I had a brunette baby that was destined to wear a hat for the rest of her life, as she was related to Curly Duke.
However after seeing Dawn Laws tutorial on curling the babies hair , I decided to give it a go, adding my own twist to the process.
Now first I removed the baby’s head, this was done by unhooking each leg stringing, which then allowed the head to be removed. I then removed the metal hook from inside the babies head, leaving the plastic neck ring intact.
I also took the opportunity whilst the baby was apart to give her a thorough clean.
To Start you will need some pipe cleaners. I purchased mine from Hobby craft 100 for £3 and they are quite long so you can get 4 curlers out of 1 pipe cleaner. You will need approximately 60 curlers.
You will also need a container with water in it, a comb, and scissors to cut the pipe cleaners with.
I found it easier to curl the hair by damping the comb in the water and then running it through the hair, if the hair dries out before you finish curling it then just damp it again.
I started at the back of the head, section in the hair and following the hair line as best I could.
When you have sectioned off the hair you are going to curl, pick up you curler and bend it in half so that it is going to surround the hair. Squeeze the curler together so that the hair is trapped inside and pull towards you until you can just see the hair in the curler and then, use your fingers to curl the curler under until it is tight to the head.
Once the curler is tight to the head, at the open end of the curler, bend the curler ends, one up and back and one under and back on itself so it traps the curler, keeping it in place. repeat this process until all the hair is curled. Always curl the hair under.
When you have covered the head in curlers., you will need 3 freezer bags.
Open the first freezer bag and place the head into it, take out as much air as you can and tie the bag in a knot.
Do the same with the 2nd bag
And again with the 3rd bag
This is where my way is different too Dawns.
You will need a large saucepan with a lid. Place the saucepan filled with water on the hob until it boils and then turn it down to simmer.
make sure you have a pair of tongs and a ceramic bowl ready.
Place the head into the simmering water using the tongs, so you do not burn yourself. Once the head is in the saucepan, place the lid on and begin to time it. depending on how tight you would like you curls.
The baby head on the right was simmered for five minutes.
The babies head on the left is the one we are working on now and I have decided to simmer her head for 10 minutes. Once the time is up, remove the babies head from the saucepan using the tongs and place it in the freezer bags into a ceramic bowl.
The freezer bags will cool vey quickly, unwrap each bag separately, you can pull it apart, rather than undo the knot. The reason I use 3 bags is to protect the head and to allow if 1 bag should split. Using this method the babies head does not get wet, just slightly damp from the steam, which is what curls it. Once you have the head released, you can leave it for about 20mins until it is dry and then take the curlers out or you can speed up the process to five minutes by using a hairdryer over the head with the curlers in for a couple of minutes and then take the curlers out, Hey presto 1 curled baby head.
Please be aware that I do not take responsibility for your dolls. I am not an expert and if you try this it is at your own risk. I don’t know how long the curls will last and if they will loosen over time , but if they do , you have the option of re-doing them.
The one on the right was simmered for 5 minutes and the one on the left for 10 minutes.
I think they look very happy, what do you think?
Thanks for looking….
The Sasha Emporium 