What are Reborns?
The craft of making reborn dolls began in the United States in the late 1990s. A reborn doll is a manufactured vinyl doll or doll kit that has been transformed to resemble a human baby with as much realism as possible. The process of creating a reborn doll is referred to as reborning.
In the beginning, regular children's dolls were bought, taken apart and the paint stripped. These were then repainted and had hand rooted hair applied taking these dolls from a child's play toy to a collectors delight. Dolls such as Berenguer, Zapf, and Ashton Drake were some of the doll brands that were originally used.
As more reborn artist came into the industry, sculptors and manufacturers started producing blank unpainted vinyl kits. New products, paints and techniques were and are constantly being introduced and improved and the dolls are becoming more and more realistic,
The process of creating one of these babies is time consuming but very rewarding. Most artist use heat set paints which are applied in many thin layers and cooked into the vinyl to create a permanent finish. Once the painting is completed, the artist may then hand root mohair or human hair one strand at a time for the babies hair and lashes.
Every baby that is created is individual and one of a kind. No two artist will produce a doll that looks the same even if it is the same sculpt and they have learned their technique from the same teacher. It is impossible for even the same artist to re-created an exact replica of their own original work.
Reborn doll kits are either mass produced or are limited editions so though your doll sculpt may not be one of a kind, once the artist's hand has been applied to the kit, it becomes an original and unique OOAK work of art.
That is the beauty of this art form and guarantees the absolute fact that your reborn is indeed a One Of A Kind. Hand painted heirloom collectible.
