17-inch Doll by Nathaniel

Formerly unnamed 17-inch all-vinyl doll by Nathaniel Dolls

This happy little girl arrived on Good Friday wearing a floral-print A-line dress and white undies.  She had no shoes.  A small baby bottle was her only accessory.  The remaining money on a money card that I had received at Christmastime was the reason for this purchase.  At that time, she was priced $19.99, just enough for me to exhaust the card funds.  Ordered from Aliexpress, it took her a month to arrive in her small packet.  She was wrapped in air-filled thick plastic, which was shipped in a thin plastic envelope.  I am surprised she made it unscathed.  She does have a shiny circular quarter-size blemish below her right ear, but I believe she already had this before her departure from China.

This close-up of her too-cute face reveals her upper and lower teeth.

She has black curly hair that was styled in a single ponytail Afro puff upon arrival.  Her brown eyes are stationary with upper eyelashes.  Her smiling mouth exposes four upper teeth, two lower teeth, and her molded tongue.

 Her teeth are better visible in this close-up that was taken while she laid supine.

Finding Shoes and Making Socks

Two years ago, Betty A. sent this pair of white shoes along with the faceless cloth doll (Patty-Jo) that she made for me. The shoes fit this doll perfectly, but she needed socks.

One of my doll pet peeves is dress shoes worn without socks or tights.  I used a white headband to make this little girl a pair of socks.

The headband was cut along the original seam.

The necessary length for the foot and ankle area of the socks was measured by placing the cut headband against her foot and extending it above the ankle area.

After the approximate length for one sock was measured and cut, the cut piece was placed on top of the remaining headband and an equal length was cut for the second sock.  The open end of the second cut portion of the headband was stitched with white thread to form the toe of the sock.  The original seam of the first cut portion remained intact and serves as the toe of that sock.

With the socks flipped outside in so that the seams would be on the inside, she tried them on for size.  The fit is perfect.  To prevent fraying, the tops were rolled over twice.

The double rolling of the top of the socks was undone to create knee-high socks.  The top edges were rolled under to prevent fraying.

Here is a close-up of the socks and shoes.

Ear Piercing

A pushpin was used to pierce her ears.  She smiled the entire time.

Due to her firm, artist-type vinyl, I had to apply pressure with the pushpin to pierce the earlobe.  (The tip of the piercing tool can be heated for easier puncturing, but I rarely use heat for piercing.)

After both ears were pierced, faux diamond studs were placed in each earlobe.

Undoing the Afro Puff and Redressing

The rubber bands that held her Afro puff ponytail in place were removed and her hair fluffed out with my fingers.  A comb or brush should never be used on hair that is this curly because the curls will become frizzy.

Her mound of thick, curly hair is rooted close enough to be worn loose without scalp exposure.

Now she wears a yellow seersucker dress that Betty A. made for Patty-Jo.

In addition to being able to wear Patty-Jo's extra white shoes, this cutie can also wear one of the dresses Betty A. made for Patty-Jo.

To keep her hair away from her face, I created a headband bow using white lace.

Mani- and Pedicure

I painted her fingernails and toenails using off-white acrylic paint.  Initially, I was going to use fingernail polish but decided to use paint and a thin paintbrush instead.

For a more casual look, she opted to wear a pair of white sandals that I had on hand.  The sandals were purchased from Aliexpress along with a brown and orange pair shortly after Reema Afia by Makedaa Dolls arrived.  They fit this doll perfectly.

Ready for Spring

Her smile reminds me of a toddler whose photos and images I have seen online.

Named for an adorable toddler who has her own YouTube channel and Facebook and Instagram accounts, Milan Marie, the doll, is ready for spring and summer weather.  She can change her more casual look to dressy by simply replacing her white sandals with her white socks and shoes.

Related Links
Betty Ativie's Patty-Jo
Reema Afia's Sandals...
The real Milan Marie in one of her viral videos

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