Paperdolls - A timeless craft
Making paperdolls is not only fun but it’s an excellent and inexpensive way to keep kids occupied. Visit this site to read and find further for some free ideas on how to make paperdolls.
If you want to make paperdolls that are on a chain, follow these steps:
Choose either plain or colored paper for your paperdolls. An important thing to remember when making your chain is that to have them connected, you need to always fold in the same direction and leave part of the main fold without any cuts. Begin by folding the paper in half. Then fold in half again while making sure that you make the fold on the same side as you did the first fold. Continue folding in this way until the paper is the size of the paperdolls that you want, usually at least four inches wide. Draw the shape of your doll on the paper. Be certain that parts of the doll will be right against the fold. First, cut the outside of the doll. Next, cut parts of the doll out on the folded side. Do not cut all parts of the doll out on the folded side though! Try leaving the hands and feet against the fold. Open the paper up to see the string of dolls that you’ve created!
Note, that when you’re making your paperdolls, never fold the paper in the different direction or the dolls are sure to not turn out properly.
If you want to make paperdolls that are not connected, follow these steps:
Draw your design on a heavy piece of paper, either plain or colored. Carefully cut out the doll. Decorate the doll with markers, crayons or even paints to create a face, clothes, hair and accessories. Use the doll as your template to cut out clothes for her from other paper, wallpaper scraps or even materials. Leave tabs on the paper on the shoulders and sides to attach the clothes to the end of the doll. You can even glue on pieces of yarn for the doll’s hair!
If you’d rather use your computer to create paperdolls, follow these steps:
Open up a painting program on your computer. Draw your doll and after you’re finished, use the select button on the tool bar. Then, right click the highlighted segment and copy it. Do the same thing again but this time select the paste option. Edit the part of the doll into the clothes you want to create for it. You can do this over and over again and it brings hours of fun. Enjoy making your paperdolls!