I often get asked this question on several channels so I’ll go ahead and answer them all here collectively!

Being in the US, I purchase the hair I use for reroots at DollyHair. They have a huge selection and different types of hair available from Saran, Nylon, Acetate and Mohair. I prefer to use Saran and only use Nylon if there is a particular color I can’t find in Saran.

My preference for Saran is that it’s soft, and comes in thin strands that they cover up gaps in reroots better. Although it can be a hassle to heat style them sometimes, curls and waves tend to last a long time.

Nylon comes in thicker strands than Saran and is a lot more sensitive to heat. They also come in much more vibrant colors. If you want to be particularly more creative with hair styles, Nylon is usually a pretty good pick since it can hold shapes much better than Saran. Being heat sensitive though, the shapes can easily get ruined as easy it is to style them that way. There are also reports of some Nylon colors staining vinyl if exposed to sunlight which is why I use Nylon as sparingly as possible.

If you’re in Europe, you might want to consider purchasing hair from the following shops:

• http://www.restoredoll.com/ – Equivalent of dollyhair
• http://www.retrodolls.co.uk/ – UK based. Comes highly recommended as I am familiar with the owner. They have some unique selections of hair that can’t be found anywhere else.
• mylittlecustoms.com
• http://www.thefloatingisle.de

You can reroot with any string type fiber so don’t rule out yarn, jelly yarn, and other types of threads. It all depends on the type of hair style you want for your doll.

Reroot Methods

For the actual “rerooting” I use the reroot tool method. The reroot tool method is something I picked up from Dollyhair which involves using a tool with a modified needle to poke hair into doll heads. The hair is secured with glue to hold it in place. I use Aleene’s fabric glue which is waterproof and allows me to heat style the hair later on. This method is of course easy and fast. You can purchase a reroot tool from dollyhair or simply make one yourself. There’s a great tutorial from Dolly Care fashioned from an Exacto knife.

The reroot tool method may not work for some types of hair styles so it’s good to know other reroot methods. Other reroot methods are:

• Lock and Loop Technique – Works best for Blythes or larger scale vinyl dolls and does not require any glue.
• Knot reroot method – All you need is a sewing needle and the patience of a saint. Works well if you’re trying to use up short, left over hair that isn’t long enough for the reroot tool or lock and loop.