Pam Hardy gave a program on baby dolls. She told the club that she has loved baby dolls since she was four years old. Pam displayed her "last" doll, a Babeside Reborn Baby that was her Christmas present.
Another baby from her collection is this bisque-head Bye-Lo baby, designed by American artist Grace Storey Putnam in the 1920s. Pam said that she had long wanted a Bye-lo baby, but was waiting for one in excellent condition with its original button. She finally found this beautiful babe.
Pam Hardy brought this porcelain doll by artist Donna Rupert. . .
. . . as well as this vinyl doll by Effanbee named Lisa.
This composition baby was a gift to Pam. It is believed to have been made by Arranbee.
Another early doll from Pam's collection, this all bisque baby is by the German firm of Hertwig and Company and has its original clothing.
Kenneth Reeves brought this composition "Mama" doll (so named because the sound box in her cloth body once said "Mama" when the doll was moved) and a Baby Ginny in a bright bathing suit.
His doll in the yellow outfit is also a Ginny while the tot in purple is an unmarked drink and wet doll. The boy in the white jacket was made by Italo Cremona. Kenneth told the club that he bought this doll because it resembled one that his brother had received as a child.
Elaine Jackson shared a trio of all-wooden Schoenhut dolls. She told the club that Harry Schoenhut had designed the baby head in 1911 and the company used this head until it went out of business in 1935. This doll is a walking model.
The doll in white wears a dress made by Elaine's mother in the 1940s. The boy has an open mouth with metal teeth and sleep eyes. Elaine told the club that this was an attempt by Schoenhut to compete with popular composition dolls and was among the last of the dolls produced by the company.
Sharon Weintraub display this bevy of all-bisque babies. The largest doll is by J.D. Kestner. It has the plump bent limb body first introduced by Kammer and Reinhardt in 1909. On its lap is an all-original Bye-lo Baby. Sharon told the club that the Bye-lo was so poplar that it was called the "million dollar baby" and was made in a wide variety of sizes, including little all-bisque dolls like this one. The happy toddler in pink is "Bonnie Babe" designed by artist Georgene Averill in the 1920s.
These two bisque-headed babies on composition bodies are also from Sharon's collection. The smiling Black doll is by the German company of Heubach Kopplesdorf and was marketed as "South Seas Baby." The other doll is "Hanna" by Schoenau & Hoffmeister. Both wear their original outfits with "grass" skirts..
Myrna Loesch brought two vintage drink and wet babies by Madame Alexander, This is Baby Wendykins.
Also pretty in pink is the 1957 Little Genuis.
This trio of adorable infants were Myrna's childhood dolls. They are by American Character. This is Tiny Tears from 1959 to 1960.
This doll is another Tiny Tears, from 1963 to 1964.
Myrna told the club that this doll is from the Toodles line.
She also shared this all-original Teenie Toodles by the same company.
David Craig shared this fully-articulated doll by Ruby Red Galleria.
Sylvia McDonald brought this doll that she received when she was seven years old. The doll has a "magic skin" body made of latex that was advertised as feeling like real skin, but Sylvia noted that this material darkened and deteriorated over the years. She made this doll a body suit to try to preserve it.
Sylvia brought a batch of babies. The brunette in the back is Thumbkin by Effanbee. The babe in the bonnet is an unmarked composition copy of the famous Madame Alexander Dionne Quintuplet doll and the bisque-headed baby in the sweater is mold number 750 was made by the German company of Armand Marseille.
Also shared by Sylvia is the composition baby in the print dress; it has tin sleeping eyes and is circa 1919. In front is Baby Thumbelina by the Ideal Doll Company.
Ann Meier displayed this porcelain-headed baby. The head turns, displaying different faces.
This big German bisque-headed baby brought by Better Birdsong has quite a background story. Bette told the club that when she was in college she traveled by plane to Paris with her mother and sister. There she bought this doll in an antique shop and it flew home with her on her lap. Her doll collection was at her parent's home when the house caught fire, but this baby survived, although her composition body was covered with soot and her hair had been singed.
Nancy Countryman could not recall where she got this baby doll, but has had it since 1977.
Nancy also brought this selection of doll fashions, still in their original packaging.
