Living Dolls

I took a doll making class from the very talented and patient Unicia Buster, and was it ever fun! I’ve made dolls from fabric in the past, but not this way. Usually I make a yarn wig and sew it on, but these dolls require every stitch of hair to be hand sewn. Very labor intensive. The good news is, I’ve found a use for my fabric scraps, and when I say these dolls have wild clothes, I mean it. Their faces are painted on, not embroidered, and they each look very different, I think. So far I’ve made seven. Black curly hair, hair the color of confetti with sprinkles, red curls, brown twisty hair - I’m also using up my leftover yarn.

The most fun about the process is that I get to imagine who these dolls are and what has happened to them up to the day they arrived in my sewing room. Naming them requires trying on a few monikers, to feel out what fits. Naming my children was easier! Once they’re sewn, stuffed, painted, dressed, have extra nighties and knickers, I set out to find them a little child, preferable in the two-year-old range. While showing them to my writer friends one day at lunch, a lady came up and asked if she could buy one. Of course I told her I would be happy to give a doll to her, so she brought up her about 2 daughter (cute as a button and named Lexi), who grabbed the doll with the confetti hair and hung on for dear life. My day was complete.

The second doll went to a two-year-old daughter of an Afghan refugee. Heaven for me. Now I’m eagerly awaiting who will show up to claim the next doll. When all seven have gone to their next homes, I’ll make some more! Their stories are endless, and I’m eagerly awaiting what they’ll be.