Tools for small scale

I find myself crippled without tweezers and a very dull exacto knife. I use the knife not for cutting but for like all kinds of poking, folding, pushing thread out of the way when sewing, ect. And I've finally come to terms with the fact that gripping things with my fingernails or fingers is completely useless compared to using tweezers. Oh also fabric glue, a wee bit to hold down tiny hems and seams before I sew them into place so.

 

Yes. I also can't do stuff without my super pointy tweezers! Other things I frequently use, a pair of darning needles for doing up lacing! It make it sooo much easier and i'm no longer in fear of having to get the ribbon through those tiny holes in my smaller doll's clothing.

I also make a lot of use of my LED light/ magnifying glass combo angle lamp. And it sounds a little silly but I have one of those small flashlights you wear on a headband. I've found that helps to wear it when I'm hand sewing black or darker fabrics as my room light isn't strong enough. Both things help me in not having to squint and struggle with seeing things

Both my dremel and hot glue gun get some action too. The glue gun is not only useful for suedeing joints but sometimes when you're making tiny things, gluing is better than trying to faff around sewing etc. It's just a case of knowing when to sew and when to glue.

Other things like wires, wire cutters, pliers, scalpel all get used. The wire is good for restringing and one of the best doll tools i've bought was a Luts head puller, it makes taking on and off heads a breeze. I made a 'hold things white painting/drying' jobby by sticking some alligator clips on wires and then sticking the wires in an old block of plasticine I had lying around. Some tools don't need to be high-tech or expensive!

 

My Clover tiny multi-tip iron tool. I would never want to sew doll clothes without it, or without Fray Check.

 

Tweezers, small screws and fine spray paint are my must haves.
I´m crafting detailed furniture for my dolls.

 

Jeweler's tools. Swear by them. Not the pricey ones, mind you - the cheap ones that are too small and not robust enough for commercial/human-sized jewelry use.
Need to open that tiny jump ring? Bust out the too-small pliers. Need to cut some tiny wire for a doll bracelet? Cheap wire cutters. Because they're cheap and small, they are less likely to create too much force and break the tiny, doll-sized item.

 

My bag of small plastic bottles with long thin nozzles perfect for putting tiny drops of glue, fray check etc. exactly where I want them. A pair of small forceps which really help with turning small things like sleeves. I also have a collection of old dental tools which are perfect for using with Fimo etc. as they are so small.

 

Tweezers for turning tiny corners and pulling certain garments right-side-out.

 

I used to love the Clover mini iron, but was gifted the Cricut EasyPress Mini a year or two ago and I love it even more. It heats up so much faster, the Clover iron felt like it took forever. And it feels less clumsy to use.

 

My favorite oddball tool is probably a large eye upholstery needle. I like to use them (very gently) to apply Tamiya gloss to teeny tiny areas on faceups. They almost act like a blunt single fiber paint brush, whether you use the pointy or rounded end. They can really come in handy too if you need to drag gloss into tight spots like the corners of the doll's mouth that are too narrow for a brush. I can also use the needle for other things like pressing eyelashes into tiny eye sockets while the glue is drying. Super handy!

 

Ohh nice idea, I'll have to try it

Another free tool I use a lot is the plastic caps off drink cartons. They can be used as mini pallets for paint and also make good stands for heads while working on them (no more risk of putting the head down on paint/pastel dust ^^)