My little Amelia went and turned two on us while we were visiting family in Tulsa last week, so I decided to make her something extra-special. If you’ve been following along on Instagram or Facebook you already know what I’ve been up to, but I thought I’d write a post about it here too.
Not that we have a lack of dolls at our house, but most of them are made of questionable materials, and I’ve always loved the look of Waldorf dolls. Waldorf dolls are made with all-natural materials like wool and cotton, with very simple features to encourage imaginative play.
I’ve never made one before, but after finding some great tutorials from Doing Without, Crafty Sheep, By Hook, By Hand, and Cruncy Catholic Momma, I felt up to the task. Here are some photos of the doll in process:
Rather than breaking the bank on new wool, I bought some wool sweaters at the thrift store for the inner body. Shaping the head was a little tricky–the nose was the hardest.
I used a cotton jersey shirt for the skin and wool yarn for the hair (I did buy the yarn new). The hair was probably the most time consuming part of the entire doll. There are numerous ways to make doll hair and of course I probably picked the most complicated way, but you live and learn, don’t you?
After making the head first, I of course learned that most people make the body first–it’s easier to make the head proportional to the body rather than vice versa. But after some trial and error with rolling up bits of sweater, I got the body to a size I liked (and then realized just how huge the doll was going to be!).
I had wanted to make a new dress for the doll, but ran out of time and ended up hemming Amelia’s Itty Bitty Baby Dress instead (you can see a peak of her wearing it here), which turned out to be perfect anyway. The last thing I did was embroidered the eyes and mouth–it was exciting to see the doll all of a sudden come to life!
Although I could nit-pick about all the imperfections, I think she turned out beautifully overall. Now what did Miss Amelia think? She threw it back in the gift bag as soon as she saw what it was! That’s the plight of the crafter’s life–it’s a toss up whether your kids will end up liking what you make! She’s definitely more of baby-doll lover right now, but I know she’ll enjoy this doll more as she gets bigger. And I’ll get a photo of her holding it one day!
What have you been making?
I'd love to see a picture of Amelia holding the doll to get an idea of the size! 🙂 She looks beautiful, and for your first doll, you did a really impressive job!
She turned out very cute Amy. I am working on one too. It's for our granddaughter Molly who is only 15 months. I was anxious to make it but now it is on hold until I get more time and she gets a little older. I actually bought a blank doll from DonnaLouise on Etsy because she does such great work on the body and nose and I am doing the face and hair. So far she only has a face and the crocheted cap waiting for the hair. I think my big stumbler is that I can't decide what the hair will be. Long? Short? WIld and wispy? Ponytails? Too many decisions. She'll be fun to make clothes for though.
That doll is just AWESOME! You did a great job!
~Have a lovely day!
Oh, Amy! The doll is beautiful!!! I am so impressed. And inspired to try to sew one. 🙂
love love love! i've been sewing baby slings and nursing covers like crazy, which is good for business but a bummer for creativity. i'm longing for some more creative projects. i'm really wanting to make a bag and a new apron with scraps i have. we'll see when i will have more time! who knows when THAT will be!
Deb the hair is definitely a hard decision! I've heard of people just adding the crochet cap to begin with so that it's more of a baby doll. Then they go back and add hair so that it sort of grows with the child. I'm thinking that might be what threw Amelia–she's definitely still into little baby dolls. I'll probably try the crochet cap when I get around to my next doll. Good luck with yours!
I know the feeling! I'm selfish and have neglected making items to sell because it can definitely feel like work!
Amy, this is so wonderful and special!! I didn't realize what work these dolls actually took. You really made her cute!
I got as far as ordering a pattern for boy pj's and buying yarn fora something? for Miss P.
It turned out so sweet! I love it.
Squeeeee! I love it! It's perfect. I've been eyeing Waldorf dolls for a while, but I am intimidated by all of the different techniques and the obvious work involved … but I really want to do it! Maybe my little girl will actually LIKE dolls (my little guy, not so much), and I'll be inspired. Love yours.
I LOVED watching this doll come to life on instagram. She is absolutely beautiful! I'm completely clueless as to how you shaped such a beautiful face. This doll is such a treasure! WONDERFUL!
I’m ready to start my first doll, I hope my doll comes out as cute as yours.?
That’s so sweet, thank you Barbara! My daughter still has it 6 years later! Good luck making yours!