Make a BJD (Ball Jointed Doll)

[geekycraftgrl]

this is a great idea. i would love to make my own bjd.
could i do it? it does look difficult and alot of work.

what type of clay would i need? does it have to be air drying. how would you use the oven bake clay if the inside is filled with styrofoam/polysteren, would it melt?

great info you found.
cant wait to see what you all do

[nataluna]

why not use crumpled aluminum foil for the inner part that gets taken out later?  it would be ok in the oven and then if you still leave a hole to pull it out by, it could be easier to remove than the foam.

or if that would be too lumpy, maybe cover it with... now here is where i get confused.  paper? papier maché -- can that go in the oven after it is totally dry?  or air-dry clay in a thin layer, and then polymer clay over that?  just ideas, more knowledgeable ones will have a better input, i'm sure.

[geekycraftgrl]

hey littler4bbit
have you started your doll yet?

[Tsukiyono]

I didn't see this thread until just now.....Anyway I am currently in the middle of making my own bjd, and it sure is fun to create with other people!  I hope if anyone else is making a doll they will come forward and share!

[thingwraith]

Wow!  I have been drooling over the BJDs ever since I saw my friend's collection, but it never occurred to me to try to make one!  I'm totally stoked after reading this and another, older post on the topic!  Thanks for the great links and inspiration!  If I remember to by the time I have started a doll (not sure when I will have time to get down to business with this), I will be sure to post pics.

[love2teach]

I'm not sure if this would be interesting to anyone, but the other night I was searching for doll patterns and I found this site with a fabric ball jointed doll.  It is an online class and a little on the expensive side, but the pictures on the site are pretty detailed you might be able to get some ideas from it. 

http://dollnetmarket.com/shop/product.php?productid=175&cat=9&page=1

love2teach

ETA:  I can't spell

[littler4bbit]

hey guys! wow - did my life explode. but i'm back now and i've got my sleeves rolled up and i'm ready to make this happen. i see there are a few other people who have started bjds and such on crafster and i have got to say. WAY TO GO, guys! seriously! i'm impressed with every picture i've seen so far.

geeky - i have started my doll, but foolishly i started with the head. i have yet to cook it and i know it's going to need a lot of work because i'm not entirely satisfied with his/her (it's really androgynous at this point) features so i'm putting the head aside and i'm gonna start on the body tomorrow. be prepared for some massive picture updates. (i only promise so that later i'll have to deliver.)

i've finally settled on a body shape that i can live with and i've got my workspace prepped. The body is a girl - maybe since i settled on a gender i can fix the head! tomorrow has been cleared as a bjd work day. i'm glad so many people are as interested as i am.

[littler4bbit]

ok - disaster time! i had a nice torso going, but i baked it poorly or something and it turned into this:


i think i may change over to regular ol' clay because it's a material that i'm actually used to using. Then again sculpey can be baked and added to and re-baked so it may yet be salvageable. blah. i am not happy. ><

ps - you can make out the adorable bellybutton on the large-ish chunk in the middle upper left of the picture. :,(

*****EDIT******
i attempted to piece it together and it cooked in such a way where the edges warped. so it's a loss. here's a better failure picture. 

[geekycraftgrl]

oh no
Dont worry. just keep on trying you will get it right.
I will keep my fingers crossed for your next try.

[ghilie]

How awful! 

I am going to try to make a head out of air dry clay.  Here's the start: