New Old-Stuff…Like Crack, Only Better.
Brian lives across the street from me.Ā He ran an antique business for a long time.Ā Now in his eighties, heās pretty much retiredā¦ Although once in a while he buys and sells things that cost more than my car.
Iāve waited patiently to see inside his house. Ā 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 elseāthe 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.Ā 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.Ā It doesnāt matter what it is.Ā Swing dancing, antique mirrors, MadMenā¦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.Ā When he said I could have one.Ā And also how, obviously I could not take it.Ā Thatās just wrong.Ā To take things from old people.Ā Everyone knows that.Ā So I said no.
And he said, look I have a bunch of them, theyāre not worth anything, and to give one to someone who loves them would make me happy. But I still couldnāt take it.
Until he said he gave one to another neighborā¦ and I was likeāgive me that.
I brought her home and put her on my dining room table.Ā Except my brain was still stuck on the short-circuit part.Ā And I wanted another one.Ā Actually, I wanted two more.Ā Because why have two, when you can have three?Ā So I planned to break into his house and steal themā¦
Paul saidāwhy donāt you just ask him?Ā Stealing them will be complicated and involve flashlights and staying up late.Ā I saidāI cannot ask. Thatās crazy.Ā Who gets something perfectā¦ isnāt satisfiedā¦and asks for more.
So the next time Paul saw Brian, he asked him.Ā I was mortified.
But seeing as how Brian said sure, absolutelyā¦ It turned out my mortification wasnāt 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 wouldnāt have found this.Ā If money was no object, and I could buy anything I wanted, I wouldnāt have found this.Ā So to be given the exact thing I most wanted, that I didnāt even know about was excellent.
Keep reading, for the doll’s history…
Updateāmy post was already pretty long, and I wasnāt sure the whole story was of interest, but now I think that was silly of me.Ā 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 itās probably from the 1930ās, and was possibly the kind of thing you might win at a carnival. He liked it enough to keep it in his own collection.Ā I WISH he wanted to give me that one!!Ā But heās not offering! I do want to get a photo of it, next time Iām over there.
At some point, in the 1950ās he saw a similar reproduction being sold at a Philadelphia department store.Ā The reproductions were being sold for a couple hundred dollars, which was a LOT of money thenā¦
Brian figured he should get in on thatā¦ and he had a mold made of his original doll. Ā The original is slightly larger, due to the molding processā¦ but other than that, the reproductions he had made are identical.Ā Ā He hand painted all of them himself, using the original as his guide.Ā Looking at them side by side, to me they look identical.Ā They also make me think of Brian as an artist.Ā The detail and skill are really remarkable.Ā He sold them in his shop, and kept a number of them.
In his 60 years in the antique business, heās never seen another one of the original. I did spend some time on the internetā¦ 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 couldnāt find anything.
July 2, 2014 @ 4:29 pm
they are atleast 100 years old , in Louisiana
November 16, 2014 @ 4:00 am
I have been slowly reading through all your posts. (Found you through The Bloggess.) And OMG!, I think we were separated at birth or something. We are definitely kindred spirits!
I’ve had an antique/vintage store for many years now…but I have a hard time parting with anything. For the most part, I don’t sell the kind of stuff you tend to look for, but I do keep those kind of giant things for myself. (You can check out some of my shop here: http://marinedriveantiques.com)
And I totally don’t mean to use this comment for my own sales or anything. Trust me, I really have a hard time parting with anything, which is why one of my slogans is: “Never Open!”
Anyway….I just wanted to say that I sooo love your blog and your humor. Thank you for sharing your crazy journey. Love it! I know we would be fast friends.
~Marcie
December 15, 2014 @ 4:00 pm
I just came across this blog & was wondering if you ever found out any more info on this statue because I have inherited 1 myself.. His name has always been Charlie & all the kids from the time my mother was little have always feed poor charlie his own boogers.. Any info would be great. Thanks
Christal
June 20, 2016 @ 11:42 am
I will love you EVEN MORE had this page shown the dolls?!
August 10, 2016 @ 5:01 pm
OHMYGOD the dolls are fantastical and look great as a grouping!!! Brian is a genius! You are so lucky – my neighbors have WalMart lawn ornaments and let their dog poop in our yard. Wanna trade?
