W Club Lottery Announced

Looks like there will be plenty of lotteries this year in the W Club. That means that all the cheer leaders will definitely get the dolls they want. And that's the way it goes.
The 'discontinued' tall Fashion Royalty body isn't exactly discontinued. It's being used for the ITBE (Integrity Toys Basic Edition) dolls. When these dolls first came out a few years ago they called them "entry level collectibles." We all laughed at that expression. ITBE have grown up to be basic FR dolls without accessories or fancy fashions. This year their price is $75. each.
It's a good business move to keep these editions at only 300 and do lotteries. This way the dealers don't get their cut and the desire to have them rises because it's a lottery.
The last lottery dolls were so popular, possibly because Isha, Adele and Natalia were the offerings and they don't show up often. In addition, many collectors aren't into the high prices of the FR2 dolls so these bodies are just dandy.

 The IT designers are playing mix and match with the vinyl colors of the characters. Isha was ghost-white while Adele faded and Natalia went darker.

The newly offered ITBE - or Wave 2 as they call it - is another four dolls. Vanessa, Kyori, Janay, and Monogram.

Vanessa is now a black woman with Caucasian features. They're calling her vinyl color A-tone.  Kyori is being called black but I'm not quite sure what it really is.  Janay, a play line doll sculpt, is making an appearance. She is one of Jason Wu's oldest character sculpts and I don't believe she has appeared as a Fashion Royalty doll - ever. She is on the Monogram body and her skin tone is called Miami. Her hair reminds me of the first Natalia doll, Cosmetic Takeover.  
The original Natalia's sculpt was perfection. It did not need updating IMO.
Last is a standard Monogram doll with white skin and silver hair. I like her.

There is something here for most but not everyone will get what he or she wants. I want the Vanessa a lot because she has the Vanessa 1.0 (original) sculpt and where that is concerned, I'm a completist.

In keeping with the fact that these are "basic" dolls, the fashions are not "new" or embellished. They are being repeated in various colors as are the shoes. But it's a fun line. The only problem I see is that if you like all your dolls on the same height body such as FR2, you probably won't be able to find matches for these girls.

***If you are a member of the W Club and are not entering for Vanessa, please contact me. If you win the right to buy her and change your mind, please contact me.***

Wearing of the Green

Three of the photos I created for FDQ over the past few years.

 Kermit figurine with Galadriel dressed in Ghost of Christmas Past. All by Tonner.

Sybarite Lawn. Horsman sunglasses. Sandra Stillwell deck chair.

Integrity Toys Aerodynamic Vanessa. Gown by Ovaz.

_______

Shouldn't that say shamrocks?

The Lammily Doll

A new fashion doll has been created by Nickolay Lamm which is being touted as the "world's first normal sized doll."

Lammily, created by Nickolay Lamm

It is believed by many that the unrealistic proportions of today's Barbie dolls feeds the negative body image young girls have of themselves.  In my opinion, the media (Hollywood, television, fashion designers) is way more responsible for promoting stick-thinness as the standard to achieve.

In my early years of doll collecting I happened to purchase some of Tonner's Emme dolls and her fashions. However, I liked Tyler's proportions much better and soon sold the Emme items.

I'm not an overweight person but I grew up with the "you can't be too thin" mentality. Diets were a way of life along with diet pills in college and afterwards. I learned it from my mother. She didn't have Barbie dolls. Her generation of dolls were 'chubby-looking' things.

Madame Alexander (Composition) "McGuffey Anna" 1935

In the high fashion industry designers such as Jason Wu, for example, use half-dead, emaciated models to display their clothing.

Gianfranco Ferre model:

Hollow-eyed and gaunt, the skeletal model stalked down the runway at the Gianfranco Ferré fashion show in Milan last night wearing a dress cut in a deep V that revealed her protruding clavicle and flat chest.
A flurry of flashbulbs popped as photographers vied to get the best shot and the line of fashion editors sitting front row scribbled furiously on their notepads.
If ever there were a case of Emperor's New Clothes at fashion week, it was here.
Did any one of the assembled crowd really think this model - bony cleavage, dark circled eyes - looked good? Could they genuinely say that this image was aspirational? And ultimately, would the model do what must be her main purpose here: sell these clothes to other women?

