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New 12 inch Cloth Dolls

24 March, 2011 - 00:23

Four of my new 12" dolls

Here is my new collection of 12 inch dolls dressed all in felt they are an all cloth doll with needle sculpted faces. Their limbs are securely sewn on to the body and sewn at the knees so they bend. You can see them here.

Announcing My Handmade Rag Dolls

11 March, 2011 - 18:41

Roll up. roll up, handmade rag dolls for sale! You won't find superior craftmanship this side of the river, Ladies and Gentlemen. Just like me mother used to make. Get your handmade rag dolls here!

Kensington Doll House Festival

5 December, 2010 - 21:05

On saturday I gave myself a busmans day off and went to the Dolls House Festival at Kensington Town Hall, London.
Around 175 craftsmen were exhibiting their dolls houses and miniatures and 95% of these crafts are handmade by the people who sell them.
I went on the search for miniature props for my dolls, backdrops for photos, and items to dress my stall in Covent Garden.

New Website

29 November, 2010 - 13:44

My new designed website (www.diamondhilldolls.com) is now here with a few more collectable dolls for sale, and my Dear Santa letters are now coming so cute) from a 59 year old!
I made an Elfin to help me, and designed a great pair of ears that flip back under the hair so only becomes an elf when you want it to, I'd better flip his ears back and get it to do some work before its sold, my christmas ballerina sold in a record half an hour.

Covent Garden Market, London

21 October, 2010 - 16:33

This week I opened my market stall in Covent Garden Arts and Craft market selling my dolls. Contact me to see when I am there.

The street entertainers keep the kids happy all day long while the parents can shop.

I'm glad to say I sold some dolls who will now be living in Alabama USA, Switzerland and Yorkshire.

Me and my dolls at Covent Garden Market My lovely chihuahua Lola kindly bought me my lunch.

Holiday in Dorset

8 October, 2010 - 15:06

A few days camping on Eype Beach just before the summer ended, its a lovely place near Bridport. Whenever I go to a new town I always check to see if there is any doll museums/ collections. I was pleased to hear on the museums website that Bridport museum had a collection on display the majority given to the museum by one collector a Rev Dr Donald Omand. This is a collection of 19th and 20th century dolls of all types.

My Clay-Over-Cloth Dolls

17 August, 2010 - 23:06

My clay faced dolls are made using a clay-over-cloth technique. I never use a mold, all my dolls are one-off works, hand sculpted and hand painted by myself.

Technically these are an all cloth doll which I then hand sculpt an air drying clay over the front of the head. This is then hand painted and varnished. The hands are sculpted with this clay and painted also.

Isle of Wight Garlic festival

16 August, 2010 - 16:08

Hello to all the people I met at the IOW Garlic Festival.

I showcased my new collection of cloth and clay dolls there at the weekend. It was a lovely weekend, I was received with warmth and enthusiasm and lots of positive comments.

To everyone who asked - all my new dolls will be going up on the website to buy over the next few days, so please look back. Don't forget I only make one offs so when they are gone they are gone.

Here's me pretending to be a doll at the festival.

1920s Boudoir Dolls

14 March, 2010 - 14:55

In the 1920's dolls were all the rage with adults. They called these Boudoir dolls as they would grace a womans bedroom dressed in all their finery. Many women of the time made it fashionable to carry a doll with them while out socialising jokingly calling them their "chaperone".They would personalize these dolls to look like themselves with matching outfits and hairstyles, glue on false eyelashes and make them more risque by applying makeup to them, having them smoking and dressed in lingerie. There were also "la garconne" dolls which were dressed in mens clothes.

Faceless dolls

14 March, 2010 - 13:16

Happy Mothers Day,

I hope all mothers are having a lazy day today. Thinking of my mum today, I remembered when she helped me with a project at school, it was a two dimentional doll and you had to sew around the pattern, well I lost the pattern but she found another for me which was a really lovely hobby horse doll pattern, circa 1973 . Of course I had no idea how to make this, so my mum stayed up all night sewing it.