How to Make a Toy Doll

When making a toy doll, its head and shoulders will look something like this, yet with slightly wider shoulders.

Our great-grandmothers fashioned dolls from cornhusks. The classic Raggedy Ann doll is made from fabric and stuffing, while old-fashioned clothespins have been transformed into miniature dolls. There are many ways and many materials used to make dolls. If you are creating a miniature dollhouse, and would like to make dolls the suitable size for the furnishings, you can do this at home with minimal skill and basic materials obtained at the craft store.

Things You'll Need

• Modeling clay (the type that is baked in the oven)
• Pencil
• 2 pipe cleaners
• Surgical tape
• Quilt batting
• Fabric
• Glue
• Embroidery thread
• Needle and thread
• Paint or permanent markers

Instructions

1. Blend the modeling clay to obtain the desired skin color. You will need about three 1-inch diameter balls for a small dollhouse doll.

2. Mold one of the 1-inch balls into the head and shoulders of the doll. Pinch out a little clay for the nose and square the shoulders. The bottom of this portion (below the shoulders) should be flat, or straight across.

3. Press a pencil length under the flat bottom of the head and shoulder piece, making an indentation. Use this indentation later to attach the pipe cleaner arms.

4. Divide a 1-inch clay ball in two equally sized pieces, and roll into two sausage shapes. From these two pieces, make two arm and hand sections (from the elbow to the hand). Later, a pipe cleaner makes the portion of the arm from the shoulder to the elbow. The section from the elbow to the hand should be approximately the same length as the distance from the top of the doll's head to the neck.

5. Divide the last 1-inch clay ball into two equally sized pieces, and roll into two sausage shapes. From these two pieces, make two leg sections with feet (from the knee to the foot). Later, a pipe cleaner makes the portion of the leg from the hip to the knee. The section from the knee to the foot should be approximately the same length as the distance from the top of the doll's head to the neck.

6. Bake the clay pieces, following the instructions of the clay manufacturer.

7. Twist two pipe cleaners together in the center, so that they resemble an X shape. The length of each pipe cleaner should be about three times the length of the doll's head (from the top of the head to the neck).

8. Tape the center of the pipe cleaners together, so that one third of the X (in its center) is wrapped tightly with tape, for the doll's body. Bend the top X down, so that the top portion looks like the letter T, while the bottom half looks like an upside down Y.

9. Glue the top T portion of the pipe cleaners in the indentation under the shoulders. Center before attaching.

10. Attach each arm to the doll, by securing the lower clay arm to the pipe cleaner, and wrapping the shoulder, pipe cleaner and elbow portion with surgical tape.

11. Attach the lower clay legs and feet to the Y portion of the pipe cleaner, by wrapping the pipe cleaner and knee portion with surgical tape.

12. Wrap the torso, and pipe cleaner limbs with batting to create a proportional body and limbs, attaching with glue.

13. Cut a piece of fabric to fit over the batting covered body and glue into place to cover the body. When finished, the doll will look as if he is wearing long underwear.

14. Wrap about 10 strands of embroidery thread around two of your fingers, and use a chain stitch to sew the pieces together (like a hair part). Cut the embroidery circle in half, opposite the stitched section and glue the hairpiece onto the top of the doll's head.

15. Paint or draw the features on the face.

References

• "The Dollhouse Decorator"; Vivienne Boulton; 1992