I have finally decided on which dolls I want to dress and keep!
I want to makeChristening scene!
I would love some help with identifying & aging these dolls????

 

THIS BABY HAS A CHINA HEAD & COMP BODY

WITH MARKINGS:

AM

GERMANY

351.14K or 351.PEK

BLUE SLEEPING EYES

2 BOTTOM TEETH

14.5ins/37cm

 

 

THIS DOLL HAS A CHINA HEAD COMP BODY

MARKINGS:

SFBJ

60

PARIS

- 6 -

22ins/56cm

 

 

THIS WILL BE THE MOTHER

 

SHE IS 28ins/71cm TALL

MARKINGS:

ARMAND MARSEILLE

GERMANY

390

A 10 M

SHE HAS A

CHINA HEAD & COMP BODY

SLEEPING EYES

 

THIS LITTLE PET IS @ 13ins TALL

LEATHER BODY

SLEEPING BLUE EYES

 

 

HEUBACH KEPPELSDORF

CHINA HEAD COMP BODY

250 – 01/2

GERMANY

SLEEPING EYES

20ins/51cm

 

 

I JUST LOVE THIS ONE!

COMP ARMS & LEGS

LEATHER BODY

CHINA HEAD

G W & CROWN IMAGE

William Goebel

521

17ins/43cm

 

SIMON & HALBERG

GERMANY

117

CHINA HEAD COMP BODY

BROWN SLEEPING EYES

OPEN MOUTH

4 TEETH

GERMANY

BOXED

BALLS FOR ELBOWS & KNEES

22ins/56cm

 



 

THIS TINY BABY IS SO CUTE!

PEDIGREE

MADE IN NZ

TRIANGLE OVER WORDS

SHUTTING EYES



SIGIKIDS LEROY AND SAMMY

Two of my other favourites are two boy dolls that my Father-in-law gave to me as I had always loved them. There is something about them, I think it has a lot to do with the fact I have lost two baby boys years ago.

They are both Sigikid Kunstlerpuppen Artist's Dolls by Sabine Esche. They are Vinyl and 24 inches tall. They both have brown human hair & hand painted blue eyes and have never been played with!

"LEROY"

 

"SAMMY"

WHERE TO START?

I have decided to start with 2 Googly Dolls my Mother-in-law made. They have no commercial value but huge sentimental value. Because they have such impish faces I have decided to dress them as storybook characters, possibly Alice in Wonderland and the Mad Hatter.

This way I can decide on both girls and boys undergarments and use them as a test for fabrics etc.

I’m not sure where to even find small supplies for buttons etc. and doll wigs in New Zealand?! I guess it is back to the internet again!

I did find a good site that explained how to measure for wigs and other things.

http://www.allaboutdolls.com/howto.html

My inspiration for Alice comes from the latest film with Johnny Depp. I think a Googly will make a great Mad Hatter!
Although I am not sure for Alice, might need to choose another doll and use the second Googly for a White Rabbit or even the Queen of Hearts?!

 

A FEW OF MY FAVOURITES

I can't wait to make them feel cherished again!

I have spent hours already on the internet searching for ideas to dress them!

 

IDENTIFYING DOLLS

This I have found quite hard but I found a couple of useful websites along the way.

I started with Google to search for the name I knew from the back of the dolls head.

http://www.puppenmarken.de/kopfmarken.htm

A German site but has small pictures with makers names.

http://collectdolls.about.com/library/blmenu3.htm

A good place to start with heaps of links to explore.

http://dollreference.com/index.html 

Really good site to find doll makers.

UNPACKING THE DOLLS FOR A PHOTO SHOOT

VARIOUS PHOTOS OF THE PHOTO SHOOT!

 

MY DOLL COLLECTION

Several years ago, I packed up my Mother-in-laws Doll Collection with the help of my daughter. My Mother-in-law had cherished these dolls as the one piece of femininity in her home of four sons and a husband. She spent hours sewing for them and dressing them. They were displayed in two small bedrooms. Some she had brought at auctions and some she had made. I have special memories of my daughter, the first grandchild, sitting upstairs with her Nana playing tea parties with delicate china and the dolls! Unfortunately due to ill health she was no longer able to care for them and the decision was made to pack them away safely.

We took photos of all the dolls and wrapped them in acid free tissue paper and bubble wrap and they were then boxed and left in a spare room. There they sat for several years, lonely and forgotten.

When I brought a digital camera I decided that I would catalogue the dolls again and note any markings they had. Again my daughter helped me and at the same time took her own photos of the dolls almost coming to life again out of the boxes for NCEA Photography Portfolio.

When the family home was sold, the boxes of dolls came to live in my garage, but this time carefully labelled, wrapped, boxed and digitally catalogued. There are over 50 dolls in the collection, mostly undressed.

I have decided to dress these dolls and find out where they were made and build a full catelogue of them. Some, my favourites, I will keep but some I will sell as I don’t believe they should live in boxes unloved!

This is the last doll my Mother-in-law made. Just a head with stunning purple eyes. One day I will finish her.

This is another doll she made and dressed.