Once I made my first head, I firmly chastised myself, and then promptly make a grand total of four more heads that same day. Both wool roving or batting works excellently for stuffing not just the head, but the body as well. I used 225 degrees. Make sure to wrap the yarn as tightly as possible – like Waldorf doll head core level of tight. Bella Luna Toys has been offering quality Waldorf toys, wooden and natural toys, and Waldorf dolls since 2002. Carefully slide only the back of the eyeline and cheek string down to the nape of the neck on the back of the head so it looks just like it does in the sample Waldorf head photo below. Remember, you can tea stain a T-shirt to save money. These Waldorf dollhouse size dolls might not look like much now, but when they’re finished they will be part of an adorable little family. If your Waldorf doll head core measure more than 8 inches, you will need to untie and remove the wool or the polyfil – likely making it too loose to simply tie again and move onto the next step. Keep testing the hardness of the core with your hand as you add more and more wool polyfill. Once the yarn has again cooled enough to touch, begin unwinding each dowel and pencil to stare in pure glee at your curly Waldorf doll wig in the making. Impressed with your skills to make this adorable doll. Pay attention to the position of the head while adding the extra stuffing, if you push the inserted neck piece forward just slightly it tends to position the face nicely. Taksa Toys Locomo Family Multicolored Edition III (Set of 5) - Wooden Animal Figures Open-Ended Educational Outdoor Play to Trigger Child’s Imagination and The Love of Nature. How much yarn is needed will depend on the dimensions of the doll head. Be careful to sew outside of the marked pattern lines to leave a seam allowance. I sure didn’t. Grab a piece of wool or polyfill that is approximately 3 inches wide. Draw lightly onto the face in case you need to gently erase (while holding the fabric on either side of the nose firmly in place) and draw again…or several times more until it looks just right. When buying a doll making needle set, spend a couple extra dollars and get a sturdy set. If the head measure substantially smaller, you should consider reducing the pattern dimensions slightly to ensure the head and the body remain proportional. Some folks prefer almond shaped or oblong eyes – both of which are easier to pull of. 3. The smallest will be for my great niece who is all of five days old. See, I told you if I could do it, so could you! Make certain to use embroidery thread (not sewing thread, it is not durable enough) that will blend with the scalp and/or yarn wig. During that session we wrapped enough yarn for four 12 inch in diameter doll heads.It takes about 10 to 12 dowel rods to make enough hair for the doll you are making in this Waldorf tutorial. Montessori, Waldorf and Reggio Emilia schools all acknowledge wooden toys for their natural aesthetic value. Hand sew the arms onto each shoulder using a ladder stitch, or straight stitch. Cut around the outline of the head your drew only after tugging on the sewn head covering to make sure the stitches are tight enough. The dowels I used were about 12 inches long. I love the simple sweetness of Waldorf dolls and was determined to learn how to make them for my own granddaughters. Holiday crafts, Kids crafts, crochet, knitting, dolls, rubber stamps and … Wrap your dental floss, embroidery thread, or jewelry string around the core in all directions, pulling it hard and tight as you go. I plan to start tomorrow and hope to have many photos to share. If the Waldorf doll head measure around 11 and a half inches in diameter, it is just fine. You can find my free photo tutorial and pattern for a 12″ Waldorf style doll at my blog Faith & String. Please visit Cathy’s sites for other great Waldorf doll tutorials and to purchase the most lovely Waldorf … 3. The piece of felt et al should be a minimum of two inches wide, and long enough to go from the forehead down the back of the head to the hair line on the doll. If you want to make a teenage fashion doll designed to look older and likely be constantly changing outfits and hairstyles, make her (or him) stand about 7 heads tall. 5. Over 100 Free Wooden Toy Woodcraft Plans at AllCrafts.net - Free Crafts Network Free Crafts projects! If you mess up this step, the head will be floppy, not hold its shape, wear down over time, and be virtually impossible to soft sculpt with a needle felting tool – or even to sew a nose on. Some Waldorf doll makers use light brown or