Doll Making

Doll Making is considered by many to be a hobby, an art a craft. But doll making has even stronger roots. Without doll makers of our past we would not have Mannequins, Nativity, or crèche figures, Alter dolls or ritual dolls. And without dolls we would not have a nurturing tool. Doll makers were considered a class of needed artisans and in many cultures highly regarded. Doll making has, after many thousands of years come to signify something frivolous and unimportant. So many people abandon it. However the Barbie doll that many people are designed not only by an industrial designer but a doll maker doll designer.

Doll making involves many different techniques. For example Eskimos and other European groups learned to carve stone to make soapstone heads, Venus stone and quartz doll heads, and solid dolls, like the Venus of Willendorf. Then we have modeling and sculpture as in Ancient terracotta dolls from Greece and Rome. In other cultures we see wood working and chip carving for the African or Japanese style dolls, and Cloth for rag dolls that date back to ancient Roman occupation of Egypt and so on. Porcelain both pressed and poured cam into being in the late 1700s with some example from Germany around 1500.

It is not as simple as one may think to make a doll. And with the variety of methods and materials to choose from, the learning experience can be frustrating and exciting until the person finds what medium they are good at. many different techniques. Wood working, carving, ceramic firing, casting, fashion design, sewing, embroidery, wig making, blowing or casting eyes, weaving, felt making etc.

The basic types of doll making are broken down by materials or process as listed below. This list is by no means complete, just to give you an idea of the differences there are.

Cloth or woven material for rag, cloth, or fabric style.

Natural materials such as corn shucks, palm fronds, wheat.

Carving: for wood or stone or gemstone.

Casting: Porcelain, china, acrylic, plastic, wax, and Slip or liquid composition, Toso, Paper: paper mache’.

Wax: wax can be used over any of the above or as a coating or by itself as a casting material.

Drape: Draping compounds that cause fabric to become stiff and can be used to create draped dolls that have no under support. These can be potato water, flour paste, wallpaper paste, diluted glues, sugar glue etc.

Sculptured: Polymer, clays of any type, modeling compounds. Toso, composition.

Nut and Fruit and vegetable head: Pecans, walnuts, Apples or Pears or cucumber and potatoes.

Stump: wooden natural prepared stick or similar style.

Outsider art dolls: utilizing anything that can be created into a doll Paper: typical paper layers or made from cardboard.

There are more but these are the most common for a majority of doll making. And while these are the materials, the styles and methods used with them can vary as well.

Doll making can be a lifelong learning and research experience and once you get the hang of it after making your first one, the abilities come easier and easier.

Needs for doll making can vary. Most people who decide to make a doll have to get supplies. And depending n what material you choose your needs list can be long or short. Each subsequent section is broken down by materials basic needs.

For cloth doll making you will need a sewing machine that can do a straight stitch. You can often pick these up at yard sales, refurbished at sewing stores, Discount department stores etc.

Basic Muslin is the best for getting your feet wet in sewing a doll. It is also the most widely used material for making basic doll bodies.

Choose a good quality medium weight muslin.

Scissors that are good and sharp.

Dual Duty type thread. The best thread is 100 percent cotton glace, the most common and easily available is the cotton over polyester core style..

Quilting pins because they are longer and have a round plastic head which is easier on new fingers

Spray basting; so you can just apply the pattern pieces like a sticky note to the fabric with no pins.

Pattern. To get you started there are some really wonderful free patterns out there.

Porcelain doll making is a very expensive doll making style. To make an all porcelain, or Porcelain/Bisque/China style doll you will need the following

A small kiln. Kilns are expensive. Try and locate a shop where you can bring your greenware to be fired. Look under ceramics, ceramic shops, or talk with your local art department at the high school or collage and see what can be arranged. You can buy table top styles for firing average size doll pieces starting around $200 and going to around $500 dollars

Molds. Plaster doll molds come in very tiny to very large. And you can get just heads, arms and legs, or heads and bodies. Each piece though is caste separately and is detailed before assembling. Molds run on average just for a head $50-$120 dollars and the bodies around 120-200 dollars. You can find gently used and discontinued versions much cheaper.

Casting liquid. Liquid porcelain, called “slip” comes in quarts or gallons and in a variety of colors. You can purchase these online through companies like Bell ceramics etc.

Paint paddles for stirring

A clean bucket

News papers

Fine edged knife. Xacto Knife in a variety of different blades Greenware scrubbers Greenware sanders

Then you will need after you have cleaned up the greenware and are ready to detail he following items:

Overall pigment wash

Fine paint brushed

Grinding plate (ceramic tile)

Pigment kit

Eyes

Pate

Wig

Elastic cord

K clamps

S hook

neck button

Two part epoxy as a setting compound for eyes and securing joints.

Wood doll making is interesting because it can either be done with machinery or by hand. The Lotz Doll pages is the premiee website and textbook for learning about wooden dolls and their construction.

