Where Do You Hunt For Dolls? Or "You Can't Get There From Here."

These dolls are all for sale at the Bellevue Antique Mall in the Bellevue area of Nashville, TN. Stop by and check them out! If you tell Jeanie the owner you heard about the Bellevue Antique Mall from our blog you get a 15% discount on any doll you see here over $20.00.
They need new homes. They need adoptive parents!
There are Madame Alexanders, Shirley Temples, composition dolls,  antique bisque dolls, modern doll, and lots more.
If you are looking fir something special, leave your wish list with Jeanie.

 Bellevue Antique Mall

160 Belle Forest Circle
Nashville, TN 37221-2104
(615) 646-5828

We are always on the hunt for great dolls to add to our collections.
A while back we hopped in my truck and headed out into the country to see a doll collection for sale. We were using Mrs. M's GPS and were having a merry old time listening to "her" bossy and saucy directions.
That is until we passed a sign that said we were entering a county that was (as they say in Tennessee speak) a fur piece from where we were suppose to be at this point on our journey.
We were so far out in the boondocks that we got the GPS confused! :o)
After a few crazy turns the poor GPS "lady" was saying
Turn here!
Then promptly yelling (can a GPS yell you ask?)
Make a u turn!
Turn here!
Make a u turn!
Thankfully we finally ran (more Tennessee speak) smack dab into a little country store. It was one of those all purpose stores where you can get home made biscuits and gravy, buy farm made country sausage and fresh butter, rent the latest movies, and purchase nic knacks for your bathroom.
The cashier pulled out a map. A couple of customers tried to help, and finally the woman yelled for her teenage son. Gotta love a teenager with a straight talking GPS on his cell phone!
He came outside and figured out where we needed to turn to make it across the county to where the dolls were hopefully patiently waiting.
We bought a cold Diet Coke and headed out once again.
Mrs. M has a great sense of humor and we got a good laugh out of our country drive and her angry GPS, who was clearly fed up with us at this point.
Amazingly enough we were finally going in the right direction. We wound through beautiful farmland, passing cows and horses, and finally found the road by the old barn we were suppose to take.
Right when we pulled up in front of the old farmhouse the dark clouds opened and the rain came pouring down. Perhaps a thunder storm called down by that angry "GPS lady"? NAH! Right? Right?
We had a fun time digging through boxes and piles of dolls. Just as we started to load up the truck the rain stopped.
Gotta love a crazy doll adventure!
Shhhhh! Just don't tell Mrs. M's daughters. They though she was sitting warm and safe at home that day, reading her doll magazines.
;o)

Keep checking back. We will be posting more dolls for sale at the Bellevue Antique Mall!
Please share your favorite doll places and stories..
Much Love
Mama Duff and Mrs. M

Thank You! Thank You! Thank You!

Mrs. M and I want to say a special thank you for coming out to our doll sale. We enjoyed meeting you and talking with you all.
Friday morning we had quite a crowd. Friday afternoon and Sat. brought a steady stream of collectors and the curious.
On Sat. parents brought along their children who enjoyed shopping as well.
One girl brought along her American Girl doll and was thrilled to find her some clothes for $1.
It is great to see the excitement of new and young collectors!
We were thrilled to meet the Doll Club ladies from Memphis, Nashville, and other areas.
A few collector's brought along their mother's who had started them out in doll collecting years before. We heard many wonderful stories and saw pure wonder when people found a doll they had as a child.
One couple who came to the sale use to have a doll museum. Mrs. M had visited their museum a few years ago. They are hoping to reopen it in the future. They had some great doll collecting stories to tell.
Soon we will post a few pictures of the sale. Please visit Kathryn's Examiner site. She has an excellent article and pictures on the sale.
Many fun and wonderful dolls and "doll stuff" found new homes. We are planning another sale in Oct. 2010.

Last but not least we want to thank the guys at the Bellevue Lodge for accommodating us and all the dolls.  They are a kind and caring group of men. Each one who helped us get this sale going and those who stayed at the sale deserve a great big THANK YOU! They have fund raisers through out the year. Watch for their fish fry's, bisquit and gravy breakfast's and more. Let's give these guys our support!

Keep watching this blog. We will be putting up interesting stories, talk about dolls, and will have a few things for sale from time to time.
Have a wonderful Suday!
Mrs. M and Mama Duff

Babies and Beds

Who is looking for a home to call their own? This wonderful set of marked 7 1/2 inch Dionne Quintuplets wants to go home with you. These little composition babies are easy keepers. They hardly eat a thing!
Their little toddler Dionne sisters will also be for sale at the doll sale March 29 - 20.

If you love all things Dionne you will also find a wonderful vintage Dionne Quintuplet scrapbook filled to the brim with pictures and newspaper articles on the five sisters.
Also check out the full set of old Dionne Quint spoons. Each spoon has a picture and the name of a quint.

