What are Cloth Dolls?

About the Author

Di McDonald

Di is well known in the doll world for her vibrant creations, her wonderful website and her support of other dollmakers. Check out her work click here

More about Di McDonald

This blog is the start of something new for me as I have never blogged before.
I hope you enjoy what I have to say.

Making, designing and teaching cloth dolls has given me great joy over the last several years. Its a wonderful feeling to engage your creativity and to make something amazing from a few small pieces of fabric.

Now I must explain that when I am talking about Cloth dolls I am NOT talking about those limp rag dolls or anything a child would have for cuddling or for a toy. So often people are not able to picture what I do, because they have never seen the sorts of dolls I am talking about.

Character Cloth dolls, which are hard to the touch and usually very embellished with beading, free machine embroidery, rubber stamping and other interesting textile manipulations are the sorts of dolls I make.

Because I use the doll as the actual canvas to create my art on, I have free range of all the techniques I have learnt over the years. Its great fun to revisit these techniques and to learn more on an ongoing basis. I love to add something really unexpected to the doll, something people wouldnt think would work. I suppose thats how the doll takes on the designers style and how the designer becomes known for her "look"!

I love to teach others how to make these incredible dolls. Its always wonderful to watch women finding out that they really are creative creatures, when in actual fact they have been creating constantly in the garden and in the kitchen but never realised it. Teenagers and children also love to learn to make these dolls, I think every child needs to understand about their own creativity.Boredom is a word seldom used from children who have learned to create.

Ok thats it for now. Next time we will talk about how anyone can unleash that creativity I have been talking about.