“Don’t call my fake babies ugly”

Meet the woman who looks after more than 50 reborn dolls – with a difference…

Chenza Care is C obsessed with making “reborn” dolls, but hers are even more unusual than most. Each of the fake babies she handcrafts have unique features, such as birthmarks, Down’s syndrome or facial deformities.

And now, Chenza, 23, is selling her creations across the globe. She says she wants to teach the world to embrace differences, and help families who have been affected by disability. Chenza, an admin worker, says, “I know some people find my dolls shocking – but I think they’re beautiful. I’m trying to show that every life is worth celebrating.”

REALISTIC

She adds, “Each one can take up to nine months to make as it’s difficult creating the features. I like my dolls to look as realistic as possible.”

As well as selling dolls on her website, Chenza also has a brood of 50 at home.

She explains, “Each has their own name and personality. I spend at least £200 on designer clothes for each of them – they have Dr. Martens boots and Adidas trainers. Sometimes I take one of my babies out in a stroller, or cuddle them in a blanket.

“My boyfriend, Grant, admits he finds my hobby a bit strange, but he knows that if he loves me, he has to love my babies.”

Chenza, from Toronto, Canada, began making dolls when she was just seven years old. She says, “I loved dolls, so when my mum bought me some modelling clay, I made one.”

Over the years, Chenza would make dolls in her spare time, each one more realistic than the last. “I didn’t tell my friends about my hobby and my parents thought it was creepy,” she remembers.

RAISING AWARENESS

Then, in June 2015, Chenza watched a documentary about conjoined twins. She says, “I couldn’t stop thinking about the twins and how hard it must be to live with such a rare condition. So I decided I’d try to make conjoined twin dolls – it was my way of trying to raise awareness.”

Chenza worked day and night, and completed the unique doll in just one week. After uploading a picture to Instagram, she received messages and emails from women requesting dolls of their own. “I was stunned by the reaction,” reveals Chenza. “Some of the messages were from women who had disabilities – they wanted me to create dolls with the same conditions as them to give to their children so they could educate them.”

Inspired by the positive feedback, Chenza began making more unusual dolls. “I’ve made a Thalidomide baby, and recreating the limbs was a challenge, and another with craniofacial duplication – when a child is born with two faces.

“While lots of the response is positive, not everyone shares my enthusiasm. Some people call my babies ugly, or say that I’m exploiting disabilities, but I don’t let the negativity get to me. I believe I’m helping.”