Have you seen the die made by Sizzix that will cut out all the cloth parts for a ragdoll in one pass?  

I’ve been wanting this die for nearly a year but the retail on it was $60 and I couldn’t justify the expense.  But Sizzix had a big sale last month and I finally got the die and started playing around with it.

Here’s my first doll made with the die…

It was super quick to cut the arms and legs.  And because the die cuts all the pieces exactly the same each time, they were easy to stitch together.  The face and body were a bit more challenging because I was adding my own embroidery design and applique hair but things worked out.

The eyeglasses are also included in the die set – aren’t they super cute?  I used some wool/rayon felt from Benzie Design for the glasses, hair and heart.  

Here left eye is wonky – I fixed the embroidery file for the right eye but forgot to copy&paste that fix to the left side.  It will look better on the next doll.  This gal was just a sample that turned out much cuter than most prototypes.  So now I have a play doll design that works and I will be making more of these.  I splurged and bought the 2nd die that cuts all the clothing pieces to fit these dolls.  The possibilities are endless.

Now that I’m winding down on the prototyping and ramping up on the production phase of holiday selling – I hope to make a video tutorial with this Sizzix doll die in the future.  I changed the instructions on the head and arms so it went together more easily for me.  I also lined the doll because I feel it provides a better finished product.  Hopefully I’ll have time to share all those tips and tricks soon.  Watch the blog or my Instagram for future video tutorials.