Cloth Dolls for Textile Artists [Hardcover]

Ray Slater (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2008

Presenting the basic principles and techniques of doll making, this book provides patterns for different shapes of dolls—from the simple stump doll to the more complicated joint doll—as well as practical instruction on needle-sculpting expressive faces using needle and thread embroidery. A wide range of textile techniques fill these pages, as step-by-step instructions take artists through methods of beading, hand and machine embroidering, stamping, dyeing, felting, and quilting. An exciting alternative, the cloth doll represents the perfect medium for textile artists to express their skill and creativity.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The author trained as a textile artist . . . and also as a costume maker for theater. . . . She brings together the creativity and techniques of the former with the fashionable flair of the latter."  —Quilting Arts magazine

"A great resource, not only for textile artists, but for doll makers, in general, or anyone wishing to know more about the techniques of fabric embellishment."  —Bangor Daily News

"Easy to make, simplistic dolls that beginners can lavishly dress and accessorize,"  —monstersandcritics.com

"Textile artists who've entertained the idea of dollmaking will be delighted with the possibilities for creating textures with scraps of fabric, yarn, ribbon and handstitching as featured in Cloth Dolls for Textile Artists."  —Detroit News

About the Author

Ray Slater curated an exhibition of cloth dolls from the United States, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom in 2003. She is now one of the leading teachers on the subject in the United Kingdom.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Interweave Press (July 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596680873
• ISBN-13: 978-1596680876
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #100,725 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not for dollmakers, September 13, 2008

By 

Wendy Bethel (Ohio) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Cloth Dolls for Textile Artists (Hardcover)

I usually purchase all books that have to do with cloth dolls just because they're a rarity, and I like to support cloth doll artists of all types. That said, this may become the first doll book that I ever return. There is a paucity of information about dollmaking in general, and so much white space on every page that it's clear that there wasn't enough material on anything to warrant a full length book. I'm not sure how this author got a book deal, unless whoever gave it to her was completely ignorant of the many amazing cloth doll artists in the world today. I am completely shocked that Interweave Press put out this book. It is so bad as to be embarrassing. The patterns are simplistic, the face painting instructions are sketchy, and most of the techniques are really about manipulating fabric, not dollmaking. And even those techniques are not fully explained, and the work pictured is messy. There are also VERY few dolls pictured in the book; and the author's handwork is not even up to the intermediate beginner standard. Prospective buyers would be much better served purchasing any of the excellent works by Patti Culea on cloth dolls, or even by visiting a site such as joggles.com or dollmakersjourney.com and purchasing 2 or 3 patterns by almost any cloth doll designer on either of those sites. A real disappointment.

37 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Disgusted, or just very dissapointed...not about making dolls...., September 11, 2008

By 

Lorie Schinko (Montreal) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Cloth Dolls for Textile Artists (Hardcover)

I looked forward to this book,and when I recieved it yesterday,I decided to return it.
It did not seem to be about dollmaking,but seemed more to be a "push" on trendy products to make special effects,and that is what bothered me.I looked through the book,and was immediately bored.It's not about love of dollmaking,it is about what to do with plastic fibres and alot of expensive craft/junk on the market.Some of you readers may know exactly what I mean by the term "craft/junk"
If you want a how to book on melting angelina fibres,and combining products that you can buy online,go online and buy the products,and save your money on the cost of this book.
I find it very dull,and trendy.It smacks of "sommerset",the latest trendmaker in "how to be creative"-if you have 200.00 plus to blow on rubber stamps and synthetic fibres.
I do not care for "trendy", and gimmicks,and this book has little to do with doll making,it is about selling plastic fibers to melt with your blowdryer.Go to Wallmart and buy some polyester,and grab your oldest iron and burn the daylights out of the stuff.It's way cheaper,and you will have the gratification of not liking the compressed goop without hating you paypal account for buying expensive plastic shards to mess up your iron with, let alone trying to hand stitch through the tough goop and try and make a doll with, this is just another book of gimmicks without heart of art making.
I don't recommend this book in the least.I am sending it back tomorrow morning.

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not for Advanced Cloth Doll Makers, September 3, 2008

By 

Jean Manna (Indiana) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Cloth Dolls for Textile Artists (Hardcover)

I returned this book. It was not advanced enough for me. However, I will say for a intermediate cloth doll maker, it might be good. Has a very good tutorial on face drawing and coloring. Has good descriptions of embellishing fabrics. However, for advanced doll makers, it is just a grouping of techniques we are already familiar with. It does includes flat faces and sculpted faces. It also includes patterns for dolls including a stump doll, wired armature dolls (very simple one) and a full bodied doll. I do like the fabric embellishments she did on the fabric for the doll costumes which are explained fully in the book.