TUTORIAL - HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN REBORN BIRTH CERTIFICATES

original article can be found  HERE

How to Create your Own Reborn Birth Certificate

Have you always wanted a birth certificate for your reborn doll but didn’t know how to get one? Are you looking for a unique customized birth certificate for your reborn? Or do you need a birth certificate to give up your reborn doll for adoption! In this article we will show you how to create your own personalized birth certificate for your reborn doll. Read on!

Reborn dolls often come with birth certificates, however not all reborn doll artists supply these certificates. Reborn dolls with birth certificates are valued more than reborn dolls without, but despair not, for creating birth certificates for your reborn dolls is as easy as one-two-three…

How to Make a Reborn Doll Birth Certificate?

The easiest way to make a reborn doll birth certificate is using Microsoft Works or even Microsoft Word. Launch either software and go to the “Create a New Project/File” option and select the “Templates” option. Here you will find a plethora of ready-made Templates under the “Certificates” head in the “Cards and Crafts” option. Select the “Certificates” option.
Browse through the available templates and choose one that you like best. Remember you can always change the graphics and text on the templates, so focus on finding a good layout at this point. Once you have found a template you like, download it to your computer. Once the download is finished a new project or file should open in the template format.
Include the following information in the Template by double-clicking on each field and changing the default text or by adding new text boxes.
Title – “BIRTH CERTIFICATE”
Name -
Born –
Time –
City & State –
Nationality –
Weight –
Length –
Parent –
You can edit the font style, size, coloring etc. as you normally would edit documents in a word processor.
Now, find a graphic that matches the theme of this certificate and incorporate it in. You can either search some of the popular free stock photo sites out there for baby themed or reborn doll themed pictures or you can download some graphics for a fee.
Print out the reborn doll’s birth certificate on cardstock or glossy or matte finished photo paper and get it framed and voila! You are done!

Ready-made Reborn Doll Birth Certificates

If you don’t want to go through the hassle of creating your own reborn doll birth certificate, you have two options. You can either download free pdf templates that allow you to simply print out the template and write down the details, or you can opt for a paid template for a nominal price or pick one off eBay.
If you are looking for free pdf templates to download, you can look up the following websites:

• Newbornnursery.com (not a valid URL anymore)
• Freeprintablecertificates.net (Downloaded several printables from here under BIRTH, and ADOPTION)
• Hooverwebdesign.com (had to scroll to the very bottom of the page to find free templates.)

Of course there are many other websites which offer pdf templates for free download.
If you are looking to buy a template, you can always look up on eBay where many artists sell certificates in unique lots of ten. Or you can check out boxfreeconcepts.com which features paid templates for $8.
On the whole, it won’t take much time or make much qualitative difference if you custom-build your reborn doll certificate by yourself.
So there you have it! Hopefully this article has given you sufficient information on how to create your own personalized birth certificate for your reborn doll. Good luck!

ARTICLE - MOTHERHOOD, REBORN AND EVERLASTING

February 19, 2013

Motherhood, Reborn and Everlasting

By JAMES ESTRIN

 

 Most human beings swoon at the first sight of a baby. No matter how homely — or loud — they elicit a primal response from pretty much everyone.
But not Rebecca Martinez.
She’s a perfectly nice 62-year-old photographer who was the oldest of seven children, which meant that she spent much of her childhood caring for her siblings: helping her mother change, feed and bathe them in their Los Angeles home. After that, there was no romance for her in having or raising a child, so she never had any of her own.
Still, she does have many “part-time children in her life,” and she is always interested in exploring unfamiliar worlds and feelings.
That led her to immerse herself for five years in the Reborn subculture, a growing group, almost exclusively women, who collect shockingly lifelike handmade dolls of newborn babies. Many of them treat the dolls as if they were real members of their families — taking them shopping and out to restaurants.
“Many of them have a very, very strong genetic makeup to nurture and they love babies,” Ms. Martinez said. “And many are mothers. A lot of people think these are people who can’t have children. Some are, but many of them have children and love the baby stage of nurturing. They can love a baby, they can nurture it in a permanent way.”
Each doll is unique and made by individual artists of varying degrees of skill. Once completed, they are ”adopted” from “nurseries” that sell the dolls, for anywhere from a few hundred dollars to up to $15,000. They come with names and often adoption papers.

Reborn culture started around 1990, with people stripping the paint and hair off store-bought vinyl dolls and painstakingly reworking them to be more lifelike. Now some people use kits with doll parts that when assembled are weighted to feel like a real infant when held.
After discovering this movement, Ms. Martinez bought her own doll for research and started exploring the burgeoning subculture, attending conventions, photographing baby-beauty contests, baby showers, owners and artisans.
“In general, most of the women are Anglo, conservative, Christian and right-to-lifers,” Ms. Martinez said. “All of the things that I’m not.”
When Ms. Martinez travels, she will sometimes bring one of her own five reborn dolls to photograph people’s reactions. She prefers to carry them in open bags because she feels uneasy putting them into closed containers, and her suitcases are always searched by airport security if a doll shows up in a scan. This leads to unusual encounters — like when other people in line get upset thinking that a real baby is about to be harmed by X-rays as they pass through security

 

