Cotton Doll Encyclopedia

What are Cotton Dolls?
Cotton dolls are actually made of polyester fiber, mimicking cotton, and are typically 5-40 cm tall human figures with heads and limbs, with 20 cm being the most common size. They are particularly notable for their detailed and rich facial embroidery, which allows for the recognition of the doll's expressions and states through different colors and shapes of eyebrows, eyes, eyelashes, noses, and mouths.
Common heights for cotton dolls include 10 cm, 15 cm, 20 cm, 25 cm, 30 cm, and 40 cm.

Classification of Cotton Dolls

1. Attributes of Cotton Dolls

Based on the design reference prototype, they can be divided into three-dimensional attributes, two-dimensional attributes, and attribute-less cotton dolls. Attribute dolls incorporate features of the prototype in their design.

Three-dimensional attribute dolls: Dolls designed with reference to celebrities or other real people.
Two-dimensional attribute dolls: Dolls designed with reference to characters from movies, TV shows, games, and animations.
Attribute-less dolls: Dolls without a prototype reference, usually made according to the preferences of doll enthusiasts.

Note: SP: special version, popular dolls may have SP versions, which are basically the same as the original dolls but with some changes in expressions and colors.

2. Hair of Cotton Dolls

Based on the hair type, divided into regular fur, curly hair, hair pieces, rabbit fur, washed rabbit fur, brushed rabbit fur, exploded fur, high-temperature silk, and spliced hair, etc.

Regular fur: A type of fabric with shorter fleece, easy to care for.
Hair pieces: Made from one or several pieces of regular fur fabric to form a longer section of hair. Hair pieces can be made as stand-alone tufts or cover the entire head, including edged hair pieces which are used for bangs and sideburns, giving them a more three-dimensional look that better replicates the character's features.
Curly hair: A fabric with longer fleece that is curly, like wool curls or teddy curls, requiring no grooming.
Rabbit fur: A type of synthetic rabbit fur fabric, also known as "small rabbit fur," includes rabbit fur, new rabbit fur, washed rabbit fur, and brushed rabbit fur. Rabbit fur is characterized by long, fluffy fleece; washed rabbit fur tends to tangle and appears oily; new rabbit fur and washed rabbit fur look very similar, but new rabbit fur is slightly fluffier and softer; brushed rabbit fur has varying lengths of fleece for a fluffier, more layered appearance.
Exploded fur: A type of fabric that is either straight exploded or curly exploded, with very long fleece that feels soft and fluffy, not suitable for high-temperature curling (as it would scorch) but can be styled with a steel comb. Since the fleece and fabric are integrated, the length of exploded fur is not too long. Curly exploded has a higher chance of showing bald spots and should not be combed often as it straightens out.
High-temperature silk: A common synthetic fiber, also a main material for wigs, resembling hair tied on a thread then sewn onto scalp fabric. High-temperature silk allows for long hair styles that can be curled and styled.
Milk silk: Similar to high-temperature silk in production but with a stronger sheen.
Spliced hair: A technique of adding different materials or wig pieces to the doll's original hair, enhancing playability and making the doll's image closer to the prototype. Common spliced hairstyles include exploded fur with high-temperature silk/milk silk, rabbit fur with high-temperature silk/milk silk, regular fur with high-temperature silk/milk silk, and regular fur with exploded fur.

3. Body Types of Cotton Dolls

Divided into normal body, chubby body, printed body, starfish body, long-legged body, Furry body, ant body, dumpling, hand puppet, beast body, sitting body, and prone body, etc.

Normal body: The default body type, compatible with 10 cm, 15 cm, 20 cm, 40 cm dolls. Clothing is chosen based on the doll's height.
Chubby body: Chubbier than the normal body dolls, may not fit the same height size clothing.
Printed body: The body part uses printing to replicate the character's clothing, commonly seen in 10 cm dolls.
Starfish body: The doll's limbs are short and resemble a starfish, commonly seen in heights of 5 cm-10 cm, can be used as bag pendants. 10 cm starfish body dolls wearing 10 cm doll clothes might be a bit large.
Long-legged body: The doll's head and body don't change much, but the legs are elongated, showing knee joints. Common heights include 23-30 cm, 25 cm, 30 cm, 30-35 cm, 35 cm, etc. Note that each doll factory may have its innovative body models, and here only the body models from one factory are listed for reference.
Furry body: Similar to the long-legged body, with the doll's head and body not changing much, but the legs are elongated, and the hands and feet are shaped like animal paws, commonly seen as cat paws, dog paws, fox paws, etc.
Sitting body: The cotton doll is in a sitting posture, with cylindrical hands and feet, and expressions are mostly with dot eyes. Common heights are 30 cm, 30-35 cm, 40 cm, etc., generally not equipped with a skeleton. 40 cm sitting cotton dolls can wear the tops of 40 cm normal body dolls, but not the bottoms; dresses can be worn universally.
Prone body: The cotton doll is in a prone position, unable to change posture, without a skeleton. Common heights include 10 cm, 20 cm, 40 cm.
Ant body: The doll's limbs are long and thin like an ant, quite flexible, not very common. Height is 10 cm-15 cm, can be used as bag pendants.
Hand puppet: Retains the cotton doll's head, with the torso and limbs made of fabric, allowing for puppetry performances by inserting hands into the doll's costume.
Dumpling: Only the head without limbs and body, common sizes include 10 cm and 15 cm, can wear headgear for 10 cm and 15 cm cotton dolls.
Beast body: Includes pure beast body, semi-beast body, and various mutant bodies such as double-headed, spider, centaur, mermaid, and snake bodies, each with a unique style. Pure beast body dolls are fluffy toys with animal images, while semi-beast bodies retain the cotton doll's head with a beast-shaped body.

