Asian Ball-Jointed Dolls Prepare for the Big Day.
By Mercy Neumark
Love is in the air and on the breeze is the sound of wedding bells. Even our Asian ball-jointed dolls have been actively planning for LeAnne Russell designed a wedding gown of black satin with a sheer chiffon underskirt. The cape is made of the same black satin and lined with sheer chiffon. The back has intricate corset lacing.
LeAnne’s inspiration came from a similar dress she made with gathered sides. “I liked the way the dress looked, and the gathers in the front reminded me of those seen on a lot of Victorian-era dresses,” she explains. “When I was making the dress, I realized it had to have an underskirt, and the sheer chiffon seemed perfect with its silver stars. It needed a dramatic yet subtle presentation. I love making beautiful things of beautiful fabric.
In the past, brides simply wore their best dress. White was not a common wedding color. It came into vogue after Queen
Victoria
married in white. Thus, I felt that a black wedding dress would not be inappropriate, just unusual,” says LeAnne.
If you think women are the only ones who get dressed up, think again! Asian ball-jointed dolls have some of the most authentic men’s suits available for special occasions. Volks Inc. has created a number of suits and tuxedos detailed with tiny buttons, small folded cuffs, and matching ties.
Several companies have made limited-edition dolls in specific wedding-themed clothing, including Narin Dolls, Custom House, and Dream of Doll.
Because Asian ball-jointed dolls are so customizable, a collector is confined only by the limits of the imagination. Many costumers and designers have created fantastic one-of-a-kind sets commonly for the 22-inch to 24-inch dolls. Sarah McNeal (“Batchix”) created the 24-inch wedding gown shown on Narae.
Sarah explains that the dress is “made from a vintage linen alter cloth and a vintage fringed scarf. All the laces used are remnants or salvaged from otherwise unwearable vintage clothing. The rhinestone trim on the gloves was picked up by my mother in
Korea
while visiting my aunt last summer.
I wanted to make something poofy, big, and sort of fantasy looking, but also easy to get on and off,” Sarah says. “The sleeves, gloves, corset, skirt, and petticoat are all separate pieces.”
Amy Malcom of Softly She Walks, another designer for ball-jointed dolls, looks at designing wedding dresses another way. "The dress is sculpture,” Amy says of her design. “It is an exquisite collage of textures, and minutely gathered fronds of silk chiffon, tulle, taffeta, and satin are layered into a cascading floor-length skirt. Layers are detailed with seemingly random scatterings of tiny silver charms, miniature safety pins, and fine loops of silver chain.” To Amy, the use of various fabrics “builds” the dress.
She continues to explain of her design, “The silk charmeuse bodice plunges deeply in the back into crisscrossed silk ribbon lacing, framing the delicate curve of an arched back.”
Amy explained that her inspiration came from the notion that wedding gowns are the ultimate challenge for a designer. To Amy, this is “the chance to go all out on something that is very symbolic.”
There are plenty of ways to fulfill those wedding-day fantasies. You can design your own gown, buy a limited doll dressed for the occasion, or purchase a limited costume by a designer. But if the sound of wedding bells on the breeze stirs you to create your own Asian ball-jointed dolls wedding event, your doll is already one articulated step closer to walking down that aisle.
June/July 2006: Issue Sold Out
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