August 25, 2016 @ 12:18 am
Not sure how I stumbled across this site. I have one of these, it’s from my moms antique store. I’d love to send you a picture:
January 24, 2017 @ 11:45 am
oh wow! Since your original post is almost 5 years old I have NO IDEA if you will even SEE my comment! I am so in love with those dolls I think you might need to update your security system, just in case……..I should warn you that I own a mini-van, can afford to drive there and I have several pry/crow bars that would enable me to gain access!!! They are so dang cute! BRYAN IS THE BOMB!!!! You lucky, lucky girl! A dear friend and I have shared similar conversations about these types of dolls….I covet them like mad and he has one similar…..also, I found a photograph of one that was done by CHANEL (!) and sent it to him since he oversees the CHANEL Boutique in Beverly Hills! He said he has wanted one of the CHANEL dolls FOREVER but they are not to be had!!! I haven’t googled them, but you might try, just to see what you find. I know I can locate the picture I sent him if you are interested. Could you will yours to me?….I wouldn’t want them to fall into the wrong hands…..oh, and he named the little Asian doll that he owns “Kim”….which I love! Keep blogging…..you are on to something….
July 16, 2017 @ 10:00 pm
I, like you, tried to find information on my acquisition. I have the male equivalent to your darling girls.
I found mine in an antique store in Hillsboro, OR and fell in love with it and all it’s flaws. Mine has been glued back together by someone who probably loved him as much as I do. I’m going to get some spackle or something and fill in any cracks and broken parts and then painstakingly match paint only where needed. My little fellow is almost golden in skin tone. I love your geisha look but he’ll remain the color I found on him. Love, love him and he can only get better.
January 20, 2018 @ 12:07 am
I was so intrigued by your story for these dolls and the comments saying they are a pair that I wanted to see what the but looks like, and I found this listing with the pair on eBay:
https://m.ebay.ca/itm/RARE-Antique-Vintage-ESTHER-HUNT-STYLE-Chalkware-Statues-ASIAN-BOY-GIRL-/152865282710?nav=SEARCH
March 6, 2018 @ 11:17 pm
I have an original signed by Peretti however mine looks sad. Just curious if you ever gained more knowledge of her? I think it was produced in NY by Ray Peretti who started a school for ceramics. I was able to google that much.
March 28, 2018 @ 8:45 pm
I think I might have found an original .
May 7, 2018 @ 10:10 pm
Hello, I have one of these chalkware dolls that belonged to my grandmother. I have searched the internet multiple times & this is the first time I have seen anything about it! Thank you for sharing. My grandmother always referred to it as her āradio dollā as it sat at the base of her radio.
July 7, 2018 @ 4:11 pm
I am so glad to find your site and comments. In the early 1950s my grandfather found an Asian doll in the trash in China Town, San Francisco and brought it home to me, his first grandchild. I have treasured my China doll and a few years ago had it repainted by an artist friend of mine. This is the first time I’ve seen any information on the chalk dolls.
November 8, 2018 @ 6:12 pm
Firstly, I love your writing style, deliciously funny. You are a true Maximalist and its a delight to read your quests for the grand and unusual. How I got to your blog is a story in itself. About 6 weeks ago I was in a pickers shed in Brisbane Australia and my eyes were drawn to two wistful figurines. Yep, they were a girl (like yours) and a boy. Not only their facial expressions but the fact that they seemed to be painted in 1930’s pastel colours grabbed my eye. This opens a pandoras box of worms for me, (thats where I keep my earthworms… in a pandoras box) , how did these chalk dolls end up in Australia?, they seem too heavy and bulky to carny items?, and who made them???
I will send pictures of them shortly… although I have little problem, my wife does not know I have bought them and she is the holder of our mobile phone camera.
So I’m forced to hide them in the garage and bring them in the house when my beloved is away at work. Once I have summoned up the courage to fess up to her (and you, Victoria will be a big part of my justification for buying them , blog and all) pictures will follow.
November 24, 2019 @ 10:42 am
My mother had a boy one
When she passed her sister got it and kept it in the paper bag as it made her sad to see it when her basement flooded the bag was wet and it fell out with the clean up and broke
For some reason Iām attracted to chalk ware statues mostly of Mother Mary
Since then Iāve purchased two online ,one small and one larger I recently painted the robe of one
I will probably paint the other at some point
They donāt look as nice together as yours do, maybe because I need a third…! Lol
October 28, 2020 @ 12:39 pm
I have 2 similar girl dolls that belonged to my husband’s grandmother. I think they are originals. Grandma was born around 1905. Grandpa served in the US military in Japan during WW2 which made me think they were from Japan. I wish I would have asked when Grandma was still alive. I think they are so cute! And yes, some people think they are creepy. Can I send you a photo?