TINY CLOTHESPIN DOLL

This little doll is 1/4 the size of a regular clothespin doll so it is around quarter inch scale. I start with a round toothpick and cut it to the length of the finished doll. 1 1/4" seems to be just about right but can be smaller or larger if you wish. Roll the top around a blade and then around the back of the blade to form the neck.

I then used a diamond blade on  my Dremel to cut the slot. This type of blade is safe to use and won't cut your finger.







I next drilled a hole for the arms although I think it might be best to do these next steps after the dress is complete. I will go ahead and show you how I did my first one, and suggest you do the next two steps later.

  

The drill bit is a very fine index drill that is the same size as my wire.

I colored covered white floral wire with a marking pen and formed a piece into a U shape.   

                                         

The next step was to cut some colored tissue paper although fine fabric or paper napkin can also be used. I cut a small rectangle and rolled it around the toothpick for the top of the dress.

Next I put the arms through the holes I made and here is where I ran into problems as the holes were hard to find. Much better if I had done this step later.     A drop of glue at each end of the wire helps to hold the covering in place and also can be made thicker for hands.

The sleeves were made from rectangles of tissue wrapped around a heavy T-pin. One side was folded over a bit for the top of the sleeve.   

The edges were glued and the sleeve slipped onto the arms and glued at the top. I added a tiny bit of trim from a piece of lace but I may do something else instead.

I made the bottom skirt using a rectangle from a plastic bag folded in half. I sewed a gathering stitch at the raw side and wrapped it around the doll and glued it in place.

The over skirt was another rectangle laid so it is over the dolls head on the back side. This will be folded down after the glue dries.  It is pushed up a bit as a gather and allowed to dry.                                                                                          

Once the glue dries on the back the skirt is rolled around to the front and is cut in a curve so the ends meet in the center.

This photo shows the finished doll with the front curved and hair in place.  Oooops, forgot to show a couple of steps!

 I made the hair by wrapping a tiny bit of viscose around a needle and spraying it with hair spray. When dry I slid it off and snipped tiny bits which I laid around the head. I am afraid the photo of the doll isn't the best as the left side kind of blends with the arm.

 This shows the original clothespin doll which I tried to copy and the other photo shows both dolls together.
 

The next one I try will use fabric and or lace for the clothes as the tissue didn't work as well as I thought it would. The method for both dolls was very similar and for the tiny one I would make the changes I suggested above - arms and sleeves attached after the main costume is completed and using fabric for the clothes. Another thing I want to mention is the placement of the 'legs.' On the larger doll the slit is placed facing the sides and a piece of foam slipped in to help the doll stand. The tiny doll I had the slit facing front but I think I would do it to the side as it is difficult to make the doll stand the way it is.  

All an experiment, but fun and I will definitely make more so I can refine the technique.