Tag Archives: art doll

crafts, doll making, fabric, monster doll, sculpture

Make a cute and easy monster doll

July 29, 2025 Maria G

Make a cute monster doll using this picture tutorial. You’ll need fabric scraps, yarn or string, buttons, polyfill, and any other embellishments at your disposal.

I used some coffee-dyed muslin for the face. All the other fabrics are cotton or cotton blend.

I cut a random pattern of a head, wanting a flat head and some funky ears.

I sewed the pieces together on my sewing machine, but the doll can be sewn by hand or glued together with fabric glue.

I turned the head inside out and got “horn-like” ears on the side, which I stuffed with polyfill tightly. I made sure to stuff the head well, too, before I put detailed features on the face.

I cut out the features and used fabric glue to gently attach them to the face, staying away from the edges since it’s hard to sew through glue.

Using embroidery thread, I sewed details to the head. I also used acrylic paint to brush on partial features that I then enhanced with thread.

Monster doll face emerging

You never know how she will look until you have the features of the face down. Creepy or cute? This one is cuter than creepy.

For hair, I used hemp cord that I tied to the fabric, and then separated the twisted cord to look more like hair strands.

I used two rectangular pieces of fabric to make a “sack dress” with some trim at the bottom. I pulled a string through at the top and then pulled it closed around the doll’s neck. Easy peasy neckline!

I stuck a kebab skewer up the body and head after filling with polyfill. That helps the head from tilting back or forward.

Next came the legs. I cut out a pair from random fabric and stuffed them with polyfill. Tip: Use an old horse hair artist brush to push fill into narrow spaces. The horse hair pushes the polyfill through easily.

I did the same to the arms and attached them with buttons at the shoulders. Don’t overfill the top parts, or the arms will stick straight out.

The same goes for the legs if you want the doll to sit down. This doll can be hung on the wall. I attached a ring on the back of the head for easy attachment.

Monster fun!

Add embellishments. I sewed on some lace and buttons, but embroidery would look good as well, or attached patches of fabric. The doll could hold something, a bag, or a baby monster. The choices are endless. The black satin trim around her neck was store-bought.

The doll measures 12″ tall, and I love her cheeky expression!

I will upload her for sale in my etsy shop tomorrow. Check out my shop.

art

Fear of failure

February 28, 2023 Maria G 2 Comments

Fear of failure anyone? I have experienced a lot of resistance lately as I’ve been stretching myself to create more complicated sculptures. I have always enjoyed making them, but if I make too many of the same style, I get bored. I have been wanting to make more Santos cage dolls, and I found some interesting “stands/cages” at a thrift store. They were probably part of wall sconces in the past, but I could see their potential.

Possibly a wall sconce in its prior incarnation

I used one of them for the first cage doll. To make them look a bit less modern, I wrapped and glued all the parts with sewing pattern paper.

Anything to make the process easier (than making a cage from scratch.) If you’re handy with wood and nails, go for the traditional cage. There are videos on YouTube.

The hardest part is to visualize the doll on top of the stand. I went for a longer dress but, traditionally, the cage is the “skirt.”

I use epoxy clay (Apoxie Sculpt brand) for these sculptures because it’s very strong.

The resistance/fear shows up questioning if the sculpture will be any good. Will I come up with a design I like? What if I waste all that pricey clay and have to scrap the project?

The doubting imp is always lurking on the outskirts of my mind. I am well-versed in the Fear of Failure! 🙂 There’s always uncertainty when you start a new project, especially if you have never made it before. They say that fear is the only thing that stops us from moving down untrodden paths. BUT, they also say that if you can visualize the project, it’s already done.

The choice is: do I go into the studio and start (or continue what I started?) Or… do I clean the fridge? There are always dirty areas to clean in the home.

The fear wins out often enough, and lately, I’ve had a very clean house, haha.

But, ultimately, the sculpture won’t go away, so I surrender to the process wherever it wants to take me. More often than not, the end result is okay, and if it isn’t, the sculpture can be used in another project. (Hope springs eternal…)

I have many ugly parts that I repurposed or took apart for elements for other projects.

The silver lining is: I learned something during the process that I can apply to future projects.

The more I listen to the urge to create “no matter what”, the more insights and experience I gather, and that’s priceless!

I leave the fridge cleanup for another day. That will always be there, but the exciting inspiration breeze from the muse fades away if I don’t use it.

Fear and resistance will never go away, but we can choose not to listen to them!

I’m okay with this sculpture, but I need to work on fixing the hands and the hearts. One thing about Apoxie Sculpt, it is super soft when you mix the two parts together. I let it sit for about an hour before I use it, but then you have to work quickly. The good thing is you can build on top of the clay without a problem. I also have to attach another heart, and work on the one that “collapsed.” I will add another heart on top, and no one will be the wiser. 🙂

Have a wonderful, creative week.

Lots of love,

Maria

If you want to learn how to make one of these polymer clay sculptures, visit my Whimsy Girl workshop HERE.

spirit doll, tutorial, video

Spirit doll tutorial video

May 29, 2021 Maria G

Spirit dolls seem very popular these days. This month I sold out all of my painted clay faces in my Etsy shop Earth and Faery. I had to get busy making more. I had this great idea to make a Green Woman version of the Green Man. It has been a great success, so far.

Then I got the idea of making a video tutorial on how to make a Spirit Doll using fabric scraps and one of my faces. I will explain more, and the link will be below.

https://www.etsy.com/your/shops/EarthandFaery/tools/listings/1012602710

I ended up making a series of Green Women until I ran out of green clay… That type is not the only one I sold. I make my usual faces too, and they are generally well-liked.

I also made some unusual ones. My creative muse has been working in overdrive all month.

I’m getting better at sculpting my own faces, but it has been a learning curve for sure, and it ain’t over!

I also got some funky sculptures done from styrofoam eggs and Apoxie Sculpt.

I had a lot of fun making the boots for the light blue chicken! To make the sculpture stand on its own, I had to make heavy shoes / boots. Each time I get a bit more creative, haha.

I also got a couple of paintings done.