Made from scratch by creating a custom pattern for her. I used marching burgundy velvet as the base and decorated it with vintage military flowers, lace, and silk ribbon.
You can see worn sections on the front brim pleats because I recycled the pleated section of an antique skirt, which gives this bonnet a more vintage look.
She will be complete when I finish her Bru shoes next
I’ve used this design so many times, and it’s still one of my all-time favorites—and my customers love it too. It’s kind of a signature look for Bru dolls and really makes them feel like a true Bru!
The jacket is made with a gold tone silk brocade and the rest is made with burgundy antique silk satin and burgundy velvet. I just loved these darker tones on her—they felt perfect.
Next up is a matching bonnet, and then shoes. She’s almost complete!
Time has flown by — and thanks to your continued support, it has now been 20 years since I launched my brand, Bebes by Sayuri.
To mark this 20th anniversary milestone, I decided to create an official logo for my brand. Normally, a logo is something you create when first launching a brand, but at the time I simply didn’t have the capacity to think that far ahead. Recently, however, with AI now available as a creative tool that I can use myself, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to finally take on this challenge.
This new logo is based on a doll I created myself and a photo I personally took.
Although I used AI to generate and refine it, the original doll and image are my own work, so I retain the copyright as part of my brand.
I’ll be using this logo for my social media icons, business cards, and eventually for packaging and signage as well.
Keeping print quality in mind, I removed any unnecessary graphics and kept the design clean and simple.
For the background, I chose peridot green—my favorite color and also my birthstone.
It’s easy to see, fresh, and really represents the uniqueness of my brand.
I couldn’t work on doll-making because I had bronchitis for a few weeks, so I started playing around with AI image creation just for a change of pace. Before I knew it, it turned into a serious project.
Most of the time, the AI-generated images didn’t quite match what I had in mind, and I had to revise them again and again.
But once I had a clear vision, everything slowly started coming together.
Sometimes the AI suggested unexpected layouts or design elements, but those surprises often led to great ideas—things I might not have thought of on my own.
In the end, I’m very happy with how it turned out. This logo will now become the face of my brand, and I’m excited to share this next step with you.
早いものでBebes by Sayuriとしてブランドを開業して以来、お陰様で今年で２０年が経ちました。２０年めの節目として、私のブランドのロゴを作ってみることにしました。普通はブランドを立ち上げたときに作るものですが、当時はそこまで頭が回らず、最近はAIをツールに自分で制作できるようになったので、さっそくチャレンジしてみることにしました。
The holiday season is finally over, it’s time to get back to work!
I was in the middle of putting a Chevrot Bru body together before Christmas. This antique Bru body came with reproduction arms and SP, but the leather torso and wooden lower legs are the original.
I noticed that the repro arms were one size larger in proportion to the body, so I made a new set of arms on a smaller scale. I also made a new SP because the one with the body had a hairline.
The copper upper arm parts were still usable, I recycled them and covered them with vintage kidskin to match the color of the leather torso as much as possible.
I assembled all the parts together with the Bru label at the chest as a final touch; now she is ready to be dressed!
I finally unboxed the last doll from the trunk on New Year’s Eve, and my doll room is now complete. This is an EJA head I made a few years ago. I wasn’t very happy with her look for a long time, and to be honest, I didn’t feel like displaying her in my new doll room. Part of the reason was that she was wearing a wig and bonnet not suited for her. I studied antique EJA photos and decided to shorten the wig and change the bonnet. Well, now she looks much more like an EJA, and I think she’s adorable! A doll’s appearance really changes a lot depending on how you style it. This was another opportunity to learn the importance of paying attention to the smallest details for finishing touches.
This year unexpectedly turned out to be a turning point in my life, and I wasn’t able to dedicate as much time to my creative work as I would have liked.
However, I was able to get through it thanks to everyone’s kind words and encouragement.
From next year, I plan to work in a better environment and dedicate myself even more to my work. Please look forward to my postings and activities!
I’ve noticed my dolls look better when I take photos under studio lights at night.
I usually take their photos during the day with natural light when I need to show the images to my customers so that they can get images more true to the actual dolls.
But tonight, I am just playing with her by putting antique gowns on her and seeing how she looks when she is dressed. (I haven’t finished her body yet though)
I am sharing her images here since she looks very pretty at night.
