Caring for Porcelain Dolls

By: Joshua Jay

Your precious porcelain doll did what? Your china Indian fell
off of the shelf and broke its arm. Say it isn't true; but if it
is, what then? Doll hospitals can help, staffed by certified
doll doctors. Porcelain doll arms, legs, and heads are offered
on e-Bay, from outlets listed on the web, and in sometimes the
most unexpected places such as flea markets, juncque sales, and
auctions.

Entire books have been written on caring for collectible
porcelain dolls; check out Amazon.com, B&N, or the other online
books sellers and you will get an idea of how much information
is available.

The safest place for that single Caroline Taylor porcelain doll
or an entire collection of Danbury Mint or Norman Rockwell
dolls, is in a dustproof display case. That is not much fun,
however, for the children who visit or live with you.
Unfortunately the body oils on admirer's fingers can, over time,
stain the fabric of antique silk or satin. Depending on the
value you place on your porcelain historical doll, that
Victorian lady, or your Gone With the Wind characters, you may
want to handle the dolls with cotton gloves--literally. Clean
white cotton prevents oil damage or snags from a rough
fingernail.

Should your porcelain doll, full-size or miniature, have human
hair as the highly desirable antiques often do, careful grooming
with a cosmetic brush can remove dust from the hair and from the
clothing. Probably not needed to be said is the warning about no
harsh chemical of any sort; none should be used on a porcelain
doll or its clothing. Better to leave an old stain than to
destroy the fabric trying to clean it.

When and if you really must do something about a porcelain
doll's clothing, you might consider purchasing a replacement
gown. It is fairly easy to find doll clothing online and some of
it is actually original, antique and vintage items remaining
over when a Norman Rockwell character was damaged beyond
restoration. Some may be from the wardrobe of a very
well-dressed collectible porcelain doll that may have been
passed along without all of its clothes.

Caring for dolls, even the one you may have put together from a
miniature porcelain doll kit, means using nothing harsh or too
abrasive. Careful wiping with a soft cloth moistened with plain
water is usually sufficient to clean a porcelain collectible
doll. No one wants to scratch their fine Dresden figurine
porcelain doll; your Caroline Taylor doll wants to keep her
perfect complexion.

Newer dolls dressed in costumes of synthetic or otherwise very
washable fabrics are easier to keep safely keep clean. These
dolls are also more likely to need a bath, a shampoo, or a
change to clean clothing. Inexpensive and readily available
porcelain dolls abound in traditional and virtual stores, even
at collectible porcelain doll sales. Add one or two of the
latter to your collection and allow little visitors to play with
them with no fear of ruining your treasured Victorian-era
porselain doll. Everyone can enjoy an afternoon of tea parties
and imaginations gone dancing.

Collecting Porcelain Dolls

Aunt Ellen bought you a wonderful porcelain doll and surprised
you with it when she came to visit. You were eight years old;
twenty years later, that doll still stands in all her silken
beauty in a place of honor in your oak display case; now you've
decided that it's time to get serious about collecting porcelain
dolls. You have the entire world to draw upon, both in
purchasing and in the choice of dress for your doll.

Perhaps you would enjoy a homey character patterned after a
Norman Rockwell painting. Or choose from Caroline Taylor
offerings, buy a Swedish porcelain doll, one of the Danbury Mint
or Dresden figurine porcelain dolls. Historical porcelain dolls
are popular in some areas as well as characters from literature
and films.

If you are beginning a selection, you may want to do so
randomly, selecting a doll as you happen to spot it at a
boutique or in a too-good-to-pass-up after-holiday sale. Think
about this for a moment. You can aim your collecting toward
achieving a specific goal by determining whether you will stay
with standard size dolls or include the beautiful porcelain doll
miniatures. If space is limited in your home for a collection,
the smaller figures may be a good choice for you. Do you want to
limit your dolls to depictions of famous people or characters?
Perhaps you'd like them from various nations, all appropriately
clothed in beautiful costumes that make up part of the persona.

The fastest way to build a collection of porcelin dolls is by
doing so online, entering the specific word or words that
interest you. For instance, there are Norman Rockwell character
dolls, boys and girls by the Danbury Mint, and Dresden porcelain
dolls. Maybe you want to know who makes porcelain doll molds.
Just write your search string and click the "go" button to find
a wealth of information. Part of the fun in collecting is
learning some history about doll making and doll makers. The
competition has been furious; right from the beginning, having
the "best" doll was a goal of some individuals. Those porcelain
doll mold makers do beautiful work; be sure that your Caroline
Taylor is authentic, not a skillful knock-off, if authenticity
is important to you.

From the Victorian era and before, having a lovely porcelain or
china doll was a status symbol, similar to having (or not) the
PS 3 or top-drawer MP3 player. Today, if you are fortunate
enough to find a genuine porcelain doll from a bygone era, you
may find yourself in a tooth-and-claw competition with other
avid collectors. Beautiful dolls abound on the web, so if the
price and competition is off-putting to you, go shopping for the
porcelain doll of your dreams on the internet. You will no doubt
find more of them than you can reasonably purchase in one
day--or month. Your lone porcelain doll needs some friends in
the display case.

Article Source: http://collectibles-articles.com

Joshua J. Jay is a renaissance man with many loves - collectibles being one of his passions. You can dramatically increase the quality and value of your porcelain doll collection at porcelaindolls.pepperminx.com

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