Chapter 4. The Doll House Family

The most attractive little dolls can be made for your doll house. Crepe paper, absorbent cotton, and pipe-stem cleaners are the things you'll need besides scissors, paste, thread, and needle.

The charming thing about these dolls is that they can be bent into all sorts of natural poses without any difficulty whatsoever. Their crepe-paper clothes, for the most part, are put together with paste. Only occasionally do you have to sew anything. Of course, you can use other kinds of paper, too, for costumes and trimmings. As you work along with them, all sorts of interesting ideas will occur to you. Sheer fine fabrics can be used on these dolls and, since the dolls are so very small, the tiniest scraps that cannot be used elsewhere will do nicely here.

How to Make Doll House Dolls

Pipe-stem cleaners are used to make a frame or skeleton for the doll. Six regular-size cleaners are needed for the full-size dolls; four for the child-size. The method of twisting the cleaners is shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3 of the diagram. One cleaner is looped and twisted to make the head and body. The second cleaner makes the arms and hands. Two cleaners, twisted together, are used for each leg. Follow the drawings step by step.

When the frame is done, place a small wad of absorbent cotton in the head loop. Then cover the entire head with a very thin layer of cotton and bind it to the neck by winding thread around it tightly. Place small wads in the loops of the hands and feet. Cover the head, hands, and feet with peach-colored crepe paper. Bind each part at neck, wrists, and ankles with sewing thread. The frame should look like Figure 4.

Pad the shoulders and chest with thin strips of cotton. The shoulder strips should be about 1/2 in. wide and 2 in. long. Lay them across the shoulders, having the ends come down to the waist. Tie them there with a binding of thread. The chest strip, 1/2 in. wide and 3 in. long, is wrapped around the body and held on with a binding of thread.

Cover the legs and arms with crepe paper cut into strips 1/4 in. wide. Starting at the ankles and wrists, bind the strips spirally up each leg and arm. Tie at the top with sewing thread. Cover the body the same way, using a strip 1/2 in. wide. The doll should look like Figure 5.

The child-size doll is made exactly the same way, but should be about 11/2 inch shorter than the grown-up doll. The diagram and dress pattern in the last before image from bottom in this chapter will guide you. This basic doll can be made into many characters by means of different hairdos and clothes.

A favorite pair is a bride and groom. Let's make the bride first.

The Bride

Water-color pencils are used to draw on the eyes and mouth. Dip the tip of an azure-blue pencil in water, shake off the excess, then draw two small circles for the eyes. Fill in the circles. Don't press hard, or the pencil tip will tear the soft paper face. A semi-circle in red will give the bride a pleasant, halfway smiling expression.

It is wise to practice using these water-color pencils on pieces of crepe paper before you actually use them on the face. Lay a scrap piece of the paper over a wad of cotton and then try making different kinds of features. When you feel that you have the knack of it, draw the eyes and mouth on the doll.

Wig

Let's plan a blond bride. There are two ways of making her hair: with crepe paper according to the pattern shown here, or with strands of fine pale yellow yarn. The crepe-paper wig is easier.

Cut pale yellow paper to the size and shape shown. The curved edges of it are finely slashed to make it look like hair. Cover the top, sides, and back of the doll's head with a thin, even coat of library paste. Paste the wig on as shown, molding it to the head. If the bob is too long, trim the ends carefully with a very sharp scissors.

The yarn wig is a bit more difficult to make but it does look very natural when done. Cut twelve 21/2 in. lengths of very fine yellow wool. You may need more lengths, but twelve is enough to start with. Place a line of Duco cement from the forehead straight back across the top of the head. Lay the center of each strand on the line of cement, so that the strands touch each other completely. Start at the forehead and continue back to the crown of the head, pressing the strands down against the cement. The ends fall down on either side of the face. Turn the doll around so the back of her head is toward you. There will be a spot on the head that is still bald. Put a thin coat of cement on this bald spot. Press some more stands of wool straight up and adown on the cement. The end of each new strand must touch the last strand of top hair.

When the cement is dry draw all the strands together at the back of the neck. Tie them with a piece of matching wool, then cut off the ends quite close to the tied part. This makes a little pompon that looks just like a little bun.

