Friday, March 26, 2021

A New Doll!

My friend Janet has, again,
introduced me to a doll that really
caught my interest.

a MARY HOYER doll!

The Mary Hoyer company started in 
1925 as a yarn and craft shop 
in Reading, Pennsylvania. 
Designer Mary Hoyer created knit 
and crochet patterns for
children's clothing. Eventually 
in 1936 she added a 14" slim doll
for modeling her knit creations.

You could order a Mary Hoyer 
doll using this mail order coupon.

Mary Hoyer dolls are frequently
seen in knit or crochet outfits like 
this blue outfit above.

Or this skiing outfit in red and white.

The dolls were originally composition.

During WWII Mary Hoyer dolls had painted 
eyes due to shortages in many supplies.
After WWII the dolls were made
 from hard plastic.  

The doll I just acquired is hard plastic
from the 1950s.
AND HERE SHE IS!

Still in her shipping box!

All wrapped up! But not for long.

Definitely a sleeping beauty.

She is dressed as a ballerina.
She appears to be all original.

She is in amazing condition, just
needs a little freshening up.

Her ballerina outfit is in great shape.
I did not find a tag, but I found
several images of other Mary Hoyer dolls
wearing this same outfit.

Here is the same ballerina outfit in blue.

Here is her maker's mark.

She still has this little hair decoration.

But her hair was crunchy and kind of
flattened on her head.

I did a gentle wash and conditioner.
Then I brushed it out and re-rolled it.

Here is the front of her hair.  
Before and After.

And, here is the back.
I think this is an improvement.

Oh yes! I also found these silky PJs
that fit her perfectly!

She has lovely blue eyes!

While I was waiting for my doll to arrive
I saw this ADORABLE illustration for a 
skating outfit from a Mary Hoyer pattern.

I used my 14" Shirley Temple as a
 model, hoping it would fit, 
and started crocheting...

Here she is in her crochet skaters outfit! 
It fit perfectly.

Close-up of her hat.

Here is the back.

I must say I love this outfit!!

Besides needing her hair restyled, she
had this painted spot under her left ear.
Looks like she had an abrasion and
someone tried to cover it up.

I matched her skin color and gently dabbed 
over it until it is a lot less noticeable.

As soon as I knew she was on her way
I also ordered this pattern to do some sewing.

SO, stay tuned and hopefully soon I 
will have some sewing projects to share.

OH WAIT!!

Did I mention her name?
Let me formally introduce you to....
Linda
whose nickname is,
Nina!

Friday, March 19, 2021

A Swap, a Gift and a Fashion Show

I am a member of "Little Miss Revlon and Friends"
This is the link below:
This is one of the online doll clubs I am part of.

One of the fun things we do is have "swaps".
We swap tops, or bottoms, or accessories. 
You get the idea.

Our latest swap was for bottoms.
You could swap a skirt or slacks.

I made this skirt and I sent it to my swap friend
and waited for my surprise swap to arrive!

This lovely eyelet skirt is what I recieved for the swap!

How cute is that?!?

After the swap a name is pulled out of a hat.
The winner got the lovely pieces above!
THAT WAS ME!
 
These were all made by our
moderator, Janet.
A Bandeau Hat,
Matching Handbag
and Matching Lingerie.

Look at the beading detail on this hat.

I decided to create a sheath dress to match 
my new accessories.
I like this fuschia pink fabric.

I started with this bodice pattern.
I cut out a long length from the bottom.

This is how the dress came out.
Pretty basic, right?

Here it is on my Miss Revlon.
Not too bad, but it needs some beading.

I did a little beading around the collar.
I tried to use the same color beads
to match my new accessories.

Want to see it all put together?


Here is the whole outfit.

Look at the lovely details on this
bandeau hat.

The back.

Julia is ready for an evening out.

Jonathan is happy to oblige!
Have fun you two.

For your further enjoyment
here is our 
Little Miss Revlon and Friends

  Swap Fashion Show!

Some top swaps, some bottom swaps,
 and some combinations of both together.

Red slacks from Karen to Janet
Red polka dot top from Mary to Janet

Knit top to Karen from Janet

Eyelet skirt from Jenny to Brenda

Red polka dot top from Mary to Janet
Red slacks from Karen to Janet

Pink plaid skirt to Karen from Brenda

Purple gingham skirt from Janet to Mary.

Knit top from Karen to Sandy

Knit skirt from Doris to Sandy

Vintage LMR silk skirt to Jenny from Sandy

Silk skirt from Mary to Susan

Jeans from Susan to Doris

Peasant blouse from Brenda to Mary

Knit top from Jenny to Doris

I hope you enjoyed the show
as much as we enjoyed our swaps!