Friday, July 29, 2011

Meet Ava


This beautiful doll is my second attempt at making a Waldorf style doll. The first one came out OK and sure is cute but there were definitely some mistakes. After consulting with a professional Waldorf doll maker, I had a better outcome for this doll. She was named after a special little girl who who fell in love with her. When that little girl is old enough, she will get one of her very own! I can't wait to make it.

This doll, our Ava, was made for my little girl who snuggles up with her every night. The dolly is allowed to have a modeling job on the side when my little one is at camp or school but otherwise, Mommy needs to keep her hands off. My daughter may only be 5 but she is sure of what she wants!

If you are interested in making a Waldorf style doll, I encourage you to try. It does take some doing and there is definitely a learning curve but the reward is a great big smile on your child's face. I made my first doll with a kit from Weir Dolls and my second with materials from that site but a slightly different method.
1) I rolled the head like a snowball instead of stuffing it like a pillow as the directions called for.
2) I machine sewed more on the second than the first.
3) I found some beautiful yarn at a local yarn shop for the hair on the second instead of using worsted wool.
4) I crocheted a cap for the head, hand sewed it on and then attached the individual strands of hair to the cap by doubling them and looping them around the crocheted stitches. I like this version of hair the best because it can be styled in many ways, oh and I like to learn new crochet techniques as I am more of a knitter than a crocheter.