A “Memorial Doll”, “Memory Doll”, or “Mourning Doll” is a wonderful way to help a person cope with the loss of someone dear to them. This idea has been around for a long time. In the Victorian era, Mourning Dolls were wax dolls made in the child’s likeness, with their own hair and clothing. These dolls were displayed during the child’s wake and then laid on top of the grave. It is even documented that sometimes the dolls were taken home, put in the crib and cared for just as a living child. They were made as a coping mechanism to help with grief.
Sometimes, a memory doll is not made for someone who has passed, but as more of a keepsake. Special clothing is used to dress or re-make an outfit for the doll.
In 2021, I had set up a booth at a local festival called Ozark Memories Day. After that I was contacted by one of the ladies on the planning committee and was asked to make a doll of her Mom. What an honor! The customer sent me quite a few photos to get an idea of who her Mom was. She told me she loved to wear her “Signature Blue” outfit. As I studied the photos, I knew the perfect shaped doll would be the Weebee Nelly Doll. I did struggle with the hair a bit. As you can see, her hair had a lot of volume and it was hard to mimic that. You can see the details on the outfit… jewels and glitter glue!! At first I was going to try to reproduce it with embroidery, but decided to use a scrapbook glitter glue called “Stickles”. It was perfect!
I was pleased with how she turned out although the whole process was stressful. I didn’t want the recipient to open the gift and think it was just “a doll”. I hoped that I captured the Mom’s personality and outfit enough that the recognition would be immediate. And…. it was! The customer was so kind to send me a video of the recipient opening it as well as a text she had sent to her sister with a photo. They both knew. She told me there were lots of tears that day as they shared memories. There were also lots of tears the day she picked the doll up. She cried… I cried…. It was so good.
I love the idea of these memorial dolls. Sometimes you just need something to hug. I know that personally, I like to take out my Daddy’s shirt and just hold it in a hug sometimes. It’s comforting and feels like a little part of him is there.
This once-in-a-lifetime custom order was such an honor to be trusted with. And it was such a beautiful story I just had to share.
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