When It Comes To Dollmaking...
Mother Knows Best.

When Mary Ellen Eggleston was a little girl, she would spend hours at a time making dolls and doll clothes with her mother. One day a neighbor, noticing that dollmaking had taken priority over a sink full of dirty dishes, commented, "How can you make dolls when you haven't done the dishes!" Mary Ellen's mother replied, "The dishes will be clean before they're used again. But Mary Ellen will always remember the dolls we made today."

She not only remembered, the lessons she learned that day inspired Mary Ellen to pursue a career as a miniature dollmaker. And now she shares her experience with you in Volume 6 of The Master Dollmakers Video Instructional Series, "Miniature Raggedy Twins."

In this information-packed video, containing over two hours of instruction, you'll learn how to create Nan and Sam, a pair of Raggedy Twins that will make a perfect addition to the children's room of your miniature house. And although the techniques on this video are used to create the adorable raggedy dolls, they are so universal, that you can use them to create any miniature doll.

As with all the videos in this series, instructions begin with a detailed list of tools and materials you'll need to create the Raggedy Twins. But Mary Ellen does more than simply list what you'll need. She also explains why you'll need it. For example , "When working with small dolls," she says, "it's necessary that you have good, small, sharp scissors. One for paper, and one for cloth." Otherwise it's almost impossible to cut your pattern and material accurately.

And as you may already know, accuracy is critical when you're dealing with miniatures. "In 1/2" scale," says Mary Ellen, 1/2" equals 12 inches. So be careful. If you shave even a fraction of an inch of the material it can cause major problems." Ultimately she stresses, "It's essential that you get tools and materials that you're comfortable with. So, experiment and choose what's best for you."

To help you decide what's best, Mary Ellen demonstrates a variety of fabrics, lace, threads, and ribbons from which to choose. And she'll tell you why, when making miniature dolls, you should always use natural over synthetic fibers.

Once your tools and materials are laid out, you'll learn how to cut fabric to fit the pattern that's included with this video. "It's important with small dolls that you make your pattern adjust to fit your particular doll exactly," says Mary Ellen. "Any extra bulk makes your doll look like it's poorly dressed." She also shows you how to fray check to seal the edges, and you'll discover an inexpensive way to adjust and develop your own patterns using a very common household item.

After your patterns are cut, it's time to dress Nan and Sam. You'll follow along as Mary Ellen dresses them from head to toe, beginning with Nan's panties, dress, and pinafore, and moving on to Sam's shirt, pants, collar, bow tie, and hat. And don't worry if at first you have a hard time applying these tiny articles of clothing to your dolls. "Sometimes it's almost like the dolls are children," Mary Ellen laughs. But practice, along with Mary Ellen's hints and suggestions, makes perfect.

The final step will be to wig the Raggedy Twins. But before showing you exactly how to do that, Mary Ellen shares what may very well be the most vital piece of information on this video...information that's critical to every miniaturist, regardless of your specialty or level of expertise. "Details," she says, "are what give you quality in miniatures. You cannot have a quality miniature unless the details are done very, very carefully." She then shows you how to perform a quick quality control of your dolls before adding the finishing touches.

In the final analysis, the information, techniques, and advice this video offers can be used in all your miniature projects. As with all miniature creations, the ultimate pay-off is enjoying what you're doing. Most of all, says Mary Ellen, "I hope you'll have fun dressing your Raggedy Twins!"