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Inspired by an Oprah show, Andrea Arcello decided to get real.

the spaRk everyone loves babies, but andrea arcello really loves babies. “i’m fas-cinated by their unguarded demeanors,” she says. “i’ve always wanted to re-create them.” in junior high, she sketched highly realistic drawings of infants and toddlers; in high school and college, she switched to clay sculptures. in 2004 arcello (then working in stained-glass repair) was inspired to make the most of her talents after watching an

Oprah episode about helping South african orphans, and began designing startlingly lifelike dolls.

the method out of the Whitehall, Michigan, home she shares with her hus-band, arcello crafts one-of-a-kind “portrait dolls”—modeled on actual kids or adults’ baby pictures—as well as original limited editions (from $1,700; see them at andrea-arcello.com). the meticulous process takes two months, from sculpting the clay with special attention to expressive textures (crin-kled foreheads, creased eyelids, pursed lips) to adding the final flourishes (needling in fine mohair wisps, manicuring nails).

the Gift last year, with business thriv-ing (she has clients as far away as australia), arcello worked from photos to create the 12-pound, 30-inch little oprah, a thank-you present for the woman who inspired her doll-making venture. When she landed a ticket to Oprah last fall, arcello offered the un-canny gift—dressed in celadon green, oprah’s favorite color—in person after the taping. “there isn’t much that shocks me anymore,” oprah told her, “but this shocks me.” arcello was stunned as well. “i was too overwhelmed to respond fully,” she says, “but i’ll remem-ber that day forever.” —jessica silvester

women who make beautiful

things

Left: arcello in her studio crafting a limited edition doll. Above: the unfinished oprah doll with arcello’s paper-plate palette (the paint is for her brows, lips, and cheeks).

Left: oprah meets her match at harpo studios in chicago. Below: the real little oprah, circa 1957.

Your Best LifeLive

What a Doll!

“as a longtime doll collector,

i thought this was one of the best

i’ve ever seen. she could be mistaken

for the real thing. it was like my inner child come to life.”

—oprah

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