If you are a die hard Schoenhut collector, please be warned--the story you are about to view may cause you to have a heart attack. An antique doll is being ALTERED. View at your own risk, and do not bother contacting me and telling me I am destroying a valuable antique. There are hundreds of thousand of these dolls, and this one was in such bad shape she would have ended up in the trash.
This is what I do. I salvage badly damaged Schoenhuts, and remake them into one of a kind, "Artist" Schoenhuts. Sometimes I take a doll that is in GOOD shape, but has been horribly repainted--Sharpie for eyebrows??--and I strip her face off and redo her. My "Artist Schoenhuts" are in private collections, and of course I keep some of them. I am doing what I love, and not trying to stir up any controversy, but there are those who are absolutely horrified that I do this. Not your doll, not your call.
That said.........
This "Miss Dolly" is 22" tall. One of the springs in her leg is damaged, and that leg has been strung with elastic cord. I do not like dolls with teeth--so she will not have any. I decided to try "carved" hair on this one, so I have used a product, new to me, called Sculpwood. It is a 2 part epoxy, sandable, carvable and just like wood once it cures. Hopefully tomorrow I can paint her.
This incredible wooden doll has come to live with me. She is all wood, mostly hand carved, and a whopping 26" tall. She is a mystery, and I am hoping I can discover her past.
All I know is, she was purchased from an artists estate in Greenwich, Connecticut in the 1930's. She has spring joints, much like the dolls by Schoenhut, but she is not marked or signed. She is also out of proportion, which I find very odd for an artists mannequin--her legs are too short, her feet too small, and her hands are not well carved and are very primitive compared to the rest of her. Were they added later? I don't think so, they look original.
When she arrived, she had a human hair "wig" that was disgustingly filthy, it got bagged and stashed away. She also had bright red lips, which appeared to have been (badly) repainted and not original. I repainted them to go with her overall coloring. Her eyes are mesmerizing--you could literally get lost in them. She is a very heavy wood, I estimate her weight to be about 40-45 pounds.
She has an amazing presence and aura. If anyone knows anything about her, I would love to hear it! Due to the style of her face painting, which looked very definitely Italian to me, I have named her Giovanna Rosa.
I am on a roll right now, the more I make the more ideas I have. So--here comes the first part Evies new winter wardrobe! (I am still sewing....)
By now, I am sure most people have heard about Chris Mintz, the young man who tried to stop the shooter in Oregon. Chris was shot SEVEN times, and miraculously, he survived! I was happy to make a small donation to this incredible man.
https://www.gofundme.com/s75ge9y4
And if you have not read the story, you can find it online. After trying to stop the gunman at the classroom door, he was shot 3 times. As he lay there, he looked up at the gunman and said, "Today is my son's birthday." For this, he was shot 4 more times.
Chris' cousin set up a donation site to help Chris with medical bills, child care, mortgage, etc. I am thrilled to see how much the fund is growing. But of course, with money comes the vultures. I was completely appalled to see peoples posts begging for money for themselves, or for Chris to "share". SERIOUSLY, PEOPLE??!!!!
This young man saved lives, and did so selflessly. He was willing to die so others could live. It is a rare person who does that. He now faces surgeries, and possibly years of physical therapy to regain the use of his legs. HE DESERVES EVERY PENNY HE IS GIVEN!!! So back off, you greedy jerks!
Chris--my prayers go out to you for a full and speedy recovery. This country needs more men like you! I can only imagine how proud your son will be as he grows up. And I am thankful he will have his Dad to grow up with.
Edit--I should have mentioned this sooner. Where the hell is OBAMA?? Why isn't he breaking his neck to go see this man and thank him for his bravery? Or at least making some sort of statement about him? He does those things for others--oh wait, is this man the wrong color, so he doesn't deserve Presidential recognition?
45 years, and I don't even know how that is possible!!!
