Così bella! Bella, bellissima. Si chiama Ellen.
Manufactured by Ottolini Carlo e Dante of Milan, Ellen is an esoteric topic in fashion doll collecting due to her rarity and to the limited information available. But thanks to the generosity of Italian doll collector, designer, and photographer Marco Banfi, we all can learn a little bit about the stylish Ellen.
Banfi explains: "Ellen is an Italian fashion doll from the mid 60s made by Ottolini, a renowned doll maker. She probably was meant to be a Barbie doll competitor, even if at that time, Mattel's iconic doll was not so popular in Italy. At 39 cm tall (about 15. 4 inches) Ellen's strung body body has similar proportions to Mel Odom's Gene Marshall doll. Ellen's head connects to the body via a neck knob and is made of soft vinyl.
Her hair is rooted, made of a fiber akin to a mix of vintage Francie and Malibu Barbie dolls' hair. Over the years, I have seen three hairstyles: shoulder length flip (a side-part, variation exists), a pulled back look, and a side-part bubble cut in brunette and blonde. I have seen a redhead model but cannot attest to it being original or a reroot."
For this Valentine's Day entry, Dolldom is honored to feature an Ellen doll from the collection of famed doll maker Julian S. Kalinowski modeling the inimitable fashion styles of beauty & glamor maven LizRetros. The fashions, most of them created for the Gene Marshall doll by the iconic American illustrator Mel Odom, fit Ellen beautifully.
Dolldom is most grateful to Marco Banfi for sharing his experience with our readers. You may follow him on Flickr (mood4mod) and Instagram (mood4dolls)
Dolldom also thanks Julian S. Kalinowski for his kindness allowing Dolldom to photograph his Ellen doll.
Necklaces by Exsyntrik
Cherry necklace by Straycat
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Amazing fashions and backdrops for this exquisite doll.
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