Modern Designer Dolls
Extremely beautiful, lifelike and highly expensive dolls, made from porcelain or vinyl in limited editions - or even 'one of a kind' - can be purchased. These special, collectors dolls are made by such designers as Lee Middlet on, Jan McClean, Heidi Ott, Annette Himstedt and Helen Kish, and many are intended especially for adult collectors. Some of them are as expensive as buying an antique doll, but many are incredibly, almost uncannily, realistic. Click on the thumbnail of the doll to get a bigger picture. None of the dolls shown are for sale.

	Here is a cute doll by the American company, Lee Middleton, called 'Young At Heart'. As with all Lee Middleton dolls, she is beautifully dressed - this one wears a full-skirted white tulle dress trimmed with pink satin ribbon and hearts. She is made of top-quality materials, and is quite heavy. This one is a toddler. She is a limited edition and is 21" tall. All Lee Middleton dolls come with a small Bible.

	Another gorgeous creation from Lee Middleton. This one is 'Our Pride and Joy' and is the same height as the previous doll. Two versions of this doll were available, this the fair-haired version, and she was also available as a darker-skin/hair doll. She is dressed in a tiered dress of white broderie anglais, trimmed with a purple corsage to match the flowers in her hair.

	Look at the amazing auburn curls on this Lee Middleton doll called 'Happy Birthday Teddy', issued in 2002 to celebrate the centenary of the teddy bear. She wears a pretty white dress trimmed with a delicate pink bow. Her eyes are a beautiful shade of green. This is another 21" toddler.

	The German company of Zapf have produced many excellent designer dolls, but sadly, they recently announced that they would be concentrating on playdolls, such as the popular Baby Born, from 2004. This is Anna, a winsome little girl, looking a mite unsure of herself. Designed by Sieglinde Friske Anna stands 19" tall, with brown hair and lustrous brown eyes. She wears a fluffy black and white jumper, black dungarees and red and black striped socks. Her black lace-up shoes are sturd y and strong.

	Marie is a pretty blonde toddler wearing a fleecy pink suit over a lemon jumper, designed for Zapf by Bettine Klemm. She wears hand-made suede-soled boots and carries her own soft teddy. She is 22 inches tall and was made in 2001.

	This is Natassia, by Heidi Ott, from her 'Little Ones' series. Natassia is just 12" high and wears a pretty smocked dress of bottle-green velvet, with white pantalettes and black patent shoes. Her long blonde wig is made of human hair.

	Tia is a Helen Kish creation, one of a limited edition of only 750. Made of heavy vinyl, the sculpturing of her body and limbs is exquisite, especially the graceful modelling of the hands and fingers which assume exactly the pose of those of a ballet dancer. Tia is 16" tall, and wears a turquoise leotard, white skirt, white tights and white ballet shoes tied with turquoise ribbons. The designer, Helen Kish, has been modelling dolls for over twenty years and has won many awards in the USA.

	This little dark beauty is Kira, made by Helen Kish. Helen Kish dolls are 'designer dolls', and Kira is a limited edition, no 250 out of 750. She was made in 1997 and is 12" tall. As you can see, she is dressed ready for her ballet class in a white leotard and tights, a turquoise tutu and white ballet shoes tied with turquoise ribbons. Kira's lovely thick dark curls are tied with ribbons.

	Another Helen Kish creation, this is Spring from the Four Seasons collection, produced in 2003. Spring is dressed in a delightful ballet outfit of long swirly pale green skirt, embroidered bodice and pink ballet pumps. The painting of her face, especially the eyes, is particularly impressive.

Modern Budget Porcelain Dolls
Nowadays shops are full of modern porcelain dolls. Some are better than others, but many are very attractive. It's debatable whether they are strictly 'dolls' as they are always marked 'unsuitable for children', and so aren't intended to be played with. Prices of these porcelain dolls usually start at around £5, so an attractive collection can quickly be assembled. Manufacturers include Alberon, Knightsbridge, Leonardo and House of Valentina.

	This pretty little poppet is Sugar Plum, a modern designer doll issued by the Ashton-Drake Galleries, based on their earlier porcelain edition. Sugar Plum is vinyl, but made from such a heavyweight, quality vinyl, that unless you look closely, you would think she was bisque porcelain. This baby ballerina, hands trying to form a graceful pose, must be one of the prettiest modern dolls around.

	Snow Maiden is from the Leonardo collection. Dressed in a cream fine wool dress trimmed with royal blue cotton and beige lace, and with a matching cheeky pillbox hat, this is a gorgeous doll. The colouring of her face is very delicate, and her sweet smile and big brown eyes, make this a favourite in our collection. She is based on a painting of a little girl in the snow - and the painting is printed on the lid of the sturdy box.

All pictures and text © Susan Brewer 2004. Virtual Valley Graphics logo and all site design and content © Simon Brewer 2004