 “These dolls are very powerful objects,” she said. “If I bring one of these dolls out, there’ll be a group of people around me very, very fast. They soon know it’s not real, but people have very strong reactions. I’ve seen people who will hold them, and their bodies will start responding and they’ll be rocking them. And then they realize and feel a little embarrassed.”
Sometimes, women who have lost a newborn have commissioned artists to make a reborn doll that looks exactly like their deceased baby. Modeled after photographs of the real infant, these dolls are called portrait babies.
One of her subjects, Min Lee (Slide 12) who runs a “nursery,” sells most of her dolls to customers in China. While some of them adopt dolls that look Chinese, the majority want Caucasian-looking babies, as do most buyers elsewhere.
While Ms. Martinez respects the work of many of the artists who create reborn dolls, she does not share the feelings of the women who make up this subculture.
“For me, they’re dolls that are beautifully made, crafted, but part of my fascination is I don’t feel these things,” she said. “I’m fascinated by how people react, but I’m very, very neutral about them.”
Everyone has different obsessions, but ultimately, Ms. Martinez’s series “PreTenders” is about people choosing whom — or what — to love.
“It is a personal choice, where we put those emotions,” she said. “People will love people and living creatures, but when people choose something that’s not real, and project all this love into that, I do my best to try to understand it.”
“People are less judging when men choose to love an inanimate object like a racing car,” she added. “Why are people so judging when women choose to love something that looks so real?”

 Ms. Martinez’s “preTenders” first came to our attention by way of fotovisura. Ms. Martinez will participate in a group show, “The Reality of Fiction,” at Redline art space in Denver from March 8 through April 28.

ARTICLE - MOTHERHOOD, REBORN, AND EVERLASTING

original article can be found  HERE

February 19, 2013, 5:00 am

Motherhood, Reborn and Everlasting

By JAMES ESTRIN

 

 Most human beings swoon at the first sight of a baby. No matter how homely — or loud — they elicit a primal response from pretty much everyone.
But not Rebecca Martinez.
She’s a perfectly nice 62-year-old photographer who was the oldest of seven children, which meant that she spent much of her childhood caring for her siblings: helping her mother change, feed and bathe them in their Los Angeles home. After that, there was no romance for her in having or raising a child, so she never had any of her own.
Still, she does have many “part-time children in her life,” and she is always interested in exploring unfamiliar worlds and feelings.
That led her to immerse herself for five years in the Reborn subculture, a growing group, almost exclusively women, who collect shockingly lifelike handmade dolls of newborn babies. Many of them treat the dolls as if they were real members of their families — taking them shopping and out to restaurants.
“Many of them have a very, very strong genetic makeup to nurture and they love babies,” Ms. Martinez said. “And many are mothers. A lot of people think these are people who can’t have children. Some are, but many of them have children and love the baby stage of nurturing. They can love a baby, they can nurture it in a permanent way.”
Each doll is unique and made by individual artists of varying degrees of skill. Once completed, they are ”adopted” from “nurseries” that sell the dolls, for anywhere from a few hundred dollars to up to $15,000. They come with names and often adoption papers.

 A workshop teaches artists how to apply realistic-looking hair, made of very fine mohair, to the dolls’ heads.
 
Reborn culture started around 1990, with people stripping the paint and hair off store-bought vinyl dolls and painstakingly reworking them to be more lifelike. Now some people use kits with doll parts that when assembled are weighted to feel like a real infant when held.
After discovering this movement, Ms. Martinez bought her own doll for research and started exploring the burgeoning subculture, attending conventions, photographing baby-beauty contests, baby showers, owners and artisans.
“In general, most of the women are Anglo, conservative, Christian and right-to-lifers,” Ms. Martinez said. “All of the things that I’m not.”
When Ms. Martinez travels, she will sometimes bring one of her own five reborn dolls to photograph people’s reactions. She prefers to carry them in open bags because she feels uneasy putting them into closed containers, and her suitcases are always searched by airport security if a doll shows up in a scan. This leads to unusual encounters — like when other people in line get upset thinking that a real baby is about to be harmed by X-rays as they pass through security.

                                                           “Emmy in Overhead.”
 
“These dolls are very powerful objects,” she said. “If I bring one of these dolls out, there’ll be a group of people around me very, very fast. They soon know it’s not real, but people have very strong reactions. I’ve seen people who will hold them, and their bodies will start responding and they’ll be rocking them. And then they realize and feel a little embarrassed.”
Sometimes, women who have lost a newborn have commissioned artists to make a reborn doll that looks exactly like their deceased baby. Modeled after photographs of the real infant, these dolls are called portrait babies.
One of her subjects, Min Lee (Slide 12) who runs a “nursery,” sells most of her dolls to customers in China. While some of them adopt dolls that look Chinese, the majority want Caucasian-looking babies, as do most buyers elsewhere.
While Ms. Martinez respects the work of many of the artists who create reborn dolls, she does not share the feelings of the women who make up this subculture.
“For me, they’re dolls that are beautifully made, crafted, but part of my fascination is I don’t feel these things,” she said. “I’m fascinated by how people react, but I’m very, very neutral about them.”
Everyone has different obsessions, but ultimately, Ms. Martinez’s series “PreTenders” is about people choosing whom — or what — to love.
“It is a personal choice, where we put those emotions,” she said. “People will love people and living creatures, but when people choose something that’s not real, and project all this love into that, I do my best to try to understand it.”
“People are less judging when men choose to love an inanimate object like a racing car,” she added. “Why are people so judging when women choose to love something that looks so real?”

