If you are not morally opposed to acrylic, those yarns are also really good. Many are machine washable and softer than cotton. One generally needs to use smaller than recommended needles for the yarn so that the resulting fabric is tight and stuffing does not poke out.

@thegiddystitcher @knitting

I don't know the answer, passing on the question to my followers. :)

Just one idea: Since it is for a baby, it should(?) be made of cotton, so it can be washed in a better way.
There are different cotton yarn qualities, some of the more expensive ones probably last must longer, but I am not an expert. :)

Pretty much all of the yarny things that I've seen (that have held up for decades so far) are made with acrylic yarns. From afghans to stuffed animals, it's routinely been that old 60's & 70's acrylic, which was a bit rougher than most of the acrylic yarns I've seen in the past decade (especially baby yarns). Acrylic yarn has come a long way, but is still very sturdy and versatile.

Cotton will probably be a good 2nd choice, but I haven't seen as much 40-year-old cotton as I have acrylic, even the kitchen stuff that has been handed down to my husband or me.

@thegiddystitcher @knitting You could use one of the non wool natural fibers if you don't want acrylic - linen, cotton, bamboo etc. All are washable, very sturdy.

Was browsing patterns for fun and came across this https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/peter-halloween-clown-doll

I think you could de-spookify the face details and use colours similar to the original 40+ year old doll.

@thegiddystitcher @knitting I did some knitted dolls years ago and one very good pattern maker for these was Jean Greenhowe. You can find a lot of her booklets on Ebay.

I used to be super freaked out over those dolls. I had ptsd from watching Uncle Bobby with those commando clowns dropping from the ceiling looking like a dressed up ring of figs. Personal issues.

See for reference