Victorian Dollhouse Dolls

This family of small bisque dolls were made in Germany specifically for dollhouses in the late 1800s. They live in my Dunham's Cocoanut Dollhouse, which dates to the 1890s, so they feel right at home. Mom and Dad measure 6 inches tall, and are wearing their original clothing. The little all-bisque girl, made by Limbach, is 4 inches tall, and wears her original dress. She's a sweetie...

Antique China Head Dollhouse Dolls

These little German-made china head dollhouse dolls measure about 4 and 5 inches tall, and date from the early 1900s. They were sold unclothed, and little girls were meant to hone their sewing skills by making them dresses. These two came from unsold store stock: they still have their legs delicately stitched together, to prevent breakage from clacking against each other during shipping.

This slightly larger doll wears a lovely ensemble crafted for her by her owner many, many years ago.

1920s Bisque Dollhouse Dolls

I found this family (and maid) of tiny German bisque dollhouse dolls tucked away in an old candy box, half-buried in a pile of junque in a dealer's showcase. Dating from the 1920s, they measure about 3 1/2 inches tall, with the maid (on the left) being a little bit smaller.

Grandpa lost an arm in the Great War, but that's okay: grandparents are rare dollhouse figures, so we love him anyway. (And no, Grandpa was not a cross-dresser. The manufacturers used the same standard legs on both sexes for efficiency in assembly, and just hoped we wouldn't notice.)

These dolls appear to have been sold naked, although I have seen others that look as if they were factory-dressed. I keep meaning to make them some clothes, but I haven't gotten around to it yet...they've been waiting for 80 years, so hopefully they won't mind waiting a few more.

1930s Dollhouse Food

Antique and vintage dollhouse food is one of my favorite toys to collect. Not easy to find, its always especially exciting to come across a type I haven't seen before, or a set in its original box.

This set, featuring hand-molded food on metal plates, dates to the 1930s. Each plate measures about 1 1/4 inches wide. On the back of the box is its original price sticker, $1.50, from the John Wanamaker Department Store.

Antique Cracker Jack Prize

I loved Cracker Jack as a kid. Back in the 1970s, they still put cool prizes in the boxes: tiny pinball games that actually worked, cute little plastic figures that we carried in our pockets and traded with friends, tattoos and glow-in-the-dark stickers, and punch-out scenes to build. But by the late 1980s, new safety standards had been applied and the prizes were hardly fit to be called such.

I still buy a box every once in a while, hoping against reason to find something fabulous inside, but I'm always disappointed. As an adult, my love of Cracker Jack prizes was rekindled when I discovered how much better even older prizes were: toy trains, tiny china dolls, itty bitty pieces of furniture, and this, one of the most longed-for antique Cracker Jack prizes on my wish list.

Dating from the 1920s, this "Breakfast Set" consists of teeny tiny real glass dishes (a plate, bowl, and cup) along with a metal spoon, all housed in a fragile matchbox. (Talk about safety hazards!) I don't know how excited some small child was to pull this fantastic prize out of her box of Cracker Jack 80 years ago, but I sure was to find it a few months ago!