Joanie is Here!

She arrived on Monday, February 13, but I had already left for work so I couldn't get her until Tuesday. I know we thought of naming her Valentine but she just didn't look like a Valentine in person. And I was surprised to find she is 17 inches tall. On the back of her neck is it says 17VW and according to dollreference, that is a Valentine doll marking! Everything I've read about Valentine dolls suggests they are ballerina-type dolls, with bendable knees and arched feet. Joanie has flat feet and her knees do not bend. Her head is vinyl with rooted hair but her body is hard plastic.

First thing was to try on clothes. Joanie came with panda slippers which were too big for her, but they fit Lorraine perfectly.

The dress is too big and the slippers are too big, so let's try something else.

"I don't mind if you wear my tee-shirt since I have your slippers," said Lorraine.

"My sun dress is way too big for you."

Meanwhile, also on Tuesday, I received from my sister MollyK a package of patterns and Saucy Walker clothes.

"I don't think this is really me."

So I let Penny try it on.

"I love it!" said Penny.

And another present for Lorraine, a babydoll nightie.

"For my next slumber party."

A sweet old-fashioned dress was perfect for Sydney. I will need to take the sleeves up a little.

"I feel very sweet and demure in this."

Then I asked Lorraine if she would mind posing outside in the snow to show off our one and only real snowfall of the season. It's not very impressive and most of it has melted away already.

"The things I have to suffer!"

I really like this next dress. It needs a few adjustments but it is kind of a flapper style dress.

"At least I'm getting most of the clothes."

When I saw this next dress my first thought was that it was a definite "baby" type dress and no one (meaning Lorraine) would want it. Then I looked again and realized it was a ballerina/princess dress!

"Now I need ballet slippers."

Penny offered to let Joanie try on her green and white dress. It's a bit skimpy in the skirt but it fits so now I know I can use the same pattern for Joanie's next dress.

"I just love my sailor dress," said Penny.

"Look, girls," said Lorraine. "I'm a princess and you're not!"

Oops, I Did It Again!

I accidentally found another doll that was really cheap and looked like a Mary Hoyer doll.

That's a Mary Hoyer face if ever I saw one.

Very little was written in the description but I decided to take a chance. Auntie Berman aided and abetted me--Last week when she was sitting at my computer she logged into eBay and didn't log out, so now when I go there, eBay thinks I'm her and I tell her I'm bidding on all kinds of dollies.

I am assuming she is 14 inches tall, but even if she's not, I will love her. Mary Hoyer didn't make a lot of walker dolls but she sold her face molds to various companies. According to dollreference.com, Mary Hoyer doll molds were also sold to the Richwood company, who then redressed and sold them as their Cindy Lou walker doll. 

She is coming from Colorado and will be here around February 14. So Auntie Berman wants to name her Valentine.

Meanwhile, we found a lovely dress for Lorraine at Goodwill Bargain Bin. It's from a company called Dollie & Me. I'm sure it was designed for an 18 inch doll but it fits Lorraine.

"As long as I get new clothes and shoes, I don't care how many little sisters I have."

Boots for Lorraine

I came across a pair of shoes that I thought might fit Lorraine, and by cutting the straps off and using a small spoon as a shoehorn, I was able to get her feet into them.

She was quite pleased and wanted more. Then I had to have a little talk with her about how she and I are Special. We have Big Feet and we can't just go into a shoe store and buy shoes like normal common people. She said she understood, but I don't think she does.

Then I found a wonderful pattern for making doll boots here and since I had some spare fur on my hands I decided to try it.

Here is a closeup.

I had to enlarge the pattern, since Lorraine is bigger than American Girls. They were very easy to make, but I advise making a practice boot first out of felt (make two and your doll can have house slippers). Also, read the directions! I glanced at them and then thought I knew what I was doing but soon realized I didn't.

Now Lorraine wants to know if there's enough fur left over to make her a coat. I suppose there is. 

Sydney's Here!

Sydney arrived Saturday morning. I thought sure she would have to go to Sacramento and then back to Reno, but apparently she came straight to Reno, was processed early in the morning, and then sent out for delivery and we got her around 10 a.m. Because we were going out thrifting, she got to see a little of her new city. Then I was afraid someone would steal her if she was visible in the car, so I wrapped her in a sweater and put her behind the seat. She spent last night getting acquainted with her sisters. This morning I took pictures of the girls.