 Sally Charnock is a collector in Britain. She specializes in collecting babies with expressions — crying, yawning, reactive in some way.

ARTICLE - REBORN DOLL SHOP OPENS THEIR DOOR

Reborn Doll Shop Opens Their Doors

Monday, 03 December 2012

After a much-anticipated waiting period, the Reborn Doll Shop has finally opened their doors and is ready for business. Whether you're a reborn doll artists, aspiring artist or just someone who's looking to own one of these ultra-realistic dolls, the Reborn Doll Shop has you covered. They were created by a small group of reborn artists and collectors who were looking to create a community-driven environment for reborn lovers to come together. The fact is that collecting reborn dolls is a growing hobby that has continued to rise in popularity in recent years. Not only are there millions of collectors in the U.S. and U.K., but the craze has spread into other countries as well. Now, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and even parts of Asia have jumped on board. Even with this newfound popularity, trying to find reborn dolls for sale can be a challenge. You can visit doll shop after doll shop and still not find a single reborn, so where you supposed to get them from? This is where the Reborn Doll Shop steps in -- they've created a simple solution for people to find the exact type of reborn doll they want. So, how exactly does the Reborn Doll Shop work? After visiting www.reborndollshop.com, you'll be able to select from a list of categories on the right-hand side of the page. These categories contain everything from boy and girl reborn dolls, to reborn doll kits, eyes and even hair. While some people are looking to buy an entirely new doll, others simply need a couple pieces to finish theirs. After clicking on the appropriate store category, you'll then be greeted with their up-to-date selection, at which point you can purchase the ones you like. While offering the best selection of reborn dolls at the lowest price is their specialty, the Reborn Doll Shop also features loads of useful guides, how-tos and information on the hobby. If you're looking to build your very first reborn, you'll should follow their step-by-step instructions. They walk you through everything from stripping a vinyl doll of its paint and limbs, to applying over a dozen layers of heat-set paint and warming it in the oven. Some people may be thrown off with the reborning process, as it's certainly time-consuming and downright difficult at times. However, the people are the Reborn Doll Shop explain it in a way that nearly anyone can understand, regardless of your past experience. Instead of spending 40+ hours piecing together a new reborn, the people over at the Reborn Doll Shop recommend using a kit your first time around. These kits contain paint, hair, limbs and everything else you need to make a reborn. The only extra thing that's required to use them is a traditional toy vinyl doll, which can be purchased from any toy or doll store for as little as $10 bucks. While these kits aren't going to give you the same high-quality level of detail and realism as a handmade reborn, they are still a fun and effective way to create your very first reborn, so give them a try today. Contact: Jennifer Harris Atlanta, GA Link: www.reborndollshop.com After a much-anticipated waiting period, the Reborn Doll Shop has finally opened their doors and is ready for business.

NEWS - ARTWALK : REBORN DOLLS IN DOWNTOWN ABILENE THURSDAY

Artwalk: Reborn Dolls in Downtown Abilene Thursday

By: BigCountryHomePage.com Staff

Updated: November 8, 2012

On Thursday, November 8 downtown Abilene will host ArtWalk: Reborn Dolls in the main library display area from 5 to 8 p.m.

Victoria Lovett of Abilene makes dolls, but it's more of an art than a craft.  

See her work in the main library display case during November, as she demonstrates the steps to create a beautiful, unique Reborn Doll.  

Ms. Lovett will be on hand during Artwalk to answer questions about her work. 

The children's librarians will have a make and take craft for fun.  

Visitors can also view the library's own original mural by Abilene artist Debra Warr in the children's storyroom.

ARTICLE - (EBAY) - REBORN BABY RENAISSANCE

Reborn Baby Renaissance

Posted on November 6, 2012 by Serena Makofsky

The last time we wrote about the phenomenon of artist-made, startlingly realistic baby dolls, in the post Hauntingly real “reborn” babies, readers were divided on whether these collectibles were creepy creations or beautiful (and sometimes personally meaningful) works of art.  Since that time, the interest in these dolls has not waned, at least if you use eBay listings and sales as a barometer of popular opinion.

In fact, today’s first listing has garnered a surge of interest and bids, for a doll that looks so real, from the dimpled knees to the variations in skin tone, you would probably have to pinch its cheeks just to make sure.  See the baby pictures here for **A Romie Baby**SOLID Full SILICONE DOLL***LENNOX***#5 by Romie Strydom -reborn:

The fans set us straight last time, instructing us to do our homework and distinguish between true reborn dolls and silicone dolls, so we only quote the listing title, which perhaps uses the term “reborn” to attract collectors’ attention.  And it has, to the tune of 28 bids and a high bid of $10,700. Last week, another Romie baby, the LENNOX #4, sold for $15,100. Incredible!

If you fall on the “this might be creepy” side of the spectrum in regard to these realistic dolls, watch this video of baby doll Lennox #1 being moved about by the artist, Romie Strydom:

VIDEO WAS SET TO PRIVATE ON YOUTUBE

What mostly seems strange here is to see a baby handled so much, especially as the disembodied laughter loops in the background but, the longer the video goes (and it goes over six minutes), the more real Lennox seems, to the point where at least this viewer began to worry: maybe even real babies are a little creepy, while also being cute and adorable?

