[luv-my-boys]

I finished my first waldorf doll from a kit this past weekend, a Easter gift for my little boy. He LOVES it and now wants *friends* for his baby, how can I say no...right? I saw that magic cabin offers a ethnic doll kit that has supplies for 6 dolls...this would be perfect since I wanted to make an assort of dolls. We are blessed to have a very diverse and international family and I want to be reflected in DS' dolls. Anyway, since I did not order from them before I was wondering abou the quality of the materials i.e the fabric/wool and such. I had used Joys waldorf before but saw this kit. Is there anyone that has experience working with magic cabin materials and joys? Are they comparable? TIA

 

[E.V. Lowi]

Yes they are comparable, but the quality can vary at both businesses. If you use the Magic Cabin materials, then I would recommend you use the patterns from them, as well. Most companies size their patterns for the specific fabric that they sell and have been adjusted for stretch.

I think it's wonderful that you are including some ethnic dolls in your child's play! Bravo!

 

[KJoslyn78]

my local actually got that kit and sold single doll kits and hosted a doll marking party (which i thought was a awesome fundraiser!)

Anyways - so i did one o those dolls, and for me i thought that the fabric was a lot thinner/inferior to the fabric i was use to from Dancing Rain Dolls, not terrible, but the DRD fabric seems pretty "thick" to me, which i find as a benefit (helps "hide" any major bumps in the batting, thick might last longer through lots of love form a child, etc). The rest of the materials were fine (the wool batting to fill, mohair for hair) and i actually like the pattern better then the DRD one, so i plan on using that pattern and buying fabric from DRD in the future.

 

[E.V. Lowi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KJoslyn78 my local actually got that kit and sold single doll kits and hosted a doll marking party (which i thought was a awesome fundraiser!) Anyways - so i did one o those dolls, and for me i thought that the fabric was a lot thinner/inferior to the fabric i was use to from Dancing Rain Dolls, not terrible, but the DRD fabric seems pretty "thick" to me, which i find as a benefit (helps "hide" any major bumps in the batting, thick might last longer through lots of love form a child, etc). The rest of the materials were fine (the wool batting to fill, mohair for hair) and i actually like the pattern better then the DRD one, so i plan on using that pattern and buying fabric from DRD in the future.

The DRD fabric is from the Netherlands and can be purchased directly from the company called De Witte Engel. It is a very heavyweight long staple cotton. It is narrow in width, (32") compared to the interlock from Joy's or Magic Cabin which is 62" on average so it only yields 1/2 as many dolls.

The organic fabric that Joy's was selling is a short staple cotton which pills gets holes and runs more that the De Witte fabric, but it is very soft.

The Magic Cabin patterns make a very skinny doll when the heavier De Witte fabric is used in place of the M.C. fabric because of the stretch. Some doll makers use the thinner fabrics doubled (2 layers) so that the seam allowances do not show through and to minimize the lumpy appearance of the wool stuffing.

Weir Dolls fabric was a very high quality and came on a wide bolt. It's a good value and a very nice fabric for doll making, too. It looks as if they are now carrying an organic knit which I have not used, but I loved the original one. The colors were very pleasant and natural looking.

Unless I am using the De Witt or the original, non-organic Weir fabric for my doll making, I do not make a raised nose as this will wear through the other thinner fabrics very quickly and is impossible to repair without re-skinning the whole head.

http://www.dewitteengel.nl/stoffen/en_tricot.asp

http://www.weirdollsandcrafts.com/do...in-fabric.html

 

[Samhain Hunter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by E.V. Lowi Weir Dolls fabric was a very high quality and came on a wide bolt. It's a good value and a very nice fabric for doll making, too. It looks as if they are now carrying an organic knit which I have not used, but I loved the original one. The colors were very pleasant and natural looking.

I just purchased from Weir Dolls, and am very pleased with the fabric.

 

[luv-my-boys]

Quote:

Originally Posted by E.V. Lowi The DRD fabric is from the Netherlands and can be purchased directly from the company called De Witte Engel. It is a very heavyweight long staple cotton. It is narrow in width, (32") compared to the interlock from Joy's or Magic Cabin which is 62" on average so it only yields 1/2 as many dolls. The organic fabric that Joy's was selling is a short staple cotton which pills gets holes and runs more that the De Witte fabric, but it is very soft. The Magic Cabin patterns make a very skinny doll when the heavier De Witte fabric is used in place of the M.C. fabric because of the stretch. Some doll makers use the thinner fabrics doubled (2 layers) so that the seam allowances do not show through and to minimize the lumpy appearance of the wool stuffing. Weir Dolls fabric was a very high quality and came on a wide bolt. It's a good value and a very nice fabric for doll making, too. It looks as if they are now carrying an organic knit which I have not used, but I loved the original one. The colors were very pleasant and natural looking. Unless I am using the De Witt or the original, non-organic Weir fabric for my doll making, I do not make a raised nose as this will wear through the other thinner fabrics very quickly and is impossible to repair without re-skinning the whole head. http://www.dewitteengel.nl/stoffen/en_tricot.asp http://www.weirdollsandcrafts.com/do...in-fabric.html

Thanks for all the info!! Im definately looking for a thicker fabric, I like the softness of the Joy's fabric but it did seem a little *thin* considering all the loving these dolls will get

 

[kittywitty]

I love Weir's. They are much better quality than Joy's, IMO and better business practices, too.

 

[RollerCoasterMama]

I used the thicker fabric from DRD after making several dolls from the fabric at Weir Dolls....he was so skinny his pants kept falling off - I'd made the pants pattern to fit the previous dolls! The DRD fabric is nice, but I really like the Weir Dolls stuff better...stretches just enough to get a nice plump doll, I haven't noticed any wear or pilling, and the cut is much wider than DRD plus it's less expensive! Wins all the way around!

I haven't purchased any fabric from Joys, just a bit of yarn when I was originally shopping around. Now I tend to just stick with Weir Dolls for everything.