Makeover Time! Madame Alexander 18inch Doll Goodwill Find!

Greetings and Salutations Doll Friends!!

I went into Goodwill on Monday on my way home from work... 

I found this beautiful Madame Alexander 18inch doll for only $3.99!! Score!!

Poor beauty had been very shabbily treated!! I try hard not to judge but I just can't imagine treating a doll so poorly. I try to remember that to many people dolls are just 'just another toy' and so are likely treated just like any other bit of plastic and fluff... I know my own daughter has, more than a few times, had her fashion dolls hair get into tangled messes. So it's all a matter of priorities, eh? The good news being is that this particular doll was in for a makeover and residence at the Doll House where all dolls are treated pretty well if I do say so... Teehee.

Her hair was in such disarray that I was a bit convinced that I'd just scalp her and give her a whole new look with a new wig...

When I got her home I was shocked to discover that not only was she wearing a nearly complete (no shoes or tights) outfit... But it was also her 'meet outfit'! Meaning it was the outfit she arrived in when she was new in the box. How did I know this? Because the stitches they put in the clothing to keep it looking it nice, but that also basically sews it on the doll, hadn't ever been removed. Isn't that crazy? Nearly the first thing I want to do when I get a new doll is change her clothes. Haha. Perhaps they didn't have any other doll clothes? Perhaps they didn't like dolls and got her as a gift and just tossed her into the toy box? Who can know? However that meant, to me, that I had just gotten a nearly new Madame Alexander deluxe doll for $3.99!! Why do I call her a deluxe doll? Because she has 'rubber' feeling limbs and a good armature... I will have to pull out a couple of different Madame Alexander dolls soon and show you the differences. They've been released by several different stores under different names and the quality differs depending on which they were. Once you get interested in 18inch dolls, it can kind of blow your mind the seemingly endless 'kinds' there are!! For someone who is a collector, like me, this is dangerous information. Because you end up like "I want one of ALL the dolls!!". Or one of each type and then one of each variety and on and on.... Then there are customs which opens a whole new can of worms! You see the hazard? Oh well, there are worse things to worry about than having too many dolls. Eh? 

I didn't have anything to loose by trying to fix her hair.... I brushed it out as well as I could with my doll/wig hairbrush, washed and conditioned it and then hot dipped it and brushed it out again. In the initial brushing she lost a bit of hair but given that she was still in her meet outfit, I don't think she'd ever lost any before due to rough brushing or styling... She'd just been dumped into the toy box gotten Toy-Box-Dread-Locks very organically just like people get them in real life; by not brushing or washing or doing anything at all to her hair! Haha! So... Once I brushed it out, despite having lost a bit, it was still full and pretty!

Here she is, all cleaned up and brushed out....

And after her hair dried....

When I first found her I thought she'd look a lot like the other brown hair and brown eyes Madame Alexander doll I own named Mary.

But once I got her home, I realized that they weren't twins at all! I can't decide for sure but I think that they might even have different face sculpts...?

I've always thought Mary had a sort of middle eastern look to her... Hence my naming her Mary after Jesus' mother. I thought she could very well look a lot like Mary might have....

Whereas the new Madame Alexander, who I've decided to name Patti, looks a bit more like the 'girl next door' American, if that is a good description. I named her after my lovely friend Patti who I have breakfast and Bible study with every week because she looks a lot like her! 

Here she is with Mary and Nicky (the blonde, another MA doll) 

They are both so pretty! Do you think they have different sculpts? I can't decide!

Out of time! Happy Friday! Have a great weekend!

Till next time!

XXOO
Heather

Frann Doll Goes To Lunch At Le Mesa!

Hi Doll Friends!

This past Saturday we had to go into town to buy dress up clothes for my ever growing taller son to wear for a Christmas performance at school... As is tradition, whenever we drive in we choose one of our favorite places to eat and have lunch there after we shop. One of my personal favorites is Le Mesa! I've loved them since I was in my twenties and would go to lunch there with girlfriends from work on our lunch break. They have the very best cheese sauce! I am telling you, So if you're ever in Omaha, do stop in! You won't regret it. 

I decided when we were going into town that it would be fun to bring Frann Doll along and perhaps find some good photo ops... When we decided to go to Le Mesa, I knew it would be perfect! They have this beautiful fountain that Frann posed by! Hi Frann! 

I'll admit the fountain photos aren't the best I ever took... But I had to be super quick because my teenaged kids were sitting close by and feeling completely mortified that I was playing dolls in public. Heeheehee... So I had to be quick! Still she looks adorable by the fountain, eh?

At Le Mesa they have a display of various artifacts and naturally Frann Doll wanted to check them out... 

I personally love  the day of the dead sculptures but I know that a lot of people find them a bit creepy... Kind of like dolls I suppose. Can you imagine finding dolls creepy? What?? But a lot of people do. You should see some of the reactions of people who see my doll room. Who needs a guard dog, just have a hundred dolls staring and any would be intruders will run screaming from your house! Kidding! You'd be surprised though how many people are afraid of dolls? Whodathunk?

