I stopped by my nearest Value Village store today as I hadn't been over the weekend. I totally forgot today was their half price sale on clothes, and the bloated aisles were filled with shoppers and heaving carts. I just did some casual picking, got a couple of clothes items, as the racks had already pretty much been picked over. As I passed by the children's toy section, however, I found this doll shoved to the very back of its shelf.
It was a somewhat tacky plastic doll dressed as Mrs. Claus, complete with a blown-out grey wig, red velvet dress up to here, and a dressing cap. Meh.
A close up of her face.
I still picked her up and felt there was something about her big blue eyes and sweet expression that made me overlook the Christmas rah rah look. I determined she was a celluloid / composition doll, nicely made. For 99 cents, she went into my nearly empty cart.
When I got her home, I realized that the dress was not original to the doll, the sleeves were much too long, and the hair was strangely...askew, like a real wig. I saw the wig and cap had been loosely glued to the doll's head. I pulled off the dress, and the cap came off next.
Look at the surprise waiting for me when I stripped the doll of her "Christmas-ness"...
I couldn't believe the transformation! I had an adorable composition Kewpie doll with the sweetest linen undershirt with embroidered flowers and lace.
She had hair at some point, but some nasty child took a pair of scissors to her brown locks. She does need a clean up, but what a find! She has a maker's stamp on her back, it is marked "Reliable" Made in Canada. Reliable Toy Company made fantastic and adorable dolls for girls in the 40s until the late 80s I believe.
It just goes to show you it pays to listen to you gut, and to scratch beneath the surface of some of those thrift store items! You could have a real "doll" of a deal!