black embroidery floss to make an angled small eyebrow above each eye with or without the addition of eyelashes. My version of curling yarn is slightly different because I streamlined the process slightly, and am thrilled with the consistent results. If the ponytail or pigtails seem a bit too floppy – and it is fairly likely they might, use the same hand sewing weaving in and other method that helped tack down the first layer of yarn, around the base of the tail hairstyle. You will keep rolling in more wool until the core is not only as close to being as hard as a golf ball as you can make it, but boast the same circumference – about 7 to 8 inches wide. Keep the head covering as smooth and wrinkle free as possible. You will need your long doll making needle, an embroidery needle and the floss for your eyes and mouth. This was a big time saver and it did not cause any problems when making the rest of the head. What treasures you truly have in the dolls your grandma made you so many years ago! The following will open in a new tab, after that you can go ahead and print them from your browser. Using the ladder stitch again, hand sew across the back of the shoulders to close the opening around the neck that you just filled with stuffing. Grab your pencil and while pressing lightly, trace around the doll head, extending down to leave a neck area that will later be inserted into the doll body. Plush Toys Musical Puzzles & Educational Ride, Bike & Balance Vehicles Toddler and Pretend Play Waldorf Toys Wooden Toys Try to keep the stitches that you will be bringing up to the top of the head as thin as possible, but do not fret about this too much because you can trim them down before sewing on the wig. This action will draw your mouth up into a smile. Some of the reviews on this site may be compensated by the companies whose products were reviewed. Explore Joy's Waldorf dolls patterns. The Waldorf doll kits that I had found online ranged in price from $50 to $90 each, depending upon the dimensions of the doll, and how much soft sculpting and hand embroidery was included in the kit. Do not overly stress out over learning how to do the ladder stitch. I basically use a weaving in and out action about three quarters of the way up the strand of the yarn to attach it to the head. If you are choosing not to go the more expensive wool route when stuffing the doll, fiberfill will work just fine, as long as it is tightly packed into the pattern pieces just like you would do with the wool filler. I hated the perfect eye and went right back to practicing how to hand embroider them better – forgiving myself for any slight imperfection the girls the dolls were given to, just did not even notice or care about anyway. Then you wrap a little bit of stuffing around the pipe cleaner, and secure it into place by tacking it down using embroidery floss, before inserting it into the already sewn body pattern. Once you master making a Waldorf doll head, the rest of the process is easy-peasy…I promise. Randomly hand sew around the head affixing the first layer of yarn (near the top of the strand only) to the head to anchor the wig down, using embroidery thread. Completing the nose soft sculpting work took an additional 10 minutes. If you are having difficulty finding the Waldorf doll how to videos, please turn off your ad blocker. Wooden Toys – Girls Room Décor Light as a sugar puff, pretty as a fairy! You MUST stuff the body tightly so it does not wear down. Many wig making tutorials and kits involved using a skull cap and crochet needles. You will need almost 10 inches of pink or red embroidery floss to complete the mouth on a doll head that is approximately 12 inches in diameter. Unlike geometrically shaped blocks from a store, these … I highly suggest you make a copy of the Waldorf peg gnome pattern, cut it out of paper, and “try it on” your wooden pegs. The age of the doll helps determine the body proportions and shape. Babies and toddlers engage in varied play with the carefully crafted early wooden toys by Melissa & Doug. But, after reading a great article at Fig & Me when first learning how to figure out what size head should be made to fit a doll body pattern of a specific length, I gave the age of the dolls I am making a good bit of pondering. Do not let fear over the complexity of making a Waldorf doll head prevent you from grabbing some supplies and getting started making these keepsake homemade gifts for a little girl you love today. Made of 100% wool, great first step to a Waldorf Education. Do not pack the neck and chest of the doll more than half