How to Make Craft Dolls

If you are looking for a special doll-making project that is inexpensive, yet different, look no further. Apple dolls are a great craft for girls of all ages because they are fun and easy to make. The weathered faces of these "ladies" contain a lot of personality, and rest assured that each doll will never look the same. They are the perfect craft when the weather is rainy or for a Girl Scout troop. Read on for tips to make your own apple doll.

Things You'll Need

• Apple
• Vegetable peeler
• Bowl
• Salt
• Lemon juice
• Plastic knife
• Markers
• Watercolors
• Sharp knife
• Cork
• Fabric
• Rubber band

Instructions

1. Select a red or green apple for the doll's head. Use a medium- to large-sized apple that is firm. Avoid using apples that are bruised. Red Delicious apples are the ideal apple for this project, but any apple will work.

2. Peel your apple with a vegetable peeler, but leave some apple peel on the top and bottom of the apple.

3. Fill a small bowl with warm water and mix in one tablespoon of salt and one cup of lemon juice. Soak the apples for 30 to 45 minutes in this bowl. This acidic mixture will help preserve the apple longer, so it doesn't brown as quickly.

4. Use a plastic knife to cut a U-shaped line for the doll's nose. Shape the nose of the doll by gently removing the wedges that are next to the U-shape. Carving around the U-shape will make the nose more prominent and stick out.

5. Remove the small wedges that lie under the nose area and under the cheeks to carve out these facial features.

6. Make slits with your knife for the doll's eyes. You can carve out the doll's eyes as much as you desire, making them large or small.

7. Make a slit for the mouth, but move your knife up slightly, so the line forms a smile. Carve out the wedges around this slit until the mouth becomes more prominent.

8. Cut slits around your doll's eyes and mouth, so they look like wrinkles. Frame her eyes with as many or as few wrinkles as you like.

9. Store the apple in a dry place until the apple shrinks to two-thirds its size.

10. Add color to your doll by using markers or watercolors to tint the eyes, cheeks and lips.

11. Use a sharp knife to cut off the base of a plastic soda bottle. Add a cork to the top of the bottle to serve as your new doll's neck.

12. Wrap colorful fabric around the bottle, so it completely extends over the top and bottom of your plastic bottle. Use a rubber band to keep the fabric in place securely. Fold the excess fabric at the top and tuck extra cloth beneath the bottle's base.

13. Finish this project off by pressing the shrunken apple onto the cork of the plastic bottle.

References

• Apple Doll Crafts
• Apple Doll Crafts