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monkiibutt82 · Member

How do I add weight?

honeyloves · Guru

To add weight to your baby you can get polly pellets ! Or glass beads ?

monkiibutt82 · Member

Do I put the bead in first and then add the stuffing? Also do I add the beads just to the torso or the limbs as well? Im very new at this! lol I have only completed one 6" doll! smile

honeyloves · Guru

I have only done two dolls and one was a 6incher ! Yes you can weight the limbs also !

monkiibutt82 · Member

Awesome, thank you!

sarahelizabethii · Veteran Member

If you're using glass beads in the limbs, I'd recommend filling them to just above the elbow and knees -- then stuff them the rest of the way with polyfill. More weight than that makes the arms and legs feel disproportionately heavy.

Inside the torso you can use poly pellets, glass beads, or steel pellets for weight. First make a little nest of polyfill inside the bottom of the doll's body. Then fill a nylon stocking* with your weighting material and lower it into the middle of the polyfill. Stuff the torso so that the weighting material stays toward the center of the body, and you won't feel a heavy lump when you pick the baby up.

*If you're using very fine glass beads, you'll need something thicker than a nylon to hold them inside the doll -- otherwise they can sift through the fabric.

monkiibutt82 · Member

Wonderful! Thank you! Im using plastic because I have young children running around and felt they would be safer! lol Im so excited to get started! I truely appreciate all the help!

honeyloves · Guru

I done course 2 !!!!! I haven't weighted. Your welcome and welcome to the forum !!!

monkiibutt82 · Member

Thank you very much! I have completed course #1, I have ordered course # 2 & 3! Now I need quiet time to start! lol

honeyloves · Guru

What mini baby sculpt is that in your avatar ! Mine is peaches ! :D

monkiibutt82 · Member

My 6" is the Missy doll. Next Im trying the premie Zoe! What Doll are you trying next?

honeyloves · Guru

I have 2 kits and a de-assembled play doll in my room ! But I have little paint ! And there Is another doll I could try to do but I have to earn it

monkiibutt82 · Member

That is awesome! I make my girls earn stuff also!

honeyloves · Guru

:D !!

monkiibutt82 · Member

What program do you homeschool thru? My sister used the christian liberty program.

honeyloves · Guru

Through abeka. It is Christian also :D

monkiibutt82 · Member

That is awesome! I might look them up!

honeyloves · Guru

Do you homeschool !? :)

Buffington · Guru

One of my nephews and his brother are homeschooled. He will be 9.

monkiibutt82 · Member

My younger sister was homeschooled and I was thinking about homeschooling. My sister used the Christian Liberty program. Im not sure if Im cut out for being a teacher. lol

honeyloves · Guru

cool pat ! monkiibutt82 :Jesus will help you :) p.s. could i know your name ?

sara zata · Guru

I don't think you can use steel pellets, I know you cant use sand but the reason being is if you do find you want to sell them then they cant have these in them especially if you are sending overseas. I use fine glass sand and poly pellets, mostly use the glass in the arms and legs to above knees in the legs and just above the elbows, with the body I use a white sock as it doesn't show through the body, with half poly pellets and half glass beads, same with the head, put the weight in the back of the head, as real babies heads tend to flop backwards. One you have finished this process, then stuff with filling and seal ends. I usually use calico or felt in natural colour and then glue with fast dry gluefilll arm and leg caps and cable tye together. XXXXX June.

Buffington · Guru

Thanks for telling what you do with your babies June! You are right... no steel pellets or sand. Sand is considered a "bio-hazard by most counties and also customs. Even if it's brand new and sterilized. To them sand is sand. lol
The steel pellets or balls can rust inside the doll from even the tinyest bit of moisture or humidity. Polypellets are best IMHO, and glass beads if you wish to go that route. :D

monkiibutt82 · Member

Thank you! That will help me alot! I still havent started yet but I cant wait! smile

monkiibutt82 · Member

I have 4 lbs of pollypellets. Is the enough?

monkiibutt82 · Member

Oh and my name is Angel aww

honeyloves · Guru

Awsome ! :D

Buffington · Guru

You should have enough for a preemie.

monkiibutt82 · Member

Great! Im starting my preemie this weekend! How much should I use for a full term doll?

Buffington · Guru

I usually weigh them between 5 1/2 to 6 1/2 pounds. So counting stuffing, vinyl weight and polypellets it would come up somewhere about that. You could also try our search feature on weighting. There are lots of posts

monkiibutt82 · Member

Awesome! I will check that out! Thank you!

sara zata · Guru

In Oz, I was able to buy 50lb bag of polly pellets for $50, that was from a plastic bag manufacturer. Also with the glass beads you can get them fron a sand blaster as they use the glass beads for blasting different materials. You would have to look that up in you own countries. XXXXX JUne.

Buffington · Guru

WOW June! Super deal!

monkiibutt82 · Member

That is an awesome deal!

sara zata · Guru

I hope you can find those manufacturers over there. XXXXX June.

monkiibutt82 · Member

I hope so too!

Date: Oct 29, 2011

Now I'm confused. I understood that the steel balls were fine to use. I also understood that since the glass balls were used in sandblasting they were meant to break apart turning into glass "sand" and possibly seeping through the stockings/trouser socks and through the body seams.

Polly pellets are lighter and may cause reaction to the vinyl.

Any advice is appreciated:)

Buffington · Guru

Hello Tammy and welcome to our family forum. I hope you will register and become a part of our little family of reborners.

As far as confusion I hope to aleviate that issue for you.
Steel cannot be put in the dolls because of a chance of rusting from any little bit of moisture.
The glass balls used in glass bead blasting, are not suitable as they have some kind of powder mixed with them and can cause reactions to both the doll and people. They are used to blast rust and paints, etc from mostly metal
The beads that are usually used in the babies are different, so you really have to be careful where you get them, like from a reliable reborning source. The glass beads that are used for the babies, are round but are so tiny that they do seep through the nylon stocking so this is why we put them either in a double nylon or some people make fabric bags for them.
As far as the polypellets... those are NOT the things that cause an issue/reaction with the vinyl. The thing that you want to avoid at allllll costs is "baby fat pellets" not polypellets. The baby fat pellets cause a chemical reaction making the vinyl drippy, oozing, and then fall apart. So don't use those ok?

I have been using poly pellets for over 20 years in my babies, no issues. So don't be afraid of using them hun.
I hope this helps to unconfuse you. You can always come back and ask more, or use our search feature at the top pof the page in the red bar. :D