A mother-of-three has revealed she spent more than $20,000 on reborn dolls, even though her friends find her “boring”.
Kam, an office manager, started her collection in December 2020 after her daughters requested dolls from Santa Claus.
The Florida native had never heard of reborn babies before, but upon Googling, she was immediately drawn to their unique appearance and reality.
Since then, her obsession has seen her collect 18 dolls and spend $20,000 in the past three years.
A mother-of-three has revealed she spent more than $20,000 on reborn dolls, even though her friends find her “boring”.
Kam, an office manager from Florida, started her collection in December 2020 after her daughters requested dolls from Santa Claus
“They (the girls) love the dolls as much as I do and my youngest, who is three, likes me to take pictures holding them. It’s another way for us all to bond together,” Kam said
“I was fascinated with them from start to finish, each rebirth is truly a work of art,” said Kam.
“They are an art form that brings me pleasure just as works of art do for many people.
“Collecting high-end art dolls is no different than collecting paintings or sculptures to display at home.
“While I don’t display my dolls in this way, I get a lot out of posing them and photographing them.
“Another reason I like them so much is because I can share this hobby with my daughters.
“They love the dolls as much as I do, and my youngest, who is three, likes to take pictures of me holding them. It’s another way for us all to connect together.
“I love this hobby because I have met some of the best people in my almost three years of collecting.
“These are people I’ve mostly never met in person, but who have proven to be truly amazing, thoughtful, caring and selfless people.”
“Collecting high-end art dolls is no different than collecting paintings or sculptures to display at home.” Pictured is Kami holding a ‘sleeping’ doll
Kam said she didn’t hug her dolls, but dressed them in different outfits and posed for them.
Kam sees her reborn dolls as a collection rather than family and is very careful with them every day.
‘I don’t hug my dolls. I dress them up in different clothes and pose them so they look like a real baby, but I don’t treat them like real babies,” she said.
“But, in general, they are part of an art collection. I like them and I have a connection with them, but I don’t think I have an emotional connection with them most of the time.’
The office manager buys most of her babies from Rosana Ritacco, an artist from Brazil, and now has 18 in her possession. The artist has 199,000 followers on Instagram.
“These dolls are really, really expensive if you want the ones that look more realistic,” Kam explained.
‘Full body silicone dolls are even more expensive. I don’t have any of those, mine are all vinyl.
“I have 18 two-way, but I’ve had up to 30 dolls at one time.”
However, not all of her friends and family support her hobby.
She buys most of her babies from Rosana Ritacco, an artist from Brazil, and now has 18 in her possession. The artist has 199,000 followers on Instagram
“These dolls are really, really expensive. Full body silicone dolls are even more expensive. I don’t have any of these, mine are all vinyl,” Kam added
“I got different reactions from everyone. “My daughters, of course, love my dolls and my husband, lovingly, thinks I’m stupid,” she said.
“My mom thinks dolls are great for art. My dad doesn’t really care one way or the other.
One of my sisters thinks it’s a huge waste of money, while another says “to each their own”.
“Some of my friends are completely obsessed with dolls in general.
“I think most people don’t understand, but they also respect me, so they don’t give me a hard time about it.”
However, these mixed reactions did not stop her from continuing her hobby as she intended to continue buying dolls.
“There are so many wonderful people I’ve met over these past three years,” Kam said.
“However, there are a lot of people who are super negative, super judgmental and honest.
“They thrive on this negativity and they’re so right that they really believe they can do whatever they want – those people make this hobby, toxic.
“Some of my friends are completely obsessed with dolls in general. “I think most people don’t understand, but they also respect me, so they don’t give me a hard time about it,” Kam said.
“I have only taken my dolls out in public twice. Everyone was amazed at how realistic the doll was. Most thought it was a real baby at first. It was fun,” she added
“I try to stay away from drama as much as possible, my self-esteem does not depend on this hobby.”
Although Kam has had some negative responses, she also receives positive ones when she goes out in public.
“I have only taken my dolls out in public twice. Everyone was amazed at how realistic the doll was,” she recalls.
“Most people thought he was a real kid at first. That was fun. The next time was when I met a doll friend in a small cafe.
‘There weren’t many people there. I don’t think we look weird.’
Encouraging people to join this unusual hobby, Kam advised them to always do their research.
“Know that these dolls are expensive and the more realistic, the more it costs,” she said.
Know that it is a very addictive hobby. It’s so easy to get a doll thinking that’s all you’ll ever have and then turn 50.
“It sounds exaggerated, but it happens all the time.”
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