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Bartenstein Double Face Wax Head Doll

The 1880′s was time of change and innovation in doll making where sleep eyes, teeth, ball joints, voice boxes and mechanics were but a few of the new inventions added to the making of dolls. Fritz Bartenstein was no exception as he vied for his part of the doll market with his patented double faced doll head filed on July 5, 1881.

Wax had been used previously in doll making and admired for its skin-like qualities. Many paper mache doll heads had been covered with wax as well as all wax heads to attain the desired soft image qualities of the material. The downside was that it is not as stable as other materials and tends to crack and, of course, can melt, which is what happened to this doll head. The original family kept the doll stored away for some 100 years hoping to restore it one day. Because the antique doll had been stored so carefully, her body was prime and in like-new condition.

As Found	BEFORE	BEFORE	BEFORE
Paper mache shoulder plate & bonnet. * Heads were to rotate in bonnet.	The dome had been covered with a bonnet made of two layers of fabric and lace. The metal most through the middle of the head supported the faces as a pivot inside the head. With the faces melting, one face melted into the other, with one melted to the inside of the dome.	BEFORE	BACK
Mechanics	Mechanical Access	Pull strings extended out 2 holes in the hip area. One string for cry box. Two strings for rotating the faces.	INSIDE Body - Baffle with pull string to allow for cry sounds. Mechanism to rotate head constructed at the base of the shoulder plate. Pull strings extended into body to hip area.
Apart	Body tube removed	The cylinder was to house the cry box assembly. A string attached to the cry box, exited out a hole in the bottom of the tube. The two strings to rotate the head were from the shoulder plate, through the tube and out the other hold at the bottom of the cylinder. The top of the tube was glued to the paper mache shoulder plate, with the tube sliding into the body. plate seated on top of the cylinder.
Detached – melted faces	FACE 1 (Crying) Removed from bonnet dome. Note features present, but smashed. (love original eyebrows!)	DOME after heads removed. (heated with blow dryer to remove)	FACE 2 (Smile) The eyes for the face were found in the melted mass.
Reconstruction	MOLD	To construct another smile face, a like- size paper mache head was used. The head was covered with a dental epoxy which hardened to a rubber state. Themelted heads were separated, saving the original cry face, which was melted flat to the inside of the bonnet dome. All excess wax was melted and poured into the mold (took 3 tries to get the right shape.
2 Faces	Cry Face attached to post	Two faces Again!! The heads are joined and attached to the post The cry face has been cleaned but still needs detail work. The smile face has had no work yet to smooth and add features.	New Smile Face
Completed	CRY Face AFTER	the bonnet dome is attached, stabilized by the metal post through the head. A strip of human hair is attached at the edge of the bonnet under the fabric bonnet cover. The head rotates easily by pulling the strings out the holes at the hip.	SMILE Face AFTER
Restored!

Rag Doll Discovery

The owner thought the body was beyond repair and requested a new one. When the china head was removed, underneath was the pristine printed head of a rag doll made by Art Fabric Mills, NYC (1899-1910). Her body had thin spots and a couple of rips with sawdust leaking, but the heavy muslin had served her well. She still retains all the original details of underclothing, button top boots and red socks. After some reinforcing and some new clothing, she takes her place, again, as a found family treasure.

The other part of this family treasure was a Civil War era highbrow china head. At some point in her long life, her shoulder-plate head had been broken in many places. She was repaired with an invisible restoration, a new body fabricated, complete with striped socks and black boots with tassels. Her hour glass body worked well for the new fitted Homespun cotton dress and silk jacket of the era. Of course she wears pantaloons and a petticoat to complete her assemble.

Doll repair, restoration and conservation is the art and skill of bringing dolls back as a treasured memory. Antique and vintage dolls have come to be thought of as a work of art. Learning doll repair is more than being a Doll Doctor and fixing what is broken; it is restoring a work of art to museum quality or returning it as a family heirloom.

Lola Montez Cabuchon Parian

Special Feature!! Lola Montez Cabuchon Parian

Because doll clothing is modeled after what people wore, this post is to show you what a proper lady of the 1870′s wore and what is possible in fabricating custom doll clothing for your doll.

CLICK on READ THE REST and view ALL that Lola wears!

It is difficult being a lady of the 1870′s and Lola Montez is no exception. She has to hurry to dress for her walk on the promenade.

Click photos to enlarge.

