Cut a piece of cardboard to the height you want the doll to be. Your doll can be whatever size you want it to be, but something around 7 inches (18 cm) would be ideal. Your yarn can be whatever color you want your doll to be. Wrap the yarn tight enough so that it does not slide off, but not so tight that it stretches. A single wrap finishes and starts at the bottom edge of the cardboard.
Use the same color of yarn as you did for the rest of the doll. Tie the short yarn tightly enough so that it gathers the wrapped yarn. This will eventually make the head of your doll.
Do not cut apart the bottom edge of the wrapped yarn just yet.
How far down you make the neck depends on the height and thickness of your doll; you need to tie it far enough down to make a round head. If you are making a 7 in (18 cm) doll, tie the neck about 1 inch (2. 5 cm) from the top of the doll. Snip off the excess yarn from the neck, or tie it into a bow.
If you forgot how many times you wrapped the yarn the first time, wrap it 5 times for every 1 inch (2. 5 cm) of cardboard. Like with the body, start and finish wrapping along the bottom edge of the cardboard. Cut the yarn once you finish wrapping it. You can use the same color of yarn as you did for the body, or you can use a different color.
Use the same color of yarn as you did for the arms. Cut the ends of yarn off after you knot them, or tie them into a bow. If your doll is taller than 7 inches (18 cm), tie the yarn 2 inches (5. 1 cm) from the top instead.
For smaller hands, cut both ends of the braid down to 1⁄2 inch (1. 3 cm). If you are making a bigger doll, tie the yarn 2 inches (5. 1 cm) from the bottom.
Each end of the braid will make 1 arm. If the braid is not centered, then the arms won’t be even.
Make sure that the arms are nice and snug against the neck, otherwise they will fall out. If you are worried about the arms falling out, stitch them in place from the back of the doll with a yarn needle. [8] X Research source
If the loops are uneven after you cut them, you should trim them until they are even.
For a simpler boy doll, skip the braiding, and just tie the legs off at the bottom. After you tied the short piece of yarn, snip the excess off, or tie it into bows. If you are making a smaller doll, trim the feet down to 1⁄2 inch (1. 3 cm).
This is similar to how you made the body of the doll. Coat the back of the doll’s head with glue, then press the yarn hair against it. This will make it lay nicer.
Cut the front of the hair shorter to make bangs. Braid the hair, then tie it with a pretty bow. You could even do 2 braids. Unravel the yarn into separate strands to make curly or wavy hair.
Turn a boy doll into a girl by sewing it a fancy dress. Give a boy doll a vest or a tie. Make a simple apron for a girl doll to go over her yarn skirt. Sew a mini tutu for your doll, then add it to its waist.
Use embroidery floss to stitch on a mouth and a pair of knotted eyes. Sew on a pair of button eyes for a rag-doll look. Glue on buttons or googly eyes for a simple doll. Fabric glue or hot glue will work the best.
