Doll News Summer 2018 - 15

interested." To her, they seemed alien and disproportioned
compared to the antique and artist dolls she was familiar
with. She acquired her ﬁrst BJD through a trade. The
body felt familiar, not unlike the jointed bodies of the
antique dolls. Connie decided to "play with it" by trying
her hand at painting the face and costuming the doll and
was amazed at the difference mere painting and antique
costuming made. She continued designing costumes for
her new doll using antique fabrics, like the costumes she
marketed for antique dolls but with a 'twist'. For example,
she could place a corset on the outside of the costume and
show the panniers.
There were no rules - Connie was truly inspired. She
launched a marketing campaign, selling her 'customized'
dolls by using other sculpts, such as "Dollstown Dolls"
from Korea. She designed shoes, styled and dyed wigs.
Attention to detail became her passion. Eager to sculpt her
own creations, she tried several types of clays. Ultimately,
the feel of paper/stone clay won her over. It would take
several years before she felt conﬁdent enough to produce
her own sculpts, the ﬁrst two being "Winona" and "Eppie."
Their success was astonishing, and she has since produced
many sculpts in limited editions of approximately onehundred each. Nowadays, Connie can be found at doll
and BJD artisan shows all over the country, as well as
throughout Europe, displaying and selling her unique
creations. Stella is fortunate to have a friend like Connie,
for she gets to accompany her on her many travels. From
the ﬁrst time Stella had eyes to see, she has been observing
art and beauty everywhere. Connie shares a glimpse of
how Stella came about and what inspired her most about
bringing this child-like doll into her life. It's a story of art,
passion and love for dolls, not too different from what
motivated the creation of ball-jointed dolls of long ago.
BJDs have captured the imagination of many doll artists
from Robert Tonner and Helen Kish to Pat Moulton, as well
as many new young artists and doll collectors of all ages
and interests. For mature collectors, BJDs provide a chance
to have fun and 'play dolls,' collecting clothing and wigs
to customize their dolls. They are meant to be customized
by adjusting "face-ups" (facial make-up), exchanging eyes,
wigs and changing the clothes. They have joints at the
ankle, knee, hip, wrist, elbow, shoulder, neck and many
have one or more joints in the torso. There are several with
additional joints in the upper arm and the upper thigh to
increase the doll's ability to pose. The basics of the ball
joints are variations of the joints that have been used for
hundreds of years in doll making. This makes them very
poseable and often able to stand on their own. They are
made of resin and are quite heavy for their size. The styles
and types are now as widely varied as the doll world itself.

The process continues with the assembling of Stella's body.

Stella's legs are in the 'jointing' process.

Stella is nearly created - or 'born.'
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Doll News Summer 2018