New Old-Stuff…Like Crack, Only Better.
Brian lives across the street from me. He ran an antique business for a long time. Now in his eighties, he’s pretty much retired… Although once in a while he buys and sells things that cost more than my car.
I’ve waited patiently to see inside his house. When I finally did, THIS is what I coveted most.
He has at least ten of these Asian dolls, lining the steps to his second floor, and I had a hard time admiring anything else—the artwork, the towering grandfather clock, the carved settee, I was distracted, trying to figure out how to stuff one under my shirt without him noticing. It was one of those things where your brain short circuits and makes you fidget, because now you cannot live without this thing.
With me, the thing becomes all-encompassing. It doesn’t matter what it is. Swing dancing, antique mirrors, MadMen…a thing that is simply appealing to most people, sticks in my brain and goes into overdrive.
So you can imagine how I was thrilled. When he said I could have one. And also how, obviously I could not take it. That’s just wrong. To take things from old people. Everyone knows that. So I said no.
And he said, look I have a bunch of them, they’re not worth anything, and to give one to someone who loves them would make me happy. But I still couldn’t take it.
Until he said he gave one to another neighbor… and I was like—give me that.
I brought her home and put her on my dining room table. Except my brain was still stuck on the short-circuit part. And I wanted another one. Actually, I wanted two more. Because why have two, when you can have three? So I planned to break into his house and steal them…
Paul said—why don’t you just ask him? Stealing them will be complicated and involve flashlights and staying up late. I said—I cannot ask. That’s crazy. Who gets something perfect… isn’t satisfied…and asks for more.
So the next time Paul saw Brian, he asked him. I was mortified.
But seeing as how Brian said sure, absolutely… It turned out my mortification wasn’t severe enough to prohibit me from picking out two more.
If I had searched the entire eastern seaboard for the exact thing I wanted to put on my dining room table, I wouldn’t have found this. If money was no object, and I could buy anything I wanted, I wouldn’t have found this. So to be given the exact thing I most wanted, that I didn’t even know about was excellent.
Keep reading, for the doll’s history…
Update—my post was already pretty long, and I wasn’t sure the whole story was of interest, but now I think that was silly of me. This is obviously the most interesting piece of the story:
My dolls are reproductions.
Brian bought the original doll from a personal estate, when he first started buying and selling antiques. He thinks it’s probably from the 1930’s, and was possibly the kind of thing you might win at a carnival. He liked it enough to keep it in his own collection. I WISH he wanted to give me that one!! But he’s not offering! I do want to get a photo of it, next time I’m over there.
At some point, in the 1950’s he saw a similar reproduction being sold at a Philadelphia department store. The reproductions were being sold for a couple hundred dollars, which was a LOT of money then…
Brian figured he should get in on that… and he had a mold made of his original doll. The original is slightly larger, due to the molding process… but other than that, the reproductions he had made are identical. He hand painted all of them himself, using the original as his guide. Looking at them side by side, to me they look identical. They also make me think of Brian as an artist. The detail and skill are really remarkable. He sold them in his shop, and kept a number of them.
In his 60 years in the antique business, he’s never seen another one of the original. I did spend some time on the internet… also looking for the Philadelphia-department-store version, thinking that anything vintage and mass-produced would be somewhere on the internet as a collectable, but I couldn’t find anything.
July 3, 2012 @ 11:04 am
Lovely story….and they look fantastic.
Life is funny sometimes. It’s when the simple things/gestures make us so happy, I spot a miracle. Here you are happy, and I am happy for you.
Cheers!
July 3, 2012 @ 2:08 pm
Sometimes I think I should be less attached to things and stuff… I should find happiness in reading philosophy and meditation. But then I get something like this and forget all about detaching from possessions and hop around with glee…
July 3, 2012 @ 6:32 pm
Maybe- but don’t be to hard on yourself. I really think the entire round about way these found their way into your home adds to how much you love them. There is no foul, no harm, in feeling glee…carry on. 🙂
….even if you did want to steal them…lol
July 3, 2012 @ 8:39 pm
Lol… Yes, meditating and theft. A difficult combination.
June 20, 2016 @ 11:41 am
I will love you EVEN MORE had this page shown pictures of the dolls!?
August 27, 2019 @ 5:18 pm
I have one of these dolls. Yours are painted much more beautifully than the original version. Mine belonged to my husband’s mother and I have thought it was a eye sore for decades. I do see with yours it could be painted lovely .
December 28, 2019 @ 2:25 am
I also have one of the originals. Would you like to exchange pictures?
July 3, 2012 @ 11:06 am
Victoria,
They are wonderful. I agree, you really needed three for them to look like a centerpiece. What is the story behind them? 1940’s Japan? I like the tray and then the sweet little girls. I’d name them, well, that’s just me! 🙂
Karen
July 3, 2012 @ 2:09 pm
Karen,
Yes!! Something about all three of them together is so appealing! Brian says the one condition of me having them is that I name them, but nothing’s come to me yet.
