How to Make a Waldorf Style Doll

Supplies: Wool batting, pins, 5-inch doll making needle, cotton string, floss in eye and lip color, velour or flannel for the body and cap, matching thread for the skin color and body color, skin fabric, and gauze stockinette. I like Weir Dolls for their supplies. Magic Cabin has supplies as well, but I like the Weir Dolls better.

Your wool batting comes in sheets and has a definite grain to it. Open up the sheet and pull off a strip about 2x4x10 inches.

Separate this into two pieces, a narrow piece that will be rolled tightly into a firm ball, and another piece,which will be torn in half making 2 shorter pieces.
Roll your long piece into a ball, using pressure and making it as firm as you can. This will give the doll head structure. Hold it firmly so it doesn't come undone.

Using one of the smaller pieces of batting that you pulled off, cover the ball with them and bring it around to gather at the bottom, kind of like you would put on a mitten. This will become the neck and keep the doll's head from flopping backwards.

Repeat with the other piece of batting. This isn't done as firmly as the ball for the inner part of the head.

Using about 18 inches of stockinette ( I used 1-1/4 inch for these dolls), twist in the middle of it and then slip one end over the other, so it creates a closing at the end. This can also be done by knotting the end, but that makes a lump on the top of the doll's head so I prefer to do it this way.

Insert the head you made out of wool and bring the stockinette down to the bottom and tie off or sew off so that the wool is all encased in the stockinette. You put the wool head in the stockinette like a foot into a sock.

Using the string (I have to double it up so it doesn't break) first tie off where your neck will be, right below the 'firm ball' that was made with the batting. You want to do this firmly and may need help tying the knot. I do it by making the knot and holding the whole thing against the table as I make the second knot to 'lock' it in.

Repeat half way up for the eye line. I put that in bold because it is important to do it half way up and not any further to make the doll look accurate.

Cut a piece of skin fabric that can go around the head completely,with overlap. Magic Cabin's patterns will tell you to sew a head shape out of skin fabric, but I prefer to do it this way, I think it looks better. Notice the stretch of the fabric is more in one direction than another- you want the stretch to be going across, not lengthwise. This will allow it to constrict where the eyes and neck are, showing detail.

Sew it up with a whip stitch, pulling the skin snug but not too tight as you go. The eye line should be outlined on the face, with the sewing on the back of the head. This isn't going to show, the cap will be covering it.

Using your floss and 5-inch doll making needle, and starting from the back of the head to anchor, stitch in the mouth and eyes from appropriately colored embroidery floss. I like to do 2 lines for the mouth and 3 or 4 each for the eyes, but you can play around and see what you like. Tie the strings together in the back of the head to anchor.

Sew the body and cap out of velour or flannel or even cotton jersey (t-shirt material) is nice. I prefer to use natural fibers because babies chew on these, and natural fibers are just nicer. The body should be about the size of your hand, just a basic simple shape. The cap is a triangle cut on a fold, with the fold being placed at the top. When in doubt, make your hat a little big.

Trim the excess away and turn right side out.

Position the head inside of the cap and body. I don't stuff these, as the 'floppiness' makes them easier for little babies to grab and hold onto, and makes them thinner to be used as 'nursing loveys'

To get the cap to stay where I want it, I generally tack the bottom corners (where my thumb nail is) with pins before I start sewing.

Sew around the whole thing, use a blanket stitch or a running stitch, or a whip stitch, whatever seems to work for you. I go around the neck twice for durability.

When attaching the cap, catch not only the skin fabric but also go into the wool a bit to add strength and anchor the whole thing together. You can see where my cap is tacked with a pin.

Raw edges go to the inside.

Bring the back of the cap right to the body suit and secure together, to give an appearance of a hood attached to the body suit.

An you are all done!