• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Amish 365
  • About
  • Amish Recipes
  • Amish Culture
  • Amish Marketplace
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Amish Recipes
  • Amish Culture
  • About
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Amish Recipes
    • Amish Culture
    • About
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Everything Amish » Photos

    Visiting With An Amish Dollmaker

    Published: Nov 24, 2014 · Updated: Nov 24, 2014 by Kevin Williams | 5 Comments

    By Kevin Williams

    My next stop in Switzerland County, Indiana's Amish settlement was to the home of an Amish doll-maker.  The hand-made, homemade dolls are absolutely gorgeous. And I am not someone that usually plays with dolls!  The almost 80-year-old Amish woman who makes them learned the craft from her mother.  She painstakingly makes the dolls.  Each one can take a full day or more to make.  She has a pattern that she uses for the dolls and the clothing.

    Amish dollmaker

    Amish dollmaker

    Switzerlandco 006

    "The clothing is the most difficult," she says.  She did not want her name used for this article and I was super excited at first because I thought she was going to tell you how to order the dolls from her, but then she thought better of it.  She was worried that some in her community might not approve of her selling dolls over the internet.  But I am thrilled to at least be able to share these photos with you. This is some rare craftsmanship.

    The funniest thing to me is that she makes two types of dolls.  One is a cloth-type doll that is faceless and entirely hand-made.  The other type of doll has a vinyl pre-made face/head and the Amish woman makes the clothing for it.  Both dolls are charming and beautifully done but, personally, I like the faceless one best and I hope to be able to send her a check for one for Aster because her prices were so reasonable.  But, here's a surprise:

    "The doll with the face sells a lot better among the Amish," she said with a chuckle.

    I've written before on this website how the faceless dolls are more of a touristy thing than a theological reality among the Amish.  While they don't often want their faces photographed, there are no theological restrictions against showing the face of a doll.

    Personally, in this case, I liked the faceless dolls best because they are 100 percent hand-made and the attention to detail is just exquisite.

     

    « Amish in the News: Amish RENOgades, Amish Population Growing, Amish Shovel Army, More Septic Tanks
    Switzerland County, Indiana Amish Kitchen »

    About Kevin Williams

    Hi, my name is Kevin Williams and I am owner of Oasis Newsfeatures and editor of The Amish Cook newspaper column.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. farmhousebarb

      November 24, 2014 at 12:45 pm

      These are beautiful!! I have always loved dolls..my mom sewed for the Cameo doll co. which was in our small town until the late 60's. They were most famous for Kewpie dolls. I was the lucky recipient of many dolls because they always supplied her with the ones she was sewing for! I also like the faceless one best,although the other is really cute!

      Reply
    2. Missy

      November 24, 2014 at 2:40 pm

      The Amish families that I used to associate with had primarily the vinyl dolls dressed Amish, and surprisingly enough some of the little boys also played with baby dolls.

      Reply
    3. [email protected]

      November 28, 2014 at 10:17 am

      Kevin where to I go to purchase a faceless doll please.

      Reply
    4. Rosa

      March 26, 2015 at 9:23 pm

      What lovely dolls! I've been searching for dolls like these and this is exactly what I've been looking for. Is there a way I can contact this lady and order through the mail? Please let me know! Thanks so much!! 🙂

      Reply
      • Kevin

        March 26, 2015 at 9:53 pm

        Rosa, I'm sure this lady would be glad to send you a doll if you order one..I'll email you her info (she didn't want it posted online), if you haven't heard from me in the next day or so, email me at [email protected], because I may forget to get back with you! - Kevin

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Kevin Williams - The Amish Editor Amish Cook Column

    Hi There, I'm Kevin!

    Welcome to Amish365, where I share my knowledge of Amish cooking and culture! I’ve spent almost three decades exploring Amish settlements and kitchens from Maine to Montana and almost everywhere in between. I’ll occasionally throw in stories of my travels, journalism adventures (I’m a Pulitzer prize-nominated journalist), fascination with grocery stores and Kmarts, and much more!

    More about me →

    Latest Amish Recipes

    • How Do The Amish Celebrate Easter?
    • Amish Easter Brunch Casserole
      Amish Easter Brunch Farmers Casserole
    • Do the Amish Allow Photographs?
    • Amish Maple Cream Pie
    dutchcrafters

    Download The "Almost Amish" Ebook

    Footer

    Footer

    About

    • About The Amish Editor
    • Download "Almost Amish" Ebook
    • Amish Communities
    • Amish Marketplace

    Contact

    • Work With Us
    • Contact

    *As a member of various affiliate programs I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2000 - 2020 Amish 365 | Powered by Touch The Road