Each part of my doll is made of two layers: cotton and tricot. They have wire reinforcements in the legs and hands and are stuffed with antiallergic filler. Sometimes when people see my doll they think I’m buying ready-made faces. So I decided to show you step by step how I sew the doll’s face.
First, I sew the doll’s head. At the back of the head, I leave 2 holes for stuffing the head. I stuff the head so that the eyes are slightly less stuffed. So that you can model the eyes of the doll later.
I draw eyes, nose and mouth on the stuffed head. I make sure that the eyes are symmetrical and that there are adequate distances between the nose and mouth.
Then I sew the contour of the eye. I pull the thread until it reaches the dimple for the eyes. By properly stretching the thread, I also get convex cheeks.
I sew 3 seam on each side of the nose, tightening the thread properly.
I do one seam in each corner of my mouth. Depending on the shape of the lips, I make 1 to 3 draws in the middle, between the upper and lower lips. In addition, I shape the lips in sheep’s wool using the dry felting method.
The head flattens while sewing. Therefore, in the next step, I sew a cap. I sew it to the back of the head and fill it. Thus giving the head the right shape.
I cover the head with a layer of fine knitted fabric. I place the knitted fabric very carefully around the eyes, nose and mouth.
If there is anything else I want to improve on the shape of the face, nose or cheeks, now’s the last moment. I can do it with the dry felting method.
I glue the top layer of the doll – tricot. I stick it diagonally, it makes it easier for me to work with it.
I often cut the tricot on a line from the outer to the inner corner of the eye, leaving a millimetre of untrimmed tricot on each side. I tuck this leotard underneath, stick it, and that’s how they get lids. It is quite a painstaking method, you need a lot of practice to get nice, symmetrical eyelids. After drying, I paint my face with acrylic paints and dry pastels. Finally, I glue the lashes.