Even with orders continuing to pour in and an upcoming exhibition to prepare for, Alice Swann’s sheer love for creating keeps her from viewing her blossoming doll making business as work.

A former seamstress, the Dowagiac resident closed her downtown business in order to concentrate fulltime on her miniature creations. Even after 100 completed dolls under her belt, she continues to approach her second act with the same vigor and passion as she did while working on her first doll.

“It’s just really exciting,” Swann said. “I’m having fun with it.”

The local doll maker was the featured program during Thursday’s meeting of the Dowagiac Rotary Club, which took place that afternoon inside the Elk’s Lodge. Swann was invited to speak before the members by Rotarian Barbara Groner.

A native of Dowagiac, Swann moved out west to California after graduating high school in order to study fashion. Though she pursued a career in sewing and tailoring upon returning to the city more than a decade ago, the interest she developed in dolls back in college began to re-emerge in recent years, she said.

“My doll making started long before I moved to Dowagiac,” she said. “But I just didn’t pursue it, because at that time I didn’t think I could make anything of it. But it always stuck in my heart.”

Inspired by antique dolls of yesteryears, Swann started out assembling dolls out of cloth, with their boots made out of recycled fabric from other projects, she said. She also began making dolls from clay derived from paper, coating them with tissue paper and painting them in order to give them an antique look, she said.

Recently, she began carving dolls out of wood as well, which has given her the opportunity to learn an even greater number of skills related to the trade, she said.

“The wood is fascinating, since I always loved the smell of wood,” she said. “There are so many things you can do with it. It’s given me the inspiration to do other things, and make bigger dolls and work on different ways to make joints.”

Swann creations have already been attracting attention from buyers across the country, with her works displayed at a special art exhibit in New York City last year. She recently completed a special order for a customer, who wanted a doll shaped in the form of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, she said.

“There’s always something interesting about the human form, be it a doll or sculpture,” Swann said. “People like to see people. They like to connect with people.”