Kaylee's Collectible Dolls of the Thirties

(the dolls in this section are for information only and are not for sale, check my store for current listings)

Most dolls made in the 30s were made of a material called "composition". Composition is a material which is a mixture of wood particles, resin, and glue. Many dolls of this period have developed "crazing" or tiny cracks on their faces or bodies. Some have even developed more serious damage such as paint peeling and flaking or deep cracks around the eyes and mouth which can adversely affect the value of the doll. In my opinion, the development of minor crazing on a composition doll is like a "patina" on fine silver. As long as it is kept in check to prevent further damage, I think that minor crazing gives an old doll character and an aged charm.

Two of the most popular dolls of this decade were the Patsy family of dolls made by the Effanbee Doll Company and of course the World's Little Darling, Shirley Temple. Both of these dolls were widely imitated. I bought myself a 13" compo Shirley Temple for Christmas (I couldn't pass her up, the price was right and she was in her original tagged dress). She was quite crazed, needed restringing, and her hair restyled. I am currently working on cleaning her up and have posted a picture, although she still needs some work.

None of my 30s dolls are mint. I will add more 30s dolls as my collection grows. Though the Vogue Doll Company was making dolls at this time, they had not yet started producing a "Ginny" doll. | Back to |

(the dolls in this section are for information only and are not for sale, check my store for current listings)

~~~*~ Madame Alexander 13" Compo Girl		The mark on the back of her head is so faint it is really hard to tell but it does say Alexander. I bought her because she was in very good condition and I loved her little outfit. It is very typical of the Patsy type dolls that were all the rage in the 30s. Someone took the scissors to her hair but the little tam helps to hide this imperfection. Any reference I've seen to this doll has always said she is an "unknown" little girl.

	Effanbee Wee Patsy ~~~*~ This dress is not an original Wee Patsy but is somewhat of a typical style she would have worn. Unfortunately what I thought was a crack in her compo on her leg turned out to be all the way around so her foot was completely re-glued. She is still very sweet and only a mere 6". This doll was also used for the F&B Colleen Moore Fairy Princess.

Effanbee Patsy *~~~~** I was so excited to find this darling Patsy doll. I had always wanted one because that is my mother's name and this doll was popular during the time that my mother was a little girl. Despite having the same name, she does not remember having a Patsy of her own. I actually found this doll in her original blue organdy outfit but it was dirty and rather worn. I tried to clean it but it just doesn't look fresh so I substituted this one till I can figure out what to do. She was also missing one of her matching blue shoes so I'm looking for an original 3 1/4" powder blue leatherette shoe w/square buckle. I think this dress was homemade from a 30s pattern.

		9" Topsy These little composition black dolls were known most often as Topsy dolls. She is an unmarked doll so her origin is not known. These dolls were plentiful in the 30s.

I sort of inherited this girl because when I found her she was wearing pink Ginny center-snap shoes that I needed to complete an outfit. I redressed her in this outfit only because I had it and I thought it made her look a little like McGuffey Ana. She is 11" and marked Wendy Ann on her back. I believe she is re-wigged and her compo is quite crazed, but I love her delicate features.		~~~*~ Madame Alexander 11" Wendy Ann

	Madame Alexander Jeannie Walker When I found this girl she was wearing a new homemade frilly colonial style dress that was not at all appropriate to her. I don't think the shop had any idea who she was. I didn't either at the time but I knew she was unusual because she was marked Alexander and had a very unusual walking mechanism. I researched her and found out that she is pretty rare. I have redressed her but need to find an Alexander dress.

Ideal 13" Shirley Temple This Shirley was priced well because she had some severe crazing on her face, but there were no deep cracks or paint lifting. She had her original tagged dress but replaced shoes and panties. I added the authentic Shirley pin. I cleaned her compo and curled her hair. Someone had carelessly used nail polish to touch up her lips so when I cleaned her face, the polish disappeared. I am debating whether to take her to the doll hospital because I normally do not like to retouch at all, but I miss Shirley's bubbly smile.

		Ideal 20" Shirley Temple Here is a very early Shirley Temple, I believe from around 1934. She was dressed in a silky pants outfit that was too big for her. I needed to find her something more appropriate. Her dress is vintage but not original. She is 20" tall. Overall she is in very nice condition.

		*~~~~ Effanbee 8" Baby Tinyette In researching this cutie, I've found that she is a bit of a** rarity among the Tinyettes made by F&B in the 30s. She may have been marketed as a character baby because her features are not quite consistent with other Tinyettes or Patsyettes. Her molded hair is straighter and her eyes are a bit larger. She is only marked Effanbee on her back. As far as I know, her outfit is original and she wears a tiny birds-eye cotton diaper.

	*~~~~** I fell in love with this darling little compo girl the moment I laid eyes on her. She has no markings and is probably one of the generics made to compete with Effanbee's popular Patsy doll. Her hair is heavily molded into flowing curls around her face. She also has a molded loop sculpted into her hair for her hair ribbon to go through. She was more than likely a very inexpensive doll because she is somewhat crudely finished. Outfit may be original but shoes are replaced.	A Generic Compo Girl *~~~~ ~~~~*

