Body Fabric
All doll makers and artists have their own preference for doll body fabric, it is the rule and not the exception.  Our choices come from experience with the fabric, how it suits the style of doll we choose to make.  The choices are as varied as the types of dolls that are being designed today by cloth doll designers and artists throughout the community that is rapidly growing.

The choices range from cotton, muslin, velour, soft knits, full bodied knits, does suede and silks. Some use canvas and some use flannel or fleece. Most designers specify what types of doll body fabric suit their particular designs. 


I have tried cotton, silk, and ponte knit ,as well as doesuede.  My preference is doe suede fabric, with ponte knit running a close second.  These fabrics lend themselves to my designs and doll making style better than the other fabrics I have tried.

The key to deciding what type of fabric is finding what you like to work with.  Defining for yourself what fabric works best for your particular needs and styles.  Don't be afraid to experiment with all the fabrics you can get your hands on.  Keep in mind that just as I specify doe suede for the patterns I design, those that specify silk, usually design to accommodate that fabric, its stretch, its grain, and its workability.

The most adventuresome and imaginative, will not stick to convention here either.  Using a wonderful print doe suede for a doll's body opens up a whole new world of creativity.  The body itself becomes the basis for the costume and pushes my creative envelope.  I have made green bodies, purple bodies, and print bodies.  They come with names like Proud to Be Purple, Gorham the Goblin, and the Enchanteds.  I have used several different body fabric colors on one doll, making the arms white to indicate dinner gloves, the legs black to indicate black stockings, the bosom flesh toned, and the body print to mimic a body suit or an evening gown bodice.

You can see from the pictures here, that you need not be bound by the conventional body fabric colors.  To create your own fantasy, you can use just about any fabric color and let your imagination run wild, and wilder.  If the taste of the dramatic and fantastical is not your cup of tea, you can always stick to the basic flesh tones, as I have done with Marie Claire.



I Have This To Say About That
Dinah was made with striped arms and legs to get the look of tights and gloves.














Intrigue was made from all white.  I wanted the contrast against the costume.














Neon Yellow gives Sun Bird
her look and her name
















Just could not resist using the print doe suede I found in Virginia
to create the
Enchanteds.
Marie Claire's
skin tone was chosen to give her a Creole Heritage.
This page was last updated on: April 2, 2010