"We all got new dresses," said Sally. "Maybe you will too."

I already had Sydney's dress cut out, so all I had to do was sew it up.

"I love our sailor hats."

Last night Auntie Berman and I restrung Penny, following the directions of dollstringing.com/. It was very easy and painless (I hope) and Penny is a whole new girl.

"I feel like dancing."

"I heard we're going to get hoodies next!"

They are going to get hoodies next (but not today.

We had an incredible find at Salvation Army Warehouse. I've often wondered when Monster High dolls would show up in thrift shops and then thought "never," but I saw something in a bin, reached in and pulled her out, and Auntie Berman recognized her as a Lagoona Monster High doll. She was missing her forearms. We searched the bins but didn't find them. You can actually buy replacement forearms and hands from Mattel for $3 a pair! We also thought of making them out of Barbie arms. In the meantime, Lorelei, as Auntie Berman named her, relaxes at home with her camel (Auntie Berman collects camels, among other things).

"I thought I was going to die in the landfill. I'd rather be buried at sea, if I must go."

Auntie Berman has two other Monster High dolls.

I think they're whispering together about the New Girl.

Auntie Berman has many eclectic collections. She is going to start her own blog soon.

One New (Last) Dolly is on her Way

I've always loved the look of Mary Hoyer dolls but never thought I could afford one. Then I found out her face molds were often used by other doll makers. So I kept my eyes open and found her on eBay. Thanks to Auntie Berman, we won her for only $23.50. I will owe Auntie Berman for the rest of my life, as usual. The eBay seller, itsalways4sale, said I could use her listing pictures on my blog, so here she is:

We have named her Sydney.

She already has a dress but of course I am making her a new one.

The seller sent her out promptly and Sydney left Kansas City Thursday afternoon. I don't have much hope that she will get here Saturday and Monday is a holiday, so she probably won't be here until Tuesday. I wrote a little poem about her:

Oh Sydney, dear Sydney

Your mama awaits

Your arrival in Reno

Across many states.

Then another one this morning (not nearly as good but I'm not at my best in the morning):

Oh Sydney, dear Sydney

I'm glad you're not an Aborigine.

You are so very pretty

They don't appreciate you in Kansas City.

So then Auntie Berman had to write one:

A doll from the Midwest

Wanted to cover her chest

So she’d look her best –

She chose a vest.

Now looking her best,

She goes on her quest

(this is NO jest,

She is NOT a pest)

To find her nest;

She’ll live in the West.

Sure, she picked the easiest word to rhyme, while I picked Sydney, which is extremely difficult to find rhymes for (I refused to use "kidney).

Meanwhile, I've been sewing. (And we've renamed Marley Peggy, because we thought it was more in keeping with the times.)

Noelle, Peggy, and Sally enjoy the wintery sunshine.

Penny had a little accident. Her leg fell off when the elastic broke. She was originally a walking Sweet Sue but her walker mechanism had been removed and she had been restrung without it. I want to restring her properly so I invested $3 to learn how here. I saw that the main problem was whoever restrung her didn't use S-hooks. I only have two of them right now but will get some and fix her up. I made her a dress and Peggy is modeling it for her.

She wants to keep it for herself.

I used the fabric Ann sent me a while ago to make an American jumper (as opposed to an English jumper which, you may remember, led to some problems between Kyle and G.I. Joe and ended up as the fight). I need to make a better blouse to go with it and I have some nice honey colored silk (from a tie) that should work.

Auntie Berman painted Penny's lips, which really brightened up her face.

Penny will soon be a whole new girl!

Now I must get to work on Sydney's dress, which is a yellow-with-cherries cotton print from Mary Engelbreit. It will be nice to have a dark haired girl to dress.

It Wouldn't Be Christmas Without a New Doll

Noelle

I received an unexpected $60 as a gift. I was going to pay $50 of it towards the rent, but when I got to the office I couldn't find the $50 bill. So I trudged back home wondering what could have happened to it, only to find it right where I'd left it in front of my computer. I took it as a Sign. That money was not meant to go to rent--it was meant for a gift for myself! And Auntie Berman had received a check early that she didn't expect until next week. So we started out to the thrift stores.

Because it was Christmas Eve, Salvation Army and St. Vinnie's were closed. Most of the other stores were closing early. We found many wonderful things but I hadn't seen any sign of my Doll. Then we thought of the Antique Stores. There used to be lots of them but now there are only a few. The first one was a disappointment. We went across the street to one that had closed two minutes earlier. So we decided to try a place called Junkee that we'd been meaning to go to but never did. It was open and there was a doll booth! Auntie Berman spotted her. Auntie Berman, I should add, was slowly coming to realize that I was dead set on getting a doll and she would never get home if I didn't find one. So she really pushed this doll and I'm so glad she did.

Auntie Berman suggested Noelle for a name, since she's a Christmas dolly. Noelle is a Madame Alexander doll, 14 inches tall. She was $45 (allegedly worth $300). I think she was marked down because her hair has been cut. Auntie Berman later discovered she is a walker doll: when you move her legs, her head turns back and forth (why this was popular in the 1950s, we don't know). The down side of being a walker is that she can't sit down! She was dressed in a bride's dress. The woman who sold her to us (not the booth owner, who wasn't there) said her hair would look fine if I put a veil over it. I replied that I did not approve of child brides and she was going to get some nice clothes as soon as possible. The woman thought that was very funny, as did the cashier. I think her hair is fine the way it is.

"I haven't worn anything but a bride's dress for so long I forgot what it's like!"

I hadn't realized how few clothes I have for these dolls. Noelle borrowed Pollyanna's middy blouse and a pleated skirt. Sally is wearing a skirt I made over from a Barbie skirt (it was very fully gathered). Everyone liked the blue ribbon so each girl had some around her hair.

"The human was supposed to make us Christmas dresses but she never got around to it," explained Sally.

My Hard Plastic Girls: Noelle, Sally, Penny, Marley

Marley looks like she's had a bit too much to drink, but I think it's just because they are sitting on a very lumpy surface.

"Who's the giant girl next to me?" whispered Noelle. "That's our big sister Lorraine," explained Sally. "She doesn't really like to associate with us."

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Back to the Bigger Dolls

Several months ago I signed up for the Maker's Mark website (I think I got something free when I did). I've never tried their Kentucky Bourban but they often send me free things and recently I received a sweater from them, apparently to put on my whisky bottle. It was too big for Pollyanna Sunshine but it just fit Lorraine!

"I don't think I like being a walking advertisement for liquor! But it is warm."

Over a week ago at work I saw an older, hard plastic doll in our store. She was in a hatbox with three smaller hard plastic dolls and was priced at $29.99. I was surprised no one showed any interest in her (she was kept behind the jewelry counter with the Special Things That Cost More) and I only had one person ask to look at her while I was on duty. Then last Friday when I went in to work, I was handed a Christmas card with a Bonus Check in it (and I really hadn't thought I would get a bonus since I hadn't been there a whole year yet), so I decided to get her. And because she was marked as a toy and not a collectible, I got her for half price! And because my HLP was returning a pair of shoes (they turned out to be two right feet and the left ones couldn't be found), we got a store credit and so really the dolls didn't cost me anything at all.

I'm pretty sure she's a Sweet Sue, just like my other Sweet Sue (I think I named her Penny), only in much better condition. I couldn't find any markings on her (Penny has AC on the back of her neck, which stands for American Character). But many Sweet Sues weren't marked. I have named her Sally.

Sally and Penny liked each other right away.

Sally wants a cowgirl outfit too.

Sally's dress looks like an original 1950s dress. She has matching panties. I have to find her some shoes because she's barefoot. Penny is wearing a skirt and vest of suede and a gingham blouse. I made these for her last week. HLP, pulling a sticker off a banana, thought she needed some sort of badge on her vest so he added the Del Monte sticker. Penny's face needs repainting. I got her from eBay at a bargain price, because her face had been messed up. I removed the bad paint but haven't yet tried repainting her.

Her eBay picture.

Here is a close-up of her face when I got her.

That's not lipstick on her face!

I had to use acetone to get the paint off and that's why her face looks kind of dull. But it's a great improvement over what she did look like.