We really enjoyed looking at all the nicknacks together. 

It was a fun day out... Where have you taken your dollies lately? 

Have a wonderful day!!

Till next time!

XXOO
Heather

Adorable Barnes & Noble Doll Sized Christmas Cupcake Erasers

Greetings and Salutations Doll Friends!!

As many of you know if you read my blog, I am a member of a few doll groups over at Facebook. One of my favorite things about Facebook, in fact, is these groups. All of us share ideas for dolls as we find them! Which is awesome but also the tiniest bit dangerous... Why? Because it makes me want: All. The. Doll. Things! I see. I'm kidding... Sort of. Luckily most of the focus is on how to save money or re-create the more expensive versions of doll sized items in these groups too. 

So recently a member of one of the groups posted photos of her Christmas decor and doll finery in her own doll house. One thing that she had in the photos were some totally adorable Christmas themed cupcakes. Oh. My. Cute! Naturally everyone wanted to know where she got them and she reported she'd gotten them at Barnes & Noble and that they were only $2.99 for a box of six! Sweet! So I knew the next time I went into town, I'd be stopping by Barnes & Noble to try and find some for the Doll House!

I am so glad that she told us about them because I never really go shopping at stores much anymore... Amazon has kind of changed the way I shop on that score. Other than Thrift Shoppes, which are more like treasure hunting than shopping, I figure why not just buy it online and have it delivered right to my door or post office box. I digress... But my point is I'd never have seen or gotten these becasue they are only in stores (I looked! haha!) They only have them this time of the year. I am a tad worried that since I am only getting this posted on December 13 (I didn't hear about them until really recently, honest!) they might be hard to find now because I think once they run out, that's it. However, I know how quickly years go by too and before we know it, it will be Christmas 2017 and perhaps someone will find the information then and go get them earlier in the season. From what I understand from the members of the doll group, they had same last year and so I am sure it's part of an assortment they get at the store every year. By way, I found them back on a free standing Christmas Stocking display by the music section but if you can't find them in store be sure and ask. I had to ask two people before one could figure out what I was talking about. LOL Show them the photo if you need to! Eh?

So, naturally, since I knew I would probably never see them again, I bought three boxes. Haha. But I can't just have one of each variety, right? I think that three of them could be used as doll treats other times of the year and so I had to get multiples so I could feature them in the Sweet Shoppe in the future. Right?  

Since I was in the store, I figured I'd run by the toys section and see what Espari stuff they had... I was kind of surprised to find only this tiny endcap that was all marked 40% off. Uh oh... I only stopped in for the erasers!! "Be good Heather!!" I was so tempted to buy something but I managed to refrain. I loved the little yellow rain gear outfit though and had more than a moment of pause as I pondered how I could justify more doll clothes after having such a windfall of doll clothes for my birthday last month. Nope... I walked away without it. Are you proud?

Then I was very surprised to see American Girl Wellie Wishers outfits and accessories! Huh? Is that why Espari items are 40% off? Are they going to do away with the Espari line since they will be carrying the AG items? At ToysRUs, the stores that carry the AG items are no longer allowed to carry their Journey Girl items in the store as a part of the contract with AG. I would know my local ToysRUs is one of them and so I can't walk into to store to buy Journey Girl items anymore... Still haven't decided if I think that is a good or a bad thing? Hahaha. Cos at least I am not tempted to anymore, right? 

See? They even had the little Wellie Wishers Garden Party Table set. I think the Wellie Wisher stuff is cute and will likely end up with one of the dolls someday... I am not sure which one yet because they are all cute. I think my top two favorites are Ashlyn or Emerson so it will probably be one of them. However, I can't see me ever pursuing anything specifically designed for 14 inch dolls. They'll just have to 'make do' with the 18inch doll sized accessories and funiture in the doll house. Haha. 

While I was waiting to check out I saw some other fun doll sized items! The little lunch boxes (above) were so cute! So were the books behind them... All designed as 'gift card holders'. I can't recall the price on them? Seems like $5.99 for each and as you can guess, way too rich for my blood when I find doll sized books at Thrift Shoppes for less than a $1 pretty often. Still, would be a cute add on gift for a doll themed Christmas or a great stocking stuffer too. 

They also had these little 'kits' (see above) I was curious about. They had many 'themes' to the kits, including Harry Potter and Game of Thrones, The Harry Potter ones mentioned having a wand...? Doll sized?? I wanted to rip into each box and see what was inside. Clever marketers!! Have any of you seen these kits and purchased one? 

They even had Christmast themed ones! I was so tempted to buy the 'Leg Lamp' one! I didn't have time to pick them all up and investigate but am tickled by idea of having a 'Leg Lamp' in the doll house at Christmas time. That movie is a hoot. How many times have you seen it? 

Time flies!

Better run...

Till next time.

XXOO

Heather

Consuelo Heart For Hearts Doll Thrift Store Find!

