The Creator of Reborn Babies

When Cathy Brady was a young girl she didn’t really own many dolls. But for the past 16 years the East Maitland woman has literally been surrounded by them after embarking on a chance career as a reborn baby doll artist.

For those who have never come across them before, “reborn” babies are soft vinyl dolls, which have been transformed by a doll artist to look like a real baby.

Perfect to the last detail – including tiny veins, mottled skin and even a touch of glistening saliva around the mouth – you would be hard pressed at first glance to pick the difference between a living baby and a high quality reborn doll.

With a long and successful career as a portrait artist behind her, it is little wonder the dolls created in Cathy’s home studio are so incredibly lifelike.

“That’s my portrait background (the realism of the dolls) and I think what drew me to them in the first place is that I could really enjoy painting these from a portrait artist’s point of view,” she said.

Story and Images Michelle Meehan.