Evalina Rose and her little sister Posy Anna are the main characters of a series of children's stories that I am writing. In this blog I will share the final stages of crafting their half scale house--Honeysuckle Cottage--and the miniature stuff that will make up the settings of their stories.

Friday, November 9, 2012

Dressing a Tiny Doll


   I thought you might like to dress the little Fimo "china-head doll" that I described a few posts ago.  The following directions will work with any small figure.  This method is simple, and I think , quite nice.  I made collages, as I usually do, to save space.  Follow the pictures from the top, moving left to right.  If you can use the pictures, feel free to down load them for a reference.
First, I wrapped the wires with cloth tape(this is something new for me, I usually use silk ribbon and glue).  I used first aid tape.

 The first step to dressing her is to make some pantaloons.
I fold two squares of material together and cut a tiny curved line...this is the crotch.
  I end up with two identical pattern pieces that are shaped like the third picture.
  Some people just glue the seams, but for some reason, I am very clumsy with glue.  I sew the crotch seam first and then measure the inseam and cut it to fit the inner leg.
  I then sew the inseam  as shown in the fourth picture.
  The fifth picture shows how it will fit before I gather the waist and the ankles.  I like the pantaloons to fit  just bellow the doll's breast plate.
  I use a running stitch to gather the waist and ankles and then carefully glue a tiny piece of lace to the bottom of her pantaloons.

I measure a rectangle of dress material to fit the doll.  (I wanted the dress to come to the top of her shoes.)
 I sew up the side seam and add a tiny bit of glue to the seam to hold it flat.
  I add a piece of lace to the bottom, and gather the waist with a running stitch.
 The sleeves are glued directly onto the arms, using tiny strips of material.
 I apply a bead of glue around her shoulder plate.
 The bodice is a piece of lace, that is glued into a ring.
 I gather the top of the lace with a running stitch(this will be the neck hole) and pull it over her head and press the ruffled  lace into the glue around her shoulder plate.

I chose a purple ribbon for her shoes and the bow for the back of her dress.
 First, I apply glue to her whole foot. Then I wrap the ribbon around the foot pinching the two ends at the back.
  I cut a small piece of fabric tape into the shape of the sole of a shoe.
 I glue the sole onto the bottom of her foot.
 The final touch for this doll is a bow on the back.
 This method could have all sorts of details added to it to make it fancier.  For example tiny pearls can be added to the shoes to look like buttons  and embroidery can be added to the dress. 

This is a little boy who will go with the mother and sister whom I have mentioned in a previous post. I think I am going to name him Hugo because it is such a big name for such a small sweet boy.  I gave him a striped union suit for the fun of it and also because the stripes peek through his sailor shirt.  I  still have to knit his sailor collar and his knickers.  He will have little black boots with "brass" buttons.

I always forget to welcome new followers and to thank my regular followers for their lovely comments.  I do not mean to be rude, I just have a hard enough time getting my pictures and text in the right place...so please forgive me.  Welcome to my new followers and thank you for all the lovely comments, as a mother of two teenagers, I can use any positive feedback that I can get.
Have a great weekend,






12 comments:

  1. Thank you for your very nice on detailed tutorials, it's great to get some great ideas. I have not heard of "cloth tape", before.. It sounds interesting and might give, other options.
    Thank you for giving your time to show, how to do.
    Hugs
    Wyrna

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  2. Beautiful work, Lucy, I especially like Hugo's union suit. Looking forward to see the rest of his outfit.

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  3. Cada vez me gustan mas tus muñecas , creo que me estoy enamorando de ellas . Son preciosas .
    Gracias por el tutorial .
    Besos

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  4. Great workshop with lovely dolls. Thank you.

    Have a nice weekend.

    Kind regards,

    Xandra

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  5. Your little dolls are stunning. I love the way you dress them and thank you so much for your very detailed tutorial.
    Hugs, Drora

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  6. Thank you so much for taking the time to show us how to do this. It's wonderful! I've learned so much! (((hugs))) Carolyn

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  7. Thanks for the tutorial. I like this dress.
    Bye Faby

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  8. Goodmorning Lucy,
    I don't know how you work in such a small scale.. and especially the clothing... What a great tutorial. Thank you for sharing.
    It was so nice to see you had come by for a visit. Thank you so much for your kind words.
    Blessings,
    Penny

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  9. Gracias por ser tan generosa y compartir el tutorial.
    Me encanta como te han quedado.
    besitos ascension

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  10. Hello Lucy,
    Thank you for the great tips. The dress is lovely and it really helps to have great tutorials like this.
    Big hug,
    Giac

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  11. Fantastic tutorial thank you. Your little doll looks beautiful in her pretty dress. I love the boys outfit. Wonderful work.
    Hugs Maria

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  12. You have made so many little characters and you speak of them with such affection! I can see why you enjoy dressing them, and all so beautifully. xx

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