ALPINE — Cheri Maude never wanted to make dolls nobody could play with.
She wanted to create something of value, dolls that were more than just beautiful — yet collectible.
In that spirit, she's created the Ginger Brook Hollow line that includes storybooks about seven orphan girls and a grandma, matching dolls, their clothes and accessories.
"I didn't want to create something that was only beautiful and would sit on the shelf collecting dust," Maude said. "If I was going to be committed enough to make this dream happen, there had to be a purpose for what I did. This had to be something that I could put my heart and soul into so that when I held it out to someone, I was handing them something of value. Creating Ginger Brook Hollow has taken everything I have ever learned and every hobby, skill and talent I have explored or developed."
The first story, "Where Love's Circle Begins," is a story about dreams, love and sacrifice.
When the story was finished, the characters had been born, and the work of finding just the right sculptor and factory to help bring these characters to life began. With 50 years of experience as a sculptor, Erasmo Fuentes from Mapleton ended up being just the right person for the job. Cheri required that except for the twins, Johannah and Suzannah, each face be a different sculpt, something that is unusual in the doll world except with expensive limited edition artist dolls. Once Fuentes had put the personality of all seven girls in clay, Maude had to find the right factory to produce her dolls in beautiful, hand-painted vinyl with nine joints that can be posed.
"I feel that although our dolls are pretty, they are more than just dolls," she said. "Everyone seems to associate dolls with little girls. I wanted to create something that was high enough quality that adults would want it and yet playable and fun enough that older girls would also enjoy it. I wanted something that could provide a common interest and help build relationships between mothers, daughters, grandmothers, sisters and friends."
Each orphan girl's doll replica has been sculpted to have distinctive facial characteristics that project that girl's "personality."
The dolls are named Louisa, Kathryn, Meg, April, Suzannah, Johannah and Emmaline, names popular during the Victorian era.
"I see this as a gentle place to escape from the rushed and hectic lifestyle of today and also a period perfect for sharing something between generations. The grace and beauty of the Victorian era fits with dolls in a way that enables them to become timeless more than if I had chosen another time," said Maude.
Maude had experience as a teacher, mother, author and collector division expert for a doll company. She spent a year planning and researching the details that made it possible to open her own company and develop the line.
"I made my dolls as 10-year-olds because that is the age when children become so capable and independent that they can be easily forgotten or looked over. There is very little on the market for girls this age. Although I would hope there is something in our doll line for every age, my greatest wish is that moms or grandmas will take the time to enjoy these dolls with girls 9 and older who are ready to move up from the world of play dolls and learn skills such as story writing, history, cooking, sewing, memory keeping, hair styling, creativity and learning to work with others," she said.
"Stories have always been one of my loves, and I learned to love dolls as an adult because of the interactions they enabled," Maude said. "Ginger Brook Hollow is very much influenced by my childhood and the fact that I had a loving home with caring parents. I had two widowed grandmothers who serve as role models for Grandma Sunday. We were never wealthy but very rich in all the things that mattered most."
If you go:
What: tea party
Where: Alpine Arts Center, 450 S. Alpine Highway, Alpine
When: 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., Saturday, April 29
Cost: $7.50 per person (includes lunch, reservations required)
Phone: 756-5353
Web: www.gingerbrookhollow.com
E-mail: haddoc@desnews.com