Free Doll Newsletter; Week of Nov. 30th

The Holidays are Here! Let the Doll Games Begin! Welcome to Black Friday; hope you are taking advantage of the Doll Deals!  American Girl, Madame Alexander, and Tonner all have specials.  Amazon and Ebay have deals that could be used with dolls.  Below are some updated articles and new posts on shops, dolls in literature, dolls in Thanksgiving, and the latest Shirley Temple auction.  There will be more on Raggedies, dolls in books, and dolls for the holidays next week.  Those who love mystery, Patricia Cornwell's latest thriller, "Depraved Heart" opens featuring Lucy's teddy bear named Mr. Pickle.  Happy Collecting!  Remember I love to hear from you; write to etsag19998@aol.com for doll prices, selling tips, to share stories of your dolls and more.  Also, check us out on Facebook, Pinterest All About Doll Collecting, Twitter, and more! Ellen Tsagaris Doll Collecting Expert

Shop Blossoms with Antiques and Dolls   Antique shop features dolls and doll related items for collectors in several venues. Read more about my favorite place, Vintage Rose, home of wonderful dolls and antiques. READ NOW

More Poppets ahd Pilgrims: The Series   A doll plays a pivotal role in The Witch of Blackbird Pond. This is one of the last articles in the series on this book that mentions poppets and alludes to pastimes for children in Puritan times. READ NOW

For Thanksgiving, a Novel that Discusses a Doll   Without dolls and toys to play with, Puritan girls found other ways to amuse themselves that sometimes led to disaster. Read more on "The Witch of Blackbird Pond." READ NOW

Charming Jewelry for a Charming Girl   Shirley Temple favored unusual charm bracelets in gold and silver. Charms have a rich history and are often tiny dolls or miniature objects perfect for doll houses! READ NOW

Estate Dolls : Review for Estate Sale Season   Read about one way to sell dolls, and learn some tips for sales you might visit this winter. READ NOW

Addams Family Values, Dolls, and Third Rock Fuzzy Buddies

We just never know where dolls will materialize!  I love the Adams Family, for example, and loved Marie Antoinette the headless doll, not to mention the iron maiden and all the statues.  In the Raul Julia/Angelica Huston Film, dolls and teddy bears appear in Camp Chippewa, and the pastel bears in the doll like Hansel and Gretel Harmony Cottage are used to punish the dour Addams children who just won't be "perky."  More stuffed animals and figurines grace the pink palace of Evil Debbie the Black Widow and the Addams baby nursery.

Addams Family Value Public Doman

Public Domain Image

Third Rock from the Sun Public Domain Image

Last Sunday, I saw a Christmas tree with an Addams Family theme. 

Netflix brought us John Lithgow as a hilarious Fuzzy Buddy collector on a vintage Third Rock from the Sun episode that spoofed beanie collectors.  Fuzzy Buddies were spilling out of the freezer, drawers, and cupboards.  Kachinas and Ashanti dolls also decorate Mary Albright's office.

Once again, my Friend Mary Hillier was right, dolls are where you find them!

Black Friday Musings and the Unfairness of Implying Dolls are "Creepy!" People who live in Glass Dept. Store Windows, Shouldn't

I think we're all sick and tired of the faddish and apparently respected response that dolls are "creepy." I hate it when someone makes a stupid remark in a thrift store or antique store about a collectible doll, and I hate the funny looks I get if someone finds out I collect dolls.

It got me thinking when I watched people falling all over each other for a cheap TV on the News that life is unfair.  Collecting dolls, the oldest human cultural artifact is weird and creepy, but setting up outside a big box store for hours on Thanksgiving Night to get a cheap appliance or game that won't last a year is normal.  Apparently it's more normal if there is also a rain storm or blizzard going on.

Preserving beautiful antique dolls is weird, but taking selfies in front of your new toilet seat, or washing machine, or DVD, or whatever, after you have run over ten little old ladies to get it, well, that's acceptable.

In fact, no one thinks it's at all strange or say, narcissistic, to take one's own photo incessantly.  Especially if one is standing before a gorgeous natural setting, a work of art, a family event.  The hell with everything and everyone else we could preserve and photograph.  Take that selfie, and let's hear it for SnapChat.  And, Miss Kardashian, please keep your clothes on.  There is enough carnivalesque grotesqueness in the world.  We don't need to look at your bare heinie, too.   Get over it, and  no one write me anything nasty.  If you're a public figure, you take it as well as dish it out.

On the other hand, Caitlin Jenner, I applaud your courage.  You behaved like a lady through all the hoopla.  You have a lot of guts, and you deserve to be happy.  I wish we could sit down and talk.  I'm from San Jose, too.

Remember, there is no bad publicity.

I'm glad to have all these wild sales and Black Friday, Small Biz Saturday, and CyberMonday news footage to help me keep my priorities straight.  Colleciting anything is well, bad.  Collecting dolls is creepy and weird, even if they are the expressions of those who made them.  Playing with dolls is bad for kids, but mirroring the bad behavior seen on TV will make them fine adults.

Pushing, shoving, staying out in all weather, being a general nuisance, rudeness, trampling others, and general bad behavior to get a piece of crap showcases the true Christmas spirit and boosts the economy.  Huzzay Huzzah.

Just go and get waited on by The Holiday Help at your favorite store.  The Defense Rests.

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My Christmas Favorites Newsletter from About.com

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Christmas Favorites Happy Thanksgiving!   How time flies; it seems like just yesterday it was July, and we were excited over Love, Shirley Temple.  This weekend, another auction takes place by Theriault's that features Shirley memorabilia of all kinds of things.  I particularly love her charm bracelets; look for posts on them and the vinyl Shirleys being auctioned. I hope you take out your pilgrim statues, wax candle dolls, dried apple heads and corn husk dolls to celebrate this uniquely American holiday.  On my Doll Museum blog, I featured photos of French dolls, in honor of those who died and were hurt last Friday in Paris.  More French doll posts to follow on About, with one vintage post below.  Happy Collecting! Ellen Tsagaris Doll Collecting Expert Christmas Favorites   Christmas this year provides many choices for doll collectors.  The Holidays are here, and with them come many new choices for collectors and doll/toy lovers everywhere! READ NOW Being a CEO of the Doll House could Land you a Corner Office!   Collecting dolls teaches management and other marketable skills. Just think of the creativity, passion, social media skills, historical knowledge, organization and multitasking involved in caring for a doll collection! READ NOW Review: The Pueblo Storyteller   Thanksgiving is almost here, and I always like to review and study the Native American Dolls in my collection.  Just last Tuesday, we talked about it in my diversity class for law enforcement.  Storyteller's are special dolls, true art figures, memorialized in this wonderful book. READ NOW Collections of Things I Don't Collect   This is a fun time or year to take stock of our various, doll-related collecting passions! READ NOW Antique French Fashion Dolls   There are several good articles in this indexed category from our About.com doll collecting site that feature French dolls.  Enjoy surfing the links! READ NOW