way full because there must be room to dig out a little hole with your fingers to sink the neck of the Waldorf doll inside when attaching the head. Enjoy our quality selection of wooden classic toys, non-toxic natural toys, wooden doll houses, Waldorf … Little ones often tote their dolls around by a single arm, so do not skimp on the layers of hand sewing here even if you arms are tired. The half up ponytail, like the doll screen right in the feature photo at the beginning of this tutorial has is far easier to pull off. You will need to grab paper and pencil and do the math (or open the calculator app on your cell phone) to decide what size head you will need to go with the doll bodies featured in the free Waldorf patterns below. All Rights Reserved. If you use just one doll dress or outfit pattern it can be easily changed up by using different colored, patterned, or textured fabric and by adding little adornments like ribbons and embroidery designs to it, as well. If the Waldorf doll is going to be played with by young children, check out the stitching from time to time look for signs of loosening that might need repaired. Ariyah, my year and a half old granddaughter did not mind at all and loved her “baby dollie” even with her imperfection. I didn’t realize it would take so much to make one doll. I bought two dolls from a wonderfully helpful dollmaker in the Ukraine, Happy Waldorf Dolls, I had found on ETSY and gave those to our granddaughters for Christmas and made them extra clothing. Beautiful Waldorf Inspired Toy: Gnome House with Gnome and a Mouse. I tied the curly yarn to the handle on my sewing basket to help hold it tight and then braid it together – along with some purple yar accent strands. Yes, I know, cheating is bad. Beautiful Waldorf Toy for kids or Waldorf House Decoration. Deep wrinkles can show through the dollskin covering that will be added soon. I typically use a full sheet of felt, and then trim away the excess and use the scrap when making tiny dollhouse Waldorf dolls, or in other projects when a little bit of felt is all that is needed. • If you want the Waldorf doll to have a ponytail or pigtail, pull the hair into the style just as you would if fixing a child’s hair. Note, I placed the needle by the stick pin to highlight its placement. her homesteading skills are unmatched, she raises chickens, goats, horses, a wide variety of vegetables, not to mention she’s an expert is all sorts of homesteading skills such as hide tanning, doll making, tree tapping and many, many more. If it is slightly lumpy that is fine, the wig we will make later will hide the tiny flaw. Place the front and back body patterns with right side facing each other. Waldorf Doll - Organic Girl Sasha ... Waldorf toys that inspire creative play. Waldorf inspired toys … Sew the front and back body pattern pieces together before cutting them apart. This site may earn commissions when you click on certain links. Lay the braid across the area of the head it will cover periodically during the braiding process to make sure it stretches to cover the area you want covered. The wool or polyfil must cover the core fully and thickly but will not be wound around until it is rock hard like the core, but still extremely firm. Stuffing – wool, polyfil, or fiberfil are recommended. Draw your circles smaller than you think you should, as embroidering them always tends to make them larger. Some Waldorf doll makers instruct you to scrap the core and start over if it is much less than 7 inches in diameter – 5 inches will be too small for the doll you are making in this tutorial. Waldorf dollhouse dolls are not usually stuffed the same way as large dolls – unless you are making them for an infant or young toddler, and merely want a little soft doll. Peg doll supplies, Sarah’s Silks, Joy’s Waldorf Dolls kits and patterns… Wooden Toy Sailboat - Made in USA Rainbow Sail Boat, Toy Sailboat that Floats - Wooden Sail Boat - Blue Stripe, Wooden Toy Truck - Pick Up Toys Made in USA, Maple Hardwood Building Blocks - Made in USA, Organic Playdough - Set of 2 Colors - Blue and Purple, Organic Playdough - Set of 2 Colors - Orange and Yellow, Organic Playdough - Set of 2 - Red & Green, Waldorf Doll with Brown Hair Light skin - Kate, Organic Stuffed Doll - Ada in White Dress, Organic Doll with Brown Hair - Louise, White Dress, Knitting Game for Kids - Woody the Sheep - Ecru. Grab your Waldorf doll making helper and have them once again make a tie around the neckline just as you did above – but over the sock or cotton tubing. Montessori Materials Stacking Toy, Waldorf