by FM Lepore

Created on: July 27, 2008   Last Updated: November 25, 2008

I came upon her at an antique doll show; she was exquisite, her porcelain face as delicate as orchid petals. Her eyes were truly a window to her soul, magnificent glass jewels as blue as the sky and as vivid as a Pollack painting. Her fine features were a testament to the artisan who created her and she was forever preserved in her white lace dress, tiny leather shoes and a brilliant chapeau.

I fell in love with Halopeau bebe that afternoon, but not so in love with the price tag. The small fortune being asked to acquire the prize was equivalent to a down payment on a home. The question wasn't so much what dolls should I collect as much as what dolls could I afford to collect.

As with any collection, especially doll collections, price, condition, artist, age and scarcity matter. An "H" mold doll is considered vary rare, a unique find for anyone. But you need money, lots of money. So, when people ask me "what dolls should they collect?" I simply ask them "what dolls can they afford to collect?".

I started my collection twenty years ago with a "Picture Perfect Baby" dressed in what appeared to be a clown suit; a little cherub of a doll named Jason. I was drawn to him because his smile lifted my soul and quite simply, he made me smile and happy. I decided to pluck down the forty or so dollars to acquire my new little friend. I didn't care about the cost as much as I cared about bringing him home and placing him on my bedroom mantel. Soon enough I found myself collecting siblings for Jason. Heather, Jennifer, Mathew, Michael, Jessica, Danielle and others all found comfortable spots in my home. Some adorned the bedroom shelves, others preserved in glass cases and one or two "Babies" in my dining room curio. My family lamented that I could put the money to better use instead of spending it on dolls, after all, these dolls were not "prized" antiques. Not soon after I proved some of my relatives wrong.

Darling Jason soon became quite an investment and not that I ever considered him or his "siblings" an investment. I initially purchased them because I found them so life like, they resembled children that I knew and I reveled in the reaction they received when people came to my home to admire them. And there were other babies just like them that I acquired, not because they were considered an investment, but simply because I found them interesting to look at.

I was able to parlay most of my Picture Perfect Babies' collection into a tidy sum; which was used to acquire one antique

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>