If doing it by hand you will need a variety of wood working machines, a band saw or scroll saw for cutting out the pieces, a sander of some sort, Lathe for perfect turnings, and a drill for making perfect depth holes. These piece of equipment can launch the doll maker into a new realm. There are not many wood doll makers, but it is slowly coming back. Hand carving, chip carving or whittling involve using a soft workable wood. Some may argue which is best, but it is best to try a variety of wood pieces to see which one works best for you. Do not go by anyone advice unless you are totally lost. Practice woods like Balsa, Paulownia or even Balsa Foam can give you a good start in learning and perfecting techniques. In practicality you have to feel which wood works best for you and your hands. Then you will need a small whittling knife or blade that you feel comfortable with. Some whittlers or carvers prefer small blades like on a Swiss Army Classic knife. Others like a thicker blade and some even use a kitchen paring knife. Try them all to see which one feels good to you.

A pencil is your next much needed tool. Many choose to outline just one set of guideline son the piece of wood to give a starting point. So a simple soft pencil that willnot gouge is what you need.

You could go further and get some Saral which is a type of non graphite transfer paper to transfer ready made plans to the block of wood.

A variety of sand paper in coarse, fine and extra fine grits or cosmetic emery boards and you are ready to begin. Please remember, this is as messy as pouring porelain or composition. The dust from sanding gets everywhere. So lay down a piece of newspaper to catch your dust, chips and shavings.

Sculpture Polymer. Toso, Paper Mache, Wax etc can all fall into this category of doll making. Using any modeling material you can sculpt the original and leave it as is or make a casting of it and then create your own molds and make more. These are often called OOAK or One Of A Kind doll pieces. Polymer is a clay that is made from plastics. These are typically known as Cernit, Sculpy, Fimo. Using polymer you can create a translucent skin effect and because it remains pliable until it Is baked it can be used for a variety of components Including creating masters to make your own molds from later on. Polymer also has a series of press molds and the ability when blended to mimic a variety of other materials including, wood, porcelain, fine china, gemstones etc. It is a great medium to work within if you are interested in sculpting something one of a kind or repairing a broken or missing doll pieces.

Modeling Materials can be: Art Porcelain, Friendly Plastic, DAS etc. Paper Mache’ comes in a pre made format as well as a mix it powder. Paper Clay, Pearl Clay etc are pre made materials in a block form ready to use like standard clay. Once dry they can be sanded, painted etc.

The paper mache’ powder types have short workable times. These are good for under support for the polymer pieces as well once completely dry.

Wax is a dipping or casting formulation. It can be poured into a plastic or metal mold and then popped out. Wax is suitable for use in Frozen Charlotte type doll molds and candy molds. Wax is also a dipping finish for fabric, egg, paper-mache’ casted, mold pressed or sculpted dolls. One of the most Famous of the wax finish dolls is the Griener style dolls.

There are also the true clays. Porcelain dough is pressed into the same molds that are used for “ pouring” slip and casting dolls. Some of the older style dolls that are often reproduced used this clay method. Natural air dry, or oven bake clays, while gritty can create some great reproductions, like the early terracotta dolls. Any of these will need sufficient amounts of material for your doll. In addition you may need: Wire or cord armatures Glass or acrylic eyes Paints Body fabric Thread Scissors Sewing machine Hand sewing items

Stone carving like soap stone and even gemstone carving require specialized tools to create heads. While some of the early Eskimo doll heads made from soap stone are easily carved, the techniques have since been lost and need to be recaptured. So finding a basic soap stone carving set or jewelers carving tool set would be of benefit. You will also need, aside form the stone and tools Body fabric Paints Clothing materials and acessories

Leather is our final quick look. NA or Native American Dolls used leather for everything. You can makes a simple NA doll from leather scraps and old worn out leather coats. The average doll was what was called a pancake doll body and the clothing was exactly the same as was worn by the people. This type of doll had multiple uses. It was a plaything, and it helped to teach the younger generation how to sew. Anthropologically speaking they also were a key to learning how to nurture. You will need, leather Leather needle’ Assorted colorful beads Scissors Fabric or leather paints Sewing machine with leather sewing machine needle Siliconized Polyester fiber fill or Kapok or Cotton

1. Mini world Doll supplies [1]

2. Dolls part, doll suplies for reproduction and new [1]

3. Kemper Doll making supplies [1]

4. Doll Makers Journey, doll patterns [1]

5. Apple Valley Doll Kits [1]

6. Reborning Doll Kits [1]

7. Bil-Mac Doll Molds [1]

8. National art Craft Doll Supplies [1]

9. Bell Ceramics Doll Molds [1]

10. Minature doll molds [1]

11. Lotz doll pages; wood dolls of Contents

12. Doll Making instruction, The Happy Doll Maker [1]

13. CRS doll Making supplies [1]

14. Runo Free doll patterns [1]

15. Doll Crafter and Costuming [1]

16. Dolls [1]

17. Scott Publications Soft Dolls and Animals [1]

18. Teddy bear and Friends [1]

19. Teddy Bear Times [1]

20. Teddy Bear Review [1]

21. Teddy bear supplies [1]