Wooden Toys for Color Sorting and Nesting, Wooden Kitchen Toys Rainbow Bowls, Imaginative Play LegacyLearning. The head you will be making in this Waldorf tutorial is designed to be used to create a 10 to 12 inch doll. Many years of playing sports, coaching sports, and typing all day can make my hands ache – the head making process was not an exception. Three Sisters Toys. As a novice hand embroiderer, I opted for more turns through the eye circle with the floss than were actually needed. You can get as creative as you want to with the yarn for the doll’s hair. Start at either shoulder and use a ladder stitch to close the front of the neck while working your way to the other shoulder. Even pegs bought from the same company can be slightly different. Push the Waldorf doll gently but firmly into the opening you created in the stuffing inside the body. I usually make a mini head sore to stuff into the front of the feet in my Waldorf dolls to give them more definition and firmness – which really helps to keep those little doll shoes on during play! Once you place the scalp strip with yarn onto the sewing machine you will likely need to smooth out the yarn again because it is nearly impossible to keep it from shifting until it is sewn into place. These tiles provide hours of educational fun for children of all … Whatever type of yarn you choose should be of a natural and not a synthetic material. Embroidery thread that matches the doll skin tone, Upholstery needle or standard hand sewing needle. And when attaching the arms, a strong straight stitch will work almost as well. 4. 1. These are doll joints. Now, use the opening that has not yet been sewn shut at the back of the Waldorf doll’s neck to finish filling it up with stuffing. A Waldorf baby doll looks to be about 3 heads tall because of the curled legs – if the legs were straightened, the doll would actually be closer to 4 heads. They will be going into your oven (yes, oven, that was not a typo) so just make sure you cut down any dowels that will not allow your door to nearly close. Someone takes the time to share there talent and knowledge and you comment on their cleavage. Natural Waldorf Toys I have never once had a problem putting the damp yarn in the oven as long as I leave the oven door open for a little extra ventilation. 4. • If you want to add bangs to your Waldorf doll, make a shorter scalp piece and sew yarn onto it. The wider the strip the easier it will be to balance out the yarn evenly and keep it situated in place. One skein should be more than enough even for a large doll with long hair. Leave a tail on the string about three inches long so you can tie it – again tightly, around the core. Finding clothing patterns might be slightly more difficult to fit especially small or large dolls, but they do exist. Hand sew along where the dotted lines were on your pattern pieces using a straight stitch to give them more definition, and to enable the Waldorf Doll to sit better. Now it is time to make any final hairstyle decisions. Strange comment. This will gather up the threat under the nose and give it more dimension and firmness. Place the cut body pattern piece in the middle of the fabric. Bring the water to a rolling boil, and put your stopper in the sink. Susan, Thank you! The first is to fold your doll skin fabric so the right sides are facing. Waldorf Montessori Toy. Once you have the eyes situated to your liking, go to the top of the head one last time to tie off your embroidery string and trim away the excess. You can make Waldorf dolls in all sorts of shapes and sizes. If the doll skin fabric is too saggy around the head, remove the head covering and place the doll head on it again – with the nose still facing toward the fold. Tying the strings and sewing them into place took another 10 minutes. Repeat step 2 to create a back body pattern piece. Despite my admiration for wooden toys, I … Your hands will probably ache by the time you are done wrapping enough yarn for a wig or two – I tossed the dowels and pencils on the table and volunteered three family members to help, and the process still took a little over an hour. Cut two pieces for each arm – a total of four pieces. The problem with layering thread to create the mouth involves how easily the thinner thread can become loose or snap with regular play. Honey, you have waaaay much more patience than I do! If the neck (or muff as dome Waldorf doll makers call it) is too wide or long to allow the head to fit properly on the doll body, trim it up and re-insert. Pull the thread while watching the embroidery floss mouth move in position to avoid adding knotting each exposed end on the back of the head with a mouth drawn back either too tightly or too loosely. Grimm's are the OG wooden toy makers. 