Here is everything else you need to know about Lennox, from the listing:

“Lennox is a full bodied silicone baby, with a ball jointed neck.  She is flexible and moves like a real baby…

I sculpted her from a ball of clay, which I am reproducing  into a small edition of soft platinum silicone babies.  Her body is poured in ONE piece for realism and strength.  The limbs are not joined on afterwards, so no seam lines.

Lennox has been painted with the recommended silicone paints, with beautiful coloring and mottling.  No detail has been missed on her.

She is totally adorable,  very realistic and is totally solid.  Nothing has been hollowed out, she is solid silicone.  For this reason her hair cannot be sealed inside her head, so extreme care must be taken with his hair as it can come out with brushing etc.”

Another intriguing listing is for this Boo boo FULL BODIED SOLID SILICONE preemie ooak BABY doll GIRL not reborn NR!. Take a look at this collage:

Again, this is silicone creation not a vinyl one, made by Sherry Bowden.  She has a solid legion of fans, garnering 37 bids and a current high bid of $3,050 for what the artist describes as a “Lil’ early bird preemie girl baby.”

Last time we wrote about these realistic dolls, we focused on the dedication of collectors, but this listing is striking for providing a window for looking at the experience of the artist as she labors on her dolls. Last week, Sherry also had another micro preemie named Gracie up for sale (sold for $765) and describes her nicely in the listing. Read below, it all sounds quite maternal:

“I enjoy painting my silicone babies very much and go the extra mile to make them as realistic as possible!  Different lighting situations (day, night, evening) have been employed during the photography of this baby so you can see her coloring under different conditions.  Many many hours alone when into her painting alone and many weeks into bringing her to life for you!  All photos were taken before her eyelashes were delicately rooted, but she will have wispy eyelashes upon arrival for her new mum.”

The experience of creating the silicone doll sounds more than a little like pregnancy, although without all the discomfort.

If you find this boundary-blurring between humans and silicone depictions of humans produces feelings of uneasiness, you are not alone.  The Wikipedia entry on “Reborn doll” describes this reaction as falling under the “uncanny valley” hypothesis, which states that as an inanimate object looks more lifelike, our empathy toward it increases, until it reaches a point in which our response changes to repulsion.  So some people’s turning point from interest in to distaste for lifelike dolls occurs at a far earlier point than others’.  And for those passionate collectors, that turning point never arrives.  Where do you fall on the spectrum?

ARTICLE - REBORN DOLLS : BALM FOR INFERTILE WOMEN OR AN INSULT?

Reborn Dolls: a Balm for Infertile Women or an Insult?

Realistic baby dolls can help women going through IVF or baby loss, but others find them upsetting or a bit too realistic for comfort.

A few years ago when watching a television documentary called ‘My Fake Baby’ I discovered reborn dolls. These are dolls that are so realistic they look like newborn babies. They are painted to show veins, blemishes and milk spots that newborns typically have and they have micro-rooted real hair, or expertly painted on hair. From a distance, they could be mistaken for a real baby.

They can fetch hundreds of dollars in a booming, competitive market, where many women (and some men) are only too keen to part with their cash to own one.

Therapeutic Dolls?

Some women who are infertile and going through IVF procedures find them a comforting balm for the stress they endure through the gruelling treatment and some women say they have helped them to deal with the pain of a miscarriage, while others find the idea insulting and say that to hold a ‘plastic’ baby would have made matters worse and the idea of a ‘fake’ baby is creepy or wrong.

Personally, at the times when I lost my babies I would have found them very upsetting. I burst into floods of tears at the sight of every newborn and all the women in the world suddenly seemed to be heavily pregnant when they hadn’t been before. If someone had presented me with a reborn doll during those times in my life, I would have ended up a crumpled heap on the floor. I tried to avoid babies until I had a successful pregnancy and then they became less painful to look at.

Every woman reacts differently to miscarriage or infertility problems, though, and some have found cuddling a reborn doll therapeutic. One pregnant mother happily sold her collection of reborn dolls after her IVF treatments had finally worked. She used the money to buy things she needed for her child.

Are Doll Collectors Deluded?

For some reason this has created controversy and some doctors such as Dr. Ablow suggest that women who buy them have a mental illness and aren’t living in the real world. He even likened doll collectors to people who use street drugs.

Art Form of the Newborn

I say whatever helps someone get through IVF or grief is good and if owning a reborn helps, then great and I do think the dolls are fantastic art forms and not in the least creepy. If I had an artistic bone in my body I would love to make them myself but unfortunately God did not bless me with the ability to paint. I did, however, have one made to look like my son when he was a newborn. Why? Because it’s a beautiful way to immortalise lovely memories, just like professional photos or footprint pictures are, only better.

The truth is, the vast majority of women who buy reborns or any other doll do so just because they appreciate the art and not because they have a deluded fantasy that the doll is a real baby. If some find them comforting in times of stress, why is that wrong?

Men the world over collect realistic electric train sets and spend weekend’s playing with them. They disappear into the attic to play with their train set after a row with the missus and no one accuses them of having a mental illness. Millions of fully grown men are also obsessed by computer games such as ‘SIMS’ and ‘World of War Craft’, but they are not deluded or accused of regressing into childhood the way women are if they buy a doll.

