Mystery doll

I found this doll at a shop called Timeless Treasures which is a vintage shop right downtown. Somehow I'd missed it before. The dolls they had were all very reasonably priced and I may go back in a few weeks.
This doll was only several dollars and is an 11" Effanbee. I though she must be one of the Grand Dames, or from their storybook doll series, because of the size. However, the only place I've seen her online was on a site with dozens of Effanbee dolls shown by category. She was in her own category marked "unknown". Sigh. Effanbee sold some dolls through Amway and I wonder if she's not another of those.

Johnny Appleseed

It was nice to be back at this festival. I looked forward to seeing the alpacas, visiting the antique booths (a bust), getting honey candy, eating stew, checking out the cookie cutters, and visiting with old friends. It was a bit sad that the massed fife and drum corp and bagpipe bands playing Amazing Grace at 2 o'clock was moved across the grounds. I missed hearing that.
Was I ever incredibly surprised and so very pleased when cousin Mary and her husband Don came to see us on Sunday!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks so very much for coming. I know it was crowded and dusty when they got there and I hope they had fun anyway.

We also enjoyed a visit with Old Threshers friends of John's parents.



John got a lot of carving done, which will help with the next three shows. He found out today that he will be allowed a double space at the show in Tucson.




I got some alpaca roving which came from "Crackerjacks" but I don't know it that is one of the pictured alpacas.



I felt like I was back when I saw "President Lincoln" strolling around.

Madame Alexander Portrettes Anastasia (Cissette)

I was able to get this at an antique mall in IL because it was on sale, although higher than the Queen of cheap has had to pay before. I think I got a good buy, although she is missing her shoes and her cape. I didn't realize about the cape at the time. Oops. I plan to keep a watch on ebay as eventually everything seems to show up there! :-) Or I will make one and use tatting as the trim as the little loops will be easier to mimic.
FYI: Cissette dolls are a very popular Madame Alexander doll and are just under 10" tall. They have a fashion doll figure but the Cissette doll is also used for other character dolls--the Portrette series being one. If you ever find a Cissy, you are really in luck. They're about 20" and go for a lot. I'd never hope for one.

September days

Some special people have September birthdays! Aunt Alta, Charles, Mom, Dawn! And then there's a wedding anniversary (Charles and Dawn!) Happy, Happy, Happy to all!!
Tomorrow is the last flea market. Hope it's a good one!

The Yard Sale Dolls

I took Mom in to the day hospital on Friday and had to stay in town to get my labs done and since it was Friday....I occupied myself by going to yard sales! :-) I really was going to be good....
I've been wanting a shelf to go over Elizabeth's bed and I found a nice one, a little shorter than I wanted but "a bird in the hand" was too good to pass up, even though the price was a bit high for a yard sale. I also got a huge Boyd's bunny which may end up in an Easter basket someday if I can bear to part with it. I got a lot of other fun stuff, clothes and books and a Mickey Mouse pancake mold. And a signed teacher doll pin which will be fun to wear on day's when I'm in the elementary. She's tiny but has stuffed moveable legs with painted shoes.

And of course, I seemed to find a lot of dolls, even when they weren't advertised.
At three different places I found these next four dolls for a total of $7.50 !! so I don't think I was too big a spender! One older lady was selling some of her 300 dolls as she needed to move from her teeny tiny house into an apartment. The garage she had her sale in was very old and the dolls were a bit dusty and possibly dry rotted. But I got two.
The Duchess doll, from about 1948, has beautiful fine lace around the bottom and on the skirt. Unfortunately the lace in front has a lot of splits and a couple of tears. It seemed to have been stiffened and if it was starched that would account for the problem. Items which will be stored long term shouldn't be starched. But she's still pretty and I will try to mend the worst two tears so that they're stabilized. The cream ribbon used for a bodice is stained red from the cape, as are the arms. I'll wrap new cream ribbon over the old. The cape will have to stay as it. The nap is falling off but I won't replace it. The Duchess dolls were made beginning in 1948 and I know that molds weren't always updated so that she could be later than that. These little dolls were about 7 1/2" and had moveable arms but frozen legs. They were often costumed elaborately.