5 out of 5 stars … *NEW* Seasons Natural Toys - back in business! Place the dowels and pencils on baking sheets and put them in your oven. Repeat this step, making certain to catch wool each and every time, until the nose has the shape, fullness, and height that you want for the Waldorf inspired doll face. After becoming frustrated with keeping my eyes circular and not oblong (very common Waldorf doll maker newbie obstacle) I thought about cheating. It is really the best stitch for this stage of the process. It’s 15 December, and I am so happy I found this series of tutorials and photos. Indiana State Baby Rattle™ - Modern Wooden Baby Toy … Tara lives on a 56 acres farm in the Appalachian Mountains, where she faces homesteading and farming challenges every single day. Center the spot for the mouth below and in between your eyes. No one wants a Waldorf doll that is looking down at the ground or constantly up at the sky. This set of vibrantly hued Wooden Pattern Blocks includes 96 triangle Mosaic Tiles in six bright colors to provide endless design possibilities! The key to making a Waldorf doll head is getting the initial ball as hard as a rock. I really enjoyed spending this time with you! 2. While the mouth itself takes up little embroidery floss, pulling the floss from the back of the head through the front, back again, and then tying it off will probably use more embroidery floss than you think. Doll making needle and/or embroidery needle; Embroidery floss in eye, mouth, and wig matching colors; Felt or doll skin that blends in with the wig or in a scalp color that matches the doll’s skin tone; Sewing machine for the wig or needle and embroidery thread to hand sew; Yarn for the wig. Waldorf dolls will take longer to create than a typical cloth doll, but making one of these sweet old-fashioned toys is so well worth the effort. Free Online Patterns for Knitted Play Kitchen Foods-- a must see! I allowed myself to be too intimidated by the head-making process, that it took me two years to give it a try. • Completing a perfectly connected, and hanging ponytail or pigtail on the first few wigs might be a bit difficult. Trace another line around the head and repeat the same steps you did above. There is a 2 inch test scale strip on each free Waldorf doll pattern to help you check for proper print size. I used her two dolls (shown above) as an inspiration for my own. Neither way works better than the other, it is all up to personal preference. I saw girls, but plenty of Waldorf doll makers make knights, pirates, monsters, and super hero Waldorf “dolls” for boys to love and cuddle up to go to sleep with, as well. Mohair yarns tend to curl the best, but I have had great results with every type of natural yarn that I have tried. Palumba, a division of Camden Rose, offers imaginative, natural wooden USA made toys,green toys, natural baby toys, Waldorf dolls, pentatonic musical instruments, natural non-toxic art supplies, organic woolens and children's wooden furniture for your inspired, natural home. Waldorf Dolls blog post - Bella Luna Toys Wiwiurka shop on Etsy Natural Play. Even though the fabric will stretch, the head will still expand the fabric substantially when inserted inside. You must sew OUTSIDE of the marked pattern lines to leave a seam allowance. For over 30 years, a trusted shop for families and teachers. Or, you could do as I did when making these patterns, and create the body first so you have it in front of you when creating the head so you can just eyeball it and decide on how large to make the head. Cut out the arm pieces, and place them on the folded over fabric. 4. So when I can make those type of eyes better I will definitely be updating this tutorial so I can pay her courtesy forward and share it with all of you, as well. There is no seam allowance on any of these patterns, so adjust your tracing or sewing accordingly just as you did with the doll pattern in our Waldorf tutorial. To save money strip is at this phase of the core in more wool polyfill Waldorf Baby typically... It more dimension and firmness just not yet bounce in on my work table or constantly up at back! And hope to have many photos to share fairly simple and cute hairstyles to choose from process slightly and... To start tomorrow and hope to have many photos to share there talent and knowledge and would... 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