Doll Therapy 3
Three
I think, my doll collecting must've began, as a child, with Strawberry Shortcake. I had a lot of Holly Hobbies, and still do: love Holly Hobbie, but I played with those, so I do not consider it collecting, as such. Now, with the Strawberry Shortcakes, I mostly kept them in their strawberry cases, and, only took them out to look at them. They smelled good, too. But, they all seemed too sweet to be subjected to my play. I only met Bitch Pudding recently, and I bet, my Strawberry Shortcakes have melted in my mother's crowded attic. My grandmother made me dolls in lavish costumes, that were only to look at, so she probably planted the seed.
Today, I find myself wanting a new doll. These days, I love to want a new doll. She is the 2007, Barbie, Cher, Half-breed, Bob Mackie, and she is gorgeous. I will play with her, feathers, or not. Some day, she will be mine. I had a Cher doll, but compared to Half-breed, well, I cannot say anything bad about my Cher, I certainly played with her, but her hair was very frizzy, and her hand fell off. She needed a hook. I collect Captain Hook too, and recently picked-up a Taeyang, Pullip, one, that I adore. Some people will tell you that doll collecting, or any kind of collecting, for that matter, is evil, and I suppose it is true, as it is too much fun.
I only started making dolls, seriously, as I could not afford the ones, I really wanted. I used to subscribe to Dolls and Doll Reader, sometimes Antique Doll Reader, and Rags, too. I am, maybe, always first, a reader. Doll Reader was a favorite magazine. I got a lot of dolls from ads in the back: on sale, tax and shipping free, since they were out-of-state. I found myself, as any real collector does, spending all of my money on my collection. I spent my income tax return on Cress and Coe's, Porcelatex, Vampire Lestat, in silk and cashmere. I do not even like Anne Rice, anymore, since Jesus killed his friend, playing monkeyball, and brought him back to life. I could get over Lestat drinking from Jesus, and everything else, but I quit, there. Do I regret Lestat? No. I still love Cress and Coe. One does the sculpting, and the other makes the fabulous costumes. Polymer clay was invented by accident while making sealant for wiring. I saw, the fabulous dolls that people were making with it, and started using it, right away. My first dolls were hot messes, but I got better at it. I will go into that, later, though, this chapter is dedicated to collecting.
When I got to highschool, most people would not play dolls with me, anymore. I did not care. I still bought them. I was lucky to work at some high- end gift shops and got a discount. In college, of course, I was too poor, and busy, to get dolls. I did not even bring my precious, Mrs. Bunny. I was scared somebody would steal her. I found, I was right: colleges are full of scumbags, and followed with an all girls teaching school: Mellon's old digs. Mrs. Bunny would have been safe, there. But, I started working in a candle shop, where, a two-of-a-kind, four foot, seated, animatronic, pierotte, with Italian, blue glass eyes, had broken a porcelain leg, and the owner gave him to me. He was five-hundred dollars. I took him to The Lilliput Doll Hospital, where he remained for quite awhile, but for sixty dollars, he is good as new. At this time, there was a music box store, next door, and I had my musical CATS doll, who plays Memory, on lay-away for a day, there, too. I should have recognised the signs of my addiction, then, but it was, probably, too late.
My boyfriend, at the time, got me a Scarlet, Honeymoon in New Orleans, Madame Alexander, trunk set. I like Madame Alexander, and Scarlet, too. Around this time, The Franklin Mint was making gorgeous fashion dolls. I had to have Diana, Scarlet, and Rose, from Titanic. I had waited for these dolls, although, an Italian had made a big, Diana, as a child, doll, that I still look at, from time to time, but could never afford. I should really, sell Rose, someday, she has been in the closet, that long; but I used to have all sorts of fashions for her that have gotten lost in between moves, along the way. These dolls have the best wardrobes, and, I would say, put everybody else to shame, but that was before Gene, as I somehow acquired, through my addiction, and gifts, not one, but, three, Genes. Lucky for me, I redid the Blue Venus, as Margot Hemingway, in Safari, for a favorite patron. Genes' clothes cost as much as mine, but they were better made. She is a forties rags-to-riches, film star, taller than Barbie, better built, and beautiful. She also has a trunk, like my little Scarlet, and I always liked doll trunks and cases, too. I like to have a place to store everything, neat and tidy. I have sold a lot of my dolls that had been kept in cases, made a little money from them, and, there are, a lot of people, like me, out there, that really, only want the doll, in very good condition, and, are rather happy to be rid of the box. I use my Monster High and Ever After High boxes to make sets for my doll soap operas, though. They have wonderful art, and I could see why some collectors prefer to keep them in their protective boxes.