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2042345/Gaunt-model-shocks-Gianfranco-Ferr-Milan-fashion-show.html#ixzz2vgtPriWs

These designers have been known to claim that the clothes 'hang better' on stick figures. Seriously? I'm not saying that the clothes aren't gorgeous but when I see Mrs. Obama wearing a Jason Wu that was shown on a runway by a stick figure woman, Mrs. Obama and the fashion don't look as good.  Of course she's had the dress custom altered to suit her because FLOTUS has a normal body. She would look ridiculous (and inappropriate) in the dress on the right.  So why do I want to look like the model on the right? Sigh.

We are exposed to these bodies as the height of beauty and fashion when they are nothing but starving reflections of women.

I'm always amazed at how most models and movie stars looked in the 1940's through the 1960's. They had thighs and waists and arms.

Women Cast Members from the TV series Mad Men

We're not talking Botticelli babes here, just normal healthy women.

The Three Graces by Sandro Botticelli

Would I buy a Lammily Doll? Maybe, for a little cousin of mine, but not for my collection. It wouldn't fit in. Would you?

Read more: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/03/normal-barbie-doll-with-average-female-body-is-coming-to-life/284212/

Collecting Guy Dolls and Clothing Them

I've mentioned before that I'm now more into having male dolls in my collection than I was previously. Some of Tonner's recent males are either super heroes, too young-looking or just plain weird and they don't fill my needs.

However, Tonner Doll has created the best looking and largest variety of vinyl male dolls of any other company in history.

For example, Aragorn.

In his new Chewin fashion - looking hot.

Chewin sells on eBay. The quality and fit of his garments are superior to most other male doll clothing out there. Just look at how this plaid shirt fits my doll. It's amazing. His placement of closures is such that barely any bulk is created. Every detail is thought out and executed well.
This particular ensemble included the chinos, belt, shirt and fabulous sport jacket and was well under $100. For this type of work, that's a great price.

My 12" gals needed one more man and I kept looking at Riot Llewellyn from Integrity Toys' Jem collection.

However, not being a fan or even familiar with the Jem series, the big hair and the costume did nothing for me. I saw him nude with his hair tamed and changed my mind. I was able to get a nude on eBay from the PA seller who probably has 100 of him and is selling splits.
In real life he arrives with a rubber band controlling his mane. It is a huge mess of hair similar to the back of the hair of most Barbies with big hair. He is on the pale side but pretty decent looking.
In my photo of him, he's dressed in Rio Pacheco's outfit which is beautifully made. Look at that cute pocket on the arm of his faux leather bomber jacket. It actually has a tiny zipper on it!
I still want to tame his hair but for now, this is how he looks.

Tonner Doll’s Wizard of Oz Contest Winners Announced

Tonner Doll recently held an interesting contest with the Wizard of Oz as the theme. One part of the contest was for photography and the other was for writing an alternate ending to the fairy tale.

The photography contest winner was Dave Decaro whose sepia toned rendition of Dorothy is spectacular. Dave has been featured on this blog for his wonderful doll photography as well. He's certainly a winner in this field. Visit his website at http://davelandweb.com/

______

The winner for the Alternate Ending Award went to Kristin Laveaux. What a great ending she came up with! I think there's a message in there for all of us.

Dorothy watched the wizard drift out of sight. She didn’t know how long she stood there, rooted to the same spot in disbelief. Her only chance of getting home was gone. The Scarecrow noticed her tears first.

“Dorothy?”

