I gave up sales job to design unusual items – it means my home is ‘creepy’ but each one makes me £600

Credit: Collect/PA Real Life A SCOTS mum gave up her job in sales to make unusual items which are sought after across the world. Gayle Macdonald, 54, from Glasgow, was working in an office and going through a divorce back in 2014 when she wanted to buy her daughter a doll. Gayle became fascinated by the lifelike dolls Credit: Collect/PA Real Life She spends around three weeks crafting the unusual items Credit: Collect/PA Real Life During her search, she discovered reborn dolls – handcrafted, painted and weighted to closely resemble real babies – and became “fascinated” by them. After seeing some sell for as much as £800, she taught herself to paint them and began selling them. Sign up for the Fabulous newsletter Thank you! Now she creates the incredibly detailed items – which are complete with veins, wrinkles and even the smell of baby powder and which “bring comfort and ease anxiety” to everyone from collectors to bereaved parents and empty nesters. She has since left her job in sales and spends three weeks crafting each custom made doll, selling them for around £550. While some customers commission dolls based on photographs of loved ones, others buy them simply to admire the artistry and realism. Gayle, mum to Ross, 21, and Amber, 17, said: “There are baby parts all over my kitchen – heads and limbs everywhere, which is a bit creepy if you don’t know what I do! “The reborns feel very lifelike to cuddle and can bring people comfort or help ease anxiety. “I think it’s quite common for people to buy them for that reason. Most read in Fabulous “I have people in their 70s buy them and have repeat customers that are only 17 and 18.” When she started out, Gayle “fell in love” with the process of making the dolls and, as a single mum, found the flexibility of caring for her children during the day and working at night “ideal”. Gayle buys blank vinyl kits from an authorised dealer in Canada and each kit provides the base doll, which she then paints by hand over two weeks. She creates dolls ranging from newborn babies to 24-inch toddlers. Gayle said there are doll parts all round her house Credit: Collect/PA Real Life She often gets commissions with photos to copy Credit: Collect/PA Real Life Gayle explained: “I start by painting the doll a neutral colour, then paint on tiny veins and add shading where the skin would naturally be thinner. “I build up different undertones – I might do a brown mottled layer, then a purple layer, then a green layer, followed by a skin-coloured layer. “I then add warmth, creases and blush and paint the nails, eyes and eyebrows. It takes me around two hours just to paint the eyebrows. “I varnish the doll using a specialist varnish from America that dries with a texture to look like skin, before curing it in a special oven.” The painting process takes a fortnight before she spends another week rooting each strand of hair by hand. She added: “I stuff the tummy and weight it to make sure it feels like a real baby and I can put a magnet inside the mouth if someone wants a magnetic dummy.” Gayle sometimes adds scented wafers that smell like baby powder and, when packaging each doll, wraps it in a blanket with a few drops of essential oil and includes a soft toy. The mum said: “I dress the dolls up and love going into baby shops to look at all the new clothes. I think the collectors are the same.” Gayle meticulously paints on veins and eyebrows, among other details Credit: Collect/PA Real Life It takes a week to get the hair right Credit: Collect/PA Real Life Gayle paints the dolls from home and said her house is “constantly” full of dolls, meaning she has never wanted to collect them herself. She said: “It’s a massive worldwide community. Some people buy them to appreciate the art and realism. “Empty nesters are another big group. Their children have grown up and left home, and they miss having them around. “I’ve had people who have miscarried or lost a child, it’s quite rare, but sometimes they send photos. “Some people enjoy role-playing with them. “I think there’s a bit of a misconception that everyone who buys a reborn doll has some sort of issue they need help with, when most people are simply collectors.” She said her family and friends have been “very supportive” since she started the business and strangers are often “so intrigued” by her work. She said: “I just get so much joy from bringing them to life and never want to stop.” To find out more about her dolls, visit: facebook.com/KrystinasKreationsReborns. Comment now