At the sale you will find this wonderful antique wooden cradle. Your dolls will look wonderful displayed in it.

Don't you just love this beautiful handmade wood doll bed?! It is a beautiful vintage display piece. The bed is a double bed and fits American Girl dolls and other 18 inch dolls perfectly.

You won't see doll show prices at this sale. You will be pleasantly surprised at the great prices you will find.
See you at the sale Friday!

Five Days and Counting!

Are you ready to doll shop?
We are so excited for the doll sale this week and  hope you are too!
We have been hard at work getting everything packed and ready for the sale. And wow, is there going to be a lot of great stuff!
Mrs. M and I agree that we will need to have another doll sale in Oct., 2010 because we keep finding more good dolls and vintage toys that will need to find a new home.

Today I want to highlight composition dolls. Almost every doll collector I have met along the way has a least one composition doll in their collection.
Some love the lady dolls, some baby dolls, some big dolls, and some the little dolls. The great thing in this day and time is it is possible to find a compo or two or three or..... to fit into your collection.
The doll pictured at the top of this post is a little Vogue composition Toodles. Isn't she darling?! She is all original and in her original box and from the 1940's. She is a tiny 7 1/2 inches tall. She is waiting excitedly to meet her new mommy or daddy.

Now for the story of my first composition doll.
I had only been collecting a short time when I went shopping at the Nashville Flea Market. I walked slowly up and down browsing every vendor hoping I would find a nice old doll. I walked into one booth and looked around. The guy had tables and tables of old tools, rusty keys, and man junk. It was definitely not a place to find a doll.
As I turned to go the guy asked me what I was looking for. I said, "Dolls." with a smile.
He pointed to the back of his junk booth and said, "I've got an ugly one back there. But I can't imagine why anyone would want her."
Amidst the rust and junk lay a big composition girl with a brown human hair wig in braids, dressed in a brown and white home made dress.
When I picked her up she was heavy. I moved her legs and her head turned. She was a big walker!
The guy said "$40 and she is yours."
I practically threw the money at him, tucked her under my arm and ran for the car. I was beside myself with excitement that I now owned a real composition doll.
On the way to the car two ladies approached me and asked how much I got her for. When I told them they looked at each other, said that was a good deal, and then asked me if they could buy her.
Of course I said no, now even more excited someone else wanted her too.
Later when I owned many more dolls and had learned the doll ropes I realized she had been badly restored. Her body, arms, and legs look like they had been roughly spackled with wood putty. Is she worth a lot of money? No, but that is okay.
She will always live in my collection. Not because she is a wonderful and rare doll, which she isn't, but because she was my first compo and has a special place in my heart.
She still wears her ugly brown home made dress.

When you stop by our doll sale take a few minutes to check out all the composition dolls. We will have composition dolls for every taste and collection.
It does not matter if you have only a few dollars to spend or have a pocketbook full. You will be able to find that special composition doll just for you.

See you soon!
Mama Duff and Mrs. M

Presenting A Very Special & Rare Artist Doll

 

A special thank you to the wonderful people at SavinArt.com who allowed us the use of their picture!

Please visit their online shop today

I love antique dolls and vintage dolls, and all things little. We will have lots of dolls in these categories at the sale but will also have plenty of dolls for collectors who love all things modern. 

We would like to introduce Kristi . She will be for sale at the doll sale for those who love big babies and collect and love modern artist dolls. 

Darling Kristi was sculpted and made by Master Doll Artist Judith Turner in 09/1981.

This gorgeous chubby cheeks toddler is a whooping 27 inch tall! 

Kristi has an interesting history. She is the first doll sculpted by Judith Turner. She was made in a truly limited edition of 500 dolls. The Kristi we will have for sale is number 327/500. Because she is the first Judith Turner doll and limited in number she is very rare and desirable. Her collector price lists well over $2,000.

Of course she will be available at our sale for much less! 

Kristi is a true collector piece and a treasure in her own right.

Kristi Facts:

She is free-hand painted

Her head and limbs are made of the finest porcelain

She has a wired stuffed cloth body  

She is poseable and can stand or sit

Her hair is a long full chestnut colored beautiful human hair wig with bangs

Her gorgeous two layered dress and undergarments are of the highest quality white cotton batiste and lace

Her shoes are white leather with laces and she wears darling white lace trimmed socks

She is topped off with a sweet white silk bow in her hair

She comes mint in her box with her certificate of authenticity

She is hand numbered and hand signed by Judith Turner on the back of her head

If you would like more information on Kristi please post or email us. If you own one of theses very special dolls please post and share with us.

Keep coming back to see more highlighted dolls that will be in our March 19 and 20th sale!