She could barely whisper, “Now I’ll never get home,” before she broke into sobs.
Her friends gathered around her, as distraught as she was. She couldn’t hear their consoling words through her tears. It was only when the Scarecrow took her hand that she noticed Glinda floating towards her, the bubble of magic shimmering in the growing light.

For a moment, Dorothy simply stared as the hope she had lost moments ago began to rise in her again. “Can you help me?”

A hush fell over the crowd. Even the wind had stopped to hear the Good Witch’s words. Glinda’s smile was more radiant than the sun. “I can,” she replied, her voice like angels sighing. “For what you seek is home, is it not?”

Dorothy nodded. “Yes. I want to go home. More than anything!”

Glinda was silent for a moment, though her smile hadn’t faded. “Do you not see it, my dear?”

“See what?”

The Good Witch pointed to each of her friends in turn. “You seek to leave this place, but the family you wished for is before you.”

Dorothy hesitated. “Well, I do love you all dearly,” she said slowly, turning to the Tinman, the Lion, and the Scarecrow. “But I can’t stay here. Auntie Em and Uncle Henry will miss me.” She felt her heart sink as their gazes fell to the floor.
“I have to go back home.”

Glinda’s tinkling laughter penetrated the dark cloud that had gathered over her heart. “Dorothy, my dear, you are home! For the world which you are seeking is but a dream.” Glinda took her hand. “Do you not remember?”

Confused, Dorothy’s eyes fell to the ruby slippers. They shimmered up at her. She could feel their magic, so familiar, like a comforting childhood friend.

“Try to remember, my dear.”

Dorothy closed her eyes and thought. She recalled everything she had done since she had come to Oz. She had killed the Wicked Witch of the East and freed the Land of the Munchkins from tyranny. She had saved and befriended an intelligent scarecrow, a brave lion, and a loving tinman. She had braved the castle of the Wicked Witch of the West and destroyed her as well, saving the land of Oz.

But there was something else, the barest ghost of a memory. She had known the same feeling the first time she had met Glinda in Munchkinland. It was a feeling of peace and belonging. A feeling of…

“…Home,” she said aloud. Her eyes shot open. She had found the answer. “Oz is my home!”

“You remembered!” Glinda smiled more radiantly than ever. “Yes, my dear Dorothy, Good Witch of the South. Welcome home at last!”

Dorothy smiled as everyone cheered. She remembered it all. She was home.

___________

Congratulations to the winners! Well done.

Inamorata Paris dolls: Charmeuse and Predatrice

Emilia revealed two new dolls today on Prego. One never expects anything but the unique from her.  Below: Emilia's own text and photos of her new art dolls.

LE5 dressed atelier doll Charmeuse will be sold at Paris Fashion Doll Festival 16th of March. The first 3 dolls will be sold first-come-first served bases and the 2 more will be sold by a raffle or silent auction: the 4th at PFDF and the 5th through the emiliacouture mailing list.

Charmeuse unveils the new Charo head sculpt (with pierced ears) and comes in new Latte skin tone. The doll features 6 new hand sculpts, one pair of dressing hands and 1 pair of gloved hands using the old sculpt.

Charmeuse is hand painted by em'lia and comes with a hard cap wig by Ilaria (Time of Doll) styled by em'lia. The accessories (2 crystal choker necklaces, crystal earrings and bracelet, gloves, feather fans, feather boa and long black leatherette gloves) are em'lias handywork. The fashion with intricate lace and hand beading (bra, corset, panties with 6 garter belts, stockings and skirt) made by a selected seamstress with finishing touches by em'lia.

Charmeuse's lush make up has naturally shadowed pale grey eyes, rouched cheeks, mauve lips and a beauty spot below her left eye. Each of the 5 dolls is slightly different as their eyes glance in different directions creating a different mood.

OOAK dressed doll Predatrice by em'lia will be sold at Paris Fashion Doll Festival 16th of March.

Predatrice unveils the new Charo head sculpt (with pierced ears) and comes in new Latte skin tone. The doll features 6 new hand sculpts, one pair of dressing hands and 1 pair of gloved hands using the old sculpt.

