Thrifty Finds This Week

Hi Doll Friends,

We hit some of our favorite stores and antique malls this weekend, so I thought I'd share some of our thrifty finds. If you like miniatures, you should definitely check out your local Michael's. They have just put out a brand new selection of dollhouse miniatures. One of the two Michael's stores that I went to had placed the new miniatures on a completely different aisle, separate from their old mini stock.

I only picked up a couple minis from this new line, because I like to use a coupon to get a bargain. I'll definitely be going back for more though. There were so many cute new minis that I hadn't seen elsewhere before. I got this adorable metal barbecue pit. It is just so realistic. It was one of the more expensive miniatures at $8.99, but it was still only $4.50 with the coupon.

I thought these little metal guns were very realistically detailed too. They are actually made of metal, not resin or plastic. They came two to a pack for 4.99 before the coupon.

I'm planning some new craft projects, so I also picked up this set of 36 Artist's Loft watercolor paints on sale for just $2.99

At one of my favorite Antique Malls, I found this very old, antique doll trunk. It is made of metal and wood, and it is probably from the late 1800's.

My daughter has been collecting old primitive wooden boxes, and when she found this old doll trunk in our favorite primitives booth, I just had to buy it.

I'd love to know the history of this old doll trunk. It's fun to just imagine who it belonged too, where it's been and what treasures it held.

I also picked up this sweet little primitive stuffed sheep from the same booth.

I found lots of dollhouse miniatures at the antique malls too. These two tiny vinyl Kewpie dolls will be perfect toys for the dollhouse at just under 2" tall.

I also bought a miniature old fashioned metal washtub and washboard and a tiny brass umbrella stand.

This adorable miniature red wooden table and chair set is painted in a dutch style I think.

I really love the chippy paint on this little cast iron potbelly stove.

Here it is with my Gone With The Wind Mammy doll that I got at the doll show.

It must have been a day for finding stoves, because I came home with quite a few. This is another cast iron Queen stove to add to my collection. Mini American Girl Samantha volunteered to show you how big it is.

This is my third cast iron stove, but the neatest thing is that all three that I have found are different sizes. This latest find is a medium size when compared to my other two.

Mini American Girl Kirsten shows off another new stove. This is a vintage German MFZ tin lithographed stove, probably from the 1940-50's.

Ann Estelle is claiming this rusty old vintage Marx Pretty Maid tin stove for her kitchen. It is also probably from the 1940-50's.

Her Mary Engelbreit teapots look very new against this rusty old stove, but Ann Estelle thinks it will do for now.

Ruby, my Ruby Red Galleria Bleuette shows off this antique reproduction buggy that I found at an antique mall.

I added a tiny antique China to my growing little china doll collection. She's the little one in the rusty orange dress.

I purchased this little 6" China from my local doll club friend who travels to doll shows all over the country, buying and selling antique dolls.

The back of her shoulder plate is marked Germany.

I just love her tiny sweet face.

This last one was an eBay find, a 4" tall Itty Bitty Hitty. This 4" version is also carved from wood by Robert Raikes. She is dressed in a burgundy print dress with an ivory pinafore. She is jointed at the neck, shoulders and hips. Here is Itty Bitty Hitty with my traditional size 6 1/2" Hitty.

I hope you enjoyed seeing our latest thrifty finds. Please leave a comment below to tell us about your latest fun finds.  I'd love to hear from you!!!

 Hugs ♥ 

Meet Bleuette, A Resin Ball Jointed Doll from Ruby Red Galleria

Hi Doll Friends!

I'm so excited to introduce you to the newest member of my doll family. Please help me welcome Bleuette. She is a new ball jointed doll available from Ruby Red Galleria. She is also available in the US from Denver Doll Emporium. I found her at a bargain price on eBay though.

As you have probably noticed, I have developed a great interest in the history of dolls. In addition to modern dolls, I love searching for antique dolls, learning about them, and adding them to my collection whenever possible. After learning a little about Bleuette, I purchased the book "Bleuette: The Doll and Her Wardrobe" by Barbara Craig Hilliker to study and learn more about the history of Bleuette. This large book is filled with information and hundreds of beautiful color pictures, and I would highly recommend it if you'd like to learn about Bleuette.

Bleuette History

You may have heard of Bleuette dolls before. The original Bleuette dolls were produced from 1905 to 1960, as a premium for the French girls' magazine, La Semaine de Suzette. Little girls who subscribed to the magazine would receive a Bleuette doll, and each magazine contained patterns so that girls could make entire wardrobes for their dolls. Bleuette dolls were designed for interactive play and as a tool to teach girls sewing and homemaking. There were more than 1,000 patterns published for Bleuette during the 55 years that she was produced, in addition to the commercially made outfits that were also available.

Bleuette dolls have a bisque head and a wooden composition body which is fully articulated with joints at the neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips and knees. The dolls range in size from 10 5/8" to 11 3/8" and there are several different Bleuette head molds.

After learning about Bleuette's fascinating history, I knew I'd love to have one of these lovely dolls, and maybe even sew, knit and crochet a complete wardrobe for her. So I began to look for an antique Bleuette. I joined a Bleuette group on Facebook, where I learned that most Bleuette collectors buy reproduction Bleuette dolls. The reason is because a nice original antique Bleuette is valued at around $5,000 or more.

My First Bleuette

My Bleuette search quickly turned from searching for an antique to looking for a reproduction. Since there are so many different head molds and different artists, not all Bleuettes look alike. That's not a problem, it just means you search for one you love. During my search, I ran across this new version of Bleuette by Ruby Red Galleria. Her head and body are made completely of resin. I thought the resin would be more durable for play and redressing than bisque. Since I have other resin ball jointed dolls, I took an interest in this new resin BJD version of Bleuette.

She came dressed in her white one piece underwear, which are beautifully detailed with lace trim and two tiny working buttons.

So embarrassing Mom, I'm in my undies.

Since she came only in her underwear, she requested that I start on her wardrobe immediately.  I sewed her first dress from a rose print fabric and added lacy trims.

A fun fact about ball jointed dolls is that they can be so easily customized, and the Ruby Red Bleuette is no exception. Her wig is removable and can be changed for a totally different look. Her eyes can also be changed. In addition, she came with two interchangeable face plates, which Ruby Red calls the Bleuette face and the Charmette face. She also came with two pairs of eyes in blue-gray and brown. You can see the two different face plates with different color eyes side by side below.
She came with pierced ears, so she is already looking forward to starting her own jewelry collection.

Can I have some lovely earrings please?

She is about 11 1/2" tall and is jointed at the neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips and knees, just like her bisque and wooden counterparts. Here you can see that even though she is about the same height as Rapunzel, her proportions are very different.

Here she is with Rosalee, my Fairyland Littlefee resin BJD who is a little shorter at just under 10" tall.

Bleuette dolls love to collect lots of accessories, so she immediately started collecting things from around the house.

She decided that the Schoenhut piano and the bowl and pitcher were the perfect size for her house.

She has a great love for animals, especially the sheep and the alpaca.

HELP! She needs a NAME!

I could really use your help with choosing a name. The choices on my list are Maryette, Josette, Juliette, or Ruby. I'd love to hear your thoughts and name suggestions in the comments section below!

Hugs ♥ 
 - Lisa