My dolly journey
I will start with why I want to start my own doll brand, but before that let me share about my dolly journey! So grab your tea or coffee, sit back and relax because this might be a long one. ^____^
I have always been into art, design, fashion and Japanese pop culture for the longest time. Before I became a doll customiser, I was working full time as a fashion illustrator, fine art painter and a motion designer. I was not into doll collecting much before, except a couple of Barbies that I could remember from my childhood and two porcelain dolls from my sister. But I knew that I was always into certain things such as dolls, puppets, the ballet world to Final Fantasy characters that were wonderfully designed by Yoshitaka Amano.
Then I discovered the fun world of Pullip! I was curious. After researching, I stumbled upon Omocha Crush Youtube page. Her reviews are detailed and it is incredibly therapeutic to watch that it made me start collecting on August 2015. I started customising in January 2016 with my lovely sister being my first collector, then Omocha Crush herself! Fast forward later, it slowly transformed into my full time job and I would never imagine that this would be my current life’s path.
Flash back to 2012, I remember one my final graduation projects in art class was to design a character as vinyl toy. I was really excited about this project, I gave her a name, stories that relate to her themes and I also made a doll house. Another project that I had was to create this circus clown puppet. After thinking about it now, it all just make total sense when I connect the dots backwards. It has always been a dream of mine to create my own dolls with themes and stories.
To me, the doll world is not only a place of an escapism but also an environment to connect with other wonderful collectors. I feel a strong community where we can share our deepest concerns that we would probably not share with other people, even to our family or loved ones. On top of that, the letters and messages that I received can sometimes be so touching that they are tearful to read. I knew that there is something very powerful in this doll community. I am also convinced that the doll is a an object where we project our love, insecurities and deepest desire. What can be more joyful than to create them, to brush their soft hair, change their outfits, take their photographs and perhaps share it to the world?
Back to to our doll process, at this moment, we are still at the very beginning of our stage. We are working with the talented Somnia Crawler Doll for the 3D design with plenty of feedback back and forth. Currently the 3D head is done and we can’t wait to create the prototype in a 3D printer studio in London before casting it! Some of you have asked what kind of doll I will be creating. Since I collect mostly 1/6 size big-headed dolls, the answer is a doll that is similar to what I currently own. I really enjoy taking my dolls for travel and I find the size to be manageable (including storing them in our beloved Ikea cabinet!).
We can’t wait to unveil the design to you, we really hope you will like it!