Can you remember your gateway to the world of doll collecting? Puppets can be one of the many launchpads down the slippery slope. As a kid, a favorite TV show was Thunderbirds. OK, I know they were not dolls but puppets – but surely puppets are just dolls with strings? Read more
What sort of collector are you? We may all have more in common than we think. While idly watching an episode of Antiques Roadshow the other evening, I realized that I have very little interest in antiques – in fact nothing created much before 1950 holds much fascination for me. Read more
Whether it’s gracefully or otherwise, we are thinking ahead. Regain your youth without resorting to expensive surgery: re-visit your childhood with a vintage doll collection. Or maybe it’s dressing fashion dolls in outfits we’d never have the guts to wear ourselves, even if the figure permitted. Our dolls remain pert Read more
Is beauty only vinyl, resin, or porcelain deep? How have our perceptions of this elusive quality changed over time? We ponder polish and pulchritude. Many collectors are interested in dolls as a way of recapturing their youth. Whether it’s by means of dolls from when they were young, or by Read more
I’ve never been a purist when it comes to dolls, I much prefer the kid-like approach of grabbing whatever is to hand. It’s always interesting to switch things up a bit. I discovered that the roaring twenties-inspired versions of Tonner’s Déjà Vu line, are the perfect muses for the beautifully-made Read more
We thought it would be fun to take Billy to the ball and try out a few new looks for him and his chums. Billy was based on several stereotypical gay characters, including Sailor Billy, Cowboy Billy, Master Billy, and San Francisco Billy. The doll was available with either blond Read more
Summer knits for fashion dolls are a great way to use up small left-over scraps of yarn. Plus these small garments knit up so quickly that you can assemble a nifty summer wardrobe with minimal effort. This time we’re looking at a whole range of doll sizes from the diminutive Read more
Get the skinny on Superdoll, in an exclusive 2009 interview with the brains behind the brand from. Behind an unassuming door on a main road in East London is Superfrock HQ. I am here to meet Charles Fegen and Desmond Lingard, creators of the Sybarites, at their exclusive Salon. Up two Read more
… or fashioning Father Christmas. We take a nostalgic look at some vintage styles for this icon of the holiday season. Peggy Nisbet was the doyenne of British doll design from the 1950s until her death on 9th October 1995, aged 86. She meticulously researched every doll – each costume Read more
Working from the ground up, we consider footwear for your guy dolls It has been said that if you get the hair and the shoes right, the rest will take care of itself. I’m not sure if this is totally accurate, and I’m not advocating that anyone sets off in Read more