The latest rage in dolls and doll collecting has been reborn dolls. Odd name you may think for dolls but it's because of the process of making these dolls, that they get their name.
Reborn dolls are highly realistic looking dolls made of vinyl that begin their life as ordinary dolls which are taken apart and reassembled. This is where the name (reborn) comes from. The artists put in a lot of time and effort to ensure that the dolls look and feel as real as possible. These dolls are becoming highly sought after by collectors and amateurs alike due to the realism of the doll.
A lot of hard work and hours are put into making these reborn dolls, every minute detail is performed to create a lifelike looking doll. The result of all this hard work is when you look at a reborn doll it will many times be mistaken for a real baby. You would expect at any time for it to cry or laugh out loud. It is no wonder that these masterpieces are hardly toys for children to play with, these are a different dolls all together.
The reborn process is methodical and precise, every step is taken to detail to ensure that the artist can basically start out with a new doll and put it all together to resemble a newborn baby. After the doll has been taken apart and stripped of all factory paint and hair, to remove any remaining residual of paint and glue it is then bathed and thoroughly dried. This routine is simply the first step to a reborn.
After the last process the doll is now ready for the artist who hand roots its hair, usually Angora Kid mohair is used. To make the doll realistic, hair is sealed from the inside, this allows for styling the hair of which it is then hand-dyed to a particular color. The next stage is for the doll to be painted from the inside by in order to give it a natural looking skin tone.
After the doll is completely dry, the artist will use oil paint or oil based pastels to create and highlight natural looking skin creases on the outside, by doing this the doll looks even more lifelike. Eyebrows are hand-painted using acrylic paint, the same applies to the lips except these are finished with gloss sealer.
For the sleeping babies hand rooted mohair is used for their eyelashes, and for the open eyed babies glue is used. Finally the nose of the doll is opened by the artist so that the doll can breathe (remember this is a baby), after which he lines the opening with black felt and lastly the doll's fingernails and toenails are painted and sealed with white tips.
Now that the doll has been reassembled most frequently an artist likes to fill the limbs with high quality sand this gives a realistic weight to the doll. Each of the limbs are topped with poly fill and sealed with glue. More often than not an artist likes to fill the doll with craft pellets, glass beads or metal balls this is to add to the weight as poly fill is more for making the baby look plump. After the head has been put in place, the artist takes great care in painting fine lines to resemble the veins and ears.
The completed doll is now the most realistic looking doll to date. It's become highly sought after as collectibles and conversation pieces. A lot of adult people who buy these dolls or reborn babies actually take time out to go shopping and buy complete baby outfits, all matching colors. It is not unusual for them to have a high quality stroller to push their babies about. After all, these reborns look so lifelike that walking past a stroller would make most people stop and admire the baby.
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