Doll Tutorial: Part I

 
I've split the doll tutorial up into three parts. It isn't that making one of these dolls is difficult, in fact I thought the process was a lot of fun, but there are a lot of little steps and I want to make sure it is clear. Part I and II will cover how to make the head and part III will be the body and putting the doll together.

Here is what you'll need:
Wool Batting - The wool batting doesn't squish down over time like polyester or cotton; JoAnns only sold it by the yard, I bought 12 inches and had extra.
One thin sock in a color similar to the doll's fabric color
1/4 yd Doll Fabric - Apparently there is something actually called doll fabric, JoAnns didn't have it. I bought a lightweight knit that didn't have a ton of stretch to it. It worked just fine. 
Thread to match doll's fabric color
String
Embroidery Floss for Eyes and Mouth 
Yarn for Hair
Doll Needles - These are extra long needles that really are necessary. They came in a pack of four and were just a couple of dollars. 
Body Pattern - I will include this in part III of the tutorial 


Start by taking strips of the wool batting and wrapping it around itself very tightly to form a ball. If yours is anything like mine at first it won't be very round, but don't worry, as you wrap more strips around it will start getting a nice round shape.

Continue wrapping until you have a ball that is between 9 and 10 inches in circumference.

Cut a 10" square of wool batting and tightly wrap it around the ball you formed, holding it tightly at the neck.

Stuff the batting-wrapped head into the sock and tightly tie it off as close to the head as you can.

Tuck the extra batting into the open end of the sock and tie off. This does not need to be nearly as firm as the head.

Tuck the tail of the sock back into itself, pulling the sock to form a little pouch and stitch. This doesn't need to be pretty, it will be hidden inside of the doll.

 

And this is what your head should look like. 

Overwhelmed? I hope not. I know it seems long, but it really is straightforward, there are just a lot of small steps. Tomorrow I'll show you how to finish the head.