The last issue of Golden Opportunities

Nan C. Moorehead has published her last issue of Golden Opportunities. It was a wonderful magazine, and I'll miss it. She has a few copies of the last issue to sell -- all color, so she's going out with a bang. A beautiful issue.

Nan will continue to circulate her sales list to those who were subscribers, and she's given me permission to post the list here. Here's the first page; I'll create a blog button that will link to a PDF file of the entire 10-page list.

This is how collectors found their treasures before eBay. Have your guide books ready. S=Saalfield, M=Merrill, L=Lowe, W=Whitman. Each page was printed on orange paper; I've scanned each page and got rid of the color background. Click image below for readable image. And look for the blog button with more pages in the coming week.

Mildred, a handmade paper doll, 1902

From the collection of Jean Mallett.

Mary Jane Varden paper doll, c. 1920s

A sweet handmade.

Movie Star Paper Dolls, c. 1940s-1950s

The 1940s-1950s were a golden age of sorts for movie star paper dolls. Talented illustrators and lush wardrobes, in addition to the celebrity doll, make these highly collectible.

More from Barbara Barnett

The artist Barbara Barnett brings to life the characters from the TV series, based on the best-selling book.

The WWI era is one of my favorites for style and fashion, and Barbara captures it perfectly.

Barbara's charming, hand-painted paper doll of Marilyn Monroe.

Margaret G. Hays paper doll post cards, 1907

More from the collection of Elaine Price. Margaret Hays, sister of Grace Drayton of Dolly Dingle fame, had a style and charm all her own. Hays illustrated a number of children's books, including the Mary Frances books of the domestic arts. I have a few things from Hays in my collection including this postcard.

Handmade paper dolls, 1920s

At just about every convention, you can count on Elaine Price bringing in an amazing handmade paper doll, usually with an outstanding wardrobe, and in Dayton she did not disappoint.

The Strong Museum

If you haven't checked out the Strong Museum web site in a while, you're in for a treat. The museum has placed hundreds of images of dolls, toys and paper dolls online. Here are a few images that I downloaded for my online collection.

Forbes paper doll sailor, 1895

From the collection of Jane Alfano Rasor. This is one of my favorite things to collect: paper dolls and toys that were distributed with the Sunday newspaper in the 1890s. Sturdy card stock and strong colors belie the date of these cut-outs. This is one in the series known as the Forbes Doll. Does anyone know why?

The Strong Museum has posted some of the paper dolls and toys in their collection. Here's what the Forbes sailor looked like uncut on the sheet:

Quite a few layers on our sailor!

Brenda Starr by Dale Messick, 1952

More outstanding original art on display for the convention's Competition. From the collection of Norene Allen.

Janet Lennon original paper doll artwork, c. 1964

 I'm glad Pat Corte Rooney brought in this original artwork of a Janet Lennon paper doll set. There were a number of paper dolls devoted to the Lennon Sisters, the singing group that was featured often on the Ed Sullivan Show in the 1960s.

Click on the last picture to learn more about this original artwork.

Kellogg's Modern Home Kit, 1947

A fantastic piece of Americana: paper cut-outs of actual homes that could be built from a kit. A reminder of the housing shortage in the years immediately following the end of World War II, and the pent-up consumer demand for a new life in the suburbs. From the collection of Jean Mallett.

Mon Journal cut-outs, 1895

For the Competition, Norene Allen brought in a few issues of Mon Journal, a French children's magazine, containing these lovely paper dolls of Napoleon and Josephine. An excellent historical piece that won first place in its category.

Schoeller Marken paper doll ad, c. 1930s

A recent find, post-convention: a paper doll premium (on card stock), apparently a promotion for wool. German, c. 1930s.

Admiral Cigarettes paper doll, c. 1890s

The competition is where collectors bring their outstanding pieces, submitted in specific categories by type and time period. Here's where you'll see the rare antique as well as the original art by a contemporary artist. I always leave the competition room with sensory overload, thinking "I didn't know that existed," or "I never thought I'd see that on display, and in such terrific shape." And suddenly you've added another item to your search list.

The A.P.W. Company

For those of us who love advertising paper dolls and toys, Pat Corte Rooney's display in Special Collections was a pip: The Albany Perforated Wrapping Company is credited with being the first company to produce toilet paper the way we know it today -- perforated and rolled around a cardboard cylinder -- in 1877. You can read more toilet paper history here. Corn cobs and catalog pages! Good grief. 

Pat collects all kinds of A.P.W. promotional ephemera -- and some of it is quite wonderful. The artist Tony Sarg created an A.P.W. marionette theater as a premium in 1926, shown in the last photo. A.P.W. also used the pattern of the crossword puzzle in its promotions in the 1920s,  when crosswords first captured the public's imagination and were something of a craze. Fun stuff. I saw a few of these items when I interviewed Pat for Paperdoll Review magazine a few years back. She has a great eye as an artist and collector.

Mystery paper dolls

Jan McKay brought these in to one of the convention workshops to ID, but everyone was stumped. One longtime collector told me she thought they looked German.

The Art of Jessie Willcox Smith

Special Collections exhibit. Karen Hunter had an excellent display featuring the artwork of this famous illustrator. Paper doll collecting leads to further exploration of illustration, fashion and history.