Gown

The bridal gown is one of the most striking costumes you can make. It can be made of white, ivory, or any pale pastel crepe paper. Only five pieces are necessary to make it: two sleeves and a bodice, and a straight skirt which is shirred at the waistline. In cutting out the various parts, be sure that the crinkled grain of the paper runs up and down.

The doll house bride's dress pattern.

The skirt requires a piece of paper 9 in. long and 4 in. wide. Gather the top of the skirt (along the 9-in. edge) with a needle and thread. Pull the thread just tight enough to fit the waistline of the doll. Tie the gathering thread with a double knot. Put the skirt on the doll and bind it in place by winding the thread tightly around the waistline. This wrapping thread goes over the gathers. Tie it securely. Paste the back seam of the skirt, lapping one edge over the other.

Hold the doll upright with her feet flat on the table to test the length of the skirt. Trim off the bottom if it is too long. Stretch the bottom edge of the skirt by gently pulling small sections of it sideways. This will make a series of small puffs around the bottom which are very pretty.

Cut sleeves and bodice according to patterns shown in above picture. The grain or crinkle of the paper must run from top to bottom of each piece. Use a needle and thread to gather the bottom of each sleeve. Gather the tops between the points marked A and B. The sleeves can be made to look fuller by gently stretching the center part. Tie the bottoms of the sleeves to the wrists, wrapping them on like the top of the skirt. The tops of the sleeves are pasted to the doll's shoulders. Paste the seams together by lapping one side over the other. The lap should be as narrow as possible.

The front and back of the bodice are identical. Rub a thin coat of library paste all over one side of each piece. Carefully fit one piece on the back, smoothing it to remove wrinkles and making sure that the piece covers the tops of the sleeves and the top of the skirt. Fit the front on in the same way.

Accessories

Narrow white satin ribbon may be tied around the waist, finishing it with a bow and streamers at center back. Fold the ribbon in half, lengthwise, and tie a piece of ribbon around each wrist; make a double knot and then cut off the ends.

The neckline may be finished either with a little flat collar cut from a lace-paper doily or with a tiny lace ruffle. For the latter, cut a strip 1/4 in. wide and 3 in. long. Gather it to fit the neck. Put it on with the ends meeting at center back. Tie securely.

The nicest kind of veil for the little bride is made from silk or nylon tulle or net. A piece 4 in. wide and 6 in. long will do nicely. Lay it on the head so it will fall to the chest in front and flow gracefully down in back. Hold the veil in place by pinning it with two very short straight pins stuck right into the head. By slipping a tiny pearl bead on each pin and sticking a number of them in side by side across the top of the head, you make a pearl coronet which is very beautiful.

Paint silver or white slippers on the bride.

The Groom

The groom doll is made exactly like the bride, except that you might want to make his complexion darker. If so, you can cover his face and hands with light tan crepe paper. Also, the shape of his eyes and mouth are made somewhat different from those on the bride. Study the picture of the finished pair in last picture of chapter 3 to see the difference. Brown water-color pencil is used.

Suit

The pattern for the groom's suit is below. Black crepe paper is used for trousers and coat/ white writing paper for the shirt. Since only the front will show under his suit, it is cut without a back.

The doll house groom's suit pattern.

Paste the edges of each trouser leg together to make tubes, which are then slipped up onto his legs. Keep the seams on the inner side of the legs. Paste the tops to the body at the waistline.

Paste the shirt on, lapping the bottom of it over the top of the trousers. His collar is a narrow strip cut from shiny white paper, just long enough to go around his neck. Paste it on with the ends meeting at center front. Paste on the tiniest snip of black paper to look like a tie.

The sleeves are made into tubes and slipped on the arms. Paste the tops of them to the shoulders.

The coat is put on last. Rub a thin coat of paste along the edges of the armholes, across the top of the back, and across the top edge of the front shoulders. Start with the back and carefully fit it to the body, smoothing out any wrinkles and lapping the armholes over the edges of the sleeves. Lap the front shoulders over the back. Bend back the lapels. Paste the coat together in front at the waist. A tiny snip of white paper may be pasted to the left lapel to look like a carnation. Paint the groom's feet black. Use the same poster paint to give him hair, unless you want to make a brown wool wig. This is not too hard to do and it certainly looks handsome when finished.

