Art Craft: Making a Polymer Clay, Mixed-Media Mermaid Doll

Here's a fun doll-making art project you can make using a polymer clay face cabochon, a cloth body, beads, shells and other various mixed media materials. You can make your own face for your mermaid out of polymer clay, or get a pre-made face to use. Your mermaid doll can be as elaborate or as simple as you want to make her.

I always like to start my art dolls by making the face first. It is the hardest part, and you will need to match the size of the body to go with the face. You can, of course, use a face that is already made, which you can buy on eBay. Whether you buy or make your own mermaids face, make sure that the face is a cabochon, which means that the features of the face are protruding and detailed, and the back is flat. There also must be at least two holes in the sides of the face, so you can string it onto the doll body form.

To make your own mermaid face cabochon, start with a small ball of conditioned polymer clay. For a mermaid face, I like to use either a flesh colored clay (prosculpt makes several different flesh tones), or a pearlescent light colored green or blue (think colors of the ocean.) Form the ball into a general face shape.make sure the back side is flat. Using shaping tools, make the facial features. It's easiest to make closed eyes, especially if you are a beginner. Poke holes in the sides, halfway down the face. Try to make the holes as close to the edge as you can. Make them big enough to string a thin cord through.

Once the face is cured (follow the directions on your package of clay, as curing times can vary), you can leave it as it is, or paint to your liking with acrylic paints.

Tie long strings through the holes, long enough to be tied to the body later. I like to use thin hemp string, but you can use what you want. You can bead the strings now, using tiny beads. I like to use blue, green and pearly beads for mermaid art dolls.

To make the body, take several long strips of cloth, in different shades of blue and green ocean colors. The edges should be tattered or fringed looking. Using a six inch length of fairly straight drift wood, begin wrapping the different strips of cloth in layers around the stick. Leave an inch or so of the drift wood sticking out on the bottom and top.

Leave a couple tattered layers of cloth to dangle on the bottom of each side of the body. These will be your mermaid's tail fins. The cloth can be secured with lengths of string. I like to use the same hemp I used for tying on the face cabochon. Tie or sew on small shells, dried tiny starfish, and beads to the body.

To finish your mermaid doll, tie on the polymer clay face about a quarter of an inch below the top of the cloth body.