The tray is from Pottery Barn. One of those things that you buy, and it sits around for a few years, you think about getting rid of it… and then it turns out it’s the most perfect thing you need! Which is why I don’t throw anything away…
July 3, 2012 @ 11:42 am
Too cute and no if you wanted one of these you would never find one. I wonder what they are called. I am also curious about them.
July 3, 2012 @ 2:16 pm
There was an original doll, and mine are reproductions of that doll. Brian had a mold made and started reproducing them after seeing something similar being sold as a collectable in a Philadelphia department store. Brian doesn’t remember the exact year, but it was sometime in the 1950’s. I couldn’t find any when I googled them… and usually you can find anything with the right combination of search terms.
July 3, 2012 @ 11:58 pm
hmmm did you try googling collectable dolls sold in xxx (the department store name)? Well no matter they are adorable. Glad you aren’t bloggin from jail…breaking and entering. LOLOLOL
July 4, 2012 @ 9:39 am
I did… and while it didn’t turn up anything I actually was looking for, I did see some amazing photos of Philadelphia and Wanamaker’s… It was really a fantastic piece of architecture… almost like Grand Central Station. I also learned a lot of history—the store’s seven-story organ was originally built for the 1904 world’s fair, and it’s considered the largest organ in the world.
July 8, 2012 @ 8:39 pm
hmmmm That must have been interesting to have went Christmas shopping and hear music from the organ. We have some interesting store buildings here also like the Kress Dept Store. They converted the building into condos and the last time I checked they were selling at $175 psf (which I think is ludicrous). Interesting how much effort they used to put into stores though, These days they just slap up some walls. Anyway makes you wonder how they used the dolls. They are the sweetest dolls.
July 3, 2012 @ 12:27 pm
What a funny post. I get what exactly what you mean about focusing in on something and then having your brain going on overdrive obsessing about that exact thing. Well, I would say these lovely (and unique!) figurines were an appropriate thing to circle in on. And your neighbor sounds like such a sweet old man, one of those people you want to have as a neighbor, one of those who put a value on interesting things and I’m sure keeps his home in great condition, or as great as you can being in your eighties. And, asking him for one (or three!) seems like a lot less trouble than sneaking in with flashlights at night 😉 They are almost a touch creepy, wouldn’t you say, but in a good sort of way. Certainly an interesting set!
July 3, 2012 @ 2:20 pm
Linn—Brian did say that some people find them off-putting and strange. And yes, creepy. Which may be why he was so genuinely happy that I loved them. I guess I must be immune to the creep-factor.
He really is the nicest guy. And an amazing wealth of knowledge. He can repair nearly anything. Which is going to work out just fine for me… The mirror in the background is missing a chunk of plasterwork that he knows how to duplicate. He doesn’t know it yet, but he’s going to be enlisted in the project!!
July 3, 2012 @ 3:29 pm
Wow, I have no idea why I love these (you know my style), but I’m drawn to them as they sit there so perfectly on your table. Those bows in the back are too much! Are those little flowers they are holding? Honestly it may be the whole story… a sweet elderly neighbor seeing the joy in your face over something he’s treasured and live with for years. What a wonderful thing to pass on to someone he knows will LOVE them. Funny how something grabs us and won’t let go. I’m so happy you got them! And how ’bout that hubby…. makin’ sure his sweet girl gets her dolls. YAY, Paul!
Ski masks and flashlights would have been fun… but I think he would have known who to call the police on. This is a much better way to go! Happy 4th… with your new girls! (let us know what you name them!)
July 3, 2012 @ 7:35 pm
I know, go Paul… although at first, I really was embarrassed that he’d asked. I need to think, rethink, and overthink everything, so his approach of just handling things immediately is always foreign to me. Now if only he would spy priceless midcentury furniture at the curb!!
I LOVE the bows. I love that they’re as detailed in the back as the front. There’s a hole in their hand… The blue one has a paper fan, but the other two have (some pretty old!) fake flowers. Brian showed me a photo of how he and his wife (passed away) used to decorate them for holidays. Flags/sparklers in their hands, Happy Birthday hats on their heads… It looked like an instagram since the photo was old.
Happy Fourth! A day off… to do MORE house projects. Hooray.
July 3, 2012 @ 7:55 pm
they are just too gorgeous!! your post made me laugh because i can really relate to the pleasure found in things that cost you nothing, but are sooooo very valuable, simply because you love them. I had a similar experience with some old treasures that me Dad gave me. : )
July 4, 2012 @ 9:06 am
It’s strange, how you can get attached to random inanimate objects… and they bring you joy for no real reason. Even better if they don’t cost you anything! I’ve gotten attached to some things that I had to love from afar, since I couldn’t afford to bring them home!!
July 6, 2012 @ 7:43 pm
This is a difficult area for me,Victoria,as my Mom passed away suddenly in March and I’ve spent the past few months clearing out her house-she was a prolific hoarder! So now I have this constant battle going on in my head about the impermanence of ‘stuff ‘ versus my longing to hold onto every single thing Mom ever so much as breathed on!