Comfort for Women Who Lost Babies

As well as helping some infertile women and those who had miscarriages, reborn dolls are now increasingly being used in old people’s homes because staff find that elderly people with dementia are calmer and happier if they are given a doll to cuddle. One elderly woman who lost her newborn daughter years previously agonizingly relived the event day after day due to her dementia. It was distressful for the staff, too, who had to keep telling her that her daughter was dead over and over again. Eventually, they bought her a reborn doll and told her her daughter was asleep in her crib. Although this was fantasy, it gave peace of mind and happiness to an ill old lady in her last phase of life.

Dolls Used in Films

Reborn dolls are also used on television in films in addition to real babies. In the extremely popular TV series, ‘Call the Midwife’ (the true memoirs of a 1950’s London midwife), reborn dolls were used during the childbirth scenes.

Anyone who appreciates the beauty of a newborn should see the art in this form of doll even if they don’t personally like them and if it happens to help with grief in some people then that is just an added benefit. Maybe doctors should try it instead of over-prescribing drugs?

Sources:

1. Are These the Weirdest Dolls Ever? Lifelike ‘Reborn’ Babies Have Nails, Hair, Eyelashes, and Even Saliva. Daily Mail, 30th May 2011.
2. Meet the Reborns: The Incredible Lifelike Dolls that Cost Hundreds of Dollars and Even Come with Birth Certificates and Human Hair. Daily Mail, 17th July 2012.
3. Fake Babies, Fake Lives. Dr. Keith Ablow. Fox News, 28th June 2011.
4. Reborn Dolls and Miscarriage Healing. Bella Online, Miscarriage News 2012.
5. Midwife Terri Coates: If I cried they'd keep the scene. I couldn't help it, it was so real. The Sun, 28th January 2012.

INSTRUCTIONS - HOW TO CARE FOR A REBORN DOLL

How to care for a Reborn Doll

Reborn Dolls are a special type of collectible doll.  Makers of these dolls  use to take old baby dolls , and remove any paint or hair, then they would be reborned.   Today  in the practice of reborning, a new kit is used, which  some tend  to call  Newborning.  Reborning/Newborning means  to take a  new vinyl doll kit and make  that kit  looks nearly life-like.

The realism that some artist are able to obtain is totally amazing!  Most kit costs  are in the range of  $100.00 each,  which makes this a very expensive art.   Some kits  have been know to sell for for a considerable amount more.

Blushing and  molting painting techniques and mohair give the doll it's realistic look, and  once they are completed and  ready  for  sale they can cost up to $4,000 per doll.  Once you have a doll this attractive and valuable you are going to need to  take care of it to maintain it's delicate beauty.  These  are collectible dolls, and are not intended for  children.


                                            Instructions... Things You'll Need

• Soft Cloth
• Comb
• Soft Infant Brush
• Non-toxic soap
• Cotton swabs

1.  Cleaning Your Doll Remove clothing from the doll gently. Take care when moving and cleaning the doll to prevent damage. Wash clothing on the gentle cycle of your washing machine and  Dry clothing  thoroughly before redressing your doll.

2.  Wash the skin carefully with non-toxic soap and cotton swabs. Moisten one end of the cotton swab and use it to gently wipe crevices and behind the ears. Use the dry end of the cotton swab to wipe away any water. Wipe the larger areas with a baby wipe or a soft cloth to clean away any dust and dirt.

3.  Brush hair with the soft infant brush to remove any dust.  Gently comb the hair, then after the doll is properly covered.   you may use a small amount of  leave-in conditioner,  making sure to wipe off any excess conditioner with your soft cloth to prevent seepage into the body or damage to the bare skin of the doll.  Do not pull the hair as it has been hand-rooted and secured by a  sealant on the inside of the head.

4.  Replace clothing once dried, being careful of the joints.  Make sure that the clothing  dyes do not run, as this will cause damage to the vinyl of the doll.  Arrange the cleaned doll in its display area, being careful to not put the joints in stressful positions that can cause damage.   All that is left to do now ...is enjoy!

ARTICLE - REBORN COLLECTORS 'PLAY' WITH THEIR DOLLS

reborn collectors “play” with their dolls

Posted on April 24, 2012

reborn collectors “play” with their dolls
The greatest trend in doll collecting is reborning. A skilled specialit takes a regular baby doll,reborn. strips it down to its essentials and then begins to rebuild it layer by layer. After tens of hours of work and a variety of skills and techniques applicationlied the doll is reborn into a new creation.Reborn Doll Artists. Quality reborns are so life like they can easily fool people into thinking they are real babies.Reborn Doll Artists.reborn.
Top quality reborns are created by hand,What Kind Of Doctor Delivers Babies?. one at a time by skilled specialits all over the world. This new sub-section of the doll collecting market has quickly gained worldwide notoriety due to the uniqueness of the dolls and the obsessive nature of their fans.How To Make Porcelain Dolls?.
While classic doll collectors were content to keep their purchases locked up in glass display cases, reborn collectors “play” with their dolls.I Feel like Dying Lyrics. They dress, “feed” and pamper their dolls as though they were real babies.with. They take them for walks in strollers and put them in car seats when they run errands.Zapf Baby Dolls. Besides these unique ways to enjoy high priced collector’s items,dolls.Custom Baby Dolls. they what’s more amass large collections to make a reborn nursery.
The mainstream media has pounced on the phenomenon of a reborn nursery.Almost Real Life like Baby Dolls. The Today Show,collectors. MSNBC, 20/20.Virtual Baby. Dr.Interactive Realistic Baby Dolls. Phil and a whole host of talk shows and that internet videos have lead the practices of reborn fans to the public’s attentions.What Does a Miscarriage Look like?. The combination of the doll’s realness and the actions of their owners have driven some to label reborning as “weird” or “creepy”.their.
Yet,北京代售印花税.”play”. many mental health professionals have found a reborn nursery therapeutic.. Many women who are dealing with emotional issues have found that reborns can offer the distraction and escape they need.Vintage Baby Dolls. Those who have lost a child during pregnancy,collectors. as an infant or even those who have had full-grown children leave the house all find comfort in reborn dolls.their.
A reborn nursery can allow women who are suffering from the emotional distress related to their maternal feelings a way to express their emotions. While you should never buy a reborn doll for a woman without her consent,View Graphic Vaginal Childbirth Videos. under the supervision of a mental health professional these outlets can be very helpful.
When you combine the therapeutic effects,collectors. the high level of skill it takes to create and the rarity and money involved the collection of reborns into a reborn nursery is not surprising. Many specialits,. studios and companies are making a whole lot of money all around the world selling reborns.”play”. The owners are fanatical about their dolls and buying more so the market continues to grow!

