My bendy doll is dressed like Dr. Evil!

[Savoir Faire]

...or so my husband says. (Well, it doesn't help that I haven't bought the hair yet so she is also bald.)

I can't, for the life of me, figure out HOW to make the clothes on my cute little bendy dolls without them looking either ragged, like Dr. Evil or something a 2-year-old created.

Do you use felt? Cloth? Magic?

Please please please inform me...and also? How do you keep the little fabrics from the bendy stick (can't remember word!) from poking out under the embroidery floss?

Mucho thanks!

[serenetabbie]

I solved the issue with the pipe cleaner tufts sticking out by using floral wire instead. As for the clothes... I am afraid someone else will have to help you with that! I am terrible at making little tiny clothes. I just wrap colored floss around for the "shirt" or "pants". Hopefully someone else will reply with a template or suggestion for the both of us

[RollerCoasterMama]

Tiny clothes are tough! I didn't like anything I tried until I basically made regular clothes on a smaller scale. Hems and all.

Here's the one guy that's done: http://www.flickr.com/photos/30975615@N08/3489728004/ (Sorry the photo is a bit fuzzy, but you get the idea.)

It felt totally wierd making hems and neck-ribbing for a teeny little shirt, but I was way happier with the end result. I left the waist of the pants unfinished and just stitched it to the body, then stitched the shirt together up the back. And I stitched the hem of the shirt to the pants so that no raw edges (or string skeleton) showed. Can't change his clothes or anything, but he'll do the trick.

Next up, a mama. And she'll have to wear a skirt because I forgot and already glued the feet on!!! *sigh*

[Angierae]

I used wool felt, and blanket stiched the edges and they looked good. I used the patterns from the wee felt folk book http://www.weefolkstudio.com/Books.htm
but they were very simple. Rectangles with hole in the middle for dresses, tunics, etc.

Here are some pics of my oldest batch (very 1st try!), made 5 years ago, and played with constantly. They are on their 3rd toddler hood. Funny, the clothes have held up a lot better than the other parts. I was thinking of recycling the clothes onto new bodies. It takes a lot of embroidery floss to cover the pipe cleaners. Especially on the arms, which get moved a lot, I think I would use 3 or 4 times as much thread as I did originally. And the wool felt is worth the $. It looks so beautiful before you even touch it, and really holds up! Those first clothes were made with someones scrap felt. Good luck!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/2428593...n/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/2428593...n/photostream/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/2428593...n/photostream/