Making a Father Christmas Doll - Part 7

Arm assembly

I am racing against the clock to get a quick Father Christmas doll ready by the time the Christmas
decorations start going up.  Quick is a relative term when making a doll, but as I blogged in the earlier posts, I am using a very simple doll form to help move things along.  Last blog post I had shown how the arms and sleeve were made.  Now I am on to the next process. 

Face mask sewn onto the body.

Before attaching the arms, the face needs to be attached.  The face is a mask type face.  Earlier blog posts show how the face was created.  The face has four holes in it so that it can be sewn onto the doll body.  This is the area where specialized doll needles are helpful.  I have doll needles in two
sizes.  Some (sorry for the skip the photos won't cooperate.  Please continue reading below the photo.)

Back of the head.

needles are three inches long.  My other doll needles are seven inches long.  The short needles are very
rigid.  The long needles are flexible, which is helpful in that the longer needles flex and make it easier to hit an
exact spot through the body of the doll.  Be forewarned, always work with the large needles facing away from you.  You can get a nasty jab from one of these large needles if you are pulling hard and the needle finally pulls through all the doll's layers. 

Flannel and stuffing round out the back of the head.

The face mask is sewn onto the body by sewing diagonally between the holes.  I used a heavy button thread for this part of the project.  Start at the back of the head. go through a hole, return to the back

Sewing on the arms.

of the head and make a locking stitch.  Then go through the hole again and then diagonally across to a hole, come up through the hole and to the back of the head again.  Next do the other diagonal in the same way.  I did multiple threads with this to make sure that the head would be secure.  Technically, this is a look at it doll, not a play with it doll.  However, I try to make sure that everything is attached securely enough that I don't have to worry about it if a small child gets hold of it by accident.  You won't see the holes where the face is attached once they are covered by the hair and beard.

 This is where I start to part ways with the instructions of the doll pattern.  I just needed the basic shape of

Arms and sleeves are attached to the body.

the doll body to get started.  The instructions that I have been following is for a much more primitive doll than the the one I plan on making.  The doll will slowly change from here on out to something of my own creation. I guess I have actually already started to make changes because the doll instructions I have  been following were using a cast Santa face that included the purchased beard being cast in chalkware.  I crafted my own face out of bake in the oven clay.  At the moment, it has no beard
because I plan to glue wool roving to the face and head to create the beard and hair.

The process of sewing on the doll head tends to flatten out the back of the doll head.  I digressed from the pattern in this case by making creating the back of the head by using a circle of white flannel (and some scraps) and stuffing it with polyester fiberfill and sewing it onto the back of the head. This fills out the back of the head to make it look more normal.   When I attach the hair, the scalp will be white instead of showing through as the red of the doll body.  

 Once the face is attached, it is time to sew on the arms and sleeve assembly.  The arms are attached to the body on the back just slightly below where the face ends on the front.  Leave a small area that serves as the neck.  Sew through the sleeve and the material covering the wire armature of the arms.  It will not look pretty, but do the best you can.  This area will be covered by the robe when the figure is complete.  You won't see the stitches.   When you first start sewing, the arms will cant to one side.  Make sure that you straighten the arms as they are sewn to the body.

At this point the hands look oversized.  There will be about an inch of trim attached to the sleeves.  This will cover up a considerable amount of the hand.  If they still look too large, I will open the mittens and remove some of the stuffing.  Sometimes making a doll is continuing a matter of continuing to work at it until it looks right.

Once the arms have been sewn on, bend the arm armature forward to create the shoulders and arms.  This is when things start to take shape.  If you have never seen one of these dolls take shape you will wonder how in the world it is ever going to work out.  At this point the doll seems to have a hunch back.  Doll making is a lot like painting in that the doll is built up in layers just like painting a picture is built up in layers of paint.  Many new doll makers give up at this point because they cannot see how things will work out.  It will work out, it just takes time. 

Next blog post the doll really begins to take shape.  It will be self-standing.  Check back on Thursday for that post.