Skeleton of Cotton Dolls

1. What is a Skeleton?

The skeleton is a plastic craft product that allows the hands and feet to be manipulated and maintained in various poses, mainly used inside the doll to assist in posing or fixing in different positions, such as lifting hands, doing splits, sitting, etc., typically fitting the doll's limbs and neck.

2. Classification of Skeletons

Based on the diameter size of the skeleton, they can be divided into: 7 mm skeleton, 9.5 mm skeleton, and 12 mm skeleton.

7 mm skeleton: The diameter is 7 mm, currently the thinnest among common skeletons, suitable for 10 cm dolls and 15 cm normal body dolls.
9.5 mm skeleton: The diameter is 9.5 mm, suitable for 15 cm chubby body dolls, 20 cm normal body dolls, and also 25 cm and 30-35 cm dolls.
12 mm skeleton: The diameter is 12 mm, relatively thicker, generally used for 20 cm chubby body and 40 cm dolls.

Based on the tightness of the skeleton, they can be divided into: sound-making skeleton, light sound-making skeleton, and silent skeleton.

Sound-making skeleton: Currently a popular type, it makes a louder noise due to tightness, the beads are harder, offering the best shaping effect, strong durability, not easy to bounce back, but making noise and requiring more force when manipulated.
Light sound-making skeleton: Makes a slightly quieter sound than the sound-making skeleton, the beads are a bit longer and slightly softer, suitable for 20 cm normal body and chubby body dolls.
Silent skeleton: Completely silent, its shape is basically identical to the sound-making and light sound-making skeletons, but the beads are softer, offering more flexibility. With the right technique, shaping can also be very good, but it may bounce back, not as stable as the previous two.

Based on the appearance shape, they can be divided into: pointed head skeleton and flat head skeleton.

Pointed head skeleton: Relatively softer due to the structure of the skeleton, the hands and feet are slightly pointed, more flexible at the front end. It's longer than the flat head, and sometimes beads need to be removed according to different body types. Pointed heads are convenient for inserting the skeleton into the head, suitable for beginners.
Flat head skeleton: Offers strong stability, the feet are more flat when placed inside the doll, but it lacks the detailed manipulability of the pointed head.

Other Skeletons

Twist head skeleton: The head is a loop, allowing the doll's head to rotate about 45 degrees left and right.
Magnetic twist head skeleton: Magnets are installed at the ends of the skeleton's hands and feet, allowing the doll to stand on magnetic surfaces when combined with supplied magnetic plates.

Skin Color of Cotton Dolls

The body parts of cotton dolls use crystal super soft fabric, which is delicately soft, comfortable to touch, and available in a rich array of colors, offering multiple skin color options for cotton dolls.
Attribute dolls' skin colors are determined based on the character prototype, while attribute-less dolls' skin colors are chosen by the creator. To minimize color difference in custom-made dolls, one can select the doll's skin color fabric at a fabric store and send it to the doll factory for production.

Accessories for Cotton Dolls
Ears/Tails: Generally include rabbit ears, bear ears, dog ears, deer antlers, etc., some are detachable, while others are sewn directly onto the head and are not detachable.
Types of detachable ears include elastic bands, magnetic, and clips: elastic bands are worn on the doll's head like a headband, magnetic involves installing magnets inside the doll's head or ears, and clips are directly clipped on. Ears can also be divided into with or without wire.
Types of detachable tails include pin and magnetic: pins are directly pinned on, and magnetic tails have magnets installed inside the doll's buttocks.
Images of magnetic beast ears and magnetic tails:
Images of elastic band beast ears and elastic band tails:
Images of elastic band beast ears and pin tails: