How I Distinguish Types of Dolly Hair & Video

Please note that I am not an expert, nor am I claiming to be one. This information is based on my personal experience collecting dolls for 20 years and heavily restoring/rerooting them for 10 years. I also cross referenced my experience with information from Dollyhair.com and other sites that are in direct contact with the manufacturers of doll hair. I am human, I make mistakes.

Video:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1y7IRQ6jPG0

SARAN:
Description & Texture: This is the silkiest and densest of the hair fibers. It is known for its shine and heaviness. This hair tends to clump together and is often rooted with further spaced hair plugs due to its density.

Dolls commonly seen with it: Early Bratz dolls as well as those made in 2015 are notorious for having saran hair (although not all from this time frame do). Saran began popping up on Mattel dolls in the late 70s, and is still used to this day in 2020. Of course other manufacturers use saran too, but it is most common on dolls produced by larger companies like MGA and Mattel (most likely because it is a more expensive/high quality fiber).

Treatment & Care: This hair type requires longer, hotter boil washes. I always make sure the boil wash is actually bubbling before placing dolls in the water. After briefly brushing through the hair to set the style, I leave the doll in the hot water bowl until it is mostly cooled down. This yields the best results. I do not recommend flat ironing saran hair as it is prone to burning. This is only a last resort (after you've tried many boil washes without success, if the doll has nothing to lose).

Pros: This is the shiniest fiber, and therefore tends to look and feel more expensive than other kinds. It holds its original color well and is not known for fading or staining easily. This hair is easy to reroot as the fibers clump together nicely. Curls and waves will not go straight in the boil wash, meaning you can restore such styles with just a straight boil wash (it will reform the curls). This hair also tends to shed less during regular brushing.

Cons: Since saran is more resistant to the boil wash, it is difficult to change the style. So if you want curly hair to be straight or vice versa, you will need to use extra hot water, let the doll sit for a very long time, and you may need to repeat many times. It is also prone to split ends as saran is thicker than other types of hair (each individual strand). The split ends can cause the hair to look dull and lifeless over time, and can make dolls appear less nice in photos (so you may have to trim these split ends out...a painstaking process). Although it sheds less usually, when saran does start to loosen from the inside of the head, it is notorious for coming out in entire plugs (due to its clumping nature). This often leaves dolls with massive bald spots, which is especially inconvenient if it happens around the hairline. If you are looking to dye hair, saran is not ideal. Due to its sleek, impenetrable nature, most dyes will not stick.

KANEKALON:
Description & Texture: This is the finest and fluffiest of the hair fibers. It is very delicate and soft, with each strand being incredibly thin, making it prone to breakage, fly away hairs, and shedding. It is also porous and has a sponge like reaction when being washed (many bubbles are produced, and it needs more care when being rinsed). There are two grades of kanekalon that I have seen. The type on fashion dolls is as described above. American Girls and other larger scale dolls with wigs use a type of kanekalon that is similar in terms of fineness, but a bit more straw like. Kanekalon tends to be rooted much closer together due to its fine nature.

Dolls commonly seen with it: As far as I know all American Girls use kanekalon, and many porcelain dolls as well. This is also common on Mattel dolls from the mid 1980s and was recently discontinued in the mid 2010s. As it is a different kind of kanekalon than that used on American Girls, AG dolls still use their grade of kanekalon. Kanekalon is less common on Bratz and other MGA dolls. However, it was known for being used on particular lines, like Wintertime Wonderland (not all use kanekalon though--it just appears to be the most common fiber for the collection). It is much less prevalent on smaller doll brands, however you will occasionally see kanekalon on them.

Treatment & Care: For fashion doll grade kanekalon, a boil wash is all you need. As it is finer and more sensitive, it can ball up in the hot water if the temperature is not right. This is an easy problem to fix. Simply reheat the water (just make sure the water does not fully bubble, or wait a few seconds before dunking if it is bubbling), and then re-dunk the doll, making sure to brush out the areas that balled up. I only recommend flat ironing the American Girl grade of kanekalon, as it is less delicate. However, a boil wash can do wonders for American Girl grade kanekalon so start with one before flat ironing. Since this hair type is prone to breakage and fly away hairs, diluting a few drops of gel in water, and then drizzling this mixture over the kankekalon hair can keep it sleeker looking. This can be done on wet hair after a boil wash, or dry hair before a photo shoot. Obviously this gel technique is great for any type of hair, but it keeps kanekalon tame especially.