Wig

The best yarn to make a wool wig for a man doll, is a strand unraveled from an old piece of knitting. When ripped out it is nice and curly. Cut the yarn into small lengths somewhat less than 1/4 in. Put a thin coat of Duco cement all over the head and press the tiny bits of wool on until the head is covered with them. Right now they'll make him look like a Hottentot, but after the cement is dry you can barber him. Cut the wool off close above the ears and at the back of the head. The top hair should be just a bit longer.

The bride and groom are now ready for display, and what an exceedingly handsome couple they make! The Bride's skirt is stiff enough to allow her to stand without support. Link the groom's pipe-cleaner arm through hers and he, too, will stand upright.

Costume Changes

Both the bride's and the groom's clothes can, with a few changes, be turned into everyday outfits.

Make the bride's dress knee length, of colored paper, add a flat white collar, and it becomes a schoolgirl's frock. By making the skirt a bit longer (about halfway down the leg) and not quite so full, it turns into a fine gown for a mother doll. For her, a tiny necklace of pearls will be a good finishing touch. A dress made exactly like the original, only in gray paper and with a wide flat collar of stiff white paper added, turns the doll into an enchanting little Pilgrim Maid. Add a black cape to complete the picture.

The pattern for the groom's suit can be the basis for a number of daytime outfits. The trousers are always cut the same way. The jacket pattern is shown in below picture. Try cutting it from a tweedy looking writing paper and use with gray or brown crepe-paper trousers. You will have a very fine country outfit. If the man doll is to appear just in slacks and a shirt, cut a duplicate of the shirt front for the back and cut sleeves of the same paper, using the jacket-sleeve pattern. A narrow black or brown strip of paper around the waist will serve as a belt.

The doll house father's everyday jacket pattern uses tube sleeves like those of the groom. The doll house child takes only a few minutes to make with pipestem cleaners and crepe paper.

These easy costume changes transform the dolls into mother and father characters.

Doll House Children

The child-size dolls are made in the same way but are 1 1/2 in. shorter. Cut little one-piece dresses for them. They are really too small to wear anything fancy. A nice way to trim the dresses is to paste very narrow cotton lace around neckline and bottoms of sleeves. If the lace you have is too wide, cut it to the width you need. Use cement for pasting it down. Tie a piece of colored yarn around the waist to pull in the fullness of the dress. Paint socks and shoes on with poster paint.

Planning a Doll Snow

These tiny dolls are fun to make. They take so little material and are completed so rapidly that making dozens of them for a Doll Show would be a most interesting project to work on. Why not have a Doll Bee with a group of friends? You could trade materials, trimmings, and ideas and help each other prepare the dolls for the Show.

Such a project should be planned in advance. A central idea or theme is necessary to give the Show importance. Suppose your town is going to celebrate its hundredth anniversary. What could be more exciting than to prepare groups of dolls dressed as Founding Families and their descendants? A hundred years of fashions offers all sorts of possibilities for doll costumes. Everyone will co-operate by giving you lots of stories and anecdotes that can be turned into doll group presentations. These dolls are ideally suited for this kind of use because, after costuming them, they can be bent into action poses to suit the theme.

If you do plan anything like this, you will want dolls that can stand up by themselves. They can be made to do so by using self-hardening clay to model good supporting feet for your actors.

Make a small oval of the clay about 3/4 in. long, 1/2 in. wide, and 1/4 in. thick. Press this on the table so that the bottom is absolutely flat. Press each doll foot into a clay lump, then smooth the sides of the lump up and over the top of the wire ankle. The clay will dry very hard, and then it may be painted. It is heavy enough to hold the doll upright without other support. The clay feet are certainly not dainty looking, but with the men dolls it doesn't make any difference, and the skirts of the women dolls will partially conceal them. Oddly enough, large feet look rather appealing on doll children.

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