Category: Handmade dolls

Doll work 3

This week, it’s been a battle for me to work or move or get going. I haven’t neglected anything important, but every task feels like a chore, and that is a word I do not use. This doll project that I proclaimed would be so great has mostly felt like a burden. Even shopping for doll clothes just made me tired. I think it is common enough to need to slow down in winter. Maybe I should listen to my body and put less on the to do list for a few weeks. I just want to read, and for some reason, I have termed reading an indulgence. Sometimes I don’t realize what an enemy I am to myself by not listening to my needs and pushing through projects that aren’t essential.

Another hard truth is that I am blogging about a doll because it feels safer than writing about the things I am really thinking about. And yet, the thing I decided to embroider first was the smile. That was genuine and reflects how I feel, just as much as admitting to you that I feel sluggish. We can be going through some sad things and still feel joy.

I am trying to learn that it is okay to be a complex person, with deep, marathon thoughts and a spectrum of feeling. I find that reading makes me feel less tired, old, and foreign, but it is often last on my list! 🤦 I doubt I am the only one who regularly denies herself of something good to match an ideal that only exists in the mind. The trick is identifying what feeds your soul and having the courage to make it a priority. I’m so curious what that “something” is for different people, knowing that it likely changes now and then for each of us.

Doll work 2

To embroider a face on a premade doll, I use a doll needle, which is about 5″ long. Thread it with a single long strand of embroidery floss. Working on the back or side of the head, insert the needle and pull it out a few inches from the original entry point, leaving a tail of thread sticking out. Create a small stitch to anchor the thread on the back of the head and repeat the tiny stitch. Next, insert the needle through the existing stitch, through the head, and out of the face, exactly where you want to begin stitching. I am beginning with red thread for the lips. Last, cut off the tail on the back of the head, and remove the doll needle and replace it with an embroidery needle.

For the lips, I will be doing a satin stitch, which is a series of semi-vertical stitches very close together. Since I am working with a single thread, I make a lot of stitches to give the exact effect I want.

This process of making an anchor stitch on the back of the head is repeated in reverse when I am finished with the thread. I rethread the doll needle on the face side and insert it back through the head and make more anchor stitches on the back of the head. Then I insert the needle through the anchor stitch and exit a few inches away and cut off the tail of thread at the surface.

The natural light in the house is fleeting these days! I used the 15 minutes of light we got today to take these photos. I hope to have the face finished by Friday. Hopefully, the sun will come out a little more tomorrow so I can show some progress.

I spent time this week picking out her clothing and narrowing down eye and lip color. I already know she will have orange hair. ♥️

Doll work 1

I am starting another doll. The body is premade and can be found at Hobby Lobby. These are the first steps. I use thin interfacing to trace a face from a book. This same piece of interfacing has been used for many dolls. Next, I pin the interfacing to the face and poke holes with my mark-b-gone (water soluble) pen along the lines to make a dot pattern on the doll’s face. Next, I remove the interfacing, connect the dots, and draw pupils and ears. Now I am read to embroider. Don’t worry about the pen marks. They will disappear in a later step.

I know you can guess who this is

This is an assignment for our sixth grader.

This is NOT an assignment that can be completed by a sixth grader without a lot of help.

I don’t know a sixth grader who can construct clothing that looks like it would fit a human but conform to the dimensions of a two liter bottle. It is taking all my will not to just make this thing myself.

I don’t know a sixth grader with the money and skills to shop all over town for doll size wire rim glasses and a tiny cowboy hat.

This is NOT a project appropriate for a sixth grader, but thank you for the doll project. I actually love making dolls.

Did you guess right about who this historical character is?

Yep. It’s Theodore Roosevelt. Mark nailed the teeth and mustache.

Christmas Eve 2016

Samuel the Lamanite

Angry Nephites

Here we are throwing objects at Samuel and climbing the wall to get Samuel, who does not get injured at this time. You seemed a bit worried.

No arrows or stones could harm the prophet Samuel.

The angel visits the shepherds

Cast photo

This little nephew showed the best concert etiquette as I played.

My mom’s dolls

My sister-in-law Care made the clothes. Every detail is amazing on them.

Sweethearts

Christmas doll

This is the first doll that someone has requested from me. The woman who asked me to make it received one of my dolls almost two years ago. She called me one week before Christmas to make this for a mother who has lost two children to suicide. I can’t think of a better reason to skip baking and outdoor decorating, two things that were irritating me because they weren’t finished. Obviously these thoughts were just begging for a dose of perspective.

The music still came together for Sunday’s piano-violin duet; I still had time to see Daniel’s performances at Temple Square. Time seemed to expand for this little miracle doll to be created in less than a week, for someone I will probably never meet. This opportunity has made my Christmas feel extra special this year.

For A. And E.

image

image

image

image

I finished this dolly last night after putting it off for a long time. Her hair was difficult; the dress wasn’t the exact shade I was trying to match; she kind of needs ears, but I didn’t stitch them; but mostly I am afraid to give it away because it  is a goodbye gift. When fears and perfectionism get in the way, I need to remember that life is short. I want this doll to be held and not be a symbol of my hesitation. I don’t want to live a life of beating back the call of my heart. I want to run, led by a spirit of generosity, breathless, to the lives of others.

Thanks for joining me for this personal pep talk. What generous things does your heart tell you to do? Do you find it challenging to do exactly what your heart tells you?