How to Restore Doll Hair

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: January 4, 2023 Approved

Dolls go through a lot, and so does their hair. After being played with for hours, days, or even years, how do you fix their frizzy and tangled hair? The doll hair restoration process is very simple and can be done at home. By using things like fabric softener, a comb, and some patience, your doll's hair will look shiny and new.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Softening the Hair

1
Remove the doll's clothes so that they don't get wet or damaged. Restoring your doll's hair will be easier if you remove the clothes first. You don't want to have to worry about clothes getting wet or damaged by the brush.
2
Combine 2 cups (470 ml) of warm water with 2 US tbsp (30 ml) fabric softener. This will be the mixture that you'll use to soak your doll's hair. Once you've mixed the warm water and fabric softener together, you can either put it in a small bowl that will fit your doll's head, or you can pour it into a spray bottle.
- The spray bottle tends to be the easiest way to apply the mixture.
- Make sure the water isn't too hot so that it doesn't destroy the hair fibers. If the water burns your fingers when you touch it, it's too hot.^{[1]
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3
Soak or spray the doll's hair with the mixture. If you're using a bowl, soak your doll's hair in the water and fabric softener. If you're using a spray bottle, spray the mixture onto the hair, making sure it's sufficiently wet. Make sure you cover the entire head and don't leave out any sections of hair.
- Let the hair soak for roughly 5 minutes.
4
Use a dab of conditioner as an alternative to fabric softener. If you don't have fabric softener, you can use conditioner to soften your doll's hair before brushing. Wet the doll's hair with warm water and simply massage in a small dab of conditioner evenly throughout the hair.^{[2]
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Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Fixing the Tangles

1
Comb your doll's hair starting at the ends. Using a small wire hair brush or a metal tooth comb, gently brush your doll's hair whether it's curly or straight. It's important to brush from the bottom up, starting at the ends and moving towards the scalp. If you brush down from the scalp, you could accidentally pull out the hair. Brush until the hair is completely detangled.^{[3]
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- If you don't have a wire hair brush or metal tooth comb, a normal plastic brush will work.
- If some parts of the hair become dry while you're brushing, use the spray bottle to dampen them again.
2
Rinse the hair to remove the fabric softener or conditioner. After the hair has been combed, rinse out the fabric softener mixture with water. Try to do this as thoroughly as possible to avoid residue from forming.
- If you need to remove residue from the fabric softener, try rinsing the hair out with a mixture of half water and half distilled white vinegar.^{[4]
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3
Wrap the doll's hair in a paper towel if you're not curling it. By cutting up pieces of a paper towel, you can use them to help shape your doll's hair. Wrap the damp hair in a paper towel and press down firmly to make the hair flat. The paper towel should help the hair stay straight and tame while it's drying.^{[5]
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4
Let straight hair dry for 24 hours. While the doll's hair may dry faster than this, it's best to wait 24 hours to ensure the hair is completely dry. Removing the paper towel and playing with the doll before its hair is dry may cause it to dry awkwardly.^{[6]
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Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Styling Curls

1
Cut up straws to use as curlers. If you need to restore curly hair, cut up a straw into pieces to make curlers. Make sure the straw pieces will be able to hold an entire strand of hair wrapped around it. Cutting the straw into thirds or fourths is a good place to start.^{[7]
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- If you have a larger doll, try using small plastic perm rods. These can be bought at a beauty store or online.
2
Wrap sections of damp hair around the straws. After your doll's hair has been combed and is still damp, take a small section of hair and wrap it around the straw. You should continue wrapping the hair all the way up to the scalp.
- If you want your doll's hair to have waves, use a larger section of hair when wrapping.
- When wrapping, you want the hair to be damp but not soaking wet. If you need to remove excess moisture, blot the hair with a paper towel.
3
Secure the straw curlers with bobby pins. Once you've wrapped the hair around the straw all the way up to the scalp, secure it in place with a bobby pin. Simply fasten the bobby pin to the inside of the straw and it should remain in place. Continue wrapping and securing the rest of the hair in sections.^{[8]
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4
Let the hair dry for at least 24 hours before removing the straws. Curled hair will take longer to dry than straight hair. Wait at least 24 hours before taking out the bobby pins and straws.
- Feeling the individual sections of hair with your fingers will help you decide if the hair is dry or not.

Warnings

Avoid brushing dry doll hair to restore it. If your doll's hair is frizzy or damaged, trying to simply brush it will only make it more frizzy.

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Synthetic doll hair can melt, so don't use heat on it such as a hair straightener or curler.^{[9]
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Be very careful if styling human doll hair because it's much more fragile than synthetic hair.^{[10]
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