Tuesday, August 7, 2012

My Darling Ceddie

I didn't pay a lot of attention to the odd doll in the Collectibles area at first. Then hanging on the Housewares wall I found a little composition jointed doll in a bag for $1.99. I thought about her all day and  decided to get her, but when I went to find her, she was gone! So I decided someone had found her and loved her and taken her. Meanwhile I saw the odd doll and figured he had come in with her, because he had what I thought was a composition head, although I later found out it is bisque.


The next day I looked on the wall again and there was the little girl doll! I'm not sure where she had been hiding. I quickly grabbed her and took her up to the supervisor to await my next break so I could buy her. Meanwhile, I again noticed the odd doll. He had such a cute face but oh, that weird stuffed body.


I don't really like baby dolls and I don't like soft bodies, but there was something about his face. Finally I looked at the back of his neck and saw ©1923 by Grace S.  and what looked like Bu----. So I went home and googled it and found out he's a Bye-Lo Baby (it turned out to say Grace S. Putnam) and below that it says Made in Germany. From the time he came in until I bought him, it was two weeks and in all that time, nobody wanted him! You can read about Bye-Lo Babies here. This one doesn't have sleep eyes, but I think his eyes are much nicer than sleep eyes. He is missing three fingers but that seems to be pretty common for his type.

In case you're wondering how I know he's a boy, well, everybody who's seen him thinks he looks like a boy. Even the supervisor who rang him up for me and told me he was really ugly said he looked like a boy. I was not offended by her remark because I know she speaks from pure ignorance. She has two boys of her own (human) and probably thinks they are really cute.

When I got him home, Auntie Berman was thrilled with him too. She found a dress for him and we later found a second dress for him.


I just had to name him Cedric. I would make him a velvet Little Lord Fauntleroy suit but since he's only supposed to be three days old, his dress is all he needs.

This shows his delightful smile.
I call this one "Home at last."

Most of the time Lulu and Gordy babysit him.

Gordy's on the far left but he kind of blends in.
Now as for little Phoebe, or Feeebs as we call her, Auntie Berman again came through for her. The three Es in her name started out as an accident but then we thought it was a way to make her feel special. Not that she knows how to spell. Since her dress fits her so well, I don't feel any urge to make her more clothes.


Shortly after I got her, I found Firefly at Goodwill. She was unopened in her package which said World Friends, Native American Doll, Fibre Craft. On the back of her head is Loretta Daum Byrne 1988. She is 8 inches tall. There was a 13" doll also, but not nearly as cute. I looked up Loretta and she is some sort of Native American (I think) dollmaker. There was a larger version of her, but she wasn't nearly as cute so I didn't get her too. I later found out they are supposed to be mother/daughter dolls to dress.

I was going to name her Morning Star until I put this little sun suit on her, which has fireflies on it.


Now I hope I am back in the swing of things and will blog on a regular basis. Thank you, Lizzie for asking about me. You have definitely inspired me.

Now one last picture of Ceddie.

Mother's darling boy

6 comments:

  1. Thanks Audra for doing this post on your latest doll finds. I love Ceddie too. Your little Morning Star is a good find too - you might be able to go back and get the matching doll. How glorious to work somewhere where you can find treasures like these. Lizzie.

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    1. I did think briefly of going back for the bigger doll but I'm really trying to cut back! And yes, it is wonderful to work someplace where you never know if you'll make a wonderful find--especially when no one else seems to realize what a treasure they are passing up.

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  2. Hi, Ms. "Audra"---it's me, your other sister! I took a doll-making class (well, more than one!) and I recognize this doll as one of the styles we could make....I vaguely remember possibly making one like this and thinking she looked like my sis Debby when she was little....I just checked my closet and found a similar body style (but smaller)that I added to my porcelain doll head---which I attempted to paint as well as possible for a person with so little drawing talent as I have....a friend of mine traded me making the dress & bonnet from my grandfather's cousin's dresser scarf or tea towel or something equally elaborate and when I get myself in gear, I'll take a picture of both of them so you can see too! Love, "Sis"

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    1. I think they still make Bye-Lo babies, but of course they aren't as cute as Ceddie. When I google-imaged Bye-lo it was amazing the different (but similar) looks they had. We get lots and lots of porcelain dolls at work. It's a good thing I'm not really into them or I WOULD be in trouble.

      Ceddie's "frog body" has grown on me. I thought he was really weird when I first saw him and now I almost think he's normal.

      I'm looking forward to the picture.

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  3. Ceddie is an unusual looking doll, not sure that I would have taken to him myself - sorry Ceddie. It amazes me that dolls like him survive, how long has he been waiting for someone to love him again I wonder.

    Love Feeebs, she is really cute.

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  4. It sure took me a while to take to him! But every time I saw him I was drawn to his face and finally I realized he was My Boy.

    I need to get that excess glue off Feeebs' neck and face. I think her neck used to move but now it has been firmly glued in place.

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