Greetings and Salutations Doll Friends!

In my recent post about my Heart For Hearts doll collection I included my most recently found Heart For Hearts 'Consuelo' at the local Thrift Store for only 75cents!!

Here is what she looked like when I found her. Well, other than the shorts... She was wearing just the top but to me it seems almost worse than being entirely naked, just being halfway so! So I slipped on the pair of shorts to give her more dignity. As you can see, she is still wearing her price tag on her top. 

She'd been rather poorly treated!! Poor dear!

But for 75cents, I didn't care a toot! I snatched her up and brought her home immediately. 

As you can see, she was pretty dirty when I got her... She also has an ink mark above her right eyebrow and ink can be pretty hard to remove. I figured if I couldn't get it off entirely perhaps I would paint over it or something, making it a 'scar' because they happen right? 

She also had some ink on her foot... Less of a big deal because if it doesn't come off I can always turn it into a cool tattoo or something. Right?

So to clean her up I pulled out my trusty Norwex cloth and started cleaning her up... As usual, everything cleaned up with just the cloth and water other than that pesky ink stain. I've heard of a trick you can try using Oxy-lotion (think acne products) and dab it on stain and leave in the sunlight. I've never actually tried it because I've never had an ink stain on a doll in such a prominent spot before. So I'll try that... Am a bit worried it'll bleach out her skin in that spot and look just as bad or worse but again, there is always the 'scar' back up plan. 

I also washed her hair and 'hot dipped' her hair... It looked like she might've lost some of her hair due to rough treatment and brushing so it was a little on the thin side...

But she came out lovely!! Again, I need to work on the ink stains but.... Still, she's so pretty! For her name I am thinking of Sonja after a mentor I had in High School who she favors. 

Well, it's Monday morning and time to start getting the famiy moving!

Christmas is less than two weeks away! Where does the time go?

Till next time!
XXOO 

Heather

Dollar General American Girl Doll Sized Finds!!

Hi Doll Friends!!

Been meaning to tell y'all about things I've found at Dollar General for the dolls! Just have a moment here but want to get this posted before they run out of all their Christmas stuff!

I found poinsettia plants in white and red for $1 each and also nutcrackers for $1 each (made as place card holders)

See the nutcrackers above the kitchen sink? Aren't they cute!?

The poinsettia plants are perfectly sized and so pretty!! I forgot to photo the white one I had over by the doll fireplace but it's exactly the same except white.

I also bought two $1 laundry baskets and they make wonderful doll transporters!! As you can imagine, I move a lot of groups around for doll photos and whatnot. I think it  would also work for doll storage! If you have only one doll in there it falls over but if you add more they all stand up nicely and balance each other out. Just FYI! So look to tall laundry baskets for doll storage in your doll house! By the way, the dolls in the photo above are waiting to be photographed for my doll collection postings I've been doing lately... The ones on the left are LOTUS dolls and the ones on the right are MyLifeAs dolls from Walmart. So stay tuned to future posts to see them!

Here are my Journey Girls when they were being transported. See how well the baskets work? 

Everyone stands up very nicely and very contained. Nice!

Even Heart For Hearts dolls work nicely in the baskets. Score!

That's it for now!
Better run!
Till Next Time!
XXOO
Heather

Heart For Hearts 14inch Doll Collection... So far...!

Hi Doll Friends!

It is such a busy time of the year! So I am a little behind in my recent idea to update my doll collection posts here since my collection has grown quite a lot over the last year. I finally found time to get the Heart For Hearts dolls posed and photographed. 

Here they all are! 

From Left to Right Back Row:

-Lauryce (Name she came with but I loved it)

-Simone 

-Surjan (Name she came)

From Left to Right Front Row:

-Lilian (Name she came with)

-Katniss

-Maurine

-?? Not named yet! Just got her!!

All but one of them have been found second hand because they are sadly retired and extremely expensive on the 2nd hand market unless you happen to find them in a thrift store like I've done with mine... I got my most recent one that I've posted about this year in May. here is the story of Katniss and my other Dell doll and one other I just found this last week at a thrift store I haven't taken the time to post about. 

For a little more information on this manner of dolls here is the Heart For Hearts Dolls Facebook page! They really are cute little dolls. I feel like they are a little bit too fragile for all but a bit older girls who are very careful with their dolls. From what I understand they plan to bring them back out on the market soon and I think that is great. The regular new price point of $40 is pretty good compared to the American Girl Wellie Wishers but they are also not as 'sturdy' as I understand those to be. These dolls also had a bit of an issue with the eyes fading color and turning purple or other odd colors. This has started to happen with my Lauryce... Still, they are really beautiful dolls and a great 'little sister' for American Girl, Our Generation and other 18inch dolls.

Here they all are in my new 'transport basket' being shuttled from where they are stored to the photo spot!

A very handy way to transport and store them if you need to... Laundry baskets!

Here they are all put back in their normal 'homes...

Better run!

Till Next Time!
XXOO
Heather