We love peg dolls in this household. So much that I’ve created a series of peg dolls over the last month.
I purchased a set of the Grimm’s 12 rainbow friends while he was still a baby along with the Grapat nins, mates and coins. Now that he’s 2 years old, we get a lot more use out of our toys. He’s at the age where he’s starting to have imaginative play, matching colors, stacking toys. So it’s got me thinking about creating and collecting more pegs.
To create your own peg dolls is super easy. All you need is some wooden peg dolls, a paint brush and some paint!
I originally found some peg dolls to start with at Michaels. If you don’t want to spend a lot, I think this is a good place to start. At $5-7 they have a few options that comes in a 4 pack.
Other places you can check for peg dolls: Amazon or Etsy.
While you’re at Michaels they also have many paint options to choose from. Choose a non-toxic paint. Ideally something that is made in Canada or USA.
A note about finished peg dolls. You might be tempted to paint finished peg dolls such as the Grapat 3 woods – but I recommend that you don’t. From my experience, the paint doesn’t adhere the same way it does on raw, unfinished wood. It’s better to keep them natural and pretty. I kind of wish I didn’t paint mine now.
Novice Painter:
Why is this great? You can create a variety of colors with just a few different paint bottles. Such as red, yellow and white. Just mix up some colors and you’ll get a nice series of dolls that pair well together.
Some tips around painting:
- Work in thin layers
- Allow sufficient time between coats to avoid bald spots
- When mixing colors, make sure you mix more than what you need – you never know how many coats you’ll need
- Test different brushes to see what works for you – choose one that is made for the type of paint you’re working with
If you’re an impatient painter, you can also look into non-toxic clay based paints. They tend to go on more opaque and dries down quickly.
Some of my favorite projects include painting your toys to match other wooden pieces such as coins, cups, blocks or bowls. That is a great way to enjoy painting without having to worry about your project “looking good”.
If you’re feeling more creative, you can start testing out facial expressions, hair and a variety of outfits. I’ve seen some really good recreations of disney characters or popular figures. So if your kid is obsessed over something, you can attempt to recreate it for them. Just keep in mind about copyright if you’re planning on selling them.
Intermediate Painter:
With a little more patience you can try out different outfits. After painting 60+ dolls, I think I found a style that I enjoy. We’re currently selling these dolls along with our own custom dolls on the jsrainbow website.
Why create your own peg dolls? Not only are they a classic Waldorf toy, you can also create diverse dolls by adding a splash of paint. This will help teach your children about diversity and it’s also great to create dolls that look like them!
Hope this post has inspired you to create some of your very own dolls. Please tag us at @ curiousmamas on instagram to share your creations 🙂
Enjoy!
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