Mucking up a doll, part 1

I want to make a doll to dress up. I have never made a doll before.

Cue lots of experimentation!

Does it look like I know what the heck I'm doing? I genuinely can't tell.

(Don't mind the instagrammy look, I'm just trying it out.) (And next post I am going to stop trying it out.)

Okay, anyway, so here I've started with sketches. What I want is something more shapely than your average sack-shaped rag doll, for dressing up purposes. Technically I could buy a Barbie or something, and I admit there's a special place in my heart for those Monster High toys, but I really like the idea of inventing a doll from scratch and giving it its own personality and whatnot. That, plus Monster High dolls are costly and I'm a miserly little git.

Making a doll it is, then. I couldn't find any free patterns which a) look the way I want and b) are within my ability to sew, so I decided I would mock something up myself.

And then tweak it, and then tweak it some more, and then sew in terror, braced for something to go dreadfully wrong.

Uh, here's the draft that's gotten the furthest so far.

The problems with her are kind of hurting me.

I've both overcomplicated things and made her body too boxy. I didn't plan her arms' placement very well, and so now they sit about three miles south of her shoulders. And her face is... you know what, the less said about her face the better.

Shudder.

I do like her hair, though. I styled it off a few 50s hairstyles I found on Pinterest, and it's really turned out rather nice. I made an attempt at embroidery to define the bouncy curls:

...And sewed a third piece onto the reverse side of the largest one, to thicken it up and hide the backside of the embroidery.

I've felt honour-bound to try to finish this stupid thing. But I think it's time to admit it's a lost cause and use what I've learned on a new doll. A simpler doll. One which doesn't look like a crate crossed with a Willy Wonka-brand realdoll. I would like that very much.

I tell you what, though. I'm always reluctant to test things out (cough amateur seeing patterns cough), because I'm eager to jump in feet first. But in the end I'm always glad I did the tests. It's almost like I'm getting an important life lesson from this stuff!

Anyway, I'm enjoying this doll project, so keep your eye on the blog for future attempts. The next one will definitely be simpler good lord.