I mean,when precious life itself can so quickly and ruthlessly be snatched away-when it has been so quickly and ruthlessly snatched away-how then can I justify valuing inanimate objects? How can I justify holding onto ‘stuff’ with no practical or even impractical use? That’s what Mom did,and where did it get her? I don’t know…maybe she got pleasure from just possessing…maybe just possessing the wonderfully odd and mad stuff she owned was enough for her…I think it was. And that makes me happy. Now I possess those things she loved,even if she loved them only for a short while…that was enough.
Right now,on my hall table,there stands three white porcelain…cherub-like children,I guess is the best description! Next to these cherub cutelings stand three porcelain blue and white cherub-like cats. So,its a cherub kiddie,a cherub cat,a cherub kiddie,a cherub cat,a cherub kiddie, and a cherub cat. And I’m not really sure if it’s suppossed to work,but it just does. So I thoroughly agree with you Victoria-EVERYTHING is better in threes!!
P.S. My baby girl’s first three names are Summer Sophia Shauna…just a thought!
July 7, 2012 @ 8:01 am
I’m sorry about your mom. That’s a terrible loss.
I sometimes joke about being a “hoarder,” but it’s really only a half-hearted joke. I do see real tendencies in my personality to hold on to things in a way that’s over the top. I read a definition of hoarding that describes it as “having a feeling of responsibility towards inanimate objects.” That’s paraphrasing, but you get the idea. It explains why people who are real hoarders cannot throw away whatever the object of their fixation is—they feel a real sense of responsibility towards it. It becomes more than a newspaper or a teddy bear—it’s something they are accountable for. Which can actually be a burden… to be accountable for every newspaper and teddybear!!
Those are good names! I’ll take them, as none at all have come to me. I think I’m seeing the dolls more as a pieces of art, rather than something child-like.
July 7, 2012 @ 4:04 pm
These are wonderful, as is the story behind them. You need all three, definitely.
July 8, 2012 @ 8:31 am
I know, right! One was just a reminder of how much I needed the other two!!
July 9, 2012 @ 9:42 am
1.Those are adorable!
2.I can see my husband doing something like that – very kind, very awkward, completely awesome. 🙂
July 10, 2012 @ 7:28 am
Ha. Yes. Not the first time he’s run interference for me… I cannot imagine the luxury of being immune to the kind of over-thinking I bring to any less-than-ordinary situation.
June 29, 2013 @ 12:34 am
Chinese rather than Japanese. (Japanese clothing crosses the opposite way.) They remind me of these: http://traditions.cultural-china.com/en/16T1760T3533.html
And, as an “elderly” person, believe me, finding people to take what you love is a *gift*!!
July 1, 2013 @ 6:57 pm
Well… in that case, I’ll inform Brian I have MANY other gifts I’d like to give him. His dining room set, for starters.
Thanks for setting me on the right country identification path!!
July 14, 2013 @ 3:29 am
You’re not alone in your love things – have you seen this?
(Looks similar to your Asian dolls…)
http://cherierunsthis.com/im-about-to-get-deep-for-a-moment/
July 14, 2013 @ 9:09 am
I love these! I love all things Asian. They are perfect sitting on your dining table, and you were correct — three was an absolute necessity. I am so happy I found you — I love you!
October 28, 2013 @ 10:02 am
One time my husband asked for something and I died a thousand deaths. He is retired, but works part time. The small business in our small town hired a(regular size;) young man who is the grandson of a famous movie star who I used to have a crush on..back in the 60’s. Yes we are older people. So my husband comes home from work one day and says, I asked (blank) to get you a photograph (8×10) of his grandpa, as he is seeing him at Thanksgiving. I screamed WHAT! I was so embarrassed and felt like a weird old lady. He said, I thought you would like that. No..now (blank) knows I had/have a crush on his grandpa and now we have to move far far away. Fortunately for me, (blank) got another job. We didn’t have to move. Oh, and yes I did get the 8×10, turns out his grandpa is really old, like older than me. ha.
October 28, 2013 @ 11:15 am
Three dolls really makes a difference! Love the look for your dining room.
October 28, 2013 @ 7:57 pm
I saw these dolls in one of your old photos recently, so I am glad to find out the story behind them. I would love to own one, or three. Ask Brian to commission some more? Or ask him for the
mold? These are great. Thanks, Ann
October 28, 2013 @ 8:42 pm
The things you love fascinate me ! I am so glad you got them !
December 30, 2013 @ 11:59 am
I just found this post…. I know you… I REALLY know you! My love offered to buy me a new dress and shoes that I really really want….. I said no, but I do really want it. It is nice to know that I am not the only crazy person on Earth. Spending the day in bed reading your blog, New Year’s Eve eve…. It is a lovely day.
January 14, 2014 @ 1:33 am
Oh, I am surely going to hell! I’m coveting your three lovelies. Tell Brian I would gladly buy one.
April 19, 2014 @ 6:42 pm
Esther Hunt Chalkware Collection at 1stdibs .com .I thought of you when I came across this. 🙂
April 20, 2014 @ 11:32 am
Thank you!! (Brian will also thank you, once I show him!!)
http://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/dining-entertaining/figurines/esther-hunt-chalkware-collection/id-f_564151/
July 2, 2014 @ 4:28 pm
I was recently asked to repaint two statues that were repainted 30 years ago,
its the girl you have and a boy they are a set