I found this sweetheart at an antique store, dressed only in a diaper. Her eyes were permanently shut and she had a few large flaked compo areas on her legs. Her overall condition and coloring was very good so I took her home as my little challenge. I carefully loosened her head from the cloth body and found that all the stuffing had migrated into the head making it impossible for her eyes to open/close. I pulled it out and stuffed it back into her body, lifted her head and "ta-dah!", her beautiful blue eyes just beamed with delight!!	This unmarked compo/cloth bodied baby is typical of the dolls available in the thirties. *~~~~ She has been redressed in vintage real baby clothes that are delicately edged in embroidered lace. She is wearing very old leatherette doll shoes of the period.**	~~~*~ After doing a bit of research, I believe this doll is Baby Dimples made by E.I. Horsman in the later 20s, early 30s.
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~~~*~ Madame Alexander 13" Compo Girl		The mark on the back of her head is so faint it is really hard to tell but it does say Alexander. I bought her because she was in very good condition and I loved her little outfit. It is very typical of the Patsy type dolls that were all the rage in the 30s. Someone took the scissors to her hair but the little tam helps to hide this imperfection. Any reference I've seen to this doll has always said she is an "unknown" little girl.

	Effanbee Wee Patsy ~~~*~ This dress is not an original Wee Patsy but is somewhat of a typical style she would have worn. Unfortunately what I thought was a crack in her compo on her leg turned out to be all the way around so her foot was completely re-glued. She is still very sweet and only a mere 6". This doll was also used for the F&B Colleen Moore Fairy Princess.

Effanbee Patsy *~~~~** I was so excited to find this darling Patsy doll. I had always wanted one because that is my mother's name and this doll was popular during the time that my mother was a little girl. Despite having the same name, she does not remember having a Patsy of her own. I actually found this doll in her original blue organdy outfit but it was dirty and rather worn. I tried to clean it but it just doesn't look fresh so I substituted this one till I can figure out what to do. She was also missing one of her matching blue shoes so I'm looking for an original 3 1/4" powder blue leatherette shoe w/square buckle. I think this dress was homemade from a 30s pattern.

		9" Topsy These little composition black dolls were known most often as Topsy dolls. She is an unmarked doll so her origin is not known. These dolls were plentiful in the 30s.

I sort of inherited this girl because when I found her she was wearing pink Ginny center-snap shoes that I needed to complete an outfit. I redressed her in this outfit only because I had it and I thought it made her look a little like McGuffey Ana. She is 11" and marked Wendy Ann on her back. I believe she is re-wigged and her compo is quite crazed, but I love her delicate features.		~~~*~ Madame Alexander 11" Wendy Ann

	Madame Alexander Jeannie Walker When I found this girl she was wearing a new homemade frilly colonial style dress that was not at all appropriate to her. I don't think the shop had any idea who she was. I didn't either at the time but I knew she was unusual because she was marked Alexander and had a very unusual walking mechanism. I researched her and found out that she is pretty rare. I have redressed her but need to find an Alexander dress.

Ideal 13" Shirley Temple This Shirley was priced well because she had some severe crazing on her face, but there were no deep cracks or paint lifting. She had her original tagged dress but replaced shoes and panties. I added the authentic Shirley pin. I cleaned her compo and curled her hair. Someone had carelessly used nail polish to touch up her lips so when I cleaned her face, the polish disappeared. I am debating whether to take her to the doll hospital because I normally do not like to retouch at all, but I miss Shirley's bubbly smile.

		Ideal 20" Shirley Temple Here is a very early Shirley Temple, I believe from around 1934. She was dressed in a silky pants outfit that was too big for her. I needed to find her something more appropriate. Her dress is vintage but not original. She is 20" tall. Overall she is in very nice condition.

		*~~~~ Effanbee 8" Baby Tinyette In researching this cutie, I've found that she is a bit of a** rarity among the Tinyettes made by F&B in the 30s. She may have been marketed as a character baby because her features are not quite consistent with other Tinyettes or Patsyettes. Her molded hair is straighter and her eyes are a bit larger. She is only marked Effanbee on her back. As far as I know, her outfit is original and she wears a tiny birds-eye cotton diaper.

	*~~~~** I fell in love with this darling little compo girl the moment I laid eyes on her. She has no markings and is probably one of the generics made to compete with Effanbee's popular Patsy doll. Her hair is heavily molded into flowing curls around her face. She also has a molded loop sculpted into her hair for her hair ribbon to go through. She was more than likely a very inexpensive doll because she is somewhat crudely finished. Outfit may be original but shoes are replaced.	A Generic Compo Girl *~~~~ ~~~~*

I found this sweetheart at an antique store, dressed only in a diaper. Her eyes were permanently shut and she had a few large flaked compo areas on her legs. Her overall condition and coloring was very good so I took her home as my little challenge. I carefully loosened her head from the cloth body and found that all the stuffing had migrated into the head making it impossible for her eyes to open/close. I pulled it out and stuffed it back into her body, lifted her head and "ta-dah!", her beautiful blue eyes just beamed with delight!!	This unmarked compo/cloth bodied baby is typical of the dolls available in the thirties. *~~~~ She has been redressed in vintage real baby clothes that are delicately edged in embroidered lace. She is wearing very old leatherette doll shoes of the period.**	~~~*~ After doing a bit of research, I believe this doll is Baby Dimples made by E.I. Horsman in the later 20s, early 30s.
	*~~~~**