Hi all! This month I'll be running a series, all about spring cleaning, which even dolls need after a long summer, fall, and winter full of fun. Today I have my first installment: Spiffing up that Vinyl!
I must confess.
My dolls were very dirty.
Incredibly dirty. Like, shockingly dirty. It looked like they were owned by very very young child. Ick
See? Look at that. I don't even know what that
is. Something grimy from my floor perhaps. (please excuse the half naked dollie :/)
But there is a solution!
This! While you could scrub away with water and a teensy bit of soap, or a baby wipe (both work) you could use a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
Now, you kind of have to scrub, and scrub like you mean it. I had my doll, Kanani in this picture, on my lap, on my bed in this picture. Don't dangle her around by her ankles... Anyway, when you scrub, you will get this fluffy white stuff on there skin. No worries, just wipe it off.
I de-clothed all of them (leaving on their underwear, of course, for their sakes) and had them set up on my bed. It shocks me how dirty the get, even on the top of their hips that are barely ever seen. Just keep scrubbing and scrubbing! If your girls have grime in between their toes, totally understandable, just get a q-tip white and wipe/scrub hard.
It'll all be worth it. But one you finish the feet and legs, you can move onto the hands and arms.
Faces:
Now, you have to be very careful. I'm not completely sure, but I think that this eraser, (if you press hard enough, and that's duper duper hard) will eraser and facial paint, which includes eyebrows, blush, freckles etc. (not completely sure about this but still) Be careful!
So, if you have them available, I suggest grabbing a baby wipe and clean that face up instead. Be careful not to get it in their eyes, for obvious reasons.
With adult supervision or permission only:
Now, only for EXTREME PURPOSES should you go about using benzoyl peroxide. Its used to 'bleach' stains such as pen, sharpie or other markers. It works wonders, but it is a very long process. I picked up this "Clear Zit" a few years back at CVS, but other brand I know of is Oxy. 10% Benzoyl Peroxide is the strongest you can get without a prescription. To explain quickly, you clothe your dollies, dab some of this white creamy stuff on their pen/sharpie marks and wrap the limb or whatever part of their
VINYL bodies have a mark of them (
i.e. do not put this stuff on their cloth bodies! No matter what!) with plastic wrap and set them in the sunshine. I've heard it works faster outside, but whether you doll is in the window soaking in the sun or outside,
you need to cover the rest of her up with a towel. You don't want the sun to fade her out, since you have to leave your doll like this for a farley long time. The newer the stain, the shorter the time it takes to get out. If its been there for a few years.... it'll take awhile.
Now, if none of that made any since, You can find a great
written-with-pictures tutorial over at the Bean Bunny, or the
classic Stephenswodadancer video here.
And that's all for now folks! Thanks for reading. :)