NEWS - DO 'REBORN BABY' DOLLS CREEP YOU OUT? (With Video)

Do 'reborn baby' dolls creep you out?

 

NewsFix KIAH

7:35 p.m. CDT, April 17, 2012

COOPERSVILLE, MI—

There's a strange new trend for all you baby lovers out there, but instead of inspiring the "goo-goo's" and "ga-ga's" most babies bring out of people, it's giving most the creeps!
The trend, however, isn't creepy enough to keep people all over the world from ordering what have been dubbed "Reborn Babies."


Blanca Nemecek earns her living making the ultra-realistic looking "Reborns" and shipping them across the globe to collectors.  Some collectors who simply appreciate the artistic aspect of the dolls, others who seem to think they're real babies. Nemecek says she understands why some people think the dolls are strange.
"What people will do with them I think that's bothersome to some people, as far as some people taking them out to the store, treating them like they're real child. They're not a real child. They're not a real baby. They're a collector’s doll," she says.
That does bring down the wierdo-factor a bit.
Some of the custom dolls go for over $600! Guess it's still less expensive than diapers!
To each his own, we just hope none of those sweet little baby dolls turn into a "Chucky" kind of toddler.

ARTICLE - SWISS TV 'LIFESTYLE' ABOUT REBORN DOLLS & ARTIST MARINA WIESER (VIDEO INCLUDED)

The Swiss television programme "Lifestyle" visited Swiss doll artist Marina Wieser, to find out more about her art and her webshop. You can find out everything here!

Marina Wieser with reporter Patricia Boser

 

The Swiss TV reporter Patricia Boser was fascinated by the lifelike qualites of Marina Wiesers reborn dolls.
Wieser (22) presented her finest pieces to the camara crews of the Swiss television programme "Lifestyle" and promoted the webshop that her and her husband are running in Switzerland www.rebornshop.ch
You can watch a repeat of the programme by clicking here
http://www.telezueri.ch/webtv/?&channel_id=85&video_id=246979

ARTICLE - SISTERS LABOR OF LOVE DELIVERS REBORN DOLLS

Sisters Labor of Love Delivers Reborn Dolls

Posted on April 17, 2012

Williamstown, MA -  Sisters Kathi George and Julie Crosier are filling their newly-launched “Until Forever Nursery” with hand-crafted artworks reflecting a contemporary version of a traditional skill: dollmaking.
“This is something that I love to do,” George said during a recent interview . “[Julie and I] have been dollmakers on and off for about 35 years. This is such a creative art form.”
A small home-based workspace hosts the tools necessary for creating dolls as well as a ”nursery” populated with several baby boy and girl dolls. The dolls are placed in baskets, dressed in pajamas or dresses and accessorized with bonnets, hair ribbons or decorative headbands. The impression is of babies sleeping or laying awake and gazing at their surroundings.
Crafting the dolls is a labor of love and includes much detail work, George and Crosier said.


George and Crosier displayed about 10 finished, beautifully dressed dolls.  The term “reborn dolls” was generated when doll kits known as “sculpts” were not readily available, and artists boiled the paint from completed dolls to create a blank canvas for their own visions, George said. Sculpts include a head, arms, and legs with feet. Bodies are separate. Heads offer a variety of facial expression. Reborn dolls are exceptionally realistic and have been mistaken for living babies. The art is receiving much attention; both the “Today” show and the daytime talk show “Anderson” recently featured reborn doll artisans.
“These dolls are not childrens toys,” Crosier said. “They are collectibles.”
Dolls may designed to order, meaning hair color, eye color, and ethnicity may be chosen. George said she would like to try a custom doll and would be willing to work from a photograph to try and capture an image. The dolls may be ordered as singles, twins, or other multiples.
Initial doll design steps include mastering “veining,” a technique requiring a slender, finely-bristled brush and special blue paint. “Veining” means placing veins on the face, wrists, and knees of the doll. George demonstrated the technique and then used a makeup sponge to gently soften the paint appearance. The result is a faint line that will later be covered with special face paint. The effect is very subtle but adds a life-like dimension to the finished product, Crosier and George explained.

