Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog: May 2010

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Nan's novel and "we ran a river through it!"

I did some traveling yesterday along the Illinois River. Road Trips help me to think; my husband, and two of our closest friends came along. There we were, two women, and two men “of a certain age” having more fun than little kids. We hit an old fashioned candy store where Lincoln once shopped, and ate at a historic restaurant that was once a bank. We went rock hounding and came back with boxes of petrified wood and agate, and all sorts of knick knacks, and some lovely small sculptures from the Sandra McKenzie Sculpture studio. There were 32 artists represented, and apparently, many of the sculptures were made by gifted high school kids. Others were made of river clay. Many were figural, and glazed in different colors. There were also Noah’s Arks, and many nativities. The faces were charming and doll like, and some were life-sized. We fell in love with an oversized head sitting in the garden; it was strategically cracked, but we were told this was an accident, and thus the head was not for sale. We want to track down the artist to see if she would sell her! I think all of us wanted her head!

Friday, I went to a quick sale of Native American Art, and came away with a tiny storyteller sculpture variation in white, and two good Kachina books. Thursday, I went to an estate sale by my friend, Dick, and found a great Victoria by Mme. Alexander for $1.00, and some doll house/doll mouse boxes by F.A.O. Schwarz, along with various other figurines and ethnic artifacts. There were some Shirleys and bisque dolls as well, some very old.

Below is a brief excerpt from the Anne Boleyn novel for those who are fans, or who like Renaissance history, dolls, women, you name it. Enjoy:

From: Anne’s Journey Through Time, Copyright Ellen Tsagaris, 2010.

….Her blonde hair peaked out from under the scarf, her one luxury thus far on her English sabbatical. She paused in front of the flotsam and jetsam that made up the various stalls, pitying more than desiring the merchandise, optimistically labeled “collectible” and “antique.” Really, though, they were the detritus of past generations, the memorabilia no one wanted to remember, the doll without eyes, the teddy bear with its plush worn off, the punch bowl set short one cup. She liked to wander among the once wanted, no longer loved objects and liked to think about who might have owned them.

Prudence stopped in front of a costume or paste jewelry stall. The rhinestones and pot metal jewels picked up the cold sunlight and shone. Her eyes were as dazzled as if they were the eyes of a starving child in front of a candy shop. She held one piece of Rhinestone finery after another against her navy coat. There were pieces of Victorian coral, cameos featuring enigmatic, Mona Lisa-like profiles of enigmatic ladies, the occasional gold plated leaf, complete with enamel ladybug, and then her eyes rested on a ring. It was older, and very tarnished, she was aware of the elderly woman who kept the stall urging her to “take in the patina.” “It’s just more dirt, “ thought Prudence, and her mind briefly drifted to the clowns in Hamlet and their musing that the dust at their feet might be the dust of Alexander.
“Could I see that please,” Prudence asked.
The stall keeper handed her the ring. “It’s a locket, madam, as you can tell.” There is a small spring underneath, you can flip it with your thumbnail.”
Prudence dutifully flipped the tiny lever, rearing she might disturb the encrusted patina and utterly destroy the piece of ancient junk in her hand. She hadn’t even asked about the price, and she wondered if she had remembered to tuck her credit card in her jeans’ pocket. The various “you break, you buy” signs around her were spooking her.
She didn’t have to worry, though. The lever gave easily, and the two haves of engraved metal, which appeared to have designs of some type of bird of prey, maybe a falcon, opened in her hands. Inside were two miniature paintings, both of women. One, Prudence was sure was Queen Elizabeth, the other, she was familiar, “Let me see, she thought, it’s, It’s Anne Boleyn, it’s Elizabeth I’s mother, What an extraordinary reproduction “ she was about to exclaim to the shopkeeper, but when she looked up, an entirely different scene met her eyes.
She was no longer in Portobello. She was standing on some type of grassy hill, and an ancient home stood behind her. She could tell it was a manor house, maybe a small castle. Directly in front of her was a pebbled walkway. The oak trees surrounding the stone path were large, a little crooked, and very old.
A woman stood before her. Prudence knew her. Or rather, she knew of her. The woman was tiny, not much taller than a fourteen-year-old girl, and looked as if she weighed under 100 pounds. She bore herself regally, but carefully. She wore a dark silk dress, pearls around her neck, and the old French Hood headdress surrounded her face. What she could see of her hair was dark, almost black, but with reddish highlights that glinted in the sun. The woman’s eyes were laughing.
At first Prudence thought she had seen a ghost, but the apparition was looking straight at her.
“Welcome to Hever. My name is Mistress Anne Boleyn, but most call me Nan.”
Prudence looked at the locket ring in her hand and nearly fainted. It was the sick feeling in her stomach and slight nausea that made her realize she was not dreaming, that and the cold, damp air. Also, the woman was near her, so close that her skirts rustled.
Prudence didn’t know if she should curtsy or not, so she gave a slight bow.
“My name is Prudence, Your Grace, and I don’t wish to intrude, I believe I have something that belongs to you.”
With that, Prudence held out the ring, the two halves open. As Anne reached for it, their hands touched. Absentmindedly, Prudence looked at Anne’s hand and thought, “Why she doesn’t have six fingers at all!” and felt the cool, but very solid and human touch of the other woman’s fingers brushing hers. The sunlight then disappeared, Prudence closed her eyes, sure she was having a stroke of some kind, and then opened them.
She and Anne were now standing together at the stall in Portobello. Anne wore a dark cloak wrapped around her, but the headdress and period silk dress were gone. They looked at each other, both in disbelief, but sensing the urgency and importance of the moment. Silent understanding passed between them.
“How much for the Ring” both of them said together.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