Predatrice is hand painted by em'lia and comes with a hard cap wig by PattaArt.

Predatrice flaunts a tightly fitted slinky gown adorned with silver threads and sequins. The daring slit of the gown shows a glimpse of her garter belt panties holding up lace stockings and shoes adorned with silver ornaments. The look is accessorized with a crystal choker necklace cascading to the shoulders and breast, crystal earrings and bracelet, long black opera gloves and feather boa.

Predatrice's dark make up has smoky pale green eyes, rouched cheeks, coffee lips and a beauty spot above her lip on the left.

More photos to be revealed during PFDF.

Picture of the Day by Jurrie

Madra says, "Mine, Mine, Mine."

This fine photo was posted by Jurrie Devries on The Studio Commissary today.

Montaigne Market Doll: The Sky's The Limit

Two eBay auctions offering the new Montaigne Market Elise ended at more than $1000.

This is the fastest and most extreme price inflation I've ever seen in all my years of doll collecting. 

Both sellers are Paris based so they have the doll already. Another one of these is listed on the Show and Sell pages right now with a starting price of $1000.

If you didn't catch my prior post, the doll retailed for $206. Shipping to the US is strangely expensive at 50 Euros or $69.12. I suppose there was tax in Paris for those that purchased her directly. At any rate, it would have almost been worth it to fly to Paris, buy a few dolls and resell them.
Looks like I will have to make a decision.

Superdoll New Ensemble "Supernova"

Here's a bit of an update on yesterday's internet bottleneck over at Superdoll. A few people were able to order this new fashion when something went wrong at the dealer's end. Later in the day, it was fixed and we were able to see and purchase this very interesting ensemble called Supernova. Here is the promotional text directly from the website:

SUPERNOVA SYB/755

Stellar Fabulous Red Carpet Attention Grabber

Venus knows she has Paris just around the corner, yet she insists on being up to her neck in Glamour.
Strapless 'planetary' print satin gown bearing pointed neckline and transparent chastity chest belts.
Blues, pinks, yellows and a myriad of other galactic colours adorn the gorgeous print and all that as an underpinning to the dazzle of minute crystal stones and 2 size drop crystal dangles.
You couldn't ask for a showier red carpet confection.
For arrivals and concealment, the perfect eye catcher.... a huge floor length feathered cape in white satin, marabou and ostrich lined in the matching celestial print satin.
An elongated envelope clutch with chain strap, strappy cutout matching sandles and of course.... a 'crystal' and 'diamond' contemporary crown make her stand out from the competition!
display figures / manequin not included.
OUTFIT ONLY
shipping commences 20 March 2014 (we appologise in advance for this inconvenience)
Ltd Ed.

It is now sold out. The price was £219.00 which translated to $367.08 at yesterday's exchange rates.

Inamorata PFDF 2014

Emilia Nieminen, the designer, sent out this teaser photo today with the accompanying text.

Here is the new teaser for what Inamorata has in store for Paris Fashion Doll Festival. Paris will not only see the unveiling of the new head sculpt Charo, but also 6 completely renewed and more elegant hand sculpts. I am so excited to get the my very first doll event ever! I hope to see you in person at Paris!  And if you cannot make it to Paris this year don't despair! I have sat at my computer drooling over other people's photos of numerous doll events over the years and know the agony of not being there and missing out on all the loot. So, I have decided to save one of the LE5 dolls to be sold through this mailing list after Paris so you don't have to feel left out. I will send further information about the sale event in the beginning of April.

Bandwidth Limit Exceeded

This morning Superdoll sent out one of their cryptic messages regarding an item or items that would be available later in the day. Looks like the message was successful because their bandwidth has currently been exceeded.
Apparently many are experiencing this issue. 

The server is temporarily unable to service your request 

due to the site owner reaching his/her bandwidth limit. 

Please try again later. 

