The Dolls have been the store's number-one attraction since its founding, but few people realize the amount of work that goes into them. Many of the people flocking to see them genuinely believe they're clockwork inside - in no small part due to the myth our store founder used to tell! - but in reality, each doll represents months of hard work for the young man inside. There's so little room in them that the actors essentially have to starve themselves from September, while enduring punishing waist training with a series of tighter and tighter corsets.
The suits come in six parts, seven parts if you include the wig. Each boy has their own helper to get them into it - like a knight and his squire. The legs go on first, then the corset and breastplate, and lastly the arms and face mask., with the costumes used to hide the seams. The hands remained uncovered. We paint them if necessary, but the dolls are so hands-on with the customers that they need their sense of touch.
Why do we use men? That's just the way it's always been. It's a very physically demanding job. These boys are on their feet day-in, day-out, sweating away in there, having to walk in heels while entertaining thousands every day. You should see the blisters they come out with. Plus the suits are antiques, so we can't modify them, and they're shaped for men - there's a little nook in the crotch where they tuck their co-... well I guess you don't need to know entirely how the sausage is made.
But they endure it all knowing the sprinkle of Christmas joy they bring to the children and the bored husbands out shopping with their wives.
Exploitative? Not at all. The pay is substantial, and they get to keep any dollar bills that get tucked into their bodices. Many of these young men happily return later in the year to be our Valentine, Easter, and Halloween dolls.
![Christmas Dolls: The Angel - 1/2 [Man to Doll] by Transviscera](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/87684d17-8b34-4054-a6cc-9b9e97dcb44a/dglt02h-7f673117-6677-49c8-a91c-86ade03c0a91.jpg/v1/fit/w_150,h_150,q_70,strp/christmas_dolls__the_angel___1_2__man_to_doll__by_transviscera_dglt02h-150.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9MjkwMiIsInBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzg3Njg0ZDE3LThiMzQtNDA1NC1hNmNjLTliOWU5N2RjYjQ0YVwvZGdsdDAyaC03ZjY3MzExNy02Njc3LTQ5YzgtYTkxYy04NmFkZTAzYzBhOTEuanBnIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTM4NjEifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6aW1hZ2Uub3BlcmF0aW9ucyJdfQ.RiFEjWF3jszdtjhJKhcGhsq0BJ6AxaX2jEm3qN47AeM)
![Christmas Dolls: The Angel - 2/2 [Man to Doll] by Transviscera](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/87684d17-8b34-4054-a6cc-9b9e97dcb44a/dglt5st-f8f30a28-fb6e-44cc-bd0b-e1233ade919c.jpg/v1/fit/w_150,h_150,q_70,strp/christmas_dolls__the_angel___2_2__man_to_doll__by_transviscera_dglt5st-150.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsImV4cCI6MTcwMzM4MjE1Mywib2JqIjpbW3siaGVpZ2h0IjoiPD0yOTAyIiwicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvODc2ODRkMTctOGIzNC00MDU0LWE2Y2MtOWI5ZTk3ZGNiNDRhXC9kZ2x0NXN0LWY4ZjMwYTI4LWZiNmUtNDRjYy1iZDBiLWUxMjMzYWRlOTE5Yy5qcGciLCJ3aWR0aCI6Ijw9Mzg2MSJ9XV0sImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl19.-WYtL0QE294nD92u48YObYfR7DLX2MCwcAWHRhYLrO8)
