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Doll Collecting

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The first in a series on women who have collect dolls
Meet Jeanne Melanson, of Massachusetts, who collects antique French and German dolls.
Here are her ten tips for new and wanna-be doll collectors:
1. Condition is always #1 - the better the condition the higher the price, of course, but the value will hold if condition is maintained.
2. Originality - If the clothes, hair, etc. are the ones she came with then she is a very good example. If one is collecting discontinued or collectible or antique dolls and they are redressed or rewigged, they are not good examples of the original issue.
3.Track Record - The older the doll the better established his/her track record. Antique dolls are more apt to hold their value than "new" dolls or even artist one-of-a-kinds since the collecting public is fickle and many times are not truly serious collectors but fad collectors.
4.Quality - This speaks for itself.
5. Beauty - Also speaks for itself.
6. Does it speak to you? Is there some sort of communication that says: "I want this doll in my collection."
7. Price, of course, and this could be substituted anywhere up the line depending on the collector. To some people it has to be the No. 1 consideration. Not all can collect dolls in the higher price range and, therefore, might consider a doll that is not totally original or totally perfect. If a collector wants a certain doll and can't afford the most "minty" one there's no reason why a "more loved" model won't fulfill the desire.
8. Maybe this should be higher up, like possibly #3 - KNOW YOUR DEALER. Get to know a few dealers you like to deal with and whom you know are honest. You can always check with them about other dealers too until you have expanded your horizons.
9. Always get a receipt with the dealer's name and a contact address, phone number, or internet name. Communication is necessary between dealer and buyer.
10. Start carefully - study, study, study - examine, examine, examine. Purchase in the lower brackets until you are sure how you want to collect and are sure of what you are doing. Have some sort of game plan.
How did you get involved with doll collecting?
Was always an antique lover - couldn't afford dolls years ago - got started on some of the new collectible artist dolls that were within my price range and it gradually got down to trading and selling up. I now collect 95% antique dolls of French and German manufacture from the previous century and into the early part of this century. However, I love just about all of them - they are truly works of art.
What do you enjoy most about doll collecting? Why were you drawn to this hobby?
The search! And then I get to display them in cases or little vignettes which I can enjoy the same as enjoying a lovely painting or sculpture.
I was always into objects d'art of some type and being female dolls rank very high on the list of lovely things.
What criteria do you use when choosing the dolls you will add to your collection? What do you look for?
First, and foremost, condition/originality. The nearer mint with original hair, eyes, clothes, etc., the better. I am now doing more with the higher priced French and German characters since I finally can afford some of them after several years of buying and selling to support my habit.
How do your dolls make you feel emotionally? What do they give you and add to your life?
One can become attached to them as though they were "mute" children - I don't get too carried away that way. I enjoy them more for their beauty and the expertise of the sculpting and decorating artists to say nothing of the state-of-the-art at the time they were being fashioned. Emotionally they make me feel good. I am very happy to own a piece of the past that is so lovely and which was probably cherished equally as much by some little girl. They have given me a wonderful circle of collecting friends and club members. All sorts of activities are involved. There is the constant search for the next "find" and the learning of history - the "whys" and "wherefores". It is social as well as educational. We have lots of fun.
How many dolls have you collected?
My collection consists of maybe 125 dolls. Not very large but it fits into my home without overcrowding. When I find one I "must have" I either try to find room for it or I upgrade and sell one which I have enjoyed for some time in order to make room for a new "baby."
What are your favorite dolls? Can you tell us about the dolls you are most proud of.
That's a difficult question to answer. I have a very personable K*R 116A, cute as a button, which I love - a very real-looking Lori Baby who's won a prize for me - a Kestner as original and perfect as they come who's also won a prize for me. Those are perhaps three of my best favorites but it is terribly difficult to choose, especially since an extensive part of my collection is all-bisque "little ones" and there are two or three of them that are real "favorites."
I am most proud of those that have won ribbons - of course, not all have been put into competition. Those include a mint, perfect, original, closed-mouth, pouty Kestner. A Swaine & Co. Lori Baby. A French all-bisque Napoleonic soldier. A molded-clothes all-bisque with glass eyes. A Steiner Gigateur, etc.
How is the love of dolls stress reducing"?
It does reduce stress which would be acquired from lack of purpose in my retirement years. It should be noted that there are plenty of times the search and acquisition of dolls tends to add stress (but a good kind of stress).
Where do you find your dolls?
Some of them come from the eBay auction on the internet. Some I acquire at doll shows. Some at local auctions and some from private parties who have heard I am a collector.
Do you have a favorite doll maker?
Simon & Halbig for heads - Bru Jne for the total doll (which I'll never be able to afford).
What do you wish you knew about doll collecting when you first began that you know now?
I wish I had spent more time forming a game plan. It was inevitable that I end up collecting the antiques but I didn't seem to know it at the time and wasted a lot of time beating the bushes for dolls I would never keep in my collection.
Where do you display your dolls? Do you sell dolls?
In my home and sometimes at club meetings. Yes - I sell dolls - I have to support my habit!
Do you give your dolls a personality? Are there certain personalities in dolls you are drawn to?
Yes - they have personalities which I see in them. I tend to be drawn to either the most beautiful (the French Brus) or the ones with the funniest, most expressive faces. I also like the little ones 3" to 10" that are all bisque.
What mistakes have you made in your doll collecting endeavors?
Not checking them thoroughly and getting stuck with damaged dolls. Choosing the wrong collecting field in the beginning. Buying anything and everything if it was "cheap" because that's how it usually remained.