Make your Own Vintage Dolls

I am so excited to share today’s project with you, friends! It is one that my friend Julie and I did together one night. With some trial and error, a lot of laughter, and a bit of wine…we figured out how to make our own vintage dolls. And I can’t wait to show you how we did it!

There isn’t much that I love more than crafting with friends. That’s what I love so much about what I do. I get to make things that I love while hanging out with all of you. Chatting with you girls and crafting is so much fun and I always look forward to it.

I also love crafting together in person. When Julie and I get together, we get to bounce ideas off of each other and enjoy the company. And our projects always end up that much better for it. Since this project happened while we were just hanging out, I don’t have a video for you.

But I did take lots of pictures and I will explain what we did for each step. It was all pretty simple, so no worries. I hope you love making your own vintage doll as much as we did!

Make your Own Vintage Dolls

As with most projects that I share with you, your vintage dolls will turn out much differently than ours. The uniqueness that comes from crafting with vintage items is one of the things that I love most about it. In the instructions below, I tell you what Julie and I used to dress our dolls.

Then you will be able to adapt yours based on what fabrics and vintage items that you have on hand. There is no right or wrong way to make these dolls. So just go with your gut and what you love!

Where to Find Vintage Doll Heads for this Project

As I am writing this it is spring in Ohio. Which means the outdoor vintage markets and garage sales will be starting up soon. I can’t wait to get back to searching for vintage treasures in the warm sun! The markets and antique shops are where I have the best luck finding vintage noggins like these.

But you can also get lucky on Etsy sometimes. Just keep your eyes peeled while you are antiquing and you’ll be sure to find some!

Make your Own Vintage Dolls Supply List

• Vintage doll head/shoulders
• Glass bottle
• Dowel
• Spray adhesive
• Glue gun
• Vintage fabrics
• Tulle to match your fabric
• Needle and thread
• Vintage bling
• Vintage laces

Make your Own Vintage Dolls Instructions

The first thing we did was glue the doll heads into the bottles. We used dowel rods that I had laying around. But you can snag some at the craft or hardware stores if you don’t have any.

Julie found some vintage dress sleeves that had beadwork around the wrists. We cut them up and used spray adhesive to attach some fabric to the bottles.

We added some black tulle for it’s texture. We gathered it together and sewed the top to make it into a skirt.

Next we sewed a bustle for the back. More sewing for the bodice, then tightened it up with even more sewing. You all should know that I absolutely hate sewing, but there was no way around it, Lol. I toughed it out and I am so happy that I did!

I had found some old doll clothes and I pulled out this piece. I am not sure if it was a skirt or a slip but it is pretty and it worked! I put it underneath the tulle because I also found the perfect compliment to it. The beautiful piece of gathered lace kind of has a jumbo look to it. I thought it was the perfect bustle to add to the train of the black sleeve, turned skirt.

We then bejeweled them like crazy. I just kept adding more and more and so did Julie. When we were finished, Julie said they need something for their hair. So she used felt, old lace, and another piece of bling to make a hat. I just gathered some tulle and used a small rhinestone for mine. We love how they turned out and just had to share them with you.

The Wrap Up

And that’s how to make your own vintage dolls! We had so much fun making these, even with all the sewing! It was all the joy of playing dolls as girls. Plus the creativity that we love about crafting. Add in those beautiful vintage bits, and we were in Heaven!

I would love to see how your DIY vintage dolls turn out. So if you post any pictures of them on social media, tag me so I can check them out! As always, I hope you love this project as much as I do. Happy crafting, friends!

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Tami’s cell phone number: 740-273-6693

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