If you’re a follower of the Today Show, 20/20, Dr. Phil or any other major talk or news show I am sure you have seen reborns. The life like dolls that owners and collectors treat like babies have been getting huge amounts of media attention as they gain world wide popularity. As more collectors begin purchasing reborn baby boy and girl dolls the more the world is getting to see these unique creations.
The fad of super life like baby dolls started in the United States in the early 1990s. The unique nature of the dolls and their extreme realism has helped increase their popularity around the globe. People from all walks of life, and for a variety of reasons are now buying and enjoying the dolls.
Reborn baby boy and girl dolls get their name from the process that creates them. A regular doll is taken, stripped down to it’s barest essentials and built into a new doll layer by layer. A wide variety of paints, materials and techniques are used to bring the doll back to life in the more real form possible. Hence, the doll has been reborn into a new doll.
The dolls are extremely unique and life like, which causes a lot of attention to be given to them. In some instances it is almost impossible to tell the difference between a new born and real baby until you within inches. Some dolls are even equipped with machines that simulate breathing and heart beats!
The dolls can also be very rare. Artists from around the globe work on one doll at a time, sometimes pouring hundreds of hours of effort into a single piece of work. Their unique work and high level of craftsmanship have created a market where quality dolls can go for as much as $5000.
Despite the realism and the rarity, most media attention on the dolls is centered on the treatment of them by their owners. Reborn baby boy and girl dolls are treated like real infants by many of their owners. They are dressed, pampered and spoken to as though they were real babies. Many take them out in bassinets or on shopping trips in car seats.
Many who buy the dolls and treat them like this are doing to fill an emotional void. They have lost a child during childbirth or as an infant. To deal with the feelings of grief and the built up motherly emotional energy they purchase these dolls. Some older women purchase the dolls to fill the void that an empty house causes. Other professional women, who feel motherly impulses but do not have the time or inclination to start a family enjoy the dolls as well.
Many people find this weird or creepy. They see childless women fawning over and pampering fake babies and think that there must be something wrong with them. Just like any other hobby overindulgence or placing too much importance on the babies could lead to problems, but owning and treating the dolls like a child poses no serious risk. Many doctors and mental health professionals encourage the use of reborn baby boy and girl dolls to help grieving women get through their issues.