 Maybe I will and maybe I won't.

Jason Wu Montaigne Market Exclusive Doll

Several weeks ago it was announced that there would be an exclusive Jason Wu doll carried by a store in Paris, France, Montaigne Market.
She is a very sophisticated Elise Jolie with mahogany hair pulled back into a long and low pony tail. Her makeup palette is browns and beiges with gold glittery eyeshadow The beautiful fashion is one of Jason's runway looks with the addition of a large handbag and two Montaigne Market shopping bags.
No exact date was given as to availability other than end of February.

Here are excerpts from WWD's January 9, 2014 article by Joelle Diderich.

DOLL PARTS: Jason Wu is showing at Paris Fashion Week next month — though the only outfit he will be parading is a miniature version of a look from his spring collection, as worn by a doll he has designed for retailer Montaigne Market.
Priced at 150 euros, or $200 at current exchange, the limited edition of 250 will go on sale exclusively at Montaigne Market and on its Web site at the end of February, to coincide with the next round of catwalk shows. Wu has previously produced dolls for Colette in Paris, and Bergdorf Goodman and Jeffrey in New York.
His latest creation wears a sporty, belted jacket in cream with deep front pockets over a gold sequined skirt, and touts tiny Montaigne Market shopping bags...
“We did everything, from translating the little buckles that we had to make, to the shoes — we replicated the runway shoes exactly. We also replicated the Daphne clutch, our signature bag, into the doll scale, so everything from hardware and everything has to be shrunken down,” he added.

 The doll is a very close replica except for the fabric of the full sized which looks floatier and not as densely sequined. I do like the look of the doll a lot. She's prettier than the model.

Today the doll went up for sale on the MM website and there is the usual angst and jubilation over at the W Club depending on who scored and who didn't.

As of right now, there are two on eBay. Looking forward to seeing how much they bring in.

Can Velcro be Far Behind?

Tonner released a few of his 2014 dolls today and the first Tiny Kitty ever to have applied eyelashes is wearing a gown made from pink glitter stretch knit with stretch glitter gloves.

Seriously?

What is this? Kindergarten Barbie? 

I'm not buying it and that's that. 

Don't put glitter in or on fashion doll clothes and expect discriminating collectors to shell out money for them. Who would make such a stupid decision? I don't give a damn that it's cheaper to make. It's not coming in my house.

Good luck selling a $179.99 list price doll that is covered in glitter - lashes or not.

I believe this is the end of my Tiny Kitty doll collection. Thank you TDC for keeping my money out of your pocket.

Madame Alexander and Isaac Mizrahi

A line of dolls produced by a collaboration between famous designer Isaac Mizrahi and the Madame Alexander Doll Company debuted at the New York Toy Fair recently.

Isaac Mizrahi said it was a dream for him. From what I see of these two fashion dolls, it looks like the dream was a nightmare.

Neither the fashions nor the dolls approach any standard most of us collectors would use in our own collections. Where is the fashion DESIGN? What's up with the awkward looking fur hat? Either the photographer should be killed or the outfit is just downright awful.

Isaac Mizrahi Classic Iconic – Limited Edition $199.95

Isaac Mizrahi Modern Iconic – Limited Edition $999.95

Look at the terrible stitching on Modern Iconic's skirt, above. This rivals cheap Barbie quality. I really can't believe the trash Mizrahi is putting out there. Embarrassing.
Priced at $999.95, seriously? Does she come with extra wigs and fashions? 


The play dolls are listed at $69.95.

