Hair for Cloth Dolls
Doll wigs are also made from faux fur which is designed for making stuffed animals and fur costumes. It comes in a large variety of colors, textures, and fiber lengths. The fur with longer fibers (2-3") make nice girl dolls; whereas the fur with shorter fiber hairs make little boy or male "Buzz cut" wigs.
If the pattern you are using comes with instructions for cutting a wig from faux fur, draw the pattern piece shape on the knit backing with a marker or, for darker fur, a soap sliver, a small candle, bees wax, or a white pencil. If there are no wig pattern pieces, use the top part of the head pieces to create a wig pattern. Be certain to place the pattern piece with the pile going DOWN with the fibers hanging off the edge of the backing. When cutting faux fur, use small sharp scissors and cut only the knit backing. Hair fibers will separate naturally when the backing is cut. This type of wig can be stretched slightly to insure a good fit. Pin it onto the doll's head and sew around the edge using the invisible ladder stitch. To keep the stitches from showing, use thread that is either the skin color or the hair color. The ladder stitch will cause the edge to roll under concealing the edge of the backing. If there are small gaps, go around twice starting at one temple, across the forehead and around ending up back where the stitches started.
If your doll is a bit more sophisticated than a simple play doll, you may want to choose another type of hair. Depending on the style of the doll, these are some of the materials that doll artists use on cloth dolls:
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Fake fur
Roving
Wool (from sheep, lambs, llamas,)
Fabric strips
Yarn (huge variety)
Sewing and Home Dec. trims
Beads
Ribbon
Modacrylic fibers
Mohair
Rabbit fur
feathers
silk flowers
human hair
paint
To attach the chosen fiber to the cloth doll's head several methods can be used. The easiest way is to use one of the previously mentioned glues and cover the entire surface where the hair is to be and place the strands on carefully to acquire the desired look. A needle and thread can also be used to secure the hair to the soft cloth head. (If the head is painted, this sewing method will not work.) The hair can be attached in concentric circles beginning at the center back, or from a designated
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