About Us
Hey Pretty! welcome to Living Dolls! We are 12 years young with the mission to glitter bomb the globe! Living Dolls is glitterally about being a doll and dressing up. Founded & operated by multi award winning Fashion Designer, Makeup Artists, Stylist & Photographer Sophia Lee.
A Bit About Me | Sophia Lee
It is quite hard to describe my 18 year career in the fashion industry without boring you all too much or talking about myself for too long. However, as I have discovered my calling as an influencer, it is important that you know a bit about me.
Some of you may know I founded my own company 'Living Dolls' in 2008, the same year I went to Design & Arts College NZ to study Makeup Artistry. I had previously studied Fashion Design, obtaining an Advanced Diploma in Fashion Design while working as a Hand Bag Designer for a Luxury Goods Fashion House of several years. In this time I also designed upmarket merino garments and managed 3 retail stores around NZ all under the same umbrella company, working for one of New Zealand's most successful businesswomen. Somehow, I managed to fit in business training and whilst I was a poor student, I was also freelancing as a costume designer and working part-time at a fabric store. I was a self-diagnosed workaholic. Because it was the DREAM, my calling.
My life with Living Dolls has been phenomenal! We achieved so much, extravagant fashion shows, news articles, The Press recognised me as Óne of Christchurch's Top 10 Magical Creatures' on stuff. We were commissioned to design and make couture lingerie and burlesque costumes for The Playboy Mansion. Styled music videos. Living Dolls became the launching platform for many celebrity models. It goes on, but I will stop there . . . To be recognised as a multi-award-winning Fashion Designer and makeup artist is so surreal to me.
But for me, my heart has always been in the makeup, during the photoshoots across New Zealand and Australia . . . I fell in love with makeup artistry when I discovered what I could do for someone, for their confidence. I will never forget how clients and models would look in the mirror after their makeover, at first leaning in closer, jaw-dropping, her hands cover her mouth and she gasps “ Is that really me” she stands back and her eyes pool up. I interrupt, “Yes, it’s you with a bit of makeup on, it’s all you, no filter, now stop crying or you’ll f#ck the makeup”. We both have a laugh and carry on with her new heightened self-esteem and boosted confidence. That is something money cannot buy and it is a very special and meaningful thing you can do for someone. I realised it is an art form that goes beyond aesthetics, it is about making people feel pretty when they feel pretty, they are confident and confident people do better at life. And that is BEAUTIFUL 