Glamour in Lace
This 18″ Isaac Mirzahi designed doll has light skin, blue eyes, long silky blonde hair pulled back with a fancy black satin headband, perfect for hours of styling fun, plus she has a soft huggable body for lots of hugs! She is ready to play and arrives wearing a gold metallic dress and coordinating golden brown metallic jacket with a leopard plush belt with matching black ballet flats.
Hooray
This 18″ Isaac Mirzahi designed doll has light skin, brown eyes, long silky brown hair with side bangs styled in a loose up ‘do for hours of playtime fun, plus she has a soft huggable body for lots of hugs! She is ready to play and arrives wearing a “HOORAY” pink and golden knit sweater hoodie over a pink shiny party dress, golden ballet flats and is sporting a pair of iconic Isaac Mizrahi logoed black sunglasses.
Cutie
This 18″ Isaac Mirzahi designed doll has light skin, blue eyes, long silky blonde hair pulled back with a metallic silver ribbon, perfect for hours of styling fun, plus she has a soft huggable body for lots of hugs! She is ready to play and arrives wearing a “CUTIE” blue cropped shirt over a blue and white gingham button-down, paired with a navy and white polka-dot skirt with coordinating blue sparkly sneakers plus she is sporting a pair of iconic Isaac Mizrahi logoed black sunglasses.
Wild About Leopard
This 18″ Isaac Mirzahi designed doll has dark brown skin, brown eyes, curly black hair pulled back with a metallic gold bowed headband, perfect for hours of styling fun, plus she has a soft huggable body for lots of hugs! She is ready to play and arrives wearing a leopard knit print shirt and skirt trimmed in gold with a black and gold lined stretch velvet hoodie and gold Mary Janeʼs, plus she is sporting a pair of iconic Isaac Mizrahi logoed black sunglasses.

Message for Mr. Mizrahi: Stick to hats,  tweezers and golf cart bags.

2009 Fall Isaac Mizrahi

All that being said, he has excellent taste in dogs. 

Silkstone Fashion Model Collection "Ducissima"

Listed on the amazon.de (Germany) website is this newest Mattel Silkstone, Ducissima.
Once again we see a conglomeration of styles and an overworked ensemble. I want to take things away like the cape and the ruffly bow-tied sleeves. One doesn't know what to look at first because so much is going on.
Individually, some parts are very nice. She is a pretty doll with a lovely face. I can't tell about the hairstyle.  I like the boots a lot. They'd look great with a coat or a simpler dress with chunky jewelry. Ditch the purse and gloves and give us big earrings  (after taking away the shirt and cape.)
Bottom line...we've got another hot mess here.
To me she looks more Spanish than Italian. "Matador Sans Red Cape" is what I'd call her.  An Italian speaker noted that the name, Ducissima, doesn't mean anything in Italian slang or dialect. Dulcissima is a Latin adjective. Dolce means sweet in Italian.

It was pointed out by Dutch Barbie World that this look is inspired by a look from the Dolce & Gabbana Fall/Winter 2012 line. D&G did it much better.

Robert Best's flourishes and changes do not help the fashion at all. I like the D&G look very much and I like the boots on their own..

When I photograph my dolls who have side glancing eyes, I always have their head turned in the direction their eyes are looking. Try it yourself. Glance to one side and turn your head the other way. It's not easy and it's very weird at the same time. Don't you feel sly?

2/24/14 UPDATE: Her name on-line has been corrected to read Dulcissima.

Playing Dolls

After a stressful day yesterday, I took some serious doll playtime. I wired a doll for the first time and she's much more pleasant to handle. Three dolls were redressed and rewigged.

These are all iPhone pictures.

 

 Good grief, Sybarite's heads are huge! Geometry looks like an Amazon next to Ms. G and Nelson.

Nelson is gorgeous in her peachy pink wig and pastel Ficon gown. Ms. G, newly wired, is standing nicely for the first time. Now maybe I can start to enjoy her instead of fiddling with her legs all the time.

Sybarite Neurotica Covers Up?

I am sure that other fashion doll collectors have experienced finding the perfect outfit for a doll. Once it's on the doll, she becomes even more gorgeous than before. This newly found fashion treasure will stay on the doll for a long time.
Two weeks ago I briefly considered removing Neurotica's tattoos and then Masque arrived. Her red lips convinced me to give her the new outfit. I could not stop looking at her once she was redressed. You can still see the tats but they aren't in your face (although her boobs are,) and I'm so glad I didn't remove them.

