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Making Wooden Ball-Jointed Mannequins Into Dolls?


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Hi everyone!

I was just wondering if anybody out there has ever tried customizing an artist's ball-jointed mannequin into a dollhouse doll?

They are pretty cheap on Amazon and come in a variety of sizes including 5.5" and 4.5". The heads are ugly, but I thought maybe they could be paper mached or sculpted over?

Thoughts?

51A%2BpNBS3BL._SX450_.jpg31cefpxDEGL.jpg

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I wondered the same thing. I thought about printing faces on water slide decal paper. If I can get the sizing right in Photoshop, it might look pretty good. I just got the water slide computer paper but I haven't picked up any mannequins yet.

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Could be fun. You won't need shoulder pads! When I look at them they look kind of robotic to me...hmmm....wonder what one would look like painted to look like metal?

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I know they are supposed to be in proportion but don't some of them look like they could scratch their knees without bending? Looking more closely I think the one with a 'child' looks OK but the ones in the fishbowl look long armed. Nothing that a pedestal under a ballgown couldn't cover. And hair would help the heads.I bet you wouldn't need much detail on the faces. Interesting.

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Painted mine silvr and made a helmet for a suit of armour. I bet you could use wood filler putty and fix the head to more human looks. Dressed they wouldn't bad. Hobby Lobby sells them for a reasonable price and with the coupons. . . .

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Could be fun. You won't need shoulder pads! When I look at them they look kind of robotic to me...hmmm....wonder what one would look like painted to look like metal?

Klaatu beratta nicto, Gort.

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Only thing I'll add to what has been said is that be careful which ones you choose because some are made with a weird little spring affair inside and they don't stay in the position you put them in no matter how hard you try. They snap back to the original pose. The true ball jointed ones will stay put but they are usually the more expensive ones. The cheapos are often very frustrating to work with. Move them around first before purchasing just to be sure which kind they are. Just saying from experience in the art studio.

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The ones I have were less expensive, and it is true they don't really stay well in poses the way the more expensive versions do. But, I use them mainly for spatial relations (hanging mirrors, cutting doorways, building furniture) and for humor.

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okay,now,Brae,that gave me the biggest laugh!how cute!i have never been fond of dolls/figures,other than animals in scenes,because they spoil the illusion for me -personal opinion of course.but,after seeing that,i want one of these guys so much!what a crack up!btw,brae,been meaning to send u a note complimenting your hummingbird tile shower stall-gorgeous!! :thumbup: Kat

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hmm,pay rent or.....These have lovely haunting faces,but i think your original idea of trying to use the art mannnequins is fun,creative and doable for most.i love the fun way Brae has used them.

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John Noble made dolls for the Stettheimer dollhouse and he used an air-drying clay to sculpt features over wooden bead heads; you could do something similar with the mannequins for more detail, if you wanted; no? although I love the effect brae achieved!

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The ones I have were less expensive, and it is true they don't really stay well in poses the way the more expensive versions do. But, I use them mainly for spatial relations (hanging mirrors, cutting doorways, building furniture) and for humor.

gallery_4679_6050_17888.jpg

Hahahahahaha.... I absolutely LOVE this picture! It looks just like the shocked skeleton in Hotel Transylvania when Dracula opened the wrong door!

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This is such a fun thread! I have often thought about converting one of these mannequins to a doll (I have one somewhere...) and it's cool to see that others have thought the same. :)

Thanks for sharing your pic, Brae! :-D

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