I love these peepwool dolls created by Wisconsin-based artist Amy Arnold and available at Nonchalant Mom. At $220, rosie here is a bit out of my league, but such an expressive doll. These remind me quite a bit of the rough-hewn characters seen in folk art throughout the American South.
I used this ingenious idea from Angry Chicken to make mermaid tails for a couple of the girls’ dolls. After taking these photos I realized that yes, mermaids are weird and dolls in general are just kind of creepy (note zombie-like stare of doll pictured on the right).
But there was much excitement in the house about these. I showed my kids the photo from Angry Chicken and they were thrilled because they had one of the same dolls. I didn’t quite follow the instructions, opting for a lazier one-piece version with polyfill stuffing in the tail. I think the two large seashells on that one doll might be a bit much! Better than Barbie, I guess. I think little slip-on fairy wings would be another cute project for the dolls when the girls get tired of mermaids.
On another note, I just received these soap-making supplies from Brambleberry. I can’t wait to mix up some stuff and see what happens. The scents smell heavenly and I love the molds.
I saw the link to Cloth Kits over at whip up. These kits come with fabric pre-printed with the cut lines for super easy sewing. But the best part is that their designs are incredibly adorable. They make clothes for kids and adults in addition to the dolls shown above. I think this would be a great project for a novice sewer as patterns can be so confusing!
What a clever idea! This new line of fabrics and these flip doll kits from Umbrella Prints will soon be available. Love them.
After seeing this post at Sugar City Journal I’ve been thinking about making some personalized paper dolls, but it seemed like so much work to cut out all of their clothes and my kids get frustrated when the clothes don’t stay on the dolls. We have a toy similar to this one from Woodkins, so we made some personalized dolls from cardboard and card stock. The hardest part was trying to get the kids still for a picture. They drew some hair, but you could add some with yarn or make changeable hair cut-outs. I then cut some fabric scraps and let them change the clothes around. You can make a dress by slipping the fabric over the leg separation. Creating and playing with these dolls occupied them for much of the afternoon!