Mohair wig by Ilaria Mazzoni "Time of Doll"

 I have an assortment of other 16" BJDs but in my opinion, no doll poses like a Sybarite. Emilia's Inro comes very close. There are no wobbly knees or kicky arms. I do not enjoy fiddling with legs for what seems like an interminate amount of time every time I handle wonky-jointed dolls. I know this issue can be taken care of by wiring the body but I don't know how to do it. I can't be the only one who is having this problem. Is anyone telling the manufacturers? As if they don't already know, right?

Debbie Garrett, The Doll Griot

According to Wikipedia, a griot is a West African historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet and or musician. The griot is a repository of oral tradition. That title has been applied to Debbie Behan Garrett by Paulette Richards in the piece I quote below.

The following is from Debbie's blog, Black Doll Collecting.

Before leaving for Senegal in September 2013, fellow doll enthusiast and educator, Paulette Richards, wrote a glowing and most impressive review of my three books written on the subject of collecting black dolls.   Richards' review, which compares my doll research to the research of two historians of African American history, was too lengthy to post on Amazon.com; therefore, she sent it directly to me.  I posted the review in its entirety on my Facebook Page:  Debbie Behan Garrett, Black Doll Enthusiast a few weeks ago.  Paulette will be a guest blogger later this week.  I thought this would be an opportune time to post the review here.  Thank you again, Paulette, I remain grateful and forever honored.

The Doll Griot
By Paulette Richards

Debbie Behan Garrett grew up during the era of the Civil Rights movement when African Americans vehemently rejected the stereotypical images of blacks that had long pervaded American mass media. Rather than purchase dolls that perpetuated negative stereotypes of blacks, Garrett’s mother provided only white dolls for her children. Yet young Debbie keenly felt the lack of “dolls that look like me.” In the early 1990s after her own daughter had “outgrown” dolls, Garrett was consumed with a passion for collecting and documenting black dolls. This passion launched her on a trajectory similar to two African American historians of the early twentieth century – Arturo Schomburg, and J.A. Rogers.

“Blacks have no history. There are no black heroes. Black people have accomplished nothing, have contributed nothing to the advancement of human civilization…” Like many students subjected to the routine “miseducation of the Negro,” Arturo Schomburg (1874-1938) heard myths like these when he was a schoolboy in Puerto Rico. Schomburg, however, vowed to prove his teachers wrong. Although he did not follow a traditional academic career like W.E. B. DuBois, he dedicated his life to the study of Afro-Latin and African American history. In 1911 he co-founded the Negro Society for Historical Research. By this time, however, Schomburg had already amassed a large collection of books and artifacts documenting African diasporan culture and history.

Schomburg united scholars from Africa, the West Indies, and the U.S. in the study of African diasporan culture and history. Meanwhile, his collections continued to grow. Although he worked in modestly paid clerical jobs and had five sons to support, the New York Public Library paid $10,000 for his collection of books and materials in 1926. The collection was initially housed in the 135th Street (Harlem) branch of the library and Schomburg was appointed curator of “the Schomburg Collection of Negro Literature and Art.”

Schomburg’s obsessive pursuit of books by and about people of African descent may have seemed crazy to some, but his collection formed the basis of the Arthur Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Similarly, while Garrett’s obsessive acquisition of black dolls may seem irrational to non-doll lovers, her dedication to celebrating the beauty of black dolls echoes Schomburg and Rogers’ determination to destroy myths of racial inferiority.

Garrett published her first book, The Definitive Guide to Collecting Black Dolls with Hobby House Press in 2003. This 176 page soft cover volume catalogues each doll with information on the artist and/ or manufacturer, the material, height, identifying marks, descriptions of the hair/eyes/ mouth, clothing and an estimated value. Then, following in the footsteps of J.A. Rogers, Garrett self-published her second book in 2008.