Pros: Kanekalon is so responsive to just a boil wash that it is easy to fix up. Even dolls who are incredibly dreaded can be restored to a near factory fresh look with minimal effort. It is also easy to customize hair styles--kanekalon goes completely straight in the boil wash. This means it is easy to curl or straighten with just hot water. Even American Girl grade kanekalon is easy to work with--you can wet set curls if you don't feel like boil washing them in. It also is the best kind of hair to dye, due to its porous nature. It clings to the dye well, and won't transfer it easily to other surfaces.

Cons: If you don't know how to curl doll hair, the fact that kanekalon hair goes straight in the boil wash can be annoying. You will have to be mindful of curly bangs while boil washing, unless you want to straighten them (I recommend dunking the comb in the hot water and running it through the hair, rather than dunking the whole head, for these circumstances). Since kanekalon is so fine, it is known to shed easily during routine grooming. This means many dolls lose a TON of hair. It also breaks easily, leaving many fly away hairs. This can be annoying when you are attempting to create sleek/precise hair styles (such as buns or braids). It is also difficult to reroot with as the fibers are so fine and don't stay together well. The American Girl grade kanekalon is also difficult to reroot with (it can be found on wigs and human hair accessories too), as it is more straw like and sticks up. I recommend using fashion doll grade kanekalon for reroots if you want to use it on a smaller doll. This hair's porous nature may make it ideal for dyeing, however it stains easily in unwanted ways. Metal hair ties or colored ones can leave stains on it if they are left in too long. This hair type also loses its color with age. The hair colors will be duller and often will have a grey cast. Boil washing can be more finicky as kanekalon can ball up in too hot water, making extra steps required to fix it.

NYLON:
Description & Texture: There are at least two grades of nylon (confirmed by Dollyhair.com). The lower quality hair is notorious for being easily frizzed, super stretchy, and coarse feeling. It can at times feel wiry if it is very damaged. Despite it's thickness, this hair is very lightweight (almost hollow feeling compared to saran). The higher quality nylon, which was used on My Little Ponies in the 80s, is softer, sleeker, and shinier. It feels very much like saran, just lighter weight and more pliable to change. It should be noted that there is another type of hair, called Polypropylene, which is identical to nylon. So for all intents and purposes, treat it just as you would nylon.

Dolls commonly seen with it: This hair type is very uncommon on most Mattel dolls. However it is a myth that it was never used on them until the mid 2010s. It was used once in a while on super curly/kinky haired dolls (think Generation Girl Nichelle, Mystery Squad Kenzie, certain My Scene Madison dolls, etc). There were also the rare cases for super cheap lines, such as the 2010 Bath Beauty Disney dolls, when Mattel used nylon. It is more common, and frequently seen on cheaper quality dolls. The majority of clone dolls, dolls made by smaller manufacturers, and Disney Store dolls have nylon hair. I also see this on Jakks Pacific, Hasbro, and Play Along dolls often. Bratz and Moxie Girlz dolls are notorious for using nylon in 2008 up until 2013 (although it was also seen on early lines, such as 2003 Style It). It is also used for styling heads, doll horses, and larger dolls with rooted hair, most likely to cut costs. Since nylon is more inexpensive, that was probably the reason companies used it when they were making budget dolls or larger scale dolls who would need more hair over all. The higher quality nylon (identical to polypropylene from my understanding) is seen on MGA dolls, such as L.O.L. Surprise and O.M.G.s, vintage My Little Ponies, and some Disney Store dolls.

Treatment & Care: For the lower quality nylon, a boil wash generally speaking won't accomplish much. It is useful to do one anyways, to remove some bulk from the hair and make it less difficult to comb through. But a flat iron treatment, followed by a slight trim is almost always necessary. The "My Little Pony" nylon hair however, is much more responsive to the boil wash and does not need to be flat ironed in most cases.

Pros: Although nylon has a bad reputation for being cheap and frizzy, once it is properly treated it feels very lovely. It is shinier than kanekalon hair and comes in a very wide range of colors. The "My Little Pony" grade has the same shine and sleekness of saran, but the light weight feel of kanekalon (so it has a combination of those hair types pros, like easy styling and re-rooting). It also can bend in with saran hair seamlessly if you need it to finish/partially re-root a doll.

Cons: Needless to say the frizzy, bulky nature of nylon is not appreciated. Dolls who are not treated/properly taken care of end up with massive, puffy, coarse, nasty feeling hair. This often leads to them getting haircuts by children. When trying to comb out this hair to treat it, it will stretch making the process more difficult. Dolls with super kinky/curly cheap nylon tend to lose ringlets easily. This hair type is the hardest to restore, as it requires a flat iron in most cases. The damage done to secondhand dolls often leaves them with dull hair, despite many restoration efforts. It also feels the most synthetic of the hair fibers, due to its stretchy, frizzy nature. I do not recommend this hair type to beginner restorers or re-rooters as it is difficult to work with. Since it is so thick and bulky, it is easy to re-root with too much hair, leaving an unattractive finished product.

SPECIALTY HAIR TYPES:
***This includes magic, memory, color change, gimmicky hair that is available in a wide range of types (saran, nylon, kanekalon, etc). These features, regardless of the type of hair, render it more sensitive. While boil washing is safe from my experience, I do not recommend flat ironing specialty hair (especially those with "memory" hair that is meant to be crimped, curled, etc), as it is prone to burning. Specialty hair is also less likely to clean up nicely, compared to traditional types (this more so applies to dolls who have memory hair or wires rooted into their heads).

***IMPORTANT NOTES***
*It is a misconception that dolls universally have the same types of hair (ex. ALL Xpress It! Yasmin dolls have X hair type). This is simply not true. Larger manufacturers produce thousands of dolls each year and supplies may run out. Dolls can be on the production line for a long period of time too, meaning there may be changes to the quality of materials used. Making blanket statements about dolls having only one quality of hair is misleading, and can often result in people purchasing a doll with the wrong expectations (thinking they will get saran hair, because it is more common, but ending up with nylon). It is true that there are more common hair variations, but unless a manufacturer has confirmed that only one type of hair was used for a line, I always say expect variations.

*What is or isn't better quality is subjective. It depends on your needs and personal tastes as a collector. Knowing the hair types apart is important strictly from a restoration/customization perspective. By having the knowledge of which hair types responds best to which treatment or is most ideal for a project can save you time and a headache. But all hair types can be beautiful if you learn how to care for them properly.

*Don't over complicate this. Think in broader terms, not doll type by doll type. MGA produces many brands of dolls, so does Mattel, so do many companies. So Monster High dolls, produced by Mattel like Barbie, will use the same hair fibers. This applies to all of the brands. Likewise, even older dolls from the 80s are similar in materials to new dolls. So saran hair on an 80s Barbie is the same as saran on a doll from 2020.

*Even experienced collectors/restorers, such as myself, make mistakes (believe me, I've been wrong a million times). We unintentionally hear incorrect information and then pass it around thinking we are being helpful, while we really just add to the confusion. Even people who sell hair professionally, and who are in contact with the manufacturers, can be misleading (sometimes they brand a type of hair claiming it is special, when it is actually not, for competitive purposes). Please think for yourself and always do your own research!

*There are technically other types of hair out there. These are just the main ones I have been able to identify. But the names are not as important from a restoration perspective. Focus on the descriptions, not the names. Coarser, thicker hair is harder to tame and will require more work. Finer, softer hair is more responsive so take it slow (don't be flat iron happy basically). Hair that is more porous is better for dyeing, but will also not hold its factory color as well. Shinier, sleeker hair does not dye well, but will retain its factory fresh look for longer. Very old dolls, like Barbies from the 60s, may use hair types that are discontinued (or have unknown fiber names). But I have found in this case that boil washing is safe and effective.

*Some dolls utilize more than one type of hair at once. For instance, a doll may have all kanekalon hair, except the bangs. A doll's dark streaks may not be the same type of hair used throughout the rest of the head, etc. While it is not that common, this does occur from time to time.

Taken on: April 15, 2020

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