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Jan Foulke, who is a world renowned doll authority
and doll book author agreed to an interview for the
NADDA "Sharing Thoughts and Ideas" page.
Jan is the author of the widely
circulated "Blue Book" which is unquestionably the most relied upon price
guide on Antique and Collectible Dolls. |
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This interview was
conducted by Yvonne Baird:
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Jan & Howard Foulke |
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YVONNE: Jan, give us a bit of background on
when and how you got involved in collecting and selling antique dolls.
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JAN: Well, I
was a general line antiques dealer, who ran across dolls from time to
time. Especially at shows, my young daughter Beth always wanted to look at
the antique dolls. She asked for one for her birthday, so always wanting
more information on whatever I was buying, I bought the Colemans’ Doll
Encyclopedia, and that was the beginning. Then we started to buy some
dolls for resale. I was not really the doll collector at that time. Beth
was. She especially became interested in Lenci dolls. She was one of the
first collectors to specialize in them. And she collected 1950s Ginny
dolls as a fun item. At that time we were paying $12-15 for beautiful all
original Ginnys.
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YVONNE: One of the features, or I should
say style that I admire most about your books is your organizational
ability. That is, your books are easy to reference and contain
information that is pertinent without going into detail that is not
relative. Before computers were available, how did you handle collecting
all of this detail and storing it for your own reference?
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JAN:
I went through hundreds
of file cards. I had notes in the margins of my personal copy of the
Blue Book, and Post-its sticking to all of the pages. Actually, even
though I use a computer now, I still have tons of hand-written notes in my
books and lots of Post-its, too.
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YVONNE:
How did your collecting evolve and what type of dolls do you focus on now? |
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JAN:
Well, first I was a
dealer. My personal collecting started out with just putting aside dolls
that I particularly liked. I was pretty eclectic. I liked cloth dolls,
such as Babylands and Draytons, and especially Raggedy Anns. I liked
Jumeaux and Steiners. Then I realized that what I really, really liked
were small dolls, particularly all-bisques. So mainly now, in my business
I specialize in small antique dolls, though I do still sell a wide variety
of antique and collectible dolls. In my personal collection, I currently
specialize in all-bisques, particularly early German girls and French
mignonettes, though I still have some small Jumeaux and Steiners. |
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YVONNE: In today's market, what type of dolls
do you think are under rated? |
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JAN:
The early papier-mâché,
wax-overs, tauflings and patent washables. I love these when they have
wonderful old clothes. Even when the faces have some wear, these dolls
have loads of charm, and they are genuine antiques. Best of all, nice
examples of a good many of them can be purchased for under $500. |
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YVONNE: People always ask, what advice would
you give a new collector and I am sure you are tired of this question, but
I need to ask it anyway.
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JAN:
I think the main thing
is to study. Read books about the dolls you are interested in. Spend a lot
of time at shows looking at dolls. Go to museums to study dolls. Talk with
other collectors and dealers. Ask questions. Learn all that you can. When
you are ready to buy, buy what you like and will enjoy owning, not what
someone else tells you that you should like. Buy the best example that you
can afford. As you get more into collecting, your tastes may change, and
that’s ok. Variety in a collection makes it interesting, too. But I always
think it’s nice for a collection to have a focus, a specialty. |
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YVONNE: There are always concerns in any field
of collecting. Can you share with us your concerns in the year 2005?
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JAN:
Right now, in the field
of antique dolls, my biggest concern is the many fakes currently entering
the doll market. Many of these are coming from Germany. Some disreputable
dealers are saying they have dolls from the old factories, when actually
what they have is dolls made to look like they came from the old
factories. This is particularly happening in the field of small all-bisque
dolls. You can go on a large internet selling site and see these small
dolls being misrepresented. Many of them are being sold as all-original
pairs tied on cards, as sets of salesman samples in boxes, as five little
dolls on a
card. There is one googly being widely sold, which is totally bogus. In a
very deceiving way, it is marked 292, which is also a legitimate Kestner
googly number. (see picture of an authentic pair of 292 Googlies
below.)
However, the fake googly never even existed as an old doll. Be wary of
Heubach all-bisque children, especially in original boxes. Many of these
fake dolls are now being resold and beginning to show up in US auctions,
dealers’ ads, and booths at doll shows. I am afraid that they will be
around to haunt us for a long time.
My second concern is all of the faked boxed doll sets that I see all of
the time in magazines, auctions and at shows. There are some genuine
Etrennes, out there, true. But many of these sets are being made by
clever and talented people. Some of these people sell these items for what
they are, newly made up sets using old items. But by the time they change
hands a few times, they are represented as all original. The majority of
these that I see are coming from Europe. There is nothing wrong with
these, as they are exceedingly charming, if they are represented as what
they really are. |
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YVONNE: Do you have any special advice to
collectors who have become wary of replicas and fakes?
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JAN:
Study these fakes.
Train your eye. You soon will be able to spot them across the room or on
the internet.
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YVONNE: Do you think it would be helpful to
have a web site for doll collectors to share their concerns and ask
questions regarding dolls that don't appear to be authentic antiques?
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JAN:
Yes, definitely. A
place to get expert help would be a wonderful aid to collectors. I hope
NADDA will consider it. |
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YVONNE: Do you have any current plans to do
another book and if so, can you share what you have in mind? |
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JAN:
Look for me to stay in
field and continue writing doll books. That is all I am at liberty to say
about my plans at this time. |
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A pair of
authentic 292 Googlies, Gloria Duddlesten Collection. |
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Notes to our Readers: |
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1.- If any reader has a fake 292 Googly or other fake
dolls that are referred to in this article and would like to share their
pictures please contact Yvonne Baird:
baird2@comcast.net |
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2.- Check this site in the future for possible additional
pictures. |
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