“One thing is that you have to work in natural light [for superior results],” George said. “By the time we’ve completed the blushings [face paint applications], you will barely see the veins. Even though it is subtle, the veins are vital to create the realistic look.”
Purple and red “veining” follow the blue, and each paint layer requires an 8-minute baking  in a 265-degree Fahrenheit oven. Each doll requires about eight layers of paint. Lips are painted. Eyebrows are most often painted but Crosier said she intends to try “rooting” the eyebrows with mohair.  False eyelashes may be glued or rooted to frame glass eyes. Sea sponges are used to color the faces and bodies. The tools help give the dolls their lifelike appearance, George said.
“You have to be meticulous when applying color to the faces,” George said. “Too much paint and you’ll have little white dots after you bake, and too little won’t provide the skin tone that you need.”
Hair is placed on doll heads using a very fine barbed needle that punctures the surface and distributes hair strands piece by piece. George demonstrated the “rooting” process.
“It takes anywhere from four to eight hours to do a head,” George said. “I liken it to knitting. I can do it while I’m watching T.V..”
Once the strands are placed, George said she uses a hemostat and a makeup sponge dipped in glue to coat the doll head interior and secure the strands in place.

The dolls have soft bodies created by filling doe suede with a fine glass material that resembles granulated sugar. The material adds realistic feel and weight to the dolls, George and Crosier said.
Each doll is designed as a one of a kind creation.  The business is selling dolls via Internet venues as well as accepting orders by phone or e-mail. George and Crosier said they plan to participate at seasonal events such as the town’s “Summer Sundays in Williamstown” endeavor. Dolls are priced at $200-$250 each, they said.
Creating the dolls is relaxing, Crosier said, but the business offers something else to warm her heart.
“This is quality time with my sister.”
Those who want to order a doll may contact George at  Kgeorge957@adelphia.net or by calling 413-458-8383. Crosier may be contacted at Julie.crosier@comcast.net or by calling 518-466-8655. “Until Forever Nursery” has a Facebook page as well.

TUTORIAL - HOW TO MAKE ICE CUBE SHAPED TINY BABY HEADS (Great for Any Reborn Party!)

How To Make Ice Cubes Shaped Like Tiny Baby Heads

 

When it comes to serving a chilled drink, you can use cube-shaped ice like adults do—or you can show your eternal youth with custom ice replicas of your favorite toys. With a few basic supplies and a bit of patience, you can make a reusable mold to cast frozen replicas anything—even a baby doll head that's just about the right size for a rocks glass.

You Should Do This If:

You love Batman so much you actually want to ingest him.

Moment of Satisfaction:

Watching a block of ice shaped like a human head slowly melt into a glass of bourbon.

Biggest Pain in the Ass:

Not being able to reenact the latest Avengers trailer while waiting for Mjölnir's silicone grave to firm up—some mixtures can take up to a week to cure.

Materials and Tools Required:

 

• Small, hard toy without too many hollow features
• Container that closely but entirely fits toy
• 10-ounce tube of clear 100 percent silicone caulk (but not "Silicone II"), caulking gun, and cornstarch (or use Sugru or a catalyst-driven food-safe RTV silicone from Smooth-On)
• Popsicle sticks
• Plastic cups, spoon and knife
• Non-stick food spray (canola oil worked well)
• Wax paper or aluminum foil
• Duct and masking tape
• Nitrile gloves
• X-acto knife of sharp box cutter
• Well-ventilated work area and/or high quality filtered respirator

Difficulty:

On a scale of one to ten, five.

Cost:

About $20 if you mix your own silicone. Lots more if you buy the real stuff.

Building It:

1. Set up a mold box. I did two castings: The decapitated head of a baby doll from the 99-cent store, and a Storm Trooper. Each required different molding techniques—a firm, two-part mold for the figure, and a one-piece, supple, peel-able mold for the baby head.

 For the Storm Trooper, I used a plastic storage box for cream cheese that left about 1/4-inch of silicone on all sides. A quart-sized plastic yogurt container fit the doll's head. You can also use Legos or a duct tape-lined cardboard to build a mold box. Professionals make theirs out of high-quality plywood. Just don't pick something much larger than your object or you will waste silicone.

 2. Plan placement. Because of their pesky limbs, figurines need to be cast with a two-piece mold, otherwise you would never be able to extract them from the hardened silicone. They work best when molded front and back, with the seam running down the side.

All molds need an opening (called the sprue) where you can pour in the casting material. I affixed a segment of a plastic straw to the back of the Storm Trooper for mine. Air holes at the ends of long narrow sections (legs, arms) help the water flow through without getting blocked—toothpicks work well for this. And look out for narrow segments on limbs; the skinny joints on my Storm Trooper's knees caused weak spots that broke easily when the ice was removed. Reinforce those areas by adding putty to thicken them up before making the mold.

Deeper objects with less extremities (like the baby's head) can work in a one-piece mold made from a softer mix of silicone, then peeled off after casting. Sometimes cutting the mold will be necessary to get past a tight sprue. I let the neck of the baby head extend out of the silicone as my spot to pour in the liquid, and then cut it halfway apart when taking the head out.

Once the container, sprue, and placement are determined, give everything a healthy spray of canola oil. This will help keep the silicone from becoming permanently stuck.

 3. Mix silicone. Note: Although inert, most silicone caulk isn't listed as food safe, nor is Sugru (although they're working on FDA approval). There are varying reports that once cured, the widely-available GE Silicone I (but not Silicone II) may be okay for this type of use, but if you don't like living on the edge, get a food safe silicone putty like this stuff on Amazon.

