Clothespin dolls have been around since the early 1900s, and historians classify them as folk art. Dollmaker and author Nancy Bell Anderson uses wooden clothespins to make a farmer doll and discusses different types of clothing for clothespin dolls. Nancy's book, Things Kids Can Make , is no longer in print, but your local library may have a copy.
Wooden clothespins come in slightly different shapes, with ends that are flared, straight or flat.
Nancy used a traditional clothespin with flat ends for the farmer. Saw off the ends of a clothespin to make short legs for child clothespin dolls. Cut a pipe cleaner for the doll's arms. Glue the pipe cleaner around the clothespin just below the round top in the arm position using Aleene's Thick Designer Tacky Glue. Or drill a hole through the clothespin, and thread the pipe cleaner through for the arms.