The meeting opened with a presentation from Josh Eggebeen regarding the creation of the
Austin Toy Museum. Still in the planning stage, the museum will feature toys, comics, and games from the golden age of toys (the 1960s through the 1990s), such as Barbie, GI Joe, Transformers, and My Little Pony, but also hopes to include earlier games and toys.
In addition to permanent and rotating displays and custom dioramas, the museum will include an arcade of classic video games and rare unique prototypes. The hope is to create not only one of the largest toy museums in the country, but also an educational resource and fun destination for toy lovers and families.
Josh discussed the current
Kickstarter campaign, which seeks to raise $20,000 in seed money to cover start-up costs for the non-profit museum. The campaign offers a wide variety of unique and fun gifts for donations, from tee-shirts to a custom-built diorama for the donor's favorite toys.
Member Mary McKenzie presented a program on Lilly, an early French fashion doll manufactured by Marie Antoinette Leontine Rohmer, who operated her workshop in Paris from 1857 through 1880.
Mary brought a reproduction Lilly that she made and dressed.
Mary's program took the form of a story told from the perspective of Lilly.
Members also brought dolls for sale.