Joel August Rogers was born in Jamaica in 1880. Although they could not afford to provide much education for their eleven children, Rogers internalized the strong value his parents placed on learning and devoted his life to researching and disseminating as much information as he could about the history of black people. By 1906 he was living in Harlem. Later he took a job as a Pullman porter, which allowed him to comb libraries all over the country. Over the course of his life he also traveled extensively overseas, sifting “the bran of history” as he called it for nuggets of information about the historical experience of black people. Although Rogers was self-educated, self-financed, and self-published, his books eventually earned respect from academic historians. For example W.E.B. Dubois observed that "No man living has revealed so many important facts about the Negro race as has Rogers." Similarly, Garrett’s years of dedicated research and publication have earned her recognition in The New York Times and other prestigious publications as an authority on black dolls. (“The Dolls I Never Had as a Child”)

Like most of Rogers’ works, Garret’s 450 page volume on Black Dolls: A Comprehensive Guide to Celebrating, Collecting, and Experiencing the Passion is lavishly illustrated. Full color photographs carefully document each doll. Garrett’s collection runs the gamut of materials (bisque, celluloid, composition, rubber, hard plastic, and cloth), aesthetics (artist dolls, craft dolls, manufactured play dolls), and genres such as fashion dolls, paper dolls, and celebrity portrait dolls. Since dolls are usually viewed only as toys for little girls, the “bran” that Garrett sifts might seem even more marginal than the records Schomburg and Rogers searched for evidence about black experience. Further, the bulk of Garrett’s collection consists of manufactured dolls rather than one of a kind dolls and includes play line dolls as well as artist dolls produced in limited editions. Yet, as a record of how the larger society has viewed and represented people of color, her eclectic collection probably has more value than it would if she focused only on art dolls created by black artists as more authentic self-representations.

In traditional West African societies, griots were oral historians who preserved the lineage and noble deeds of their communities. As latter day griots in a time when much of the academic establishment still subscribed to Hegel’s idea that “Africa has no history,” Schomburg and Rogers documented “who we are and where we come from.” Although women rarely served as griots in traditional African societies, in her third book, The Doll Blogs Garrett answers the fundamental questions griots are most concerned with – “Who are your people and where do you come from?” Through her meticulous research into the provenance of each doll she provides information about the artists who sculpted the dolls, the manufacturers who produced them, the retailers that sold them, and sometimes even includes tidbits about previous owners. Anyone who has done genealogical research would be overjoyed to uncover such detailed information about the African American branches of their family tree for even when there is an oral tradition and/ or paper trail that enables us to trace our ancestors back to the time of slavery, the trail usually goes stone cold on the shores of the Atlantic.

The barracoons that dotted the west coast of Africa from the 16th – 19th centuries transformed human beings into commodities and erased their personal histories. While DNA typing can now take us further into the interior of the Mother Continent and indicate regions where our enslaved ancestors might have come from, it can’t recover the stories of how various individuals met and combined those strands of DNA. The ritual acquisition of black dolls that plays out on every page of The Doll Blogs often occurs through auctions, a scene that is fraught with the painful legacy of slavery and the forced separation of families on the block. Yet Garrett’s purchases are a redemption that gives every black body a voice and a history. Her doll room then functions as a kind of anti-barracoon where lost souls recover their identities and re-unite with family and friends.

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Paulette Richards has been writing about “the serious business of doll play” on her blog, Limbé Dolls, since April 2011. Formerly the Associate Director of the Nommo Literary Society/ Neo Griot Krewe writing workshop in New Orleans, she holds a Ph.D. in French Civilization from the University of Virginia. During the 2013-2014 academic year, Richards will further explore the griot tradition as a Fulbright Teaching Fellow in Saint Louis, Senegal.
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Visit Debbie's blog at http://blackdollcollecting.blogspot.com/ 
Visit Paulette's blog at http://limbedolls.blogspot.com/