Angela’s Dolly Care – Hair Care Tips #1

I’ve been seeing some stuff going around on YouTube and other platforms about how to care for doll hair. Some people say brush it often, some say not at all, some say use a comb and others say only a wire brush. Fabric softener, hair conditioner, shampoo or soap? What a mess. My way is not the be all and end all of doll care, but I will share the methods I swear by.
Today’s will be about maintaining doll hair. We’ll work on repairing doll hair sometime in the next while, that’ll be a more involved tutorial after my next thrift shop rescue session.

Part One// Tools//
Your tools will vary slightly per which doll you’re working on, but for the vast majority of dolls, a wire bristle brush (American Girl, Our Generation and My Life As all make these specifically for dolls, but one made for wigs from your local beauty supplier will work as well and/or the wire brushes meant for use on pet hair.
You do not want to use said brushes on your own hair or your pets’ hair as it will transfer oils to the doll’s hair and potentially ruin certain dolls’ hair.
As a side note, doll hair comes in various fibers, some of which are more heat resistant than others. For best results, use boiling water for hair treatments that require heat such as straightening or curls – don’t risk using flat irons or curling irons on your dolls unless you can control the temperature to a very fine degree or there will be the chance you’ll melt your doll’s hair. Ditto for blow dryers, only use COOL settings.If you must use heat tools to style doll hair, make sure they have a very, very low setting and avoid straight heat on Barbies with Saran fiber hair.
*Side note number two, AVOID boiling/hot water on Mattel dolls both Barbie and Disney if they have a tendency toward the glue hair syndrome. To tell whether your doll has the glue hair syndrome before you boil, give her head a good squeeze. If she’s hard to squeeze/straight up rock hard, she has a large amount of glue in her head. Avoiding boiling water/extreme heat and avoiding excessive brushing at the scalp can and will help not to exacerbate the issue.
You’ll also want a small spray bottle. For Barbie and other rooted dolls done in Nylon, Saran or the lower grade Kanekalon Barbies tend toward using (Bratz, Moxie Girlz, Descendants and Disney Princesses etc.) You can use a mixture of one part fabric softener (unscented is best if you don’t want your doll smelling like a dryer sheet) to three parts water. For more expensive, wigged dolls, you simply want to fill your spray bottle with water.

 Your best bet is to avoid using the plastic brushes that come with Barbie and other dolls if you can help it, They’re convenient, but the bristles are sometimes molded a bit rough around the edges and can snag and rip out more hair than necessary. The bristles on your wire brush/comb will be smooth all around. Much gentler on the hair.
Not shown in the photo above, I also keep a spray bottle that is 3-1 water and cheap hair gel. This will help tame static on Barbie and other fashion dolls as well as aid in making sure the hair lays the way you want it to without making it stiff and crunchy.

Part Two// Method//
For Barbies and other such dolls: Two sprays of your fabric softener formula first, then begin to brush from the bottom ends of the hair first to most effectively detangle and smooth the hair. Use small rubberbands to secure styles such as ponytails and braids in place.
**Side note: For curly dolls, if you must brush and don’t want to fully wash/straighten, try to brush individual ringlets if they’re large enough or forego the brush and finger style it instead so you don’t wind up with a frizzy puffy mess

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For American Girl and other such dolls: Two to four sprays with straight water (avoid fabric softener “hairspray” with these guys as washing is a process) and start from the bottom ends. If brushing by the wig cap is required, work gently and in small sections, otherwise avoid brushing near the wig cap to avoid snagging the cap and ruining the wig.
**Side note: If you have to wash American Girls’ hair, try to only wash what’s below the wig cap unless you’re excessively careful – if you must wash the wig cap/scalp area, you want to cover her face with a towel, and on older dolls with neck strings, you may want to remove the head to wash the hair. If you get the torso wet, it’s a process to get it dried out without risking mold and the like (taking the stuffing all the way out etc.) and water will ruin the sleep-eyes mechanism and make them stick in one position or the other. Try to keep her face and body as dry as possible. And only use fabric softener below the wig cap when doing an actual wash on these, as it’s difficult to get the softener out of the wig cap unless you’re washing a wig that isn’t actually adhered to a doll’s head.

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Other notes: For dolls like Moxie Teenz, Liv, Creatable World and SnapStars, which have removable wigs, you will find hair care easier if you take the wig off the doll for the initial care, simply to avoid having to soak the entire doll.

-Avoid cheap shampoos, they’re made to strip the oil out of your hair and can be harsh on doll hair. Try baby shampoos or  hand soap instead. In sticky situations, one can also use Dawn dish soap on Barbie and her friends or other dolls with excessive factory product holding the hair in place.
-Pantene Moisture Renewal conditioner works like a charm on Bratz and Barbie hair in a pinch, especially those prone to static hair.
-Turpenoid Natural works wonders for getting glue out of doll hair and is less toxic than GooGone and other harsh chemicals.
-Don’t over style American Girl hair, it’ll kink and dry out, generally be weird after a while. Pick a style to stick with and/or spritz the hair with water each time you style it.
-Don’t over-boil. Let your boiling water for boil rinses/washes cool so it’s not bubbling actively before you dip any doll.

Enjoy, take care, and feel free to comment your own hair care tips for dolls!

Posted In: Angela's Dolly Care