Assembly of the doll begins once the facial features are created. Most dolls over 18 inches have a cloth muslin or canvas body supporting the arms, legs, and head.  The body is stuffed with poly or cotton stuffing.  It must be stuffed tightly to support the doll.  The taller the doll, the more tightly it must be stuffed.  This process can take hours, stuffing and compressing with a wooden dowel.  Some dolls done here are over 45 inches high and have the additional support of a wooden dowel. The dowel fits into a pipe mounted in a stand and extends up through the body of the doll and rests on the porcelain neck plate that supports the head.  Dolls under 18 inches can have a fully porcelain body, and then the arms and legs are attached using elastic cord strung inside the body.  In this case, metal hooks are set into the tops of the arms and legs with plaster to secure the elastic cording.  A moleskin type tape is applied to the neck area of the breast plate so the head can be turned without scraping the porcelain pieces together.  Other assembly techniques are used depending on how the doll will be used.  Most porcelain dolls are not made to be a toy or to be played with.  They are display pieces.  Children under 10 are generally a threat to these dolls.