May 19, 1536; In Memoriam Anne Boleyn and Portrait Dolls

I was late with this, I know. Yesterday was so bad, I was willing to hire an expert swordsman from Calais for myself! As anyone who really knows me understands, I am a big Anne Boleyn fan, and have a lot of books and memorabilia about her. I have done a lot of writing on her and on The Six Wives of Henry VIII, as well, and am currently working on a novel about Anne. I also have several dolls representing her and the other wives. There is a set of Peggy Nisbet dolls, with two representing Anne, and the beautiful ball-jointed Alexander model. While I don't have their Anne Boleyn model, I do have the Headless Historicals model of Catherine Howard, Anne's hapless cousin and Henry's fifth queen. I have made my own versions of Anne over the years, including a small doll-house sized porcelain doll, and several paper dolls, and I have sets of lovely Internet dolls and Dover paper doll books. We study her in school, especially in Family Law and some of my other courses, and I hope there are others out there who are inspired to write about her and to keep her story alive. I recommend Alison Weir's latest book, The Lady in the Tower, and Retha Warnicke's, The Rise and Fall of Anne Boleyn. All the wives make fascinating dolls, and fascinating reading. More later, and happy doll hunting.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Doll Triage

Ah, Friday. This was quite a week, and quite a day for weird anniversaries. Today, ten years ago, my little dog Smokie passed away, and three years ago, my cousin, who was a well known professor,poet, and a lawyer [!] died suddenly after graduation. He and I got along really well; I think he was the only one in the family who understood me. That same day, one of my wacky neighbors, who wanted my back yard ravine via adverse possession, stuck nasty letters in my door, and it's my mother in-law's birthday. You'd think that would be enough, but, no.

My other wacky neighbor verbally assaulted me, and physically assaulted my car, with me in it, yes, today! Her kids got caught doing things in my yard they shouldn't, and vandalizing my basement windows. It's been a long, neighborhood-wide problem, but tonight I heard about how awful I am for not wanting my house trespassed and everything in my yard destroyed. She would have made desparate housewives proud, and she did it in front of her oldest kid. Her husband is in the same business I'm in, and he's been following me around, at work, at church, in clubs and organizations, for years. But, he doesn't have my experience, or anything else, so she's jealous. I'm still reeling, and sick. I always thought she looked like Barbie on acid, and now she behaved like it. So, it's either get really sick, give in to the headache and insomnia, or, blog!

Back to dolls, our favorite, and happier subject. I confess to escaping over lunch yesterday when it was finally nice, and going to my local Goodwill and Discovery Shops. I like to look around there and buy things when I can because I really think it helps people. I feel the same way about the Salvation Army, and I like to give things to these organizations, too. I found all sorts of neat things, and even left some!
I found a Dancerina in good condition, pink tutu intact. There was a small ethnic doll of turned wood, probably from Poland, and two tiny English toby jugs representing Shakespeare. I found a small Italian doll with her original brown granny dress, and a Bradley silk stockinette doll with its original label. There were some very old figurines and enamels that came home with me, some nice beads made out of rolled paper, and some silk embroidered slip-on shoes for me, never worn. These were brown silk embroidered with beads.

At The Discovery Shop, I found two pioneer style rag dolls made from Sew Sweet patterns in the 70s or 80s in perfect shape. Because they had buttons on them, they were half price. I found a hand made rabbit, all plush with a beautiful dress for $12.00, with its original price tag of $159.00 still attached. I also found a cat mermaid pin, and a vintage trumpet, etched, for my husband and 11 year old to play with. Both men enjoy music and instruments, and this was a good find, with its original case.

