The Qantas Founders Museum will host a unique collection of 43 dolls dressed in its changing uniforms over the past 100 years to mark the airline’s centenary.
The collection is owned and created by Qantas long haul flight attendant Sara Armbrecht, who over two years spent hundreds of hours researching and making miniature uniforms for the dolls.
“The Qantas Founders Museum has always been on my bucket list and so I am really happy to visit the museum and for the dolls to be exhibited here,” Armbrecht said.
Armbrecht started the collection after she attended a Qantas event for the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner where she spotted a doll wearing the current uniform by Martin Grant.
She decided to make her own when the doll was not for sale. She was encouraged by her colleagues to continue making them after the first was a success. There are now 45 dolls in the set.
It takes Armbrecht three to four hours to make each outfit for the doll using old pictures and old uniforms as reference, with more intricate patterns needing to be hand-drawn into the fabric.
Qantas Founders Museum curator Tom Harwood said this collection was a unique way to showcase the many uniforms of Qantas.
“Qantas Founders Museum is thrilled that we are able to show this extraordinary display to our visitors and provide Sara with the opportunity to showcase her incredible work,” he said.
“Qantas has had a variety of uniforms over the years and this collection shows the evolving design of uniforms for staff in all areas.”
The collection will be on display in Qantas Founders Museum’s Main Exhibition Hall throughout 2020.