(Maria Lynn Grover)

From Baby Whisperer to Reborn Artist

by Pam North

While Maria Lynn Grover was growing up, her mother made porcelain dolls as a hobby, and Maria often helped her with the pouring and prepping of them. “With her guidance, I made my first doll when I was twelve years old,” she explained. She always has been more on the artistic side, with a love for music and the arts. In college, where she also met her husband, she studied photography and business, and graduated in 2007. Shortly before graduation, she had started a small photography business, and then she began making dolls as well. She has just celebrated her 13th wedding anniversary, and she and her husband have four children.
Maria’s photography business was centered around families and children, but her primary focus was newborns through the first year of life. “I love all their sweet little expressions and wrinkles, and I love the beautiful art I am able to make with little babies less than two weeks old. Parents often called me the ‘baby whisperer’ because I became so good at knowing exactly how to settle the babies safely and comfortably into their positions. In 2016, I was nominated as one of the top newborn photographers in Las Vegas. During that time, I also has been making dolls, and I felt really torn between my two passions. The decision was made in favor of the dolls, so I closed my business and we moved to North Carolina. I still have a passion for photography, and I miss working with my tiny clients, but I love being able to put all of my effort into the passion that I have for my doll making.”
Maria had stumbled upon vinyl reborn dolls late in 2008, and had become intrigued with making her own. After much research and an instructional DVD, she made her first one in early 2009, quickly becoming immersed in the reborn world. “Although my first doll sold for less than the cost of the supplies used to make it, I continued to make others. I started teaching myself to sculpt in 2010. As I continued to create vinyl reborn dolls, I occasionally would sculpt miniature, one-of-a-kind dolls.”
Maria now specializes in making lifelike silicone baby dolls in life-size and also in miniature. “In 2012, I began noticing silicone dolls. I knew nothing about the production differences between vinyl and silicone, and information on creating silicone dolls was hard to find. Plus, silicone dolls are significantly more expensive to create, and more complex than painting vinyl. Finally, I molded and poured my first silicone doll kit in 2014. At first I created both vinyl and silicone dolls, but I preferred the silicone, and by 2016 I had transitioned to all silicone. In the past 9 years, I have completed over 300 vinyl reborn dolls, and nearly 100 silicone dolls, with some one-of-a-kind dolls here and there. All of my reborn baby dolls are made with love by me. They are not mass-produced; each takes weeks to complete, and are made available one at a time as they are completed.”
Maria basically is self-taught in her  painting skills, but has participated in two silicone courses from Silvia Manning and Susan Gibbs, and sculpting classes from Jack Johnston, Lorna Mills-Sands and Yulia Shaver. Other tips have come from fellow sculpting artists who have helped her improve her molding and pouring skills.
Maria’s materials include different shore hardnesses of EcoFlex silicone, primarily EcoFlex 10, 20, and 30, as well other types of silicones and resins for creating molds. “I mix my own silicone pigments for painting, and use various grades of mohair in rooting hair on my dolls' heads. When I sculpt, I primarily use ProSculpt polymer clay, and occasionally I use Monster Clay. I also go through a lot of paintbrushes!”
Inspiration for her comes from the years she spent working with newborn babies. “I love the miracle of new life. I often think that I would have enjoyed a career as a neonatal nurse,” she remarked.
Her greatest challenge is not having enough hours in the day. “I have so many different projects going at the same time, all in different stages of creation, and often the projects that I most want to get back to have to take the back-burner to ones that have a higher priority for completion. It also is important to me that I am able to spend quality time with my family as well.”
Satisfaction for her comes from seeing everything come together into the vision she had for it. “I've painted so many beautiful sculpts from amazing sculptors, and after the first few layers of paint, the baby really starts to come alive. It is special that I am able to share my love for sweet little miracles with others in a way they can treasure forever.” She sells her dolls mostly online.
She has won several awards for her artistry: in 2017 the Public’s Choice and Industry Choice awards in the Reborn category in Dolls Awards of Excellence; in 2016 the Judges’ Choice award for best silicone baby at IDTS. She is looking forward to competing again in 2018.
Maria’s goal now is to make more of her own original dolls. “I love the wonderful babies from other artists, and I will continue painting dolls from them, but it is so rewarding to have a finished product that I know is completely my own.” 
She is optimistic that demand for her creations will continue to grow, as more people discover her lifelike dolls. “I am so grateful for all my kind and loyal customers over the years who have supported me as I improved my skills, allowing me to follow my passion and grow into the artist that I am today.”

Contact Information:
Name: Maria Lynn Grover (Maria Lynn Art Dolls)
Email: maria@marialynndolls.com 
Website: https://www.marialynndolls.com