Butterfly Ball Gown by Charles James, c.1955

Girl, Unafraid c. 1890

Tom Tierney as Santa Claus

The joyful exuberance of Tom Tierney captures the spirit of Christmas. 

Thank you Lorna for sharing this paper doll on the cover of your Paper Doll Circle magazine. 

The November issue is a treat, filled with articles about the convention, Italian Fashion, royalty and a tribute to Tom Tierney. 


Here's the last page of the magazine, with subscription information. I highly recommend it. Lorna finds amazing things in her travels around London and Europe. You won't want to miss an issue.

Note: the Matisse cut-outs exhibit Lorna describes was at the Tate Modern in London, and is now at MOMA in New York. I'll be there Jan. 1, to start the year off right! 

Santa Claus and Mrs. Santa Claus Cutout Dolls by Neva Schultz

Golden Magazine, c. 1960

A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

This could be Lady Edith from Downton Abbey, c. 1920. This unused postcard has a divided back and the following markings: 

G M T  Collection "Eros" Made in Italy Sersanti Brothers 343-345 West 44th Str. N.Y.
  
I hope all of you have a lovely holiday, surrounded by family and friends and interesting old things!

B-Movie Bombshells Paper Dolls by Gregg Nystrom

Be careful: This might combust under your Christmas tree -- hot stuff! Fabulous book by Gregg Nystrom, immortalizing those saucy ladies in B flicks who knew how to strut their stuff, without giving it all away. They didn't have to balance a champagne glass on a bare derrière. It was all about the tease. Sexy and smart.

You can order your copy by clicking here. 

Anne of Green Gables Paper Doll by Eileen Rudisill Miller

A beautiful book by Rudy Miller. The faces are enchanting, and the colorful period fashions are delightful. What little girl (or big girl for that matter) wouldn't love to find this under the Christmas tree? 

You can order your copy here.

Femme Fatales of Film Noir Paper Dolls by David Wolfe

David Wolfe nails the moody glamour that we associate with film noir, and gives us a fine overview of the genre. You never knew which side the noir femme fatale was playing, and that was more than half the fun. 

Who can forget Mary Astor's nervous little laugh in The Maltese Falcon, when Bogart tells her she's taking the fall? 

Another great scene: How the camera stays on Barbara Stanwyck's face in Double Indemnity, when Fred MacMurray murders her husband from the back seat of a car. I saw the play Billy and Ray a couple of months ago, about how Raymond Chandler and Billy Wilder worked together on the film script to evade the censors and keep the spirit of Chandler's book intact. It was a daring film for its time.

You can order your copy of David Wolfe's fabulous tribute by clicking here.

Signs of the Zodiac by Sandra Vanderpool

This is a lovely set, by the talented Sandy Vanderpool. A costume for each sign of the zodiac, with luscious color in each imaginative design.  You can order from Paperdoll Review by clicking here.

Free shipping on orders of $20 of more, but only until the end of day Monday, Dec. 1. That's tomorrow, folks.

Thanksgiving Greetings

From Turn of the Century Antiques.

Edith Head Fashion Paper Dolls by Tom Tierney

It's hard to believe we won't see Tom Tierney's smiling face at another convention. But he was a prodigious worker, and left a few more paper doll books for us to enjoy. This Edith Head book is just published, and a must for those who love movies, fashion and Tom Tierney stories.

I loved seeing his inimitable style in the pages of this book -- especially the Gloria Swanson face from Sunset Boulevard! His Hedy Lamarr is no slouch, either.

And the liner notes are, well, you can hear Tom's voice in the chatty and informative notes about each design. Do you know what Bette Davis did to adjust her party dress in All About Eve?

Tom Tierney knew.

Next to Bette: Elizabeth Taylor's perfect debutante gown from A Place in the Sun.

You can order your copy from Paperdoll Review by clicking here. 

New York Times building, 1906

Times Square before it was Times Square. Astor Hotel in the far right distance. The Metropole Cafe  name lasted into the 1960s, although no doubt with different owners and purposes. As far as I can tell, the ad for Proctors above the Metropole (which might have been a small hotel at this time) is for a restaurant. This postcard has lines of red glitter glued to the front of the Times and Astor buildings, and the Metropole building, too.

Made in Germany, A.C. Bosselman & Co., New York.

The New Yorker, 1945

Growing Up Dolls, Nov. 1957

From Jack and Jill, Nov. 1957

Jack and Jill, November 1957

Polly Pratt Gives a Hallowe'en Party, 1920

Good Housekeeping magazine, Oct. 1920. Artist: Sheila Young.

Clover Leaf by Charles James, 1953

Can you imagine a paper doll wardrobe filled with Charles James evening gowns? 

Stay tuned. 

238 Humboldt Street, ca. 1915

The address is scrawled on the back. Date is a wild guess. 238 Humboldt Street is in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The brick building is long gone; Google street view shows a newer development. 

These boys are something else. Old photographs usually show children with dour looks, perhaps from having to pose for so long. This picture is alive with personality, and one can imagine the boys running off to their street games as soon as the photographer was done.

Evening cape, 1920

Good Housekeeping magazine, Oct. 1920.

"An evening cape of otter, with a deep collar of ermine...a lining of rose and gold brocade..."

Toni's Swinging Styles, 1966

The last of the tab-less paper dolls from the May 1966 issue of Millie the Model (#137).

Chili's Classy Cut-Out, 1966

From the same issue of Millie the Model. The '60s encompassed so many different styles, from sleek and chic to bohemian/hippie. 

Millie the Model, 1966

From Issue 137 of Millie the Model. All the paper dolls in this issue are missing the tabs, which is strange. 

Heminway's Spool Silk trade card c. 1890

Paper Doll Studio Issue 109

What a thrill to see the artwork of Claudine Hellmuth gracing the cover of the latest issue of Paper Doll Studio. As the featured guest artist, she also has an article -- richly illustrated -- about her life and work.

Lots of creative thinking on the housewife theme. In addition to the members' artwork, the issue has David Wolfe on why we loved Lucille Ball and Yvonne Fullingim on aprons, illustrated with one of her own original paper dolls. Linda Hoerner has an adorable full page paper doll on the inside cover, which sums up my feelings about the duties of a housewife.

Also: Rudy Miller gives the lowdown on a not-to-be missed exhibit of Downton Abbey costumes at the Winterthur Museum. Sharry O'Hara brings her sparkle and enthusiasm to a recounting of the 2014 convention -- it's wonderful to have someone capture the whirlwind of events with such brio!  

Last but not least: Memories of Tom Tierney by artists who knew him well and by people who never met him, but felt they knew him, too. What a remarkable man he was, and how many lives he touched with his art, humor and graciousness.

You can order your issue by clicking here.

Cinderella Kiddy Klo'es, c. 1930s

Hawaii cruise ad, 1934

 

From the Oct. 1934 Vanity Fair issue.

Vanity Fair, Oct. 1934

A find from the Westwood, N.J. Antiques and Craft Fair yesterday.

Jack and Jill, Sept. 1948