I wish, again, that I'd done a before photo because Tubsy was a mess as far as her hair. I think she was marked more than I paid but the woman twice offered her at a lower price. So I brought her home and poured Downy on her hair. I thought it was dry rotted and would break off when combed but it combed out from it's matted state into very uneven hair with some shiny strands, some fuzz, and a few bald spots. The elderly collecter knew nothing about her but at home I looked her up and discovered that this Ideal doll is from about 1967. She has an intentionally wobbly head so that it moves when she is moved and comes to rest in various positions. When she is placed in water up to a line on her bottom she is supposed to splash in the water. I haven't figured out how to get the inner battery box open so haven't tried her out in a tub. :-) The outfit she was wearing was too big so she has on one of Elizabeth's first dresses for now. I love her face (although I think her teeth were set a bit too far to the side at the factory) and she makes me smile!



At another garage sale of collectibles I got this newer Zapf doll with a lot of her accessories in a zip bag--plus her potty chair. This, and several other baby dolls I've bought recently, will go on ebay someday if I don't have granddaughters. I'm buying baby dolls to be played with but with collecter value.

And finally, here is the Thanksgiving cornhusk doll which reminds me of my Nan's cornhusk dolls. I found it when I went back to the Hope Haven thrift store for a large 1960's fashion doll, found her gone, and was directed upstairs. I didn't know the thrift store continued upstairs. For anyone local who hasn't been there. Wow!!! What a lot of stuff. I don't know if there are very many treasures there but it's interesting.

Old Threshers

We had a really great Old Threshers this year. There was a torrential downpour Wed night and Thursday morning and some light showers on Monday morning. And there were some high winds the rest of the time. But, hey, it's Iowa at Threshers time! Temperatures were otherwise very mild, with cool evenings. The ground dried pretty quickly so there wasn't much in the way of swampy areas on the pathways (some in the parking areas!). Sales were very good and I heard that this was true for a lot of the vendors.
John and JT got to be with us for the whole of Threshers, which was really great. We have to be in the booth most of the time but Dad or I got out with him a few times a day. Dad took him to eat at the church tents about three times and he really "chowed down". My mom was there for three days this year. Grandma Weyer and Judy were there from Tuesday evening until after the show ended on Monday and Stephen and Carolyn came every day. John W, Cindi, and Nathan were there for the weekend. So it was a nice group of us.
As you can see, he got to carve with Grandpa twice. This is just a short clip. He and Grandpa were carving and in one of the videos JT is saying that he's making a spoon to hang up. In one of the photos you can see that he was briefly holding the spoke shave by himself. Nathan also made two spoons!
It was pretty obvious how happy JT was to see Nathan. Oh, my, maybe he'll be a tackle for a WI team someday! He just loved Nathan right off his feet. :-) They had some fun in the huge sandpile that Thresher's makes just for the show (doesn't sit out long enough for cats to find it :-).

There were train and trolley rides. John J has some great train and log village photos. No carousel rides this year as JT seems to be really leery of them right now.


Elizabeth was home from Fri evening till Sunday afternoon and I was really, really happy to have her and two of her good friends dress up on Sunday! The costume closet hasn't been busy enough the last few years. In the sandbox photo, JT is wearing one of his Dad's/uncles' brown shirts. I made the blue one for him this year and got suspenders from Kalona.


Also in a photo in the slideshow you can see Grandpa's new toy. The jeep still works and JT learned to drive it pretty well. It even went outside one morning. :-)
I was happy to get some new dolls from some of the antique dealers. The one in faded pink is a 1955 Madame Alexander straight leg walker which I was thrilled to get for $15. The one in the center is a new ceramic doll which was left from the doll convention held at OT this June. The paper dolls are left from older conventions and one was given to me by the curator of the OT doll museum and president of the club. The doll in plaid is, I believe, a Roberta walker from the 50's which I got for $4. I love a good bargain and these certainly were!

Congrats to Charles!!!!!!!!!

I REALLY wish I could have been at Charles' graduation!! He was top of his class, a Distinguished Honor Grad, and got a coin from the Major. And on Thursday he flew home!!!!!!!!!!! I know Dawn--and Pepper and Bubbles--were happy to see him! I hope to have photos later.