The charm of any doll is hidden in its image - it is strict or fabulous, romantic or vice versa fervent. Any detail is important here: facial expressions, clothes, shoes, and, of course, hairstyle. Dolls with long hair are the dream of every girl, especially if it is curled ringlets. It’s so interesting to watch when darling’s curls flutter at the slightest breeze and imagine that your beloved princess is walking along the alleys of the park. But as often happens, a beloved doll quickly loses its appearance, hair becomes tangled, become unusable and become like bast, which really upsets the babies. However, do not rush to throw such a toy, its hairstyle can be completely restored. Inspiration can be gained by studying the process of creating hair for textile creations. Various descriptions of how to make hair for the doll will help here: it can be removable wigs or thoroughly fixed hair. First you need to decide what should be the hairstyle, and proceed to the selection of raw materials for her.
Material selection
So, the hair for the doll can be from a wide variety of fibers. Satin ribbons, knitting yarn, floss thread, wool and even old wigs and hairpieces will be used. Of course, each material has its own working technique, but in any case, this process is very painstaking and requires accuracy. Only in this case can an excellent result be achieved. To make hair for the doll, you will need auxiliary materials: glue, thread with a needle, scissors and a lighter. In work, you can use a gun with silicone sticks or the usual “Moment” in a tube.
When choosing a material, it is worth considering that for playing dolls you need to choose a simpler material, such as yarn or a chignon, such hair can be combed. What can not be done with wool and satin ribbons, however, this material is ideal for an interior doll. For restoration of the doll, both ribbons and floss threads are well suited.
Yarn hair for textile doll
Each craftswoman has her own secrets, but the principle of creating hair at the root is not different. So, we make the hair of the doll from yarn.
Method one
First, the head of a rag doll must be embroidered with the same threads, from which there will be ponytails or pigtails. The stitch after stitch fills the entire surface, starting from the extreme line of growth to the crown. After that, “hairs” are implanted in a checkerboard pattern all over the head about half a centimeter apart.
Second way
Hair for a doll can be made in another way. The yarn is cut into segments equal to double the length of the hair, laid in the middle on a strip of paper tightly to each other and stitched on a sewing machine. After the base is removed, and the stitched locks are attached to the head. To make a hairstyle for a girl, you will need several such strips with threads that are placed evenly throughout the head. If you need to update the head of the doll-boy, then one strip with small hairs, which is placed from ear to ear through the crown, will be enough.
Restoration of a doll using yarn
If this is an ordinary Barbie doll whose hair has become unusable, then there are two ways to create a new hairstyle from yarn:
- The head of the pupa is measured and cut from the fabric to the color of the skin to the size of a circle of fabric on which hairs are strung, tying a knot from the inside. Then this peculiar wig is glued with hot glue.
- The second option is more painstaking, but it looks more aesthetically pleasing. To begin with, all old hair is pulled out, leaving traces of firmware clean. The next stage is filling with new strands. How to sew a doll's hair in the wake of an old hairstyle is not at all difficult to guess. To do this, the head is removed and, having threaded a strand into a needle, from the front side they enter it into one hole and bring it to the nearby one. At the same time, the desired length of curls from each point is left. After all the strands are pulled off, inside the head is poured with glue so that when combing the hairs do not fall out.
It is worth noting that thin silk or cotton knitting threads are best suited for Barbie.
Satin Ribbon Hair for Rag Doll
This material is one of the most affordable. And it is from him that it is easy to make interesting curls and curls. To create such hair, you will need several meters of a wide satin ribbon, which is cut into pieces corresponding to the length of the doll’s hair. From one edge, the segments are fused with a lighter, and from the other they dissolve, leaving one centimeter from the edge. How to curl a doll with satin ribbon hair? To do this, the loose sections are wound on a pencil like a snail, fixed with thread for sewing, removed from the base and boiled for 5-7 minutes.
The next step is sewing or gluing blanks to the base of the head. How to sew doll hair from satin locks? Start work from the back of the head, gradually moving towards the temples and the crown.
Satin ribbons for restoration
If this is a restoration of a plastic doll, then undoing the tape, leave the edge about 0.5 centimeters, and glue the blanks with hot glue. Curls are glued in a circle of hair growth from the edges to the crown, in the center they close the place of combining the last strand. It is worth noting once again that such hair for a doll cannot be combed and braided, so it will be rational to make curled curls out of them.