Standard silicone caulk, poured thick, will remain liquid on the interior—not useful for mold making. You can force it to harden throughout by mixing the silicone with cornstarch (as pioneered in this Instructable by Mikey77), which provides the necessary moisture needed for the silicone to completely harden. But when it does, it releases a strong acidic odor, so make sure to have good ventilation or a good respirator for this part. And use a sheet of aluminum foil as a work surface, instead of gumming up your dining room table. I wrap a piece of plywood with foil for a transportable work surface.

For a fast-curing, firm rubber mold, use one part silicone to two parts cornstarch—squeeze the silicone into a cup, shake the cornstarch into two similar cups, then pour everything into a larger container and mix thoroughly with your plastic spoon, knife or Popsicle stick. It might seem that there is too much starch for the silicone, but keep mixing and cutting through it and eventually it will all absorb and you'll have a sticky, wet paste. You can also mix this by hand right on your work surface, like kneading pizza dough. Wear gloves. Keep a small dish with cornstarch nearby for dipping, and the silicone won't stick to your gloves. This mixture only takes a couple minutes to start getting hard, so be prepared to work quickly.

For a runnier batch of silicone, use the reverse ratio (two or more parts silicone, one part cornstarch) and add in one part distilled water. This mix will flow over details easier and minimizes troubling air pockets, but will take longer to cure—possibly a lot longer.

 4. Mold a toy. For the Storm Trooper, place a layer of the silicone mix on the bottom of the plastic container, thick enough to cover the front half of the figure. While still supple, carefully but firmly press the oiled figure into the silicone. The goal is to get all of the figure's details surrounded and covered, without gaps or air pockets. But make sure you don't push it all the way through. Get an even level of silicone around all sides, as close to the halfway point as possible, without any parts fully covered. This will make extraction easier.

While still hardening, use the edge of the Popsicle stick to press a 1/8-inch deep impression around the figure, tracing its details but not touching it. This will be the key that will help keep the top of the mold perfectly aligned, and will also act as a gasket to keep water from squeezing out or having excess ice flashing where the two halves meet.

For the baby head: start by lubing it well with oil (which might be the creepiest thing you'll ever do). Then goop a thin silicone coating onto the entire exterior of the head up to the neckline, making sure the details are perfectly coated. Pour the silicone into the bottom of your plastic container, then push the coated baby head into the silicone, adding more to fill up the container as needed. There is potential for large air bubbles to get trapped inside the silicone during this part, which will cause undesirable voids, so be careful to pour and mix it in smoothly. Allow the neck to remain exposed and set this aside to firm up.

 5. Wait. For the thicker silicone/cornstarch mix, this should be firm in about 30 minutes. For the thinner mixture, it took about five days to reach the right firmness.

6. Make a mold top. (This is for the two-part mold only.) Once the front half of the mold feels solid, give everything another coat of nonstick spray. Forget to do this and you'll probably never get your toy out from the two halves. Mix up another batch of one-to-two silicone/cornstarch, and working quickly, press the mix firmly into the container, working from one end towards the other to surround the figure while avoiding pesky air pockets (use those cornstarch-powdered gloves for this, or spritz them with oil). Allow the sprue and any toothpicks for air holes to remain exposed, and if you're picky about things, use the back of the plastic spoon (lubed with oil) to smooth the top of the silicone as it cures. Bonus points if you slope the silicone inwards towards the sprue and air vents.

 7. Remove the original. The hardened silicone will have the tendency to stick to the container. You'll have to start working it loose—a few spritzes of canola oil between the plastic and silicone (spread apart with an oiled Popsicle stick) helps things drastically. If you made your own box out of legos or wood, simply disassemble it.

Take out the object you are molding and inspect the inside of both sides of the molds. No air pockets or voids? Keyed gasket filled in? Holds together nicely when put back together? Good job.

For the stretchier, one-part baby head mold, press around the silicone to find the thickest area. Then, from the neckline, carefully cut a line towards that side. Get a sense for how far you'll have to cut to remove the head without tearing the mold. Some spritzed canola oil helps with the release. Looking back, I could have probably made a smaller cut for mine.

You should now have a mold with an inverted duplicate of your toy.

8. Freeze stuff. Clean your mold with warm soapy water, just to be safe. Close the mold and wrap some tape or rubber bands around it to keep it sealed, but not so tight that the rubber distorts. For the opening on the mold for the baby's head, a few pieces of tape were placed to seal the rubber.

Fold a long piece of duct tape onto itself and place under the mold, extending outwards. Stick this into the same container used to make the mold. The container will help make sure the mold maintains its shape, and the duct tape will act as a handle to help remove it when taking it out of the freezer.

 Carefully pour water into the sprue and let it flow up until you see it start to peek out of the air holes. This is where the sloped exterior comes in handy, keeping any spills from getting all over the outside of the mold.
Carefully put this in your freezer, and wait a few hours. The insulating silicone rubber makes it to take longer to freeze, but also helps get a clearer piece of ice. Small pieces like the Storm Trooper take about three hours; the baby's head took twelve hours and still had some liquid on the inside.

9. Party. Put your creation in your favorite libation and feel the incredible freedom of never having to cool your drink with cube-shaped ice again.

Don't have time to make your own? You can get one of these, custom-made, by me, in my online store.