'I feel such a close bond to them': Mother-of-five amasses £12,000 collection of FIFTY fake babies because she can't have any more children

By CHRIS PARSONS

Maternal instincts: Alice Winstone cares for one of the 50 fake babies which fill her home in Cardigan, Mid Wales

When mother-of-five Alice Winstone was told she could not have more children for health reasons, she remained determined to fill her home with babies.
And the maternal 39-year-old is so desperate to care for infants she has spent thousands buying 50 lifelike baby dolls which take up her entire house.
Mrs Winstone has spent seven years and over £12,000 filling her home with the scarily lifelike vinyl 'Reborn Dolls', even though three of her five real children still share the same house.

Mother duties: Mrs Winstone, who is separated from her husband due to her obsession, changes the clothes of one of her 'children'

Her obsession with the fake babies, which cost up to £1,200 each, sees her spend £50 a month and has forced her long-suffering husband Chris to move out of their maisonette home in Cardigan, Mid Wales.
Mrs Winstone had bought her first fake baby, a £180 doll called Emily, after seeing her on the back of a magazine and 'falling head over heels in love with her'.

Lifelike: The 'Reborn Doll's are made from a vinyl material and can cost up to £1,200 each

She said that despite the misgivings of husband Chris, she was 'astonished to feel such a close bond to a doll'.
Mrs Winstone had been told after her becoming pregnant with youngest daughter Jessica, now 12, that she had a blood disorder which would make another pregnancy unsafe.

Care and attention: Mrs Winstone shows the rack of outfits she has bought for her fake children

Changing time: Mrs Winstone bought her first doll around seven years ago after 'falling head over heels in love with her'

Her medical issue also means she does not work, instead caring 24 hours a day for the 50 fake children she has collected since.
She changes, washes, sleeps with and 'feeds' her enormous brood of vinyl children - and even takes her favourites out for day trips in the car.

Realistic: Mrs Winstone's most expensive Reborn Doll, a 'boy' called Rhys, cost her £1,200

She readily admits she preferred caring for her dolls to having sex with her husband, who moved out of their home five years ago due to her growing army of pretend children.
Mr Winstone said: 'I tried taking in kittens, and even fostering children but I couldn't bear the part where I had to say goodbye.
'I began looking after the dolls like I would my own babies - they are so life-like and I feel such a close bond to them.

Expensive: As well as spending thousands on the dolls themselves, Mrs Winstone also buys prams, cots, and dozens of outfits

'It's the best of both worlds as well - I get to dress them up, do their hair and wash their clothes without the endless dirty nappies and sleepless nights!'
Mrs Winstone became very protective over her dolls and worried about her children being near them, or the cat sitting on them if she wasn't around to keep an eye on them.

source: dailymail