Dollieh Sanctuary

Sculpted, cast, knitted, crocheted, sewn... I've been itching to make my own doll, but I'm not sure what to do or where to begin!

Can I see your own handmade dolls? How hard were they to make? Are there even handmade dolls here?

Paperclay and cloth body imitation 1830s styled "china head" from a Susan Sirkis Wishbooklet design. Stands about a foot tall.

Start with thinking about the skills you have or want to learn, what sort of budget and hobby time you might have, what size doll you want.

I made the little teal one, my friend AutobotDen made the bigger one. Sometimes the braided ones or other simple types are the best start.

Good job! Do you want to do more string wrapping or branch off in to something more complicated?

Is that question for me, DollyKim?

Maybe. Sometimes I forget who's posted what. You're welcome to answer if you want.

XD I'm the one that posted the picture of the yarn dolls.

My braided dolls are pretty complex, because I make them so nothing falls off or comes undone or gets squished. I think I'll always be mainly working with yarn or string when it comes to dollmaking, because I also crochet dolls sometimes. I tend to go for small, featureless ones that are made to be held instead of looked at, because I've found that comfort dolls can help a lot of people with a lot of different things, even if they're just something to fidget with at work.

Over ten years ago I made one out of clay... It was bad... LOL! So no pictures. XD

Crochet dolls, same base Annie's Attic fashion doll pattern but the half size one was given a pillow form instead of legs. The big one is Barbie size done with size 10 crochet thread, the little one was done in size 20.

Oh, I like those crochet dolls! And now I'm remembering the ones I used to make from an adapted alien pattern. I was a crazy kid, and gave them real toes and fingers and everything. But I was trying to do faces, and I don't think any turned out well.