Mouline thread hair for a rag doll
Hair from floss thread looks beautiful on the doll, and it does not matter on which doll, whether it is rag Tilda or standard Barbie. So, how to make a doll hair from embroidery floss threads? To create a hairstyle for a textile doll, you need to draw hair growth lines, and then, as in the case of knitting threads, fill the entire contoured surface of the head with embroidery smoothness . Then, starting from the back of the head, locks of hair are gained. To do this, a piece of thread equal to the double length of the doll’s hair is threaded into the needle with a large eye, the needle is dragged into the fabric and displayed at a short distance. Leaving a suitable length from one edge, the thread is fixed as with ordinary sewing, the free edge remains the same length as the first.
Replacing matted hair on a mouline thread
A doll whose hair is very tangled and unusable can find a second life. To do this, you need to make hair for the doll with your own hands. The technique for creating a new hairstyle from this material is the same as with ordinary yarn. Using multi-colored threads, it is easy to make the effect of highlighting or coloring. So, how to make hair for a doll with your own hands? First, all old hair needs to be removed by cleaning the holes. Next, several floss of suitable length are inserted into a needle with a large eye and inserted from the front into one of the holes, bending the base of the head, the needle is withdrawn, leaving the second edge of the curls of the same length as the first. So that all the strands are the same, they should be cut immediately before starting work. As with regular knitting yarn, the threads should be reinforced with glue from the inside. To do this, remove the head from the body and drip a few drops of hot glue or “Moment” inside. Such hair can be combed, make all kinds of hairstyles and even curl with the help of small pieces of paper and sewing threads.
Felted wool hair
A material like wool is perfect for making hair for a doll. With your own hands, using this natural fiber, you can easily create fancy hairstyles. The big shark at the top with a small bright bow will look simply charming. Also, it is easy to create cute pigtails and cute ponytails from it. However, you should know a few basic rules about the principle of felting. To work, you need to stock up with wool, a special needle and a pencil for marking the hairstyle on the head. Better use a vanishing tailor marker. First draw a hairline and parting, after a small strand of material is folded, leaving one edge of 1 cm and the other of the desired length. They put it with a fold to the head and begin to work with a needle, driving wool in the middle. For the second side, do a similar procedure. In the same way drive all the details of the hairstyle. Further from them you can make a big beautiful bunch or braid a braid. How to make a doll hair from wool with curls? There is nothing complicated here, as it might seem at first glance. For beautiful curls, strands of wool are wound on toothpicks and left for some time so that they are fixed. After a couple of hours, you can untwist them and give the hairstyle the desired shape.
Despite the lightness of this method of creating hair, unfortunately, it is not suitable for a play doll, because they cannot be combed and woven.
Other options
How to make doll hair in other ways?
- For the manufacture of hairstyles, you can use knitted fabric. For this, the material is cut into strips across the canvas and slightly stretched. After this, the segments curl inward a little, from them form hair for the doll. With your own hands it is very easy to make a hairstyle from an ordinary cord, which can be dissolved and thus make beautiful curls.
- Short-haired curly fur is ideal for short hairstyles. In this case, a wig cap is sewn from it, which can be glued, sewn on or made removable. Llama fur with its curls and volume will look beautiful in a wig.
- As beautiful strands, you can use fibers for weaving afro-braids. Especially good are braids and dreadlocks.
- The original and easiest way is horse or human hair. They can be taken from real wigs and hairpieces. Strands of hair of the desired length are cut off, sewn onto a dense hat for a doll from dense knitted fabric to the color of the doll's body. You can make several such wigs and change the appearance of the toy at will. Or they can be glued or sewn to the head. Such hairstyles are suitable for rag dolls, as well as for the old Barbie.
General guidelines for material selection
In order for the hair to be soft and pleasant to the touch, you need to choose the right material. When choosing a yarn, it is necessary to touch it and make sure that it is soft and silky. Color should also be given special attention, because the character of the dolls will depend on it. It should be harmoniously combined with skin, eyes and even outfit. The shape of the hairstyle should also match the style of clothing, especially if it is hair that cannot be combed.
Instead of a conclusion
The doll can become a real favorite not only for girls, but also for full-grown ladies. Beautiful interior toys seated on shelves will attract the attention of every guest. If we talk about the restoration of the children's darling, then its renewal will bring the child delight and boundless joy. Making hair for a doll with your own hands is not so difficult as it might seem initially. The main thing is not to be afraid to experiment, because it is precisely thanks to such “samples of the pen” that many ways to create doll hairstyles have appeared. In any case, a toy updated or created by one’s own hands during the manufacturing process will bring a lot of positive emotions.