R1: knit all stitches

Fitted Hat Bobble Only:
R2-3: knit all stitches

Oversized Hat Bobble Only:
R2: Kfb x 4 [8 st]
R3-4: knit all stitches

Cut the yarn leaving a long tail, thread it through the remaining [4,8] stitches & pull to close the bobble.

If you knit the bobble in rows with straight needles, join the side edges by weaving the fluffy ends through both sides & then pass them through the bobble until you’re happy with a fluffy round shape.

Finishing

• Wetting & drying the hat helps soften it & can make it slightly bigger – follow the dress blocking instructions above.
• The santa hat doesn’t really stay put in you fold it down – the bobble sticks out a bit! If that bothers you, just decide on your final position & attach the folded part of the hat to the crown with a couple of stitches to keep it in place.