Lola is a 24″ parian doll with a leather hinged body, parian dish hands and rust colored parian boots. Her hair is elaborately arranged with a braid circling her head, additional hair rolls and hair brush marks around the hair line. Her face is softly decorated with a red line accent above her eyes and red highlights on her lips. She has a lovely cabuchon embedded in her breast plate with a photo or her beloved mother framed with gold and accented with opal jewels on the chain.

Step by Step Lola Gets Dressed

Drawers

After her toilet, Lola puts on her drawers. They are soft, made of batiste, antique lace and accented with rows of pin tucks. They are also crotchless as it is cold when using the privy.

Chemise

Next she slips her matching chemise over her head. It is like a long slip. It fits softly under her corset so that it does not pinch or feel so tight. On hot summer days, sometimes she sleeps in it.

Corset

Her corset comes next. Her maid helps her as she eases it on. It has six ribs that are stiff which makes it hard for her to move. She understands that fashion and appearances is everything and she likes the way the corset pulls everything in for a stylish figure and her dresses fit better.

Petticoat

Next is her petticoat. Her petticoat has 2 ribs in the back that can be cinched with draw strings to tighten for a fuller, fashionable bustle. The bustle in the back is the new rage from the round hoops of the Civil War years. It is easier for her to move through the house without bumping into things with the old hoops. She also likes the look of the petticoat and thinks it makes her look slimmer, almost flat in the front and lots of fullness in the back.

Dress

Lola slips her double skirted dress over her head. The under-skirt is striped dupioni silk with fine lines of reds, greens and golds. The short over-skirt is a dark brown dupioni silk with rows of accenting french knots. She will add the lapels which will keep the swags in the upper skirt in place. The bodice is a simple straight design with a round beck, drop shoulders and fitted long sleeves.

Lapels

Lapels and bustle come next. Attached to a silk belt and buttoned in front, the lapels are gold two tone China silk trimmed with gold silk daises and cotton embroidery at the tops. They attach to the upper skirt to cover the swag gathers and add fashion accents. The bustle lays softly on the raised platform made by the petticoat hoops and accents the back of the dress. The bustle is made of antique cotton embroidery cuffs and gathered for fullness.

Lapel

Lola's lapels and bustle details

Fichu
Shawl

Lola is worried that it might be chilly outside. She decides to leave her gloves and grabs her shawl fichu. She likes the shawl fichu because it is is shorter than her cape. It does not have arm holes so she is able to move more freely. Kept in place with an attached belt and slip brass buckle, it is made of same silk as her lapels, matching her other assemble pieces perfectly. The shawl is overlain with an antique embroidery collar and edged with the same silk daisies as her lapels.

Hat

The last item Lola has to put on is her hat. Hats of the 1870 were small, cap-like. Hers is made of gathered silk, ostrich feathers, antique tule and accented with an antique seed pearl broach. She is ready for her walk.

Ready!
Off she goes!

Mary Lincoln Project

What started out as an antique doll mystery on EBay turned into a new friendship and antique doll clothing project with Mary Todd Lincoln presenter and author Donna McCreary. Used as an authority by the Abrahan Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum in Springfield, IL, Donna was inspired by pieces owned by the museum and the Smithsonian to write Fashionable First Lady: The Victorian Wardrobe of Mary Lincoln which offers insight into the personality of Mary Lincoln through her exquisite wardrobe. A dream of Donna’s has been to have select wardrobe pieces to display on her speaking tours and later donate to the Lincoln Museum. This extensive project to replicate a number of outfits of Mary Lincoln’s wardrobe in authentic Civil War era style is now becoming a reality! (LINK to Donna McCreary’s web site on Recommended Links page)

NOTE: Click on picture for actual size.
** Dolls are reproduction Mary Todd Lincoln (kit) sold by Yield House in 1970′s.

Double Skirt & Mantle
1860

Snapping a photo of the new first lady and her two young boys, Mary wore a silk skirt with two deep flounces. The original fabric, as in this one is in a geometric patterns with a row of small diamonds. The original gown had small and large diamond shapes in a horizontal line. Underneath Mary wears pantaloons, an double layered eyelet petticoat with bustle eyelet and hoop. Her antique white blouse has antique lace at the cuffs and bodice front. The dress is fitted with the geometric design meeting in the front in a V shaped pattern. The mantle is lined in black cotton and accented with matching silk insets, black cording and draw strings with tassels. Her bonnet is trimmed with lace, flowers and greenery. Read the rest of this entry »