There were many lovely items of clothing, and I found two jackets, both embroidered. My favorite is white, with tiny flower fairies embroidered all over it. I have a wonderful book on resale shops, thrift shops, and antiques which reviews stores all over the US, UK, and Australia. It is very nice. I wasn't feeling well one day and stumbled into the book store to find a medical book so I could read symptoms. Never do that! I got so depressed, I turned to the antique books, and found the one on the resale shops. I felt much better reading that!

Doll Castle News had some great articles again, too. They featured Ruth Gibbs dolls and Nancy Ann Storybook dolls, which was great. There were some great dolls to identify as well, and very nice Gibbs paper dolls. This is a family run periodical that is very informative, but somehow homey. When I read the family clips, or the old issues where the founder and mother of the clan was still alive and writing, I fell as if it is my own mother writing. I hope they keep at it for many, many years!

Still recovering and unpacking dolls that had weather related disasters last year. I vowed to save even the most hopeless, even when I had to throw out many other things. Sunlight, woolite, febreze, and even windex with ammonia can still do wonders, as can an old toothbrush that can be washed and used as a scrubbing tool.

I just finished Monster in Miniature as well, and I have to say Margaret Grace has done it again! This time, she combines two of my favorite things, miniatures and Halloween. I can't wait to try her glue ghosts. Till next time, Happy Dolling, and have a good weekend.

Monday, May 10, 2010

Modern Metal Dolls and Mechanical Dolls, From Chapter 7

While most modern dolls are made of plastics with a few collector's items made of cloth, bisque, and other materials, there are still some made of metal. In fact, some modern vinyl dolls of the fifties, sixties, and seventies contain metal, which causes their vinyl skin to develop green stains after awhile.
Noted authority Charles Bartholomew writes that many popular mechanical toy trends of the twentieth century really have their origins in the late nineteenth century (127). By the turn of the century, clockwork and friciton driven toys of all types were very popular, and were becoming more and more sophisiticated, with electricity more widely used in toys than ever before. British firms began making all types of mechanical toys of metal before World War I. One of these was the Meccano Company of Frank Hornby, originally called Mechanics Made Easy in its patent papers. Hornby got the idea to make mechanical toys after he made metal toy parts for his children (127). The children were able to construct entire toys from these parts. Other companies soon followed, including Dinky Toys, another of Hornby's lines, and the Louis Marx Company of New York (Bartholomew 128). Marx was able to imitate more expensive toy lines, including the Hornby lines, and could sell cheaper versions in great quantities directly to stores like Woolworth's. This was his one great advantage (129). By the time Marx turned to plastics and other materials, Japan had entered the toy market. Mechanical and tin toy production was halted, according to Bartholomew, during World War II, when many toy manufacturing plants were turned "over to war production" (129).
During the 1930's, German companies like Schuco produced interesting toys that danced, played instruments, or beat drums (135). Another German company made a Charlie Chaplin who could swing his cane.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Web Museum Progress

Well, we are rolling along, about one month behind some deadlines, and ahead of others. Happy Mothers Day to all! My sweet husband began to photograph dolls for the web museum, and the State finally sent out some papers. Now, if I only had the "guts" to fill them out. This is a scary business, all the same. St. John's lecture was great, and I met and re-met some wonderful people. The dolls were a great hit, especially those that brought back childhood memories, including Shirley Temple, the vintage Barbie [TM] and the old bisque dolls. Surprisingly, though, the African carvings and the Venus of Willendorf replica sparked a lot of interest, too. I was very happy to see people bringing their dolls, and that people were so fascinated with the stories behind the dolls. This encourages me in planning this museum.

We have a cover for the bibliography, and my husband will begin shooting metal head dolls for that book next. I recommend a couple sites and blogs, including Lucy's Kitchen Notebook, a cooking and culinary blog set in Lyon, France, which was the home of the Jumeau doll factory. It is truly beautiful and worth a look. Also, for all things doll, go to Linda's Blog, but have couple of free hours to truly enjoy surfing. She has everything on there! Finally, try The Doll Works for shopping, browsing, and identifying very unusual dolls, miniatures, and toys. It is a good place to find out about your own collection, but also to add to it.

I'm currently reading a biography of Shirley Jackson, who, as it turned out, had a passion for making clothespin dolls, and Margaret Grace's Monster in Minature. I recommend both to mystery lovers, author/lit junkies, and doll lovers. Till next time, Happy Dolling!

Dr. E's Doll Museum Blog

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Ann Parker Doll of Anne Boleyn

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