By the time I was in grad school, still waiting tables, before I was teaching, my addiction was full blown. I was seeing the eight-hundred dollar, German, vinyl, dolls, here, and getting them out-of-state, at half price. This was still before Ebay. This was back in the Home Shopping Club, up-all-night, doll pajama party, days, when I heard, Lestat, went for half of what I had paid for him. I know, I got William Tung's, Nellie, there, and she is one of my most beautiful and well made dolls. She is one of my few babies, as even as a child, with my baby dolls, and I had quite a lot, I was always, just babysitting, and my Barbies were always, childless, too. My dolls may be my children, and I suppose, they are, especially the ones that I make.
Then, I got very, very, lucky, one, day. I took my mother to an auction, about an hour away. There were thousands of dolls: all kept in slip plastic, mostly Franklin Mint, big, three-hundred dollar, lady dolls, but others, too. There were about eight people in attendance, and I was the only collector. Everybody else was just buying to sell, and the benefactor of the auction was a young man, who just wanted to buy a motorcycle. I got the four-hundred dollar, Bru, reproduction, bride, that day, for forty dollars. Most dolls went for twenty.
In the early days of Ebay I was getting eighty dollar dolls for five dollars, due to bad listings, and so, on. But, I still could not afford the antiques, I really wanted, so was searching antiques stores, mostly, for the chinaheads, I love. I have quite enough, now, have sold some, and might even sell some more. When I want a doll, I say, "Grandma, I want that doll!", list some dolls somewhere, on Etsy, or Ebay, they sell straight away, I mean, within hours, usually, in the same state the doll is, that I want, and I always have my doll, miraculously, that way, too. I shall not want. I got one of my favorite chinaheads: Varina, my Civil War doll, from Texas, that way. And, my magic doll story is even better than that.
Dresser dolls, or pin cushion dolls, are usually, only porcelain torsos, but rarely, have legs. The best are German. There was one, on Ebay, from an estate sale in New York, for fifty dollars: no pincushion, but with lovely legs, in French, high-heeled, shoes. We went to the off track betting, that night. At the scratch-off lottery ticket machine, as I put my dollar in, I said, "Grandma, I want that doll." Nobody was listening. My boyfriend did not believe I won fifty dollars. The cashier said nobody ever won off of one dollar tickets. I deposited the money, that Friday, and had her by Monday. I made her a silk velvet gown and gave her a peacock fan. She has a secret compartment in the bottom, which is really the lid, to the candle box, that I had covered in velvet, where I keep magic things, as she is one of my most magical dolls. I later, saw her sister, no cushion, in an antiques store, for two-hundred-sixty dollars.
My boyfriend is the one that started taking me to the auctions, getting me dolls, I would never dare to dream of. Going through the online catalogs is a big part of the fun. Some dolls, I look at, but I know better than to ever want. Honestly, if a doll costs more than a car, or a horse, I do not want the responsibility, but I still admire them. They belong in a museum, not with me, so my selection, probably, begins, mostly, there. I also have a preference for German and Italian made things. I just think, they are superior quality. I also like wood. I like woodcarvers, as I nearly lost a finger trying to whittle a doll when I was nine. Sometimes, when somebody dies, the museum closes, and the collection is listed on Ebay. I have gotten astounding dolls, this way, too, but am trying to stick to collecting. Magic dolls are another chapter, but I get very hexcited when it comes to dolls!
I, obviously, collect all sorts of dolls, and even, trade dolls. I resisted Monster High, I swear, until my best patron bought most of the Banshees, that I had made, and then, some. I have seen other Banshees, but not like Scarah Screams, not for six dollars, total, new, in the box. I now have the I Heart Fashion one too, just because, she has the clawsome wardrobe, and I got her used, in excellent condition, for eleven dollars. You may notice, I mention price, a lot, when talking about collecting. This is something I normally, would never do, but with my collection, I find it to be part of the fun. After spending a lifetime of income on dolls and books, I just refuse to spend any real money on them. Still, they come to me, as if, it was meant to be.
