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San Diego area collectors gear up for antique doll show
By David Moye
January 9, 2006
San Diego--A lot of San Diegans will be literally saying, “Hello Dolly” on Saturday, January 14th, thanks to the San Diego Doll & Bear Boutique & Antique Doll Show, an event dedicated to antique dolls and teddy bears.
The one-day event takes place at the Handlery Hotel (950 Hotel Circle North) and will feature displays of antique dolls, modern dolls, Barbies and bears as well as clinics are restoring them to their former glory.
One of the collectors who will be there is Cardiff-based doll dealer Norma Von Essen, who says there are as many types of collectors as there are dolls and says each ‘dollard’ has his or her own specialty.
For instance, she specializes in porcelain dolls from the 1860s to the 1940s and says she was inspired 35 years ago when a beloved aunt gave her a family heirloom, a rare porcelain doll from the 1860s.
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It's unclear whether "Billy" will make an appearance at the doll show |
She became hooked and says she spent hours visiting the doll shop looking longingly at dolls she couldn’t afford because she was raising five kids. Von Essen began making porcelain reproductions of classic dolls in order to finance her habit and even spent her tax money on new antique dolls. Eventually, she became a doll dealer rather than a doll maker because her lungs couldn’t handle the heat needed to make porcelain molds.Von Essen enjoys getting her dolls dolled up for sale but admits she’s particular about what they wear. “Dolls should be dressed in a manner appropriate for the time they were made and that means the fabrics and laces of the period and not nylon, which wasn’t around back then.” |
Von Essen expects to see lots of novice collectors who want appraisals for their dolls and is doling out advice for potential collectors.
“A little knowledge is dangerous. Not all old dolls are extremely valuable. People will think that because a doll belonged to their 90-year-old grandma, it’s an antique but it might only be 20 years old.”
Another doll danger comes with wigs. Von Essen says a wig may look messed up so the novice will destroy it when it can be fixed. As she puts it, “Generally, with old dolls, the old things are more appropriate for them.”
Also, Von Essen advises novice doll sellers to readily agree to remove a wig for a potential buyer. Doing so allows buyers to check for cracks or breaks.
However, the biggest problem facing the doll community may be their original target audience. Doll show organizers request potential visitors only bring ‘well behaved children’ and Von Essen agrees.
The San Diego Doll & Bear Boutique & Antique Doll Show takes place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and free for ‘well behaved children’ under the age of 13.
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David Moye is a fifth generation native of San Diego. He has the same birthday as Reggie Bush, but none of the talent.
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