Anne-Marie Burns of
Le Petit Boutique &

http://www.geocities.com/skeindubh/index.html

By Lisa A. Lawrence

Anne-Marie Burns grew up in Glasgow, Scotland but now lives just outside Toronto, Canada.  "My ancestry is Irish but one of my great grandfathers was from Malta.  Mostly though, her family is Celtic. Anne-Marie states, "We have many family members though who live in various areas of the United States and in Australia.   I have traveled through all of the northern States and throughout Florida, which I really love. I still have my Scottish brogue accent when I speak and live as though I’d never left Scotland."

Anne-Marie attended college in Canada majoring in property management, development and construction.  In fact, she was the first girl in her Province to study mechanical drafting and to choose machine shop as a credit over home economics.  She worked as an office administrator and manager for land and building developments.  "For the past 7 years, I have designed couture for dolls. Anne-Marie states, "When I think back to those years working 9 to 5 in offices, I really wonder how I managed the routine.  Being independent, I exact a lot more discipline on myself. Although the work is painstaking and requires a high level of concentration, no two days are ever alike."

She started collecting Barbies® 18 years ago at the same time she took up motorbike racing.  Eight years ago, she went online and met up with other doll collectors.  As she recalls, "Once Gene® came along, she changed everything and my passion was for larger fashion dolls."  The motorbike, on the other hand, satisfies a wild streak in her that can't be tamed!

Anne-Marie currently has about 150 or more dolls in her collection. While her main interest is Tyler® and friends by Robert Tonner, she also has a large Gene collection, Madame Alexander Cissettes®, Tonner's American Models, and, in the past year she has collected 6 of the Jan McClean French Floozies®, with no end in sight to that line!  Because she works with dolls, Anne-Marie states that her collection is rarely played with.  Instead, her dolls must be content to a life of posing.

 

In 1997, Anne-Marie showed some online collectors a couple of cocktail dresses that she made for Gene.  "I was bombarded with e-mails to create more of the dresses." She recalls, "One thing led to another and I am still sewing for dolls!  Although now, I've expanded from Gene size to many other fashion dolls.   The novelty of it all really never wears off and I find myself sounding like a little girl again whenever I have to describe what I do to those who don't collect dolls!'

On occasion, Anne-Marie has collaborated with repaint artist Laurie Leigh of Beautiful Faces.  "Laurie’s customized dolls are uncanny in their beauty and likeness of humans." she states, "The collaboration process usually starts with an e-mail from Laurie asking if I want to do “Nicole Kidman as Satine" (from Moulin Rouge) for instance.  Then, we will study photos of the costumes, hair, accessories and try to set a deadline a few weeks off.

 Once Laurie has finished her doll, she sends me photos through e-mail and I send her photos of the costume.  I then ship the costume to her so she can dress the doll and take final photographs and then the doll goes to auction.  Normally, I would be responsible for the costume, shoes, accessories and jewelry.  But, Marcia Friend (Facets by Marcia) has also created some gorgeous custom pieces for us.  Both of these artists are so gifted at their specialties that there is really very little actual communication between us once we all get started on our individual items.  When we finally see the finished creation, I suppose we do indulge in a bit of back clapping!  It's such a thrill to see a completed project"

Until last year, Anne-Marie basically sewed every day for about 5 years without a day off.  "Since then, I have been mainly concentrating on a few one of a kind outfits every couple of weeks." she states, "I’ve drastically cut back on my work load due to damaged hands from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.   I’m an avid rose grower and all around gardener and I wanted to have more spare time for myself as well.  This also allows me more time to spend with my two little Pekingese dogs, Teddy and Lulu, plus we also have a little Alaskan/Pomeranian mix dog called Wee Neil.  I also have an interest in orchids and cross-stitching, both of which are fairly time consuming hobbies in themselves."

Anne-Marie learned sewing techniques through my teen years but despised sewing clothing for humans!  She finds dolls to be more enjoyable.  Although, she notes, "Dolls are quite a challenge to sew for as you want the clothing to look like human clothing but you have to consider the scale of the prints and the thickness of fabric.  It takes practice to create really great fitting clothing for dolls that are also finished to perfection and appear credible in proportions."

 

Anne-Marie gets her inspiration from fashion magazines, fashion programs, fashion books and from movies.  "I love sifting through patterns both new and vintage for human sizes then scaling them down to doll proportions.  I’ve always loved very tailored and form fitting clothing with clean lines.  Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel have had the biggest impressions on me and I have been influenced by these designers."

She often sets out searching for a particular fabric for a project, only to be distracted many times over with other fabrics that are too hard to resist.  "I know what the finished outfit will look like as soon as I 'meet' the fabric."  she laughs!  She shops in downtown Toronto and buys a large variety of fabrics during each visit to be used for future projects.  "I don't hesitate when I see a fabric that looks and feels wonderful." she notes, "It will always be put to good use."

From brainchild to sketch, through cutting and construction, outfits take her anywhere from 2 days to one week to complete. "If the garment entails beadwork," she notes, "then the outfit could easily span into a couple of weeks.

Normally though, a sheath dress with accessories such as gloves, handbag, hat and jewelry, would take about 4 twelve hour days to make.  I tend to put the emphasis on fit rather than embellishments.  If the dress curves with the doll’s figure, this is more important to me than tons of beadwork or frills. This entails many fittings and adjustments."

When Trent® was first introduced to the doll market, Anne-Marie sold some Zoot suits for he because "he had that great 'continental' gangster sort of look!  Now, I'm looking forward to sewing for Matt O'Neill® as well.  Men are always useful props!" 

Anne-Marie enjoys planning out new outfits: sketching a concept, finding the right fabric and then seeing it finished.  However, she, along with the rest of the world, hates sewing snaps!

For several years, Anne-Marie traveled to the U.S. for various doll events, including the  Big Band event in Chicago, Gene conventions and the Tonner convention. "Lately, I have been trying to cut back on the amount of time I sew and spend on dolls." she notes, "So now I have to be content with seeing photos online and the friendly faces I’ve come to know over the years.  I've really met alot of very nice people through dolls and one very lasting friendship in particular with Hazel McMahon in Scotland." 

 

Asked her future plans, Anne-Marie responds, "Plan 'A' is that I am hopefully retired to a villa in Portugal.  Plan 'B', which is a bit more realistic, is that I will still be pottering around my garden with my little dogs and still enjoying dolls."

Anne-Marie notes, "The past seven years, working with dolls have been wonderful.  I’ve met fabulous people, dear friends, traveled to lovely places and I can look back with many fond memories.  Even if that was the least that I got out of my doll collecting hobby, I would be a very lucky person.  But I also managed to go it alone as an independent designer and although it is a strict discipline to put oneself under, it is very satisfying.  Overcoming challenges along the way has enriched the experience."