St Therese’s Feast day is Oct. 1 and this is a perfect craft project to celebrate her feast day!

This cute little craft doll/statue can be used as a doll for young children, or as a statue. It is a beautiful reminder of this wonderful saint! This craft requires the use of hot glue, so if you plan to make these with small children they will need help. Older children may be able to do these on their own if they are accustomed to using hot glue.

Materials:

• dark brown felt dress *(see felt cutting instructions)
• black felt head covering (habit) *
• light brown felt cloak *
• white felt collar *
• white felt forehead covering *
• wooden old fashioned clothespin
• 4-inch piece of string
• mini roses
• wooden ring (to help the doll stand, if it needs help)
• hot glue
  

Felt Cutting instructions:

 

Materials when cut:

 

After cutting out your felt pieces, slip the round clothespin head into the hole of your dress. You may need to add a drop of hot glue at the upper chest and upper back of the doll clothespin to keep the dress from sliding down the clothespin. 

Pull all the dress-parts down against the clothespin and tightly knot a string around its waist. You may need an extra hand to hold the dress down while you knot the waist string. Now, cut off the extra string ends. If the dress is too long, cut it to the correct length. If the opening on the sides of the dress are showing, hot glue it together.  
Now, wrap the collar around the neck and hot glue it in place. Make sure the collar’s opening/seam is in the back.  

 

Take your cloak and fold the corners in. Be sure to test it to see if the neck size and the length is correct for your doll.  When the size is correct, hot glue the corners down, (see pic) and hot glue the cloak to the doll’s neck, leaving the front of the doll’s neck uncovered.  Be sure the folded corners are inside against the doll’s dress.

 

Add some hot glue just above the doll’s forehead at its “would be” hairline. Place the center of the forehead cover to the center of the doll’s forehead. Add hot glue to the top and sides of the doll’s head and cover the top of its head with the black felt habit. Be sure the ends of the forehead cover are tucked in under the habit.   Note: You may have to cut a slit in the back of the habit, (from the bottom of the habit up to the head)  so it will lay down properly. Then hot glue the back of the habit together so you don’t see the cut.

 

The final step is to add a few mini roses to the doll to symbolize St. Therese and her Shower of Roses. We used three different clothe roses on our doll. Use the cloak or dress wrinkles to kinda look like arms.

 If the doll has a hard time standing on its own you may need to buy a wooden ring to help it stand. If you can’t find wooden rings, you may be able to hot glue the doll to a small wooden flat shape. 

 

I hope I explained this well enough, If you have any questions please post a comment and I will respond.

 

I hope you enjoy making this little doll/statue as much as we did!!  

Take care and God bless.

~Jen-Marie

 

St. Therese the Little Flower, Pray for us.