“Today is my Anniversary and I have been married to my best friend for 42 years! We have had a wonderful marriage…still do, and I hope for many more years to come!”
Now, I’m so excited to show you the dolls on my sister, Cindy’s, sofa. They go WAY back to when we played with dolls… We both used to have Tiny Betsy McCall doll and I wish we still had her.
From left to right, you’ll find the doll she got when my dad was stationed in Italy. Actually, we were visiting Venice for the day…and a vendor was selling dolls out by the water. Her doll was (I think dressed in a pretty pale blue dress… looks like maybe she’s just in her slip…) I might be wrong. When you tipped them over, they said Mama! Cindy said she was very fragile.
Down in front of that doll is a Madame Alexander doll (I think) and I think she’s German. I should have found out from Cindy more about her dolls.
Back behind her is Cindy’s Toni doll. We both had one, but I can’t remember what happened to mine. They were the Toni dolls that came with the Toni permanent wave set… We have looked at other dolls and can’t remember what ours were dressed in… but they had the feet that wore the high heeled shoes. There is a mark on the back of her Toni doll that says American Character. I found this link to the American Character dolls and found the Toni doll was offered for sale in 1957, the same year as Sweet Sue.
Here is a closeup of her Toni doll… with her super thick hair.
Next to the Toni doll is her Tammy doll. She was an Ideal doll that was 12″ and similar to Barbie’s size, but was advertised as “The Doll You Love to Dress” and was supposed to be a young teenager, more like the “girl next door” instead of the cosmopolitan image that Mattel created with Barbie. She’s wearing a dress I made her and I still remember that fabric! It’s weird to think that. It must be close to 60 years old!
Next to Tammy is Cindy’s Midge. She had a blonde Midge and my Midge was a redhead. That’s some tight “flip” in her hair isn’t it?
Last on Cindy’s sofa is her Skipper doll. Again, she had the blonde and I had the redheaded Skipper. Her Skipper had the thickest hair and I was always a little bit jealous of how her dolls hair was. It’s funny too, I can remember going down a big wide set of steps to Skagg’s Drug Store (I think it was a drug store), and getting our Skipper dolls.
Cindy said she kept her dolls because she always thought her girls would play with them, but they didn’t. :o(
She also has the neatest props and “accessories” for her dolls. They used to make really fun toys in the Cracker Jacks and I know she probably still has some of those.
Well, that’s who is on Cindy’s sofa today! Enjoy!
See you,
Blessings, Jeanne
Happy anniversary to Jeanne and George!!
Thanks for sharing Cindy’s dolls! I can tell you that the doll in front is Not a Madame Alexander. I suspect she is a Kathe Kruse doll–she just kind of has that “look”–although I’m sure there are others on the sofa that have more knowledge about them than I do.
Lucky you and Cindy, to get Toni dolls!! I wanted a Toni doll, but they were too expensive (and I was just on the cusp of “too old for dolls” [HAH!!!] when they first came out); however, I did get an Ideal Princess Mary doll who I think used the same face mold. She was a “walking doll”. I still have the formal she came in, and trunk full of clothes, some made by mom, some bought at the dime store!
Now, as to getting your Skipper dolls in the drug store, that’s where some of my Barbie clothes came from!! My Barbie doll came from Miles Kimball (mom had looked all over for one, and I remembered she was in the catalog, so….) but I do remember our local drug store had a great toy aisle with lots of Barbie stuff, and I also remember agonizing over which outfit to buy next!! I was almost 15 when I got mine (mom decided that since Barbie was a teenager, it would be okay for me to have her!!) so I also made a lot of her clothes. Yes, I still have her, and all her “stuff”!!
First and foremost, Happy Anniversary to you two lovebirds, and may you have many more! It seems like once you hit 50 years, you kind of lose track of how many years it has been! We are somewhree around 56 or 57 years!
What a great group of dolls, but I had to laugh at the total differences between the ones on the left compared to the ones on the right! The ones on the right are the ones I was “too old for” when they came out!
I am another one who thought “No, that’s not a Madame Alexander doll”,(the one in the front,on the left) when telling us what they were! What makes you think that, Cindy and Jeanne? I have no idea who made them, but no, not Madame Alexander!
I do remember Toni dolls, but again, I was too old for them, but remember Toni permanents that had paper dolls in them! Loved the paper dolls, but hated the smell of the lotion!! Cindy’s doll has a beautiful face!
The beautiful doll in the back on the left looks more like a Madame Alexander to me! She certainly must have been beautifully dressed, since her underpinnings themselves are very fancy!
Jeanne, I keep thinking that the doll in the back is the Madame Alexander and the one in front is the one from Italy. No matter, it was so nice of Cindy to send in the pictures and she is lucky to have so many of her childhood dolls!
My fingers are playing tricks on me again! I meant “somewhere”!
Happy Anniversary!!!
Dear Jeanne, first Happy Anniversary! It is so wonderful to have a lifelong best friend. I hope you two have a chance to celebrate.
Dear Cindy, thanks for sharing your dolls. As far as I can tell, none of them are made by Madame Alexander. I especially love the Toni doll.
I am researching dolls made in Pennsylvania for a program for my local doll club. I think there are two dolls that are still being made in Gettysburg. I don’t have all of the facts yet.
I hope that Jeanne and all of the Sofa Sisters had a lovely holiday weekend.
Happy Anniversary. I remember the day well. The little ring bearer who is now 6’2” wasn’t too cooperative but you two were just aglow with love and joy and I still see that in you now. May God always be your center and give you many, many more years together.
Happy Anniversary Jeanne snd George!!!
I’ve missed commenting on a few “What’s on your sofa?” Laura’s beautiful violin and Sylvia’s pretty dolls.
And today, now Cindy’s dolls.
I never had a Toni doll but I would have loved one- Sylvia’s Toni is beautiful and so was the other one shown recently.
Stay cool everyone, next week looks like it’s going to cool down, hopefully.
Happy Anniversary to you and your husband! Hope you get to enjoy it together. Today is my father’s 73rd birthday and the girls’ first day of school.
It is fun to see the dolls your sister had when she was younger. Thank you for sharing 🙂
Hope Jeanne gets to go out to dinner or lunch today. Congrats.
Interesting to see the dolls. After my doll time, but maybe if I had been given the Toni doll it would have made those horrible home perms more bearable. I can still picture coming into the kitchen on a Saturday morning and seeing the chair with a stool on the seat waiting for me along with that dreaded Toni home perm box. Horrors!! As a child, all I wanted was long straight hair that I might have worn in braids or a ponytail, but my mother had other ideas. She chopped my bangs and hair and then made me sit on that stool while she put those curler things everywhere on my head. Then, the dreaded solution that stung my skin and eyes. It really was torture for a kid who wanted to be outside roller skating and no way to spend a Saturday morning for sure. The result was awful. It was satisfying to my mother but I looked like a freak. Short hair never looked right on me. It took years, but I finally was able to break free from my mother’s control and wear my hair as I liked. And I know why I never received the Toni doll. Because she was too grown up with the high heels etc. At least I was allowed Ginny dolls. 🙂
Cindy’s dolls are so sweet. Thanks Cindy and Jeanne for sharing.
Happy Anniversary, Jeanne and George!
Cindy’s dolls are so nice to see. I’m going to bet that German doll in front is a Kathe Kruse as well. She has the “look” like my Heidi Liesel and the other smaller one here. I had a Skipper as a child.
First since I was off celebrating Labor Day with son Sean and his crew yesterday I want to make sure to mention how much I loved Sylvia’s dolls and her sofa but saw them so late I didn’t comment. The dolls are all dressed so lovely. I also peeked out the windows and love the view. I would love to see this in person because the whole scene was so cozy looking. I also loved the beautiful lamp and the other items Sylvia shared with us. And 88 years young! How wonderful! Sounds like Sylvia is very much enjoying life. We had a friend who was 103 when she passed away. She drove until she was 98 and lived by herself until then and moved in with her daughter around that time. She was in assisted living when she passed because her daughter was herself a senior citizen. She not only saw several generations born but she saw most of them grow up. We went to her 100th birthday party and it was a sight to behold.
How wonderful that Cindy sent her sofa picture too. You mentioned your Toni dolls were 1957. My sister’s and mine were older than that because we got them when I was about five which would have been 1951. We were still living in Pottsville, PA, because I remember they had them sitting on the mantle of the fireplace on Christmas morning. Shortly after we moved to Bethlehem and we didn’t have a fireplace mantle there. We may have had some of the first Toni dolls. Ours had the I think deep aqua dresses that you see on some of the vintage Toni’s on eBay. Problem is they always look so well played with or if they don’t they are too pricey for me so I’ve never been tempted to replace that part of my childhood. I have a Skipper. She was a commemorative doll I got a few years ago but I can’t remember the reason. She has dark hair. I have a Stacey too. Those are the only two dolls I let Jaiden play with.
Speaking of the Toni dolls does anyone remember the Tonette perms for little girls? They came with paper dolls.
Still in the 100s here this week with Thursday being 106 I think. But come next Monday which will be 100 we will start dropping with some 93-degree days. I’m not going to bank on this but I’m still hopeful cooler days are coming.
Barbara I endured so many Tonette perms as a girl too.UGH the smell. Lots of pin curls and rollers too. How did we ever sleep on those brush rollers?😳
I’m not sure how we slept in all that curler paraphernalia either. I was glad when they came out with portable hair dryers so I could wash and set my hair, find a good book, plug myself in and be done with it. No more sleeping on rollers. But then they came out with the sponge rollers and they weren’t too bad. Oh what we went through to look good.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY JEANNE AND GEORGE! Not very many couples make it that long with such love between them and are that happy. Your faith has always helped and you both are special people.🙏🏻💒
Cindy took such good care of her dolls and what a cute assortment. The three on the left are darling but they are not identified correctly. I think I know but sent a pic of them to the Doll ID Group to be sure. The far left is Italian for sure, then I think the second one is made from celluloid which is super delicate. Does it have a turtle mark on the back of the neck? Toni was made by Ideal and didn’t have high heels. She may be a Sweet Sue…but doesn’t look exactly like her either🤔I’m waiting to hear back for sure. No matter who they are so cute and so well cared for❤️
Hi everyone,
I found out our dolls are Zwilling-Fox Trachten Puppen costumed German celluloid dolls. Cindy said hers is in very good condition…
I am out with hubby celebrating lunch and can’t figure out how to load a picture on my phone but I’ll show you tomorrow…
Oops! Forgot to wish you a very Happy Anniversary on your 42nd. Seeing Cindy’s dolls on her sofa made me look again for a Toni doll like my sister and I had. There were several of that era on eBay but most of them were a bit ragged. But I kept on looking and managed to find one in excellent condition for less than most were asking. Except for a hair redo (the hair appeared in great shape just messy) there didn’t seem to be a thing wrong with her and her dress was in good shape. She even had on the original shoes and socks. I said ours were bought for Christmas 1951. I found out the era of our dolls would have been 1949 to 1953. Need to find out what they’re worth today.
I have info from the Original Doll ID Group on Facebook too.
I just sent them a picture of the three dolls on the left so they didn’t see Tammy or the Barbie’s ..they were already correct😉
What I learned is that there are two Toni dolls… Cindy’s is the American Character high heeled Toni. The more common Toni was made by Ideal.
One lady said: The one in the middle looks like a German or Swiss souvenir doll. The one on the left I am not sure of but she looks post war European of some sort.
Another lady, deemed the expert said:
The high heel doll on the right is Toni by American Character.
Toni has the eyelashes painted in the corners and Sweet Sue’s are painted on under the eyes. ( Sweet Sue Sophticate is almost identical) Also by American Character.
This group on Facebook is always fun to look at…they are amazing and will ID almost any doll!