Chase Doll, Breakaway Dollhouse, Dollhouse Dolls

A Martha Chase cloth doll  in great condition with dog pillow

Dollhouse about 12" tall

Showing breakaway feature with furniture.

Tiny dollhouse dolls (about 2" tall).  

L: All Bisque wire strung

R:  Made by AL doll artist Florence Kegley

Black Dolls (Double click on photos to enlarge)

Here is an old cloth black doll with oil painted face, a baby composition, another old black handmade cloth doll, Florence Kegley bisque artist doll, and an English Gollywog.

Here is a closeup of this great cloth doll.  You can always double click on photos to enlarge.

Two old topsy turvy black/white dolls with a reproduction bisque doll, a nut doll, and above a shoulder head bisque by Florence Kegley, AL doll artist.

Here is a lovely doll of color, probably by Simon Halbig (bisque head).

Closeup of the Asian doll.

An Exhibit of Black Cloth Dolls 1870 - 1930 NO LONGER HIDDEN

http://www.blackclothdolls.com/web.pdf

Click on the URL above for a treat.

Collecting Black Dolls

Our June program was on black dolls and dolls of color.  Many doll manufacturers through the years starting in the 1800's have made black dolls in porcelain and other materials, including Bru and other French companies such as Lanternier, Eden Bebe, Jumeau, Steiner, and others.  Many German manufacturers also made black dolls such as Kestner, Simon Halbig, Heubach, K star R, and many others.  Some had black features and some used white doll molds painted black.  They have been made in every material imaginable, including cloth (Martha Chase, Alabama Baby, Bruckner, Steiff, etc.), composition (Effanbee, Horsman, Averill, etc.), hard plastic, vinyl, and rubber.  There are many fabulous homemade one-of-a kind cloth primitive black dolls that are fun to collect, especially the older ones with great character.  Also naturalistic and beautiful modern black dolls are now being made.

Here are 2 old dolls.  The one on the left is a nut (head) doll, and on the right is a bottle doll (bottle covered with same cloth as the dress.  In front are a tiny celluloid Frozen Charlotte and 3 soft vinyl babies.

Here is a Judith Condon (NIADDA) artist doll, all porcelain, dated 1981, dressed by owner.

Three Golliwog type dolls in cloth.  These dolls were popular for years in England, especially.  The features are usually exagerated, and by the 1980's they had waned in popularity with some considering them derogatory to people of color.

A wonderful old handmade doll, very sweet, probably 1920's.

Here are some that were brought for show and tell by members, including Mammy and Miss Prissy from Gone with the Wind, a beautiful Simon Halbig Japanese reproduction by Tom Azuma, and a few black/white topsy turvy dolls on the left.

A few New Orleans rag dolls on the left, black Raggedies, and a black Bye-Lo reproduction.

Here are 2 great cloth dolls on the left, and a printed Wade Davis (son of Aunt Jemima) cloth doll lying down.  Also a Beloved Belindy and stone bisque baby dolls and a composition Bye Lo in front.  

Here is a great old cloth black doll, origin unknown.

She was made by Florence Kegley, an Alabama artist and doll collector (all bisque - heavy).

A French  Paris Unis bisque head doll, very pretty.

Wade Davis printed doll (son of Aunt Jemima), 2 stone bisques from New Orleans, and a celluloid with sleep eyes and African costume and textured hair.

Last but not least, a closeup of the lovely Simon Halbig Japanese bisque reproduction, dressed authentically by Alabama doll maker Tom Azuma.

American Indian Artist Doll

Here is an American Indian artist doll about 22" tall, all original and dressed appropriately.  Dorothy Friedhoff of N.C. created this doll "Nun-Di Olie" (Noon Day Sun).

Inside a Colonial Dollhouse

Here are photos from inside a club member's Colonial dollhouse.  She said she had fun putting it together.  Thanks for sharing.  (Remember to double click to enlarge photos.)

Schoenhut Clowns & Elephant, Schoenhut Piano

Here are 2 old Schoenhut clowns with their chairs and an elephant from the Schoenhut Circus.  Also pictured is a Schoenhut piano with much of the paint gone.

Schoenhut Circus

In 1872, German immigrant Albert Schoenhut began producing toy pianos and xylophones in a one-room workshop. But it was the appealing line of string-jointed, poseable Humpty Dumpty Circus animals that eventually brought the A. Schoenhut Company, a Philadelphia-based manufacturer, international success.

Schoenhut’s wooden circus had a long production run, from 1903 until 1935, which accounts for the variations in packaging, size, and finishing techniques used on the animals. The company began making just a few basic circus figures—the clown, donkey, and elephant—later adding more animals, performers, wheeled cages, and props, all made to fit under a canvas tent. Often the pieces didn’t come in boxes at all—you’d go to a toy counter and buy what was available. In other instances, several figures would come packaged in a cardboard box, or in the case of a big set, a wooden box with a colorful illustrated label.

The early animals had glass eyes and were hand-shaped and hand-painted. After World War I began, for reasons of economy, they switched to painted-on eyes and did less hand-shaping. In the 1920s, they came out with a reduced-size circus: a tent with 20 to 25 pieces. Toward the end of that decade, they downsized even more, offering single boxed pieces and a $1 set consisting of three miniature figures. The miniatures were produced only in 1929, and are incredibly rare.

World Doll Day is Today!

We wish you Happy World Doll Day today!! It was the very well respected, Mildred Seeley, who conceived the idea of the second Saturday in June being designated World Doll Day! This is a day of celebration for the worldwide doll community. It is a day for us to reflect on how blessed we are to be a part of this very special fraternity of doll lovers whether you are a doll artist, maker, collector, restorer, museum, etc. We all share a special bond, a passion, an enthusiasm and a love for dolls. We hope you will find the time today to enjoy this day of celebration and reflect on the beautiful and breathtaking dolls sitting on your shelves and the love we all share for them.