Ultimate doll domination
by Cheryl C. Ong on October 31, 2009
May it be a common round-headed blonde, a rare doll with shiny, purple-colored hair or even a Tobey Maguire miniature in a white tee and silver shorts, Manolito “Ma’tto” Garcia has a doll collection that would make any 8-year-old girl jealous.
As one of the co-founders of Pinoy na Nagmamanyika, a doll collectors’ group, Ma’tto has his dolls pose behind glass shelves and table tops, similar to models in beauty pageants.
Building the doll house
Ma’tto’s first time to see a Barbie doll was when his dad brought home three Barbie dolls from abroad in 1973. He still recalls what type of Barbies they were: two were Talking Busy Barbie dolls and one was a Walk Lively Barbie–all of which were for his sisters and cousins. “I saw the doll, and I just wanted to play with it,” Ma’tto says.
During his high school days, part of his allowance went to purchasing Barbie dolls for himself. It was not until college, however, that buying dolls became more frequent with the extra income he got from being a part-time dancer in concerts.
Yet even when he had a dozen dolls in his possession, he never really imagined himself to be a collector. “I considered myself as an action figure collector during that time [because] besides from dolls, I had action figures,” he says.
From a desire to simply play with dolls, his passion entered a new horizon–the collecting business. It was only after he got a hold of the 1959-released Number 4 Ponytail Barbie from eBay that he decided to join the line of doll collectors in the country.
His fashion babies
Atop the round wooden table in Ma’tto’s working place stands a blue-eyed doll wearing a purple evening gown. With her long, black hair brushed back with a headband, Sydney, from the Tonner Doll Company, would seem pretty similar to any other doll except that she is Ma’tto’s personal favorite among his non-vintage dolls.
As much as these Tonner Doll Company figures like Esme, Tyler, Carrie, and Brenda Starr look like ordinary play dolls, they possess certain characteristics what Ma’tto would refer to as the dolls’ “lines.” These lines represent the roles the dolls play, given to them by the company.
“[Sydney is,] yung parang kumbaga sa Barbie, siya yung pinakahead (Sydney, like Barbie, is the head of the group). She owns a modeling agency. [Esme] is one of the top models,” he says.
What the 42-year old collector prizes the most, however, is his vintage doll collection.
“The vintage [years] is from 1959 to 1966. My favorite is the Fashion Queen line of 1963. It’s the line wherein you can put wigs on it, despite that it already has molded hair. [That’s why] I have seven, and I have the rarest,” he says.
He prides himself with having Barbie’s friend, Midge, who is the rarest among the Fashion Queen dolls. “The Fashion Queen version of Midge is very rare [because] she is a freckled girl… I got the rare one. I got the one with no freckles. It was luck… It was worth it because it cost only around $12,” he says.
Celebrities from the earlier generations dominate his collection. Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, Cher, Bono, Danny and Marie Osmond, the original Charlie’s Angels, Sean Connery, and Diana Ross all have a special place in his collection.
More recently, collectors have been angling to buy Ma’tto’s first black male doll, Michael Jackson. “I [didn’t buy it] because it’s Michael Jackson. I’m not a Michael Jackson fan. I bought it because Christie, Barbie’s black friend, didn’t have a boyfriend, so when I saw it in Nova Fontana in Makati, [I bought it]. I chose the best costume he had at that time, during the Awards night,” he says in a mix of English and Filipino.
From vintage to celebrity look alike ones, Ma’tto’s doll collection doesn’t stop there. Clad in beautifully patterned traditional costumes, the Dolls of the World take national representation to a different level. Not all countries are present, but the collection is increasing with Fulla, the Saudi Arabian doll, as its newest addition.
Doll treatment
Aside from taking a scheduled shower, complete with shampoo, conditioner, body scrubs, and powder, Ma’tto’s dolls undergo a series of pampering such as having their hair curled or straightened and having certain features customized.
One of the dolls that underwent customization was a Chinese doll. She was repainted by a friend of Ma’tto’s, and now she looks like Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls. He also had Shirley MacLaine’s (Endora in Bewitched) eyebrows fixed since she looked weird with orange-colored ones.
Being a fashion designer himself, Ma’tto did not fail to dress up his dolls in his own fashion styles. At first, he wanted to have the dolls’ gowns made, but no seamstress would accommodate his request since their size made their clothes very difficult to make. He ended up buying a small sewing machine and making their clothes on his own.
Ma’tto is more into gowns or formal wear than casuals. As a tribute to Barbie’s 50th this year, he made a couple of gowns for her. In addition, even Tobey Maguire got a Filipino twist when Ma’tto customized a barong for him.
As for his materials for their outfits, he takes time to visit ukay-ukay stores and buy things that are on a real bargain, like the DKNY jacket (P25), which he used to make Tobey’s shorts and Sydney’s skirts. He would also order extra yards of the cloth he would buy to make the dress of one of his clients.
Interestingly, the thing about the dolls in their sophisticated gowns and smart casual wear is only half the story. He dresses them in only their lingerie and bathing suits most of the time.
“I love dressing them up in lingerie… Ultimo yung mataba may lingerie (Even the fat ones have lingerie)… [Because] some clothes would stain if [they stay] overnight. With Barbies, it’s even worse. After playing [with them], they’d just be lying naked at night,” he says.
More is more
Ma’tto’s place may be filled up with innumerable dolls, but he has already sold many others. Unlike other collectors, Ma’tto keeps only the ones that he likes and sells or donates those that he doesn’t take interest in anymore. Starting only by word of mouth, his doll-selling business now uses Multiply to attract customers.
With his dolls ranging from Pullip, a fashion doll created by a Korean company, Butterfly Rings, fantasy dolls designed by Sandra Bilotto, Disney dolls, and to many other types, Ma’tto, even with all these dolls crowding his place, is still on the lookout for new additions to expand his large collection.
