I'm sure this won't be a surprise to any of you, but back in 2007 I fell in love with Blythe Dolls. After all she is an adorable and irresistible doll. At least she is as far as I'm concerned.
If you haven't heard of Blythe dolls or know what she is she's an 11" fashion doll that is collected by thousands of young girls and woman all over the world.
According to her Wikipedia page: Blythe is a fashion doll, about 28 cm (11 inch) tall, with an over-sized head and large eyes that change color with the pull of a string. It was created in 1972 and was initially only sold for one year in the United States by toy company Kenner (later purchased by Hasbro). In 2000 the photo book This is Blythe was published and in 2001 the Japanese toy company Takara began producing new editions of Blythe dolls. There is a network of hobbyists who customize the doll for resale and create clothing and shoes for Blythe. Enthusiasts share photographs of their work and other types of dolls on the Internet.
So, when I came across two books of pictures of Blythe dolls back in 2007 I simply had to buy them.
In any event these are the two Blythe's books that I bought back in 2007 and which I have read many times. If you are a Blythe enthusiast I have to tell you they are fabulous.
It is a visually stunning presentation for all the Blythe lovers out there and definitely a book that the lovers of Blythe will adore. I have to say that Blythe did a fabulous job modeling all of these outfits. She may be a doll, but that doesn't make her any less of a fashion diva!
I absolutely love this book.
This is Blythe is a small book of photographs taken by Gina Garan of Blythe. In this book Gina has taken some of the most delightful and whimsical photographs of Blythe in various positions, locations, and with different outfits on.
She may be at the beach, gazing out over a lake, in front of the Eiffel Tower, catching her own reflection in a mirror, dressed as a nun, adorned with various hats, sitting on Santa's lap, with her head showing in a pile of oranges, using a video camera, playing with a Ouija board, in camouflage, etc. She is just about anywhere and all the pictures are just delightful.
Now you might be surprised by this but I haven't bought a Blythe doll yet. It's on my bucket list of all doll related wishes and you can be sure that when I do I will be designing my own clothes for her. Perhaps I'll create some Victorian dresses for her. Now - why would that be?
I have loved Victorian dolls since I was a little girl and can blame my grandmother for that. You see, as a young girl she gave me a Godey’s Fashion print for August 1870 that belonged to my great, great Aunt Flossie. From that moment on I was hooked. I was captivated by the beautiful dresses and wanted to create dolls wearing them.
As far as I am concerned "Beauty lies not only in what is seen, but what is imagined. I believe the essence of a dolls beauty should determine her personality."
I have also been a history buff since I was a little girl and loved doing research for history projects all throughout my school years. I especially loved to research everything and anything about the Victorian Era. Their history, their etiquette, their fashion, their hopes, their desires.... In fact, sometimes I think I was born in the wrong era.
I figured that there had to be a history of handmade faceless dolls out there or, at least, some cultures and norms. Believe it or not but there wasn't a lot of information back in 2006 on the web on either the history of faceless dolls or cultures and norms that started such a tradition. There was a little more when I updated my research in 2009.
I was hoping that now, in 2015, things would have changed a little and there would be more information on their history. I'm happy to report that there is a lot more now and that over the last few years there is a growing trend towards creating faceless dolls in all sorts of doll mediums - which thrills me to no end.
Back in 2006 one of those articles was about "faceless" dolls of Gloria Larocque. She has created 100 or more "faceless" dolls based upon the Iroquois legend that warns young girls about the dangers of vanity.
The faceless dolls in the picture to the left are part of the 
Members of a Kiwanis Club in Arizona make "faceless" therapy dolls for sick and injured children at a local medical center.
As far as Raggedy Ann is concerned, one of the legends surrounding her creation is that a little girl was rummaging around her Grandmother's attic and finds a faceless, battered old doll. She brings the doll into her fathers art studio and tells him all about finding it in the attic. He looks at his daughter and the faceless doll and decides to draw a whimsical face on it and then tells her to see if her Grandmother would sew two button eyes on. And so Raggedy Ann was born.
The 7 faceless dolls include: Jumping Jack who is a wooden bead doll, Timelines which is a textile figure doll, Statuesque and Painted Lady which are four-sided paper dolls, Angelica and Angel Choir who are wooden doll peg painted angels, Wired Woman which is a bended wire doll, Heart Of Glass which is the beaded doll shown in the picture to the left, Man Of Dreams and Woman of Soul which are four-sided paper dolls, and Button Up which is a wood bead and button doll. Templates, if required, are included in the book but would need to be re-sized as they are shown at 67% of their size.
I love angels and all the beauty, goodness, and protection they represent and especially love, guardian angels whose job it is to protect you, groups of people, even the world.
Faceless dolls can be made in just about any medium - including paper.
Out of the 50 projects in the book 26 are for creating "faceless" paper origami art dolls. Full-color photographs and black-and-white diagrams with detailed instructions will show you how.
I also love the7 different designs for the Bridal Party doll creations, the Anne of Green Gables (like the doll shown in the picture to the left from the front cover of the book), and the 8 different Asian Folk Dolls.
For her playscape according to Karen, "My original idea was to create a little scene in which small figures could interact in a variety of ways and in a variety of places. I also wanted to create a "location" to which children could add their own personal touches such as housewares, furniture, animals, gardening tools or different garden crops, or a fishing rod."
"But to give peg people a little extra personality, a little extra zing if you will, they might need a wee bit more than paint. Shaping peg people (as I have discovered after creating 10 of them) gives them a little more personality. Children have marvelous imaginations and certainly do not require the level of detail I have given my creations, but I enjoy making them. Plus in the past, our students did seem to especially enjoy playing with toys they knew I had created with our class in mind."
If you would like to see and read her 
Doll artist Tanya Montegut of “Dolls by MonTQ” sells the "faceless" art dolls shown in the pictures to the left and below right.
"The first thing you noticed was that her dolls had no facial features, reminding me of the Lime dolls of the Dominican Republic that I own. She allows folks – in their own heads – to put their own faces on the dolls, making them into the image of a sister, aunt, mother or other relative. An interesting concept, I thought."
Doll artist Regina Dale of "T.A.S.T.E." also creates faceless art dolls, like those shown in the picture to the left and below right.
In her Queenhealer 7 Etsy shop announcement she stated, "My dolls were created to give honor and thanks to our ancestors who came before us and made the foundation on which I stand. I am over joyed with the responses of the global community. You all empower me !! Thank you for your many blessings and encouraging words. Surly, my dolls will serve the purpose of healing for who ever possess it!"
Sarah of Bloomooks designs couture cloth art dolls, some faceless (like those shown in the pictures to the right and left) and some with faces.
According to her 
Sometimes I see "faceless" art doll creations that just take my breath away. Such was the case when I saw pictures of the amazingly beautiful "faceless" art dolls by Joy A. (MacLeod) Kirkwood.
According to Joy, "I am a lifelong learner with a ‘can do’ attitude, innovative problem solving skills, and an appreciation for collaborative projects. "
Her artist statement: “Each poetic, enigmatic figure created is an expression of a feeling or idea rather than a lifelike portrayal of a human and is formed intuitively; playfully. My intent is to fuse my creative imagination with my artistic skills to enchant both adult and child alike.”