Most folks can remember a special doll or teddy bear from childhood that brought great joy and comfort in tough times. Although the years take their toll on these treasures, a special few doll lovers are ready to lend a mending hand. Ollie Dearing, who prefers the name Grannie, is one of them. Now 86 years old, Ollie has derived joy from repairing and restoring dolls for more than 50 years. She began her work with dolls by dressing them up in costumes to help her daughter learn the history of other countries. Today she makes other peoples' treasures come to life by working on all kinds of dolls, including porcelain and composition dolls--even stuffed animals. Grannie suggests cleaning porcelain dolls with soap and water but warns that you should be careful not to get water in the eye area, where the plaster of Paris can easily be ruined. She finds that acne soap works well on very dirty dolls (as if they were teenagers), whereas cold creams and a damp cloth are best for composition dolls. Broken joints can often be repaired with epoxy or dental powder and glue. An abundance of work has encouraged Grannie to take on an assistant, Rose Barsamyan, whom she has found to be sharp and eager to save the little dolls. Rose is learning the tricks of the trade, and thus far Grannie's protegee can report that she has repaired 14 dolls and assisted in fixing many others. Grannie also makes clothes for the dolls. These are even more time-consuming than repairs because they must be fitted to the doll. Making doll clothes requires the skills of an excellent seamstress. And doll clothes are expensive
RESOURCES :
Rose Basamyan
Ollie Dearing
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