Porcelain dolls - French jumeau reproduction 1998

My first porcelain doll was made in about 1997 at a weekend class at Gore Polytech - I made a modern doll called Shea (she was so big I put the seatbelt on her to take her home in the car!) - I dressed her in a velvet dress (child size 2!) and she sat on an old school chair in the corner of the room.
I do have a photo of her somewhere but will have to track it down; I sold Shea at our garage sale about four years ago to a doll collector who lives in Mataura.

In the late 90's a small cottage on the main road of Mataura became a 'Doll Hospital' where the couple who lived there ran doll-making classes and repaired dolls.  I joined the classes with my dear friend Sandra Black and she made a modern doll while I made a reproduction French doll.

view of undergarments, including the boned corset!

She has been hand-painted and has a full 'porcelain' (composite) body.

I got the authentic old-fashioned style dress pattern from a Canadian doll-pattern company - she has a 'whalebone' corset and a bustle too! I made all her clothes on the sewing machine and by hand.

She is about 40 cm tall.

I was then hooked as have always been a doll girl so returned for the